What Does a Watch Winder Do?
As the name suggests, a watch winder makes sure your automatic watches are always wound up and ready to go. Thanks to a rotor inside, automatic watches can wind themselves when they are on your wrist. But once you take them off, they can stop working once the power reserve runs out. Depending on what complications the watch has, it can sometimes be a headache to set it up every time you pick it up. Hence, a watch winder can solve your problem by keeping your watch always ready to go.
Do You Really Need One?
It is worth investing in a watch winder when you have one of the following complications on your watch:
- Perpetual Calendar
- Annual Calendar
- Moonphase Indicator
- Dual or More Timezones (GMT watches)
The aforementioned watches can often be tricky to adjust every time. If you rotate between these types of watches often, you can always get a watch winder to avoid having the headache of setting it up every time you pick it up.
When Can You Avoid Getting One
Before even looking at the watch winders, you should understand what type of movement your watch has. If it is a Quartz or a Manual Winding movement, you will not benefit from having a watch winder. These watch winders are made keeping automatic watches in mind. So, only the watches with a rotor on the inside can benefit from a watch winder.
If your automatic watch has a simple complication with maybe just a date or a day window, you can always adjust it when you pick it up. Additionally, if that is your only watch, you probably wear it every day. Hence, there is no need to put it on the winder as the watch will keep running anyway. Even if you keep the watch on your bedside table at night, they often have enough power reserve to last through the night.
Pros & Cons of a Watch Winder
Just like every other watch accessory, even a watch winder has its own set of pros and cons. Regardless of the facts discussed above, a watch winder can have both positive and negative impacts on your watches. Here’s everything you should know before you go out and get one for yourself.
Advantages of a Watch Winder
- The watch is always ready to go – As the winder keeps the movement running. You never have to really worry about setting the time or any other complications on the watch. You just open the winder, grab the watch, put it on your wrist, and walk away.
- Doubles as a nice watch showcase – If you are a watch collector, you can never stop talking about watches. With the number of watches you might have collected over time, you might have always liked showing people what pieces you have in your collection. But if you get yourself a nice winder with a good window on it, your watches can always be displayed in style!
Also Read: Is Your Watch Magnetized? Symptoms and How You Can Fix It
Disadvantages of Putting Your Watches on a Winder
- Good ones are usually costly – While there are watch winders available starting at just AED 50 on websites like Temu and Amazon, they are not always as good as their marketing suggests. These can have hard cushions, irregular rotations, and worse than all, can sometimes even magnetize your watch. So if you are to get one, it’s always best to do your research and buy the right one, even if it costs between AED 500-2000.
- Wears the movement faster – Since it keeps the movement running all the time with all the wheels spinning and the balance wheel working day and night, the watch might reach its service interval faster than usual.
