Guide to Buying a Mechanical Watch

      How to choose a good mechanical watch? A watch is a precision timekeeping instrument that commands a higher price and is built for long-term use. Users care deeply about the quality of a timepiece. Therefore, people always strive for perfection when shopping for a watch, seeking out the very best. But how do you select a watch with satisfactory quality? Commonly, people judge the quality of a watch solely by listening to the volume and pitch of its ticking sound; however, this is unscientific. This is because the quality of a watch primarily depends on its actual timekeeping accuracy. A ticking sound that is even, clear, and free of background noise simply indicates that the movement is operating without faults, and it does not guarantee overall quality or serve as the only method for selecting a watch. You must also evaluate them based on the following aspects:

1. Inspecting the exterior components of the watch  

      The exterior of a watch can be inspected by examining the case, crystal, dial, and the hour, minute, and second hands. The case should be free from pinholes and obvious scratches, with symmetrical bevels and edges; the joint where the case back screws into the middle case should be tight; the distance between the two sets of lugs and the case should be equal, and the holes for the spring bars should be centred in the tips of the case legs without skewing, with an appropriate depth to prevent the strap from easily detaching; the crystal should be free of flaws and scratches, clear and bright; the three hands should be correctly installed, maintaining proper safety clearances between the hands themselves, as well as between the hands and the crystal and dial; the plating on the dial and hands should have a good finish without blemishes, and the dial markers or luminescence points should be intact; there should be a clearance of approximately 0.1 to 0.3mm between the crown and the case.  

2. Checking the sensitivity of the watch  

      The sensitivity of a watch refers to the ease with which its balance wheel automatically starts to oscillate. The inspection method is as follows:  

    (1) Gently shake a stationary watch that has not been wound, and observe the movement of the second hand using the momentum from the shake: if the second hand stops moving within a very short time, it indicates that the watch can run through its full power reserve once fully wound (meaning the mainspring has sufficient torque), showing high sensitivity; if the second hand continues to move for a long time, it indicates that the watch cannot run through its full power reserve when fully wound (meaning the mainspring still holds residual torque), showing low sensitivity or a movement fault.

      (2) Slowly turn the crown of a stationary, unwound watch and observe when the second hand starts moving: the fewer turns of the winding crown required for the second hand to start, the higher the sensitivity of the watch; conversely, low sensitivity or other movement faults are indicated. However, note that high-beat watches feature a stiffer hairspring, so they require slightly more winding than traditional frequency movements (18000 vibrations per hour) to start oscillating. A watch with high sensitivity will run for a longer duration after a single full wind.

3. Check the clearance and position of the watch hands

      A certain clearance must be maintained between the hands and the crystal, the dial, and each other, otherwise they will rub against one another and impair the normal operation of the movement. This can be checked by setting the hands. The correct inspection method for the position and coordination of the hour and minute hands is: set the minute and hour hands to 3 o'clock or 9 o'clock and check whether the two hands form a right angle; set them to 6 o'clock to see if they form a straight line; and set them to 12 o'clock to check if they overlap.

IV. Checking the watch winding mechanism

      Winding a normal watch should feel effortless. When turning the crown to wind, it will initially feel loose and gradually become tighter. When the crown can no longer be turned forward, it indicates that the mainspring is fully wound and the winding mechanism is operating correctly. If an abnormal clicking sound occurs when turning the winding crown, or if slipping or tooth-jumping happens, it indicates a fault in the winding mechanism.

  Step five, check the watch hand-setting mechanism  

        Setting the hands on a watch should be flexible, reliable, and the hands should rotate smoothly. The inspection should focus on the tightness of the frictional fit between the minute wheel and the cannon pinion. When setting the hands, if there is no feeling of excessive looseness or tightness, it indicates that the friction of the minute wheel is normal and the lubrication is appropriate; otherwise, there is a fault in the hand-setting components.   The aforementioned methods for purchasing a new watch can also be used as a reference when inspecting the quality of second-hand or repaired watches, though the standards should be appropriately adjusted depending on the age and usage of the watch.