Watch winder - some work, some don't

[Blaner]

Can anyone think of a likely reason why some of my watches will wind and others will not on a watch winder?

We can skip the discussion about whether or not watch winders are a good idea for this, I am familiar with the arguments on either side.

I have a Breitling chronograph that will stay running indefinitely. I have an Omega Aqua Terra that will not run more than 40 hours.

For the Rolex side of the fence, I have a vintage 5513 that stays running on it, and a 2017 BLNR that does not.

Same winder, same settings. Any ideas why a 40 year old Submariner would work while a new GMT would not?

[rdigate]

Check the winder settings to see whether rotation for that particular watch is clockwise, counterclockwise or bidirectional.


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[beshannon]

Originally Posted by rdigate

Check the winder settings to see whether rotation for that particular watch is clockwise, counterclockwise or bidirectional.


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Additionally the turns per day matter.

A watch winder will not "wind" a watch, it turns the rotor to keep the mainspring wound but the watch will never get as many turns as it could by simply winding the crown.

[mui.richard]

Originally Posted by Blaner

Can anyone think of a likely reason why some of my watches will wind and others will not on a watch winder?



We can skip the discussion about whether or not watch winders are a good idea for this, I am familiar with the arguments on either side.



I have a Breitling chronograph that will stay running indefinitely. I have an Omega Aqua Terra that will not run more than 40 hours.



For the Rolex side of the fence, I have a vintage 5513 that stays running on it, and a 2017 BLNR that does not.



Same winder, same settings. Any ideas why a 40 year old Submariner would work while a new GMT would not?

Both my explorer and Explorer 2 216570 works perfectly on a winder and would keep on running, so no I have no idea why your GMT wouldn't work.

Almost all my automatic watches, will keep on running on winders, except for a Christopher Ward which has the in-house CH21 movement where the rotor would only wind the mainspring in one direction aka ETA 7750. But the curious thing is my Tutor vintage Chronograph, which has a movement based on the ETA 7750, would keep on running despite the unidirectional rotor winding mechanism. So I guess it depends on the efficiency of the winding mechanism of the particular movement itself.

[Dr.Stu]

Originally Posted by rdigate

Check the winder settings to see whether rotation for that particular watch is clockwise, counterclockwise or bidirectional.


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Here is a link to a great database that will tell you what direction & how many TPD (turns per day) is recommended for your watch if placed in a winder:

https://www.orbita.com/winder-support/#

[tp0821]

Like everyone else has mentioned, winder settings--turns per day, direction--are specific to the particular watch movement. Having said that, I have a 2017 Omega Seamaster SMP 300 (Caliber 2500) that when placed on a winder at that recommended setting of 650 Bidirectional would still wind down and stop after 2 or 3 days. I have to jack up the TPD to 800 to keep it going. I wonder if the rotor can become inefficient somehow?

[Tools]

Most winders only put enough wind into your watch to keep it static, it doesn't actually wind it up.

If you are not putting enough wind into a particular movement to keep it static, it will stop on the winder. That is the test that most winder makers tells you that you need more turns for that watch.

Every watch is slightly different, so if your winder is set at the bare minimum needed to keep some watches going, it will likely not be enough for others.

[Blaner]

In all cases, I am putting all watches on fully wound.

Guidelines I see for the various watches show 650 TPD bi-directional, which is what my winder is set for.

It will keep the vintage Sub and Breitling going, it will not keep the Omega and BLNR going. I don't understand why there would be such a disparity.