If you are familiar with the different types of watch movements, then you know what an automatic watch is.
Essentially, an automatic watch is a mechanical watch with a self-winding component, powered by the movement of the wrist of the wearer. A mechanical watch, on the other hand, requires manual winding of the crown, most often, every day at the same time, to ensure accuracy and precision.
Before we get into the accuracy of an automatic watch, let’s look at its origin and functions. Watch engineers developed the idea of a self-winding mechanism in a mechanical watch to counter the challenge of manually winding the watch every day. Designed originally in the 1900s, the automatic movement functions by drawing the energy of the wrist movement. Then, the rotor present in the movement converts and stores the energy to build tension in the “heart” of the watch. Which then converts it to power to enable the movement of the hands.
However, it is apparent that without regular wrist movement, the does not retain the power to function smoothly. You can check how much power your watch holds by monitoring the power reserve indicator, often displayed on the face of the dial. Given this fact, many may wonder how accurate the watch can be. Would it go fast if the movement is too fast? What happens if there is no movement for a long time? How does lack of movement affect accuracy, and so on?
In this regard, we aim to break down how accurate an automatic watch is and some things to keep in mind if you are looking into investing in one, or already own one.
What’s Acceptable Accuracy For an Automatic Watch?
Automatic watches are pretty accurate. To the extent, they either gain or lose only 25 seconds per day. On a bigger picture, reports indicate that a standard automatic watch is generally 99% accurate. Typically, brands provide the details of the movement, its precision, and accuracy along with the watch description. This will inform you of how accurate your watch is.
Most often, watch enthusiasts who rely on extreme accuracy and precision look for close to 4-5 seconds variations, or even lesser, in a day. Therefore, what is acceptable to you depends on your needs and the functions of the watch. If you are a diver or a pilot, for instance, you will want your watch to be as accurate as possible with as little deviation in seconds. However, if you want a watch for regular daily wear, then a 10 or 20-second variation in a day will make no difference.
The precision of our VS75 chronograph watches are very high, and the precision look for close to 4-5 seconds variations. It is suitable for lovers who pursue high precision.
