Do you prefer a hand-wound or an automatic movement?
Part of the reason why I'm into watches is the romantic idea of winding my watch every morning. That intimate, almost meditative time when it's just you and your watch; you set the time, you wind it, you put it on. It also allows the watch to generally be thinner given the absence of a rotor, and if there's an exhibition caseback, you can see the movement better.
I don't own an automatic watch and only own one hand-wound, but given the choice, I'll always go with manual wind for the romanticism! How about you?
N.B.: This is nothing against quartz movements, most of my watches are quartz and I don't discriminate!
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Jean-Philippe
Professional guitar player and teacher, cat dad, coffee lover and watch enthusiast.
Montréal
Member since
Last active: 1 day ago
7.50” / 19.05 cm
I ve got both of them. Though they say one cannot break the axle i ve managed it 1 time. Since then i wind it very carefully, and thus i didn t get the benefit of 42 hrs of time reserve. For me automatic is easier to handle
I like and own both.
However I find no romance in hand winding a watch.
I also like and own both, but I prefer to not have to wind. I’m always paranoid I forgot or that it’s going to slow down if it gets too low, etc.
I like both but only earn two manuals versus fifteen plus automatics. I agree with the therapy of winding your watch though!
I also like and own both, but I prefer to not have to wind. I’m always paranoid I forgot or that it’s going to slow down if it gets too low, etc.
Good point!
I like and own both.
However I find no romance in hand winding a watch.
We all get something different out of this hobby!
All the mechanical watches in my collection are autos but I keep most of them running and ready. Funnily enough, my wind up routine happens before bed time when I’m winding down myself. I do like winding them up, maybe I’m being over romantic, but it helps me develop a different kind of relationship to them.
A + B + C
:-)
All the mechanical watches in my collection are autos but I keep most of them running and ready. Funnily enough, my wind up routine happens before bed time when I’m winding down myself. I do like winding them up, maybe I’m being over romantic, but it helps me develop a different kind of relationship to them.
Glad to see I'm not alone! It's in the morning for me. But my Timex isn't very accurate (easily +/- 30 sec./day) so I stopped winding it every day and just let it stop until I want to wear it again. It's more accurate that way for the day or two I wear it. 🤷♂
Retire and you have to hand wind the automatics because your not as busy anymore. I think its our instinct to be a parent to something that needs us that does it.
I have automatic, quartz, and manual wind in my collection. I definitely prefer automatic for the easy of use and mechanical craftsmanship aspect of it but I think that it has to fit the watch. Some watches do better as manual wind
Having all three in my collection, quartz and automatic are the best for hassle free ownership, but, much like you, I always find myself loving the winding up of a hand-wound calibre. Coupled with hand-wound movements being slimmer, hand-wound is my go-to, even if it's more of a hassle to start up every morning than quartz and automatic options.
As much as I’d like to be open to them, I’ll never buy a manual wind. I just don’t see the point. Beyond a slightly thinner case profile, manual wind has no advantages that I can see.
Retire and you have to hand wind the automatics because your not as busy anymore. I think its our instinct to be a parent to something that needs us that does it.
To quote Billy Joel: You may be right!
I'll let you fill in the next phrase 😅
I have automatic, quartz, and manual wind in my collection. I definitely prefer automatic for the easy of use and mechanical craftsmanship aspect of it but I think that it has to fit the watch. Some watches do better as manual wind
How do you feel a manual wind would suit a watch better than an automatic?
Automatic winding is quite a neat trick. It keeps the watch wound and largely eliminates the need for a constant force mechanism. In manually wound watches those will set you back upwards of 40,000$... that little rotor doesn't get enough credit.
That's a great innovation for sure!
So you're saying that the automatic rotor keeps the watch wound just enough so the spring isn't wound too tight?
Automatic overall but manual when it’s a beautiful movement so you can see it. Microrotor is a great in between!
I was hoping no one would bring up micro rotors... 😅
I think for looks, hand wound typically looks better, but automatic is just more practical.
Due to the nature of all the watches I own being extremely old automatics, they don't have hand winding. Plus I appreciate hand winded watches, in their constant need for attention. I'm a pretty meticulous person as well :3
Due to the nature of all the watches I own being extremely old automatics, they don't have hand winding. Plus I appreciate hand winded watches, in their constant need for attention. I'm a pretty meticulous person as well :3
So you're saying that the hand-winding function on automatic watches is a new thing?
So you're saying that the hand-winding function on automatic watches is a new thing?
Most of the automatic vintage watches I own don't have hand winding. Most of em are 40~50s orient or seiko movements. Example of one of em I'm wearing now
Most of the automatic vintage watches I own don't have hand winding. Most of em are 40~50s orient or seiko movements. Example of one of em I'm wearing now
Interesting! I thought that older watches all had hand-wound movements and that automatics were more "recent".
Interesting! I thought that older watches all had hand-wound movements and that automatics were more "recent".
I have extremely old automatic watches dating back to the 1940s That are automatics with day & date functions but no hand winding. My guess is that its for cost cutting reasons, as it would add further complication to the movement.
I'm used to it due to all my families old watches being non hand wound automatic watches. I remember seeing my grandpa shaking the watch I'm wearing for it to recharge and turn on.
I have extremely old automatic watches dating back to the 1940s That are automatics with day & date functions but no hand winding. My guess is that its for cost cutting reasons, as it would add further complication to the movement.
I'm used to it due to all my families old watches being non hand wound automatic watches. I remember seeing my grandpa shaking the watch I'm wearing for it to recharge and turn on.
That's a way for the watches to get attention too, shaking them instead of winding the crown!
That's a way for the watches to get attention too, shaking them instead of winding the crown!
Fair but winding is still more appealing
Fair but winding is still more appealing
I'm with you on that one!
I prefer Automatic but I like them all... I honestly hate winding and fixing my auto when my quartz is reliable and ready to go
I prefer Automatic but I like them all... I honestly hate winding and fixing my auto when my quartz is reliable and ready to go
That's what I discovered after a few months with a mechanical watch, it's not as practical as quartz (unless you wear one or two automatics everyday and keep them wound that way all the time). I also realized that accuracy is more important to me than I thought, so quartz is more and more appealing!
Most of the automatic vintage watches I own don't have hand winding. Most of em are 40~50s orient or seiko movements. Example of one of em I'm wearing now
So what’s that mean the only way is to shake it?
So what’s that mean the only way is to shake it?
Indeed, you need to shake it slowly from side to side for it to start then you can get more vigorous with it. Most of the movements in em (though I'm not familiar with their exact specs) don't charge efficiently from spastic movement. Hence you'd need to have more of slow tilts from side to side for it to charge.