The Breitling Watch Source Forums

I posted this in a few forums to see what kind of replies I get. I just took delivery of a Breitling Headwind, a watch I've been trying to track down for some time. At first I noticed that it was running slow, to the tune of -1 every 3.5 hours after just giving it a couple minutes worth of shaking to get the watch going. I then found it maintaining the time virtually at 0 over a 12 hour period on what I thought must be close to a full wind. So to make sure she was sitting at a full wind, I gave the watch a few shakes to get rotor spinning. I had synced the watch again prior the giving it a shake and I noticed after giving it a light shake for a few minutes it gains a few seconds and then maintains the time when just worn on the wrist.

I had this happen before with another watch years ago but I can't remember what the watchmaker said the problem was or how much it cost to fix the issue. Can anyone tell me what the issue might be and a guess on what it might cost to fix? This watch came from a Rolex Service Center in CA. He didn't service the watch but he did inspect it and put it on the timing machine which turned out to be good and it was a 5 position test, it was a trade in for another watch. His customer said that he had it serviced 2 years ago and the guy I bought it from said it looked to have been recently serviced. After the inspection he took it in and that's when I bought it.

I'm stuck in between a rock and a hard place, he told me if there were issues with the watch I could return it but I get the impression that he wouldn't want to ship it back to me, he would only give me a refund. But I really want to keep the watch. Your help would be greatly appreciated if you can tell me what the problem might be and give me an approximate repair cost. Sorry for being so long winded.

I just don't have this issue with any of my other watches other than that one from a very long time ago.

I already had a reply and I want to see if you guys agree.

There was an excellent post awhile ago (sorry, I can't remember the author) that explained how shaking a watch in just the right rhythm can, indeed, cause the watch to become a couple of seconds "off."

Seriously, just wind your watch and don't shake it and you will not have any problems.

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Don

Why do people insist on freaking shaking their watches????

Hey - I've got a really sensitive mechanical instrument worth thousands of bucks - let's give it a good shake - DON'T DO IT, not good can ever come of it.

A watch gets a power reserve by extended wear and / or manual winding. If it is out of beat then it may need rotating (not shaking) to get it to start running. Additionally, a watch will run at a different rate with a full power reserve than with a very low power reserve - all other factors being equal the watch will run faster with a low power reserve, but there are exceptions.

From what you describe it's impossible to know if there is an issue because you are taking snapshots of individual situations - the regulation of a watch is not about eliminating the variations it's about getting the many different and inevitable variations to net out to as close to zero as possible.

Give the watch a full wind before you go to bed, put it on the night stand, put it on in the morning and then check the accuracy when you take it off to go to bed that night. Then we'll know if there is a real issue.

And quit shaking it!!!

It's like when someone's remote control stops working so they slam it on the table, that'll fix it right??? Shake your martini's not your watches.

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"I don't own any watches, I just lease them"

I don't shake it to the point where it would be considered violent, I just get the rotor spinning. I hear differing opinions on the topic of manually winding the watch as well. I've read where you can give the watch a few winds via the crown but excessive winding can cause damage to the movement. I'm soooooo confused!

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Don

There may be different opinions on winding but brother there is only one fact - it is needed and won't hurt your watch. My AD and I had a good chuckle just the other day about how many of her customers spend thousands for a nice watch, only to come back days later insisting the watch was defective. "did you wind it?" "Oh, you can wind it?"

You will not hurt the watch or break the spring by winding an automatic watch and unless it is on a winder or on your wrist all the time, you will likely need to give it 30-40 turns occasionally. Whoever suggested manual winding is a potential issue is an absolute ......[breathing deeply]....... know-nothing. (came out almost polite )

First things first - wind it 40 cranks and then see how it responds over time and in different circumstances. This isn't subject to debate any more than the earth rotating around the sun.

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SHARKMAN

Just like shaken baby syndrome, shaken watch syndrome can
lead to serious dysfunction(s), or worse. You can get a watch
winder, or even wear it while sleeping to assist in reaching a
viable calibration. If it requires pro intervention, it can be sub-
mitted after everything else has been attempted. Good fortune to you.

No one here would tell you that manual winding was a problem, and if they did they would get corrected pretty swiftly! Many, many topics on manual winding and all say that you can't overwind an automatic.

The comments I read were not about over winding as much as it was supposed to be an issue with the gears. But what the Hell do I know? I just wear the damn things... All I will say is now that I know the Headwind has a full wind, it's keeping excellent time. I love it, here is a pic of the beauty.

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Don

Thanks for your help guys, I really do respect your opinions!!

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Don

Very nice! Wear it in good health!!

Great outcome and a magnificent watch! I've got to say that I laughed when I read Roffs post "And quit shaking it!!!". I almost wet my pants.

You're saying the SUN DOESN'T ROTATE AROUND US?!?!?!

I know. Kinda radical.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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SHARKMAN

That's just his opinion.

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David
Je suis désole pour mon mauvais français.

Zenith Pilot Big Date; IWC Vintage Collection Aquatimer; IWC Portuguese 7-day

Roff scares me. Thanks for the comments guys, I've had a couple of my buddies already trying to buy this one off of my wrist. Here are a couple more pictures.

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Don