What are the factors affecting watch lifespan?

　　Hello everyone! I am Xiaoya, consistent inside and out. Many people do not pay attention to maintenance after buying a watch, and soon find that the watch is broken. So do you know what factors affect the lifespan of a watch? If you still do not know, take a quick look below.

　　Lifespan of automatic mechanical watches

　　Generally, the minimum service life of an automatic mechanical watch is 10 years, and top brands with better quality can even run for a century without stopping. The lifespan of an automatic mechanical watch is a question that many mechanical watch enthusiasts want to know.

　　The service life of mechanical watches is generally shorter than that of quartz watches. This is determined by the internal operating structure of mechanical and quartz watches. Mechanical watches mainly generate power through the movement of the escapement and regulator system.

　　Factors affecting watch lifespan

　　1. Working principle affects lifespan

　　There are many structural types of automatic watches, but their working principles are roughly the same. The automatic winding device is installed at the back of the movement and can be seen by opening the case back. Automatic Swiss watch movements are generally relatively thick. Generally, an automatic watch with a reversing wheel structure consists of an oscillating weight (rotor), reversing wheel, automatic transmission wheel, automatic reduction wheel, and so on. The oscillating weight is fixed to the central oscillating weight arbor with screws.

　　Under the action of external force, it rotates around the centre, driving the reversing wheel. The reversing wheel arbor teeth of a full automatic watch then push the automatic transmission wheel to rotate, the automatic transmission wheel pushes the automatic reduction wheel, and the automatic reduction wheel meshes with the ratchet wheel teeth, making the ratchet wheel turn tooth by tooth to wind the mainspring. A full automatic watch can wind the mainspring when the oscillating weight rotates in either direction. This differs from a unidirectional reversing device, bidirectional reversing device, or ratchet and pawl device.

　　2. Operation methods affect watch lifespan

　　1 During use, because the mainspring of an automatic watch can generally maintain a certain level of tension, taking it off the wrist and leaving it stationary will still allow it to run for over twenty-four hours.

　　2 After years of use, the flexibility of an automatic watch may decrease due to wear on the automatic components. Therefore, you should still swing the watch for a certain period every night before bed to make up for insufficient power.

　　3 If the automatic winding mechanism fails, you can also wind the mainspring manually, though it will not fully wind. Manual winding will feel somewhat stiffer because the gears and oscillating weight of the automatic module will also rotate along with the ratchet wheel.

　　How to extend watch lifespan?

　　(1) Fully wind the watch mainspring at regular intervals every 24 hours.

　　(2) When setting the time on a mechanical watch, the hands can be turned either forwards or backwards.

　　(3) If the timekeeping is fast or slow, the regulator index on the back of the watch can be adjusted. Move it towards the '-' direction if the watch is running fast, and towards the '+' direction if it is running slow. Moving it by 1 graduation adjusts the time by 3-5 minutes.

　　(4) To use the alarm, first align the alarm disc time with the alarm arrow, then fully wind the alarm spring. Each full wind allows the alarm to sound once. For a second use, the alarm must be rewound an hour and a half after it has gone off.

　　(5) To silence the alarm, push down the stop button on top-bell alarm clocks, or flick the silencing lever on twin-bell alarm clocks.

　　(6) The watch should be kept clean and should not be placed in damp, dusty, high-temperature, or strong magnetic environments.

　　(7) Avoid severe impacts and vibrations, and protect the watch from acidic and alkaline chemical corrosion.

　　(8) Depending on usage conditions, it is best to have the watch cleaned and oiled every two years or so to extend its lifespan.

　　There are many factors that affect the lifespan of a watch, but as long as you pay attention to daily maintenance, you can well extend the service life of the watch.

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