Are watch winders safe?

[mitchen]

I'm a new Rolex owner and wanted to get a watch winder to put my watch on at night. The store I purchased from recommended only buying one from Rolex or Orbita. The ones from Orbita are really ugly for the price and are open faced which seems like they'd collect a lot of dust...but I guess my concern is really whether they're safe or not. I've read they can over wind. So I guess my question is two fold-Are they safe for Rolex watches and are other brands such as Wolf very reliable as I find them more attractive. Figured long time Rolex owners would have the answers.

[Hairdude1]

Do you only have one Automatic watch? If so and are wearing on a daily basis you should need to keep it wound over night. The momentum from daily use should keep it going. Welcome to trf

[MonBK]

Welcome

[Psmith]

Welcome to TRF!

[HL65]

Welcome to TRF and yes watch winders are safe. Perhaps not necessary but certainly not dangerous! Cheers,

[Urosfan]

Welcome

[sea-dweller]

Welcome!

[padi56]

Originally Posted by mitchen

I'm a new Rolex owner and wanted to get a watch winder to put my watch on at night. The store I purchased from recommended only buying one from Rolex or Orbita. The ones from Orbita are really ugly for the price and are open faced which seems like they'd collect a lot of dust...but I guess my concern is really whether they're safe or not. I've read they can over wind. So I guess my question is two fold-Are they safe for Rolex watches and are other brands such as Wolf very reliable as I find them more attractive. Figured long time Rolex owners would have the answers.

You cannot over-wind any Rolex automatic watch there is a mechanism in the spring barrel that prevents that, but in the real world a machine winder is not necessary. Simply because you have two of the finest winders in the world attached to your arms called wrists plus a manual winding crown welcome to TRF.

[Alfredo.]

Welcome!

[Matt C]

Orbita and Wolf are some of the best on the market, there are much cheaper Chinese alternatives but with plastic gears they don't last very long. If you only have one watch then you don't really need a winder, however its a great way if you have multiple pieces to keep them wound and ready to go!

[RollieVerde]

Welcome to the forum, and you have started with one of the most controversial of topics. You will read many well-considered, learned responses that will argue the pros and cons of winders very convincingly. It's ultimately going to come down with what you feel comfortable with for the long term performance of your watch. After all I've read, I'm still not married to any of the options. But FWIW, when I'm not wearing a watch for a while I put it in a case, and make sure I take it out once a month, wind it fully and wear it for a day. or so.

[jnkay]

With most reasonably good winders such as Orbita, they will basically maintain the level of power reserve the watch has at the time you place it in the winder. So if you place the watch in the winder with a 50% charge, it will maintain the charge between say, 50% and 75%, and will not charge it to 100%. So overwinding is need not be an issue, even without the clutch in the watch movement that itself prevents overwinding.

[gocsan]

Welcome!

I personally stay away from watch winders because I take pleasure of winding the Rolex myself. To me, self winding is part of enjoying my watch rather than leaving that to watch winders.

[Rockrolex]

Originally Posted by padi56

You cannot over-wind any Rolex automatic watch there is a mechanism in the spring barrel that prevents that, but in the real world a machine winder is not necessary. Simply because you have two of the finest winders in the world attached to your arms called wrists plus a manual winding crown welcome to TRF.

Peter and I have always disagreed on this issue. But we remain friends.

I strongly believe in the value of winders, especially if you have multiple automatic watches. If you have only one watch, there is no need for a winder, as long as you wear that watch every day. Your wrist action will keep it wound when you take it off at night.

I have quite a few automatics and I keep nine of them on winders at all times. Several of my watches have multiple complications that become a PITA to reset if the watch stops running. I have two Brookstone quad winders (at about US$200 each) and an Underwood single. I've had the Brookstones for about 5 years and they have always operated flawlessly (and silently). The Underwood has been running continuously for about 10 years without a problem.

At the end of the day, you need to make your own decision as to whether you need a winder. As Peter said (and I do agree with him on this), you can't overwind a Rolex, or most other high end watches, so there's no worry there.

[locutus49]

I like to let mine rest at night. I've tried a couple of winders but found them more of a hassle. I only own two automatics, so rotate them. And manually wind if necessary.