How to maintain mechanical watches?
Comprehensive maintenance basically includes the following service steps:
- Demagnetize the watch. Remove the watch case; separate the movement from the case, and remove the hands and dial at the same time. Visual inspection and technical inspection are then carried out.
- Check all the mechanical settings and disassemble the movement into individual parts. Then carefully check each part for wear or damage, and repair or replace if necessary.
- Remove the oil stains on the movement after dismantling, and use a special liquid to wash away all the stains, and use an ultrasonic cleaner if necessary.
- After cleaning, reassemble the watch movement. All bearings and moving surfaces are lubricated one by one using a lubricant distributor.
- The watch case is disassembled into individual parts. Remove the other parts such as the crystal, sealing ring and button or rotating bezel one by one.
- Re-grind and polish the case, bracelet and buckle.
- The case, metal bracelet and buckle are placed in a special liquid for ultrasonic cleaning.
- Press the watch lens into the watch case. Replace all sealing rings and parts such as buttons and crowns that need to be replaced. Seal the case without installing the movement and conduct preliminary tests on its waterproof performance.
- After successfully completing the inspection and functional adjustment of the movement and case, place the dial and hands carefully and accurately, and reassemble the various parts.
- After fixing the movement in the case, use a calibration instrument to check the accuracy of the watch in five main directions.
- Seal the case, place the watch containing the movement in a special machine, and test the waterproof performance of the watch again under water pressure.
- At the end of the full service, inspect the appearance of the watch and check all technical functions. Only after several days of accuracy testing can the watch be returned to the customer.
The basic maintenance is much simpler and does not re-grind and polish the case. The movement does not have to be completely disassembled for cleaning and refueling if there is no problem, but it is only necessary to deal with the automatic tour, balance wheel and escapement with a large amount of movement.
Where to go for maintenance of mechanical watches?
For the maintenance of mechanical watches, the first choice must be the official after-sales repair center. The repairers here have been professionally trained, and the instruments and spare parts used are the best, which can ensure that the watch is restored to the factory state to the greatest extent. The disadvantage is that the waiting time is too long, ranging from a week or two to as little as half a year. There are few repair points, and most official after-sales repair centers are in big cities, and they can only be mailed back to the original Swiss factory. And the cost is too high, depending on the brand and style, the general price ranges from 150 to 600 US dollars, and the multi-functional ones can even thousands.
