automatic watch winders and Rolex wearing out

[SearChart]

Originally Posted by rdigate

I asked this question and got my cup of sarcasm as well. My opinion aafter reading many threads and having a winder myself is that a winder is a convenience and will not hurt any watch. Modern winders are programable so you can program a "delay" to allow allow the spring to release tension and prevent it from being continually fully torqued. Winders are most convenient when your watch has a sophisticated complication like a moon phase. This can be a real PITA to set and I keep my moon phase watches on a winder to keep my sanity. Since Rolex watches don't often have sophisticated complications, they are easy to set and there is no real reason to put them on a winder unless you want them ready to go.


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They are indeed for convenience and will not 'hurt' the watch.
However like Larry stated, say you're wearing the watch three days of the week and the other four it's in a drawer VS the four days on a winder. You will eventually wear the movement out quicker if you have it on the winder compared to having it in the drawer simply because the mechanisms are moving and thus causes more wear.

[The Libertine]

I do not own a winder; I do not see the need.

[blufinz52]

I wind my Speedmaster every morning, whether I wear it or not for a few days. I keep my Rolex and a couple of other automatics on a winder for convenience.

@KDS777, to compare running a vehicle 24/7 to keeping a mechanical watch running 24/7 is a false equivalency.

[cjohns]

I'm a simple thinking guy but isn't just like a car if you aren't driving, motor is off it's not wearing out ?? I'm I off base here ? I know all my machines I'm in charge of at work to keep them running don't break if they are not in use.....

[breitlings]

Originally Posted by cjohns

I'm a simple thinking guy but isn't just like a car if you aren't driving, motor is off it's not wearing out ?? I'm I off base here ? I know all my machines I'm in charge of at work to keep them running don't break if they are not in use.....

Well I am not sure if it is a good analogy but there are some issues from not running your engine for long periods of time and some serious car collectors do hire people to drive their car for a bit now and then to keep them up.

Also some engines don't like to stop and start, Newton's first law comes to mind... Not sure if either are applicable to watches but could see the argument.

[Andad]

I'm with Larry on this.

No movement - no wear.

[Tony64]

Originally Posted by directioneng

I'm with Larry on this.

No movement - no wear.

I hate to drag this topic on, but respectfully I think Larry's example is an oversimplification.

Clearly a watch that is never worn will incur no "wear", but that's only a fair comparison if a watch is never to be worn. Otherwise we must consider the first law of physics: "an object at rest remains at rest, an object in motion remains in motion". A watch worn intermittently, once allowed to stop, must overcome inertia each time it's called into use. That requires an additional force applied to the mechanism that a watch on a winder would avoid.

Does that result in premature degradation of the movement vs a watch left on a winder? Who knows, and more importantly, who cares? The additional wear resulting from either winder or inertia is hardly significant enough to keep a watch unworn. Only an unworn watch incurs no wear, unless we're now going to discuss the process of natural corrosion and decay in the sock drawer vs the winder. Please, let's not.

tl/dr version: it's not science, it's preference.

[wrist_watcher]

Originally Posted by directioneng

I'm with Larry on this.

No movement - no wear.

If wear concerns you, throw it in the sock drawer or the safe and call it a day!

[Andad]

Originally Posted by wrist_watcher

If wear concerns you, throw it in the sock drawer or the safe and call it a day!

No, I just don't see the point in having my auto watches (30) all buzzing around on watch winders.

Could just be a Scottish thing.

[brkanand]

I do not have a watch winder. Three out of four watches of mine stay idle for months - at times more than a year. I have not had a problem with any one of them. I pick up what I like to wear. I wear that for a couple of months. Set the time and wear it as if it was always sitting on my wrist. No problems whatsoever so far.

[Rock]

If you contend that having the watch running continuously causes wear that would not occur if it was stopped, then you must also acknowledge that winding and setting the watch every second day causes wear on the relevant parts that would not otherwise occur.
I have had problems with the Crown mechanism on both of my automatic watches that has required an RSC service and so I am keen to minimise the 'wear & tear' on this part of the mechanism.
This is not why I use a winder however. I use it because I'm not interested in winding and setting the watch every alternate day when I swap over.