Since luxury watches are made to last for more than a single lifetime, they come tagged with a relative price tag. However, the standard watch can barely go through a decade without needing some form of service. While most people realize that they should change their watch battery once in a while, there is still a lot more that needs to be done.
In case you happen to wear your watch daily, you are bound to expose it to a variety of risk factors like magnetism, water damage and extreme temperature conditions. Although the damage might be insignificant at first, it might build up with time and result in permanent damage to your watch. As a rule of thumb, service your watch after every three to five years. However, a few signs can demand servicing the timepiece earlier.
Here are four clear signs that you ought to have your wristwatch serviced soon:
There Is Water on the Crystal
The interior of luxury watches, such as the Hamilton Jazzmaster, consists of various delicate parts which can easily be spoilt when exposed to even the slightest amount of water. When water gets into your watch’s interior, the best case scenario is that you can get the watch to repair professionals before it is too late. On the flip side, ignoring signs of moisture in your watch crystal will be the start of costly repairs.
In case you are nowhere close to a repair professional, place the watch on a lamp or a warm place such as a radiator to keep water away from the delicate parts of the watch. Additionally, wearing the watch overnight will help you make use of your body heat to save your watch. You can then have the watch professionally serviced before the interior parts begin to corrode.
The Second-Hand Moves Unusually
In some cases, you might notice the second hand of your watch jumping a few seconds as it moves, especially if your watch has a quartz movement. Often, this is a sign that your watch’s battery has gone through its useful life. Luckily, replacing a watch battery is quite inexpensive.
It is even more dangerous to ignore a watch battery whose voltage has dropped as it can potentially leak acid and corrode other parts of the watch. While replacing the battery, why not take this chance to have your watch inspected for other minor issues?
Your Watch Loses/Gains More Than 4-6 Seconds Daily
The standard watch daily tolerance is -4 or +6 seconds per day, but most watch brands follow tight tolerance rates. As a result, having a watch that loses or gains more than the above time per day can mean that something is wrong. The most common culprit is magnetism since watches are typically exposed to magnetic objects every day, from TVs and phones to stereo speakers.
Another reason for this could be the loss of lubrication. Just like in cars, the internal parts of the watch need to be lubricated regularly, and the lubrication can run dry in case you take too long before servicing your watch. This results in the damage of the watch’s movement due to friction.
You Hear Rattles Within the Watch
Most watches have movements that are made from a hundred small parts with some such as chronographs having more than 250 internal parts. Such parts are great for functionality and are durable but delicate. While dropping your watch might result in little to no damage, shifting its gears wrongly as you wind it can lead to damage.
