Keep Automatic Watch Winded?
Hey y'all, quick question here. If I don't foresee myself wearing my automatic watch any time soon, do I need to keep it in a watch winder, or am I ok with just letting it stay still for an extended period of time?
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Ideally it should be run every month or so, but modern synthetic lubricants won't gunk up so there should be no harm. A winder is totally unnecessary for storage. I just come from the "rolling stone gathers no moss" school that thinks disuse is abuse so I'd pick it up, put in on, walk around wearing it a bit every so often.
I let mind rest and catch their breath 😀
For me, winders save the hassle of setting and winding a watch. I wanna pick it up and go.
However, the only reason I'd use a winder is if the watch is super accurate to begin with. If it's +/- __ seconds per day, and you don't wear it for a week, then by time you pick it up you may (depending on your need for accuracy) have to reset the time anyway.
I have a couple watches with very finnicky crowns that I'm afraid of damaging with too much winding (one being a vintage Rolex that I can't afford to service yet). This is the type of watch I'd use a winder on.
That's my $.02
You are totally fine to let it sit. The springs will not be harmed or take a "set", and you're actually putting less wear on all of the mechanisms and lubricants. I'm not saying that watch mechanisms create much wear. The amount of it is absolutely minuscule. But at the same time, it's not zero. So there is essentially no downside to letting it sit unwound.
I let them sit idle. I don’t own a winder. I think winders cause more wear than necessary. I would use one if I had a perpetual calendar though, just to prevent the nuisance value.
I had a boss who had his 1991 Pepsi GMT on a winder since new. He only wore it for special occasions a couple times a year but it had a solid 28 years of constant running on the movement with no service at all.
That’s a extreme case but either way it doesn’t really matter. Nothing you do in normal use will irreparably harm the watch so do what you are most comfortable with.