The Breitling Watch Source Forums

finally got it today xmas came early... my question is the second hand... it stops and starts when i push the top button... the second chrono constantly turns (i guess thats the true second hand) don't like the idea of stopping the large second hand (got me confused already -thought the watch died) i guess my question is what do most people do - just let both run and does it kill the power quicker with both the large second hand and second chrono dial running?

Hey,
Welcome to the Skyland club! Great watch.

That large second hand is your chrono hand to measure seconds. Your'e right, the smaller one in the sub dial is the "true" seconds hand.

I'm pretty positve there has been a thread about the effect of running the chrono continously. You could try the search function. But from memory (always a little faulty!) the answer was that extra wear and tear wasn't a particularly great issue. The main thing that degrades in a watch is the lubricant, not the gears. They are designed to run, after all.

In terms of "killing the power", your reserve will drop a little, but only something like 2-6 hours out a 42 hr reserve. If you wear the watch daily, it's never likely to affect it.

Certainly you would want to run the chrono for a short period of time regularly. Moving parts do best when they move regularly. I often run the chrono for around 6 hours. i like to start it when the second hour gets to 30. There's something cool about the second hand and the chrono hand chasing each other around the dial!
Greg

Discussed many times and Novacastrian has given you the summary. I always make sure that I run a chrono for at least 24 hours per month to keep the oils circulating.