INTRODUCTION

Since its invention in the early 16th Century, the mechanical watch has been
sought-after and admired for the exquisite craftsmanship of its delicate internal
movement. In this guide we’ll explore the long and storied history of mechanical
timepieces, from the piece that started it all, through to the modern manual and
automatic movements that we recognise today. We’ll also break down how a
mechanical watch movement works, and discuss the benefits and maintenance required
for these timepieces.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF MECHANICAL WATCH

MOVEMENTS
The ‘Nuremberg Egg’, created by Peter Henlein in 1510, is often described as the first
example of a wearable timepiece. However, these early watches were notoriously
inaccurate and mostly useless for keeping track of the time. Instead, they were worn as
fashion items, adored by the nobility for their novelty and fine ornamentation.
During the era of the pocket watch, popularised by Charles II, there were a number of
key advancements in watchmaking. The first, in around 1657, was the invention of the
balance spring by British scientist Robert Hooke and Dutch physicist Christiaan
Huygens, which greatly improved the accuracy of these portable timepieces. However,
the modern level of precision was not possible until 1760, when John Harrison invented
the marine chronometer.
The pocket watch remained in style for many centuries, until World War I called for a
more practical solution for soldiers in the field. The wristwatch already existed before
this time, but it was worn exclusively by wealthy women, as a decorative status symbol.
With timekeeping being such a crucial aspect of strategy during the war, the wristwatch
replaced the pocket watch as a more practical and hands-free option. Soon after, the
watch quickly began to gain momentum in the fashion world. This opened up the market
for mass production, and saw wristwatches declared a must-have luxury accessory for
both men and women.
Over the years since, there have been many more advancements in watchmaking. One
of the most notable is the invention of the self-winding, or automatic, watch by British
watchmaker John Harwood in 1923. It would then take until the 1970s for a new
technology to come into play, the quartz wristwatch.

WHAT IS A MECHANICAL WATCH MOVEMENT?

The watch movement, also called the ‘calibre’, is the beating heart of every timepiece. It
powers all of the watches functions, from the movement of the hands to the
chronograph, alarms and any other complications. A mechanical movement is made up
of an intricate series of springs and gears that turn energy into precisely regulated
movements. This allows the watch to run with exceptional efficiency, and accurately
keep track of the passage of time.
However, for many horologists, the movement is far more than just the engine of the
watch. There is an elegance and a beauty to the inner workings of a well-crafted
timepiece, making it closer to a work of art than just another accessory.

TYPES OF MECHANICAL MOVEMENTS

Manual
A manual watch movement requires the wearer to manually wind the watch, usually
once a day, in order for it to work. It’s the oldest and most traditional type of watch
movement, and is beloved by many collectors for the expert craftsmanship involved.
Manual watches will often have a transparent case-back, to show off the intricate beauty
of the movement inside.
Automatic
An automatic watch movement is similar to a manual watch, but with a few important
differences. An automatic timepiece winds itself whilst worn, by making use of kinetic
energy. Provided the watch is worn regularly, it will maintain its power without any need
for manual winding by the wearer. Automatic watches are also often thicker and heavier
than their manual counterparts, due to the extra components needed to function.

Components
The internal mechanism of a watch, excluding the face and hands, is called the
movement. All mechanical watches have these five parts:
● A mainspring , which stores mechanical energy to power the watch.
● A gear train, called the wheel train, which has the dual function of transmitting the
force of the mainspring to the balance wheel and adding up the swings of the
balance wheel to get units of seconds, minutes, and hours. A separate part of the
 gear train, called the keyless work, allows the user to wind the mainspring and
enables the hands to be moved to set the time.
● A balance wheel, which oscillates back and forth. This is the timekeeping
element in the watch. Its timekeeping accuracy is due to the fact that it is a
harmonic oscillator, with a period of oscillation which is very constant, dependent
on the inertia of the wheel and the elasticity of the balance spring.
● An escapement mechanism, which has the dual function of keeping the balance
wheel vibrating by giving it a push with each swing, and allowing the watch's
gears to advance or 'escape' by a set amount with each swing. The periodic
stopping of the gear train by the escapement makes the 'ticking' sound of the
mechanical watch.
● An indicating dial, usually a traditional clock face with rotating hands, to display
the time in human-readable form.

Additional functions on a watch besides the basic timekeeping ones are traditionally
called complications. Mechanical watches may have these complications:
● Automatic winding or self-winding—in order to eliminate the need to wind the
watch, this device winds the watch's mainspring automatically using the natural
motions of the wrist, with a rotating-weight mechanism.
● Calendar—displays the date, and often the weekday, month, and year. Simple
calendar watches do not account for the different lengths of the
● Alarm—a bell or buzzer that can be set to go on at a given time.
● Chronograph—a watch with additional stopwatch functions. Buttons on the case
start and stop the second hand and reset it to zero, and usually several subdials
display the elapsed time in larger units.
● Hacking feature—found on military watches, a mechanism that stops the second
hand while the watch is being set. This enables watches to be synchronized to
the precise second. This is now a very common feature on many watches.
● Moon phase dial—shows the phase of the moon with a moon face on a rotating
disk.
● Wind indicator or power reserve indicator—mostly found on automatic watches, a
subdial that shows how much power is left in the mainspring, usually in terms of
hours left to run.
 ● Repeater—a watch that chimes the hours audibly at the press of a button. This
rare complication was originally used before artificial lighting to check what time it
was in the dark. These complex mechanisms are now only found as novelties in
extremely expensive luxury watches.
● Tourbillon—this expensive feature was designed to make the watch more
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accurate. It is a demonstration of watchmaking virtuosity. In an ordinary watch
the balance wheel oscillates at different rates, because of gravitational bias,
when the watch is in different positions, causing inaccuracy. In a tourbillon, the
balance wheel is mounted in a rotating cage so that it will experience all positions
equally. The mechanism is usually exposed on the face to show it off. The FHH
(Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie) definition is: "Any function other than the
indication of hours, minutes and seconds, regardless of whether the mechanism
is hand-wound or self-winding, mechanical or electronic, and of movement height
. The tourbillon is considered complication even if it do not fall within the generic
definition." Its function is not to provide additional information, but to adjust the
timekeeping even more precisely. It is an adjustment device that is not essentially
necessary for the operation of the watch.

Mechanism
The mechanical watch is a mature technology, and most ordinary watch movements
have the same parts and work the same way.

Mainspring and motion work

The mainspring that powers the watch, a spiral ribbon of spring steel, is inside a
cylindrical barrel, with the outer end of the mainspring attached to the barrel. The force
of the mainspring turns the barrel. The barrel has gear teeth around the outside that turn
the center wheel once per hour — this wheel has a shaft that goes through the dial. On
the dial side the cannon pinion is attached with a friction fit (allowing it to slide when
setting the hands) and the minute hand is attached to the cannon pinion. The cannon
pinion drives a small 12-to-1 reduction gearing called the motion work that turns the
hour wheel and hand once for every 12 revolutions of the minute hand.
For the same rate of oscillation, the duration of run, runtime or power reserve of a
mechanical watch is mainly a question of what size of mainspring is used, which is, in
turn, a question of how much power is needed and how much room is available. If the
movement is dirty or worn, the power may not transfer from the mainspring efficiently to
the escapement. Service can help restore a degraded runtime. Most mechanical watch
movements have a duration of run between 36 and 72 hours. Some mechanical watch
movements are able to run for a week.

Wheel train

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The center wheel drives the pinion of the third wheel, and the third wheel drives the
pinion of the fourth wheel. In watches with the seconds hand in a subsidiary seconds
dial, usually located above the 6 o'clock position, the fourth wheel is geared to rotate
once per minute, and the second hand is attached directly to the arbour of this wheel.

Escapement

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The fourth wheel also drives the escape wheel of the lever escapement. The escape
wheel teeth alternately catch on two fingers called pallets on the arms of the pallet lever,
which rocks back and forth. The other end of the lever has a fork which engages with an
upright impulse pin on the balance wheel shaft. Each time the balance wheel swings
through its center position, it unlocks the lever, which releases one tooth of the escape
wheel, allowing the watch's wheels to advance by a fixed amount, moving the hands
forward. As the escape wheel turns, its tooth pushes against the lever, which gives the
balance wheel a brief push, keeping it swinging back and forth .

Keyless work

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A separate set of gears called the keyless work winds the mainspring when the crown is
rotated, and when the crown is pulled out a short distance allow the hands to be turned
to set the watch. The stem attached to the crown has a gear called the clutch or castle
wheel, with two rings of teeth that project axially from the ends. When the stem is
pushed in, the outer teeth turn the ratchet wheel on top of the mainspring barrel, which
turns the shaft that the inner end of the mainspring is attached to, winding the
mainspring tighter around the shaft. A spring-loaded pawl or click presses against the
ratchet teeth, preventing the mainspring from unwinding. When the stem is pulled out,
the inner teeth of the castle wheel engage with a gear which turns the minute wheel.
When the crown is turned, the friction coupling of the cannon pinion allows the hands to
be rotated.

Center seconds

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If the seconds hand is co-axial with the minute and hour hand, that is it is pivoted at the
center of the dial, this arrangement is called "center seconds" or "sweep seconds",
because the seconds hand sweeps around the minute track on the dial.
Initially center seconds hands were driven off the third wheel, sometimes via an
intermediate wheel, with the gearing on the outside of the top plate. This method of
driving the seconds hand is called indirect center seconds. Because the gearing was
outside the plates, it added to the thickness of the movement, and because the rotation
of the third wheel had to be geared up to turn the seconds hand once a minute, the
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seconds hand had a fluttering motion.

In 1948 Zenith introduced a watch with a redesigned gear train where the fourth wheel
was at the center of the movement, and so could drive a center seconds hand directly.
The minute wheel, which had previously been at the center of the movement, was
moved off center and drove the minute hand indirectly. Any fluttering due to the indirect
gearing is concealed by the relatively slow movement of the minute hand. This redesign
brought all the train gearing between the plates and allowed a thinner movement.
BENEFITS OF A MECHANICAL WATCH MOVEMENT
Built to Last
A beautifully crafted wristwatch is made to stand the test of time, and can last a lifetime
with the proper care and maintenance.
No Batteries
With a mechanical watch, whether you choose a manual or an automatic movement,
you’ll never need to worry about replacing the batteries. As long as you keep it wound,
your watch will continue to keep track of time.
Daily Ritual
Having daily rituals can be a calming influence on us, and many horologists enjoy the
routine of manually winding their timepiece each day.
Aesthetics
Mechanical timepieces are a work of art. From the delicate and precisely tuned
movement, to the beautifully

crafted dial and bezel, a luxury watch

is something to be shown off and admired.

MAINTENANCE OF A MECHANICAL WATCH

A high-quality timepiece is something to be treasured, and it deserves to be looked after
with proper care and attention. With a little extra TLC, a well-crafted watch can last for
many lifetimes, and makes a wonderful heirloom to be passed down through the
generations.
Get your timepiece regularly serviced
A regular, professional service is one of the best things you can do to ensure your watch
is well looked after and remains in good working order. We recommend getting a
mechanical watch serviced every three to five years.
Keep it clean
Get into the routine of giving your watch a wipe down each night before putting it away,
and a more thorough clean every three months.
Consider proper storage
A purpose made watch box, or the original display box, are the best way to keep your
watch safe whilst it’s off your wrist. A good storage box will help to protect the delicate
mechanical parts, and prevent your watch from acquiring bumps, scrapes, and
scratches.
Keep your watch wound
To keep your watch ticking over and running smoothly, it’s important to keep the
movement running.
With an automatic watch, this is as simple as wearing it regularly. For automatic
watches that are worn less often, and for manual timepieces, this means giving them a
regular wind. When winding a mechanical watch, ensure you take it off and never wind
whilst it’s on your wrist. This can put extra pressure on the components and damage
delicate parts.