Everything you ever wanted to know about Watch Winders

Anyone who loves horology will inevitably enjoy discussing watch winders. Some watch wearers, collectors, and makers will sing its praises, while others will label it as ‘unnecessary.’ Into which group of people do you fall?

If you aren’t entirely sure, or even if you’re just after an exciting read, this article will help you make up your mind about watch winders and their place in the horological world.

Without further ado, here’s everything you ever wanted to know about watch winders.

A watch winder is a complex device designed to serve a simple purpose: to keep an automatic watch running when it’s not being worn. Watch winders vary in style and size. Some resemble small jewelry boxes, while others act as safes.

Strictly speaking, a watch winder is not an essential piece of equipment that every watch wearer or collector needs to own, but there are three very valid reasons why people opt to purchase them:

1. The overall longevity of your watch’s movement is extended thanks to the oils found within the movement mechanisms continually being dispersed.
   
   
2. Having a watch winder eliminates the inconvenience of having to manually wind and re-set your watch after a few days of not wearing it.
   
   
3. Those who collect watches need not worry about their watches that aren’t currently being worn running down.

In order to properly explain how watch winders work, we need to describe how automatic watches operate in general. An automatic watch automatically winds itself through the moving weight inside the watch. This moving weight rotates in accordance with the movements of the person wearing it.

By that logic, if an automatic watch is not being worn, it is not being wound. Here is an overview of how watch winders work their magic:

1. When the watch owner doesn’t plan on wearing their watch that day, they’ll carefully place it in the watch winder.
   
   
2. Once secured in the watch winder, the TPD (turns per day) will be adjusted as per the watch’s manufacturer instructions or user guide.
    
3. The watch winder will then be switched on. Batteries or AC power operate watch winders, so they’ll either need to be switched on by pressing a button or by being plugged into a power source.
   
   
4. The watch winder will begin mimicking the movements and motions associated with the human wrist before pausing. How often and the length of pauses depends on your specific TPD settings, but most watch winders will turn for 30 seconds to one minute before pausing.
   
   
5. When the owner decides to wear their watch once more, they’ll remove it from the watch winder and place it on their wrist.  

The rear of a Stackable Automatic Watch Winder by LIV Watches

Now that we know what a watch winder is and how it works, we can explore the topic a little further. Let’s take a look at the answers to those frequently asked questions.

Is it safe to leave a watch on a watch winder for days or weeks at a time?

Many people don’t wear their watches every day, and even more people collect watches and want to give them all adequate wrist time, so this question pops up often. The answer is yes. Watch winders include an internal gear, called a ‘clutch’ that will disengage when the spring has been fully wound.

Will a watch winder cause the watch to wear down quicker?

When it comes to whether or not using a watch winder will wear the watch down quicker, the answer is that the watch won’t wear down any quicker than if it were on the wrist. Some even argue that a watch winder can make for smoother performance and an increased lifespan thanks to reaching its adequate TPD regularly.

What separates a good watch winder from a bad one?

Watch winders are typically considered expensive, so a cheap watch winder is an indication of an inferior quality product. A good watch winder will feature an ultra-quiet motor, multiple rotation settings, a high level of precision, and a decent warranty. Any watch winder that doesn’t possess the features as mentioned above could be classed as a “bad one.”  

What are “winding cycles”?

Also known as turns per day, a winding cycle is the number of turns that the internal rotor needs to make to keep the watch properly wound. The majority of automatic watches require a winding cycle of 500 to 800 turns daily, but many modern automatic watches have longer power reserves and require over a thousand turns per day.

Is it possible to overwind a watch using a watch winder?

By its very design, a watch winder should not be able to overwind a watch. However, if the winder itself is continuously in use and not adequately maintained, the slip-clutch could be damaged. And if the slip-clutch is damaged, then overwinding of the watch could occur.

Front of a Stackable Automatic Watch Winder by LIV Watches

While not a necessary component to ensuring your watch remains functioning as it should, a watch winder is synonymous with convenience. In our opinion, watch winders are a beautiful marriage of technology and craftsmanship & something of a technological marvel.

Some people love the traditional aspect of sitting down each night and manually winding their watches. But for others, it winds down to them just simply not having the time.

What are your thoughts on watch winders? We’d love to hear them, so feel free to share them with us in the comments section below.

LIV Automatic Watch Winder Manual