How accurate are your mechanical watches?

kamagong

kamagong

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I remember reading somewhere that the acceptable accuracy for a Swiss-certified chronometer is +6/-4 seconds per day. Non-certified watches are acceptably accurate if they are within +/- 10 seconds per day.

My own personal watches fall well within the Swiss chronometer standards. My first, a Hamilton Khaki Automatic, loses a couple of seconds per day. I set it on the first of each month. My second, a Seiko 5 Sports, gains 3 seconds per day, and I set it every three weeks. The accuracy of both watches is quite acceptable IMO. It's true that neither of these automatics is as accurate as a Timex I can get at Wal-Mart, but if I really need the time down to the second I can always consult my cell phone.

I'm asking strictly out of curiosity. I know what the COSC standards are, but I wonder how accurate the watches that are actually out there are.
 
My Seiko black monster is not particularly accurate, though I don't have exact numbers and have never attempted to adjust it. It just goes with the territory. But after getting used the accuracy of an atomic watch that is always "accurate" (G-Shock), my Seiko has not gotten any love in a long time.
 
My Rolex Sea Dweller stays well within COSC standards. Approx a 30-45 seconds fast at the end of a month. I wear mine 24/7.
 
I've got a Seiko SKX173 that loses time. When it gets 5 minutes slow I set it 5 minutes fast. I'm not timing a shuttle launch or a moon mission so it's good enough for me.

If I had to time a moon mission I'd wear my Citizen BM6400 eco-drive. The only time I have to set it is when I have to change the calendar and it's always spot-on before I pull the stem.

I don't wear a mechanical watch for it's accuracy (though I'm always impressed at how accurate a good watch can be), I wear it because I like mechanical things.
 
My SandY 490 manual wind is my best by far. The last time I checked it with time.gov it had gained 17 seconds in 14 days.
 
I have a seiko sumthineruther that loses about 30 seconds a month.

I had a, practically bulletproof "Authentic Russian Submariners Watch" that gained about 7 seconds a day, and probably still would be if it wasn't sitting at the bottom of a particularly bad section of rapids on the Penobscot river. (The band was not bulletproof)
 
My cheap $60 Casio sets itself by checking the atomic clock a couple of times a day. Seriously accurate.
 
Sorry about yor loss:(

I should start a thread on what I have lost or was stolen (by punks or by punks with badges). My brain is starting to hurt just thinking about it.
 
What's with this "+/-" crap? If I can do "±" on my stinking BlackBerry, you ought to be able to do it too.

(JK:D)
 
I love Oris watches and I have them both in ETA and Sellita movements and on average I estimate +/- 4 daily. I've been really lucky with accuracy.
 
How accurate are your mechanical watches?
Click to expand...
Not very.
I have three Seiko divers and they all get about 3-5 minutes off in the first week after being set. I love the watches and have worn them for years but my Casio Pathfinder seems to have put them in the safe for good. Every time I wear one in the last few years I'm back to the atomic solar Pathfinder in about a day.

If I was making a new watch purchase tomorrow in the $200-$300 dollar range I would pass right over the mechanicals and get a Pathfinder.
 
ZENITH WATCH IS ALWAYS RIGHT!

The rest of the world may be a bit off at times.
 
My Omega Aqua Terra was off by enough that I had it fixed under warranty about 18 months ago. I don't remember precisely how far off it was, but it was slow enough that I noticed; maybe 50% outside of COSC standard. Fixed for free.

Now it keeps pretty good time; maybe -2/day (I haven't checked since it was regulated). Better time than Sprint's cellular time, anyway!

Coaxial movement, so I shouldn't need to get it serviced until 2017.
 
My manual wind Hamilton pocket watch from the '70s is usually good to ±2 min a week. Good enough for me. It's the only watch I use.
 
I use an old Seiko 5 auto, not sure how accurate it is. Maybe a few minutes fast per fortnight. I'm quite happy with it for the price.:thumbup:
 
my GMT Master (BX version 1972, $256) lost about 12 seconds a month when new.... 35years later when I retired it, was losing 5min a month... rebuilt about every 12 years
 
My seiko black monster was almost dead on for months. I'd wear it all day then lay it face up overnight. Now that it's broken in it looses about 2 seconds per day. Pretty phenomenal IMHO.
Sometimes when using an axe or something extreme like that it will do weird stuff like gain 15 sec or something but I've only noticed that twice.

I haven't set my watch in a few months and I just checked it here:
http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/city.html?n=179
It's 24 sec slow, not bad at all.
 
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