Oris suddenly gaining time
Discussion
Any ideas on this one:
I have Oris BC3 day-date which I wear daily. It used to lose 5-6secs a day which I was happy with. Now it is gaining 40-42 secs a day!
The only thing I can think of is that on a recent trip to the States I wound it backwards for the timezones (this was in the middle of the day so as not to affect the day/date). Would that have done something to it?
Additional info: I haven't dropped it or been near any large magnets (afaik!).
I have Oris BC3 day-date which I wear daily. It used to lose 5-6secs a day which I was happy with. Now it is gaining 40-42 secs a day!
The only thing I can think of is that on a recent trip to the States I wound it backwards for the timezones (this was in the middle of the day so as not to affect the day/date). Would that have done something to it?
Additional info: I haven't dropped it or been near any large magnets (afaik!).
How "suddenly" is the change in timekeeping?
If it's a servicing issue then it would normally creep up on you slowly - over a matter of months at minimum. Of course you may only suddenly notice it after it gets to a certain point.
If it's changed quicker than that (eg: was fine last month but has gained this month) then it's more likely to be a fault. It doesn't take much of a knock for a hairspring to get caught up, which will give an instant gain. It also only takes a second for a mainspring to break, which will give low amplitude and (usually) a gaining rate.
You can check the mainspring easily enough, and the general state of the movement, by winding it fully (by hand) then leaving it unworn to run until it stops. You should get about 40 hours running out of it.
If it's a little below that (say, 36 hours or so) then it suggests the oils are drying out and robbing power. If it's considerably below that (under 24 hours or so) then there's probably a broken mainspring in there which is slipping before it's fully wound.
If it's got close to it's correct power reserve then it's likely to be a hairspring problem - either caught up in itself or some oil has migrated to it and is sticking coils together.
If it's a servicing issue then it would normally creep up on you slowly - over a matter of months at minimum. Of course you may only suddenly notice it after it gets to a certain point.
If it's changed quicker than that (eg: was fine last month but has gained this month) then it's more likely to be a fault. It doesn't take much of a knock for a hairspring to get caught up, which will give an instant gain. It also only takes a second for a mainspring to break, which will give low amplitude and (usually) a gaining rate.
You can check the mainspring easily enough, and the general state of the movement, by winding it fully (by hand) then leaving it unworn to run until it stops. You should get about 40 hours running out of it.
If it's a little below that (say, 36 hours or so) then it suggests the oils are drying out and robbing power. If it's considerably below that (under 24 hours or so) then there's probably a broken mainspring in there which is slipping before it's fully wound.
If it's got close to it's correct power reserve then it's likely to be a hairspring problem - either caught up in itself or some oil has migrated to it and is sticking coils together.
Variomatic said:
How "suddenly" is the change in timekeeping?
It was pretty sudden. I usually set the watch a few minutes ahead as I knew it lost a few seconds a day. But when it was even further ahead by the end of the week, that's when I did a check of how much it was gaining.How should I leave the watch when doing the check? Can I leave it on its side or does the case have to be horizontal?
Thanks.
I recommend asking Andrew Charles, which is the official UK service centre for Oris: info@andrewcharles.uk.com
Unlike the official service centres of many other brands, Andrew Charles isn't expensive. I can recommend Andrew Charles from personal experience
Oris deserves credit for having an official service centre that manages to offer a good service at a sensible price. Whereas many other Swiss brands take the Mickey with their servicing costs.
Unlike the official service centres of many other brands, Andrew Charles isn't expensive. I can recommend Andrew Charles from personal experience
Oris deserves credit for having an official service centre that manages to offer a good service at a sensible price. Whereas many other Swiss brands take the Mickey with their servicing costs.
Personally, I don't think the hairspring is a DIY job. Get the watch to Andrew Charles and ask for a quote to repair/service it.
Also, be cautious about manually winding the watch. Some ETA-based movements don't like a lot of manual winding. If the watch hasn't been regularly serviced, then a lot of manual winding can cause damage.
Also, be cautious about manually winding the watch. Some ETA-based movements don't like a lot of manual winding. If the watch hasn't been regularly serviced, then a lot of manual winding can cause damage.
There's nothing much wrong with the lubricattion if it ran that long so should be possible to sort it as a part job rather than full service as long as timing in positions is reasonable. A quick run on a timing machine would confirm that.
Wouldn't recommend playing around the hairspring yourself though - it's very easy to do expensive damage to the spring or balance! Find a local watchmaker who won't insist on doing a full service without checking the timing first - most dealer networks will try to insist on "service or nothing" purely on the basis that they can.
Wouldn't recommend playing around the hairspring yourself though - it's very easy to do expensive damage to the spring or balance! Find a local watchmaker who won't insist on doing a full service without checking the timing first - most dealer networks will try to insist on "service or nothing" purely on the basis that they can.
The cost of a full service from Oris' service centre is £120. That includes stripping down the case and movement, cleaning them, re-lubrication, re-calibration and all work guaranteed by Oris. I reckon that's a good price from an official service centre. Also, showing that the watch has been serviced doesn't do the resale value any harm.
Variomatic, shouldn't servicing depend on how old (used) the watch is?
Do we know how old the OP's watch is / how much he's worn it? Surely MikeVeal's correct that servicing can prevent more expensive costs down the line?
Variomatic, shouldn't servicing depend on how old (used) the watch is?
Do we know how old the OP's watch is / how much he's worn it? Surely MikeVeal's correct that servicing can prevent more expensive costs down the line?SVS said:
Variomatic, shouldn't servicing depend on how old (used) the watch is? Do we know how old the OP's watch is / how much he's worn it? Surely MikeVeal's correct that servicing can prevent more expensive costs down the line?
To a point, yes it does. But that's not the whole story with modern cases and modern oils. Do we know how old the OP's watch is / how much he's worn it? Surely MikeVeal's correct that servicing can prevent more expensive costs down the line?A good modern case is effectively hermetically sealed (assuming the seals are still good, of course) so the movement isn't subjected to the contamination that even most good quality watches of 40 or 50 years ago were.
Modern synthetic oils have a maker's shelf life of around 6 years (before being put in a watch and an expected service life of around 5 - 7 years after that. In practice they tend to do their intended job happily for a good 8 - 10 years unless they're very old stock when used.
More to the point, when the oils start to fail it will show up as either reduced power reserve or changes in positional timing. If you still have full power reserve and the positional errors are ok then the oil is still good.
It still makes sense to have seals checked every 4 or 5 years, and timing checked at the same time, but servicing "on spec" - as many cars use now - is perfectly viable for watches. It's a lot less profitable for makers though!
Incidentally, I agree that £120 is a very reasonable price for a maker's service but, if all the watch needs is maybe £30 - £40 for a hairspring degrease and regulate, it's still £80 too much
SVS said:
I recommend asking Andrew Charles, which is the official UK service centre for Oris: info@andrewcharles.uk.com
Unlike the official service centres of many other brands, Andrew Charles isn't expensive. I can recommend Andrew Charles from personal experience
Oris deserves credit for having an official service centre that manages to offer a good service at a sensible price. Whereas many other Swiss brands take the Mickey with their servicing costs.
+1 - Very happy with the cost of repair (and turnaround) on my Full Steel recently.Unlike the official service centres of many other brands, Andrew Charles isn't expensive. I can recommend Andrew Charles from personal experience
Oris deserves credit for having an official service centre that manages to offer a good service at a sensible price. Whereas many other Swiss brands take the Mickey with their servicing costs.
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