How often do you wind a mechanical watch?

[Marvy]

Hi,

I just received a vintage gold ladies Cartier watch. So far, it's keeping excellent time--very pleased with that. How often should I wind it? I want to be careful not to over-wind.

Thanks very much!

[sakuraba]

A Rolex in good shape has a reserve of about 48 hours. I would do the "40 turns" before then.

[gaopa]

I wind my Omega Speedmaster Professional, the moon watch, nightly. Cheers, Bill P.

[JJ Irani]

Originally Posted by Marvy

Hi,

I just received a vintage gold ladies Cartier watch. So far, it's keeping excellent time--very pleased with that. How often should I wind it? I want to be careful not to over-wind.

Thanks very much!

Welcome to the forum, Marvy!!

Unlike modern mechanical automatic watches which have a slipping clutch mechanism to prevent over-winding, a vintage watch such as the one you've described would be hand-wound - NOT automatic.....so you do need to be careful.

Do a mental count on how many turns of the crown it takes to get in a FULL wind, then the next time reduce those turns by 2 or so in order to prevent over-winding.

Good luck - JJ

[Marvy]

Originally Posted by JJ Irani

Welcome to the forum, Marvy!!

Unlike modern mechanical automatic watches which have a slipping clutch mechanism to prevent over-winding, a vintage watch such as the one you've described would be hand-wound - NOT automatic.....so you do need to be careful.

Do a mental count on how many turns of the crown it takes to get in a FULL wind, then the next time reduce those turns by 2 or so in order to prevent over-winding.

Good luck - JJ

I'm going to try what you recommend-appreciate the advice.

I love that this watch has a mechanical movement with such a lovely design. I've been reading a bit on this forum, and now I want a Rolex too--doh!

Thanks for the tips guys!

[lorsban]

I wind my watches about 10-15 times at the crown if they've stopped working. Rolex and some other models can take more winds but I find that number sufficient.