Our mission here at Toolwatch is to help every watch lover enjoying the most out of his timepieces. Things can indeed get pretty annoying when your watch starts having issues. Follow those 10 tips for your mechanical watches and you’ll keep the watchmaker away from them !
#1 Check every one to two years that your watch is still waterproof. Water resistance should be check regularly especially if your watch has received a choc or any time the case is being opened. Find out more on mechanical watches and water resistance.
#2 Wind your watch regularly (or wear them for automatic movements). Watches should not be left without working for a long period of time. You want the oils in the movement to keep lubricating it. You can also use a watch-winder. In case you are wearing a manual winding watch, take the habit of winding it every morning. Read our article on mechanical watch winding.
#3 Avoid extreme temperature variations. Mechanical movement do not like them. You’ll know that next time you jump into a jaccuzzi or enjoy a hammam.
#4 Avoid magnetic fields. Magnetic fields can disturb the accuracy of your watch or even stop it from ticking. You think that your watch’s accuracy should be checked ? Find out by reading our article on the effect of magnetism on mechanical watches.
PRO TIP: Having a great watch demagnetizer to safely and quickly demagnetize your watch’s movement will make your watch proud of its owner!
#5 Keep your watch away from any severe shock. Most recent watches have anti shock movements up to a certain extent. However, if you are doing any intense activity such as golf or tennis, you might want to take out your watch from your wrist.
PRO TIP: Store your timepieces in a dedicated watch safe when you are not wearing them.
#6 Do not manipulate the crown or any push-buttons in the water. That’s just a bad idea.
#7 Rinse thoroughly your watch with clear water after swimming in the sea or the pool. You want to remove chlorine and/or salt from your watch before they dry and start damaging your watch.
#8 Avoid wearing your leather straps every day. Just like leather shoes, wearing them each day won’t allow your strap to breath and dry from the usual perspiration. That might also be a good reason for buying another strap (we love natos!) or even another watch (please do not held us responsible for that)!
#9 Have regular maintenance services for your watch. Depending on watches, we recommend having your watch serviced around every 5 years. That is twice a decade and that will be a good investment if you are planning on enjoying your watch for the long term (and spare you from more costly repairing operations).
#10 Check regularly the accuracy of your watch. In fact, that’s the best and easiest way of knowing if your watch is doing fine. You can find out on Toolwatch.io (and it’s free!)
We hope those tips were useful and please share in the comments any other tips for taking care of your watches you might have! If your looking for a treat, you should check our ultimate watch gift guide for a watch lover!
See you soon for a next article to share our love for mechanical watches!
Take care of your mechanical watch and measure its accuracy on http://t.co/REp30PCNEl ! Share your results with us 🙂 #WatchLover
— Toolwatch.io (@ToolwatchApp) October 10, 2015