Various watch enthusiasts choose to collect watches due to different reasons. One enthusiast might like a watch due to its craftsmanship, while others might collect a watch due to its vintage status. When it comes to vintage watches, there have been a lot of different myths and misconceptions about them circulating on the internet. One of those includes the use of a luxury watch winder.
Vintage Watch Characteristic
There are several characteristics that differentiate vintage automatic mechanical watches with other more modern watches. The first characteristic is about water resistance. As we already know, modern automatic watches have been improved with the addition of a waterproofing feature which allows users to wear a watch while swimming or showering. However, older vintage watches usually don’t have that feature. If they do, the gasket which prevents water from entering the watch body might have dried out. As a result, a vintage watch might not be as waterproof as the modern one.
Another characteristic of a vintage watch is that it is usually not as mechanically sturdy as modern watches. Some parts inside the watch such as the mainspring usually don’t have the feature which allows the watch to be overwound. As a result, you have to be extra careful when winding the automatic vintage watch if it has stopped.
The Use of Automatic Watch Winder
A luxury watch winder will continuously rotate an automatic watch in order to keep it running. While this feature is commonly good for modern watch winder, it can cause some damage if it is used for a vintage watch. Vintage watches might not be as sturdy as modern watches. Therefore, it is better to give your vintage watch a rest instead of putting it in a watch winder box after hours of wearing it. It is generally advised to not use a watch winder for a vintage watch as continuous winding might cause the mainspring inside the watch to wear out.
It is best to carefully wound the watch manually if the watch has stopped ticking. Furthermore, leaving your vintage watch in a normal watch case instead of a watch winder case is better in order to avoid damaging your watch. Unless you’re willing to take the risk of breaking your vintage watch.
In conclusion, there are a lot of characteristics which differentiate vintage watches with modern watches. Those characteristics might prevent you from using a luxury watch winder for your vintage watch. Therefore, it is better to take care of your vintage watch carefully by winding your watch manually.