Brand new Omega - just stopped ticking?!

[colin]

MY wife bought me an Omega Planet Ocean for our 5th wedding anniversary 2 mnths ago. Up until 2 weeks ago the accuracy was incredible - gain of 5 seconds over 6 weeks. In the last 2 weeks, the watch gained 20 seconds. Last night after coming home from work I took it off and laid it on it's side (as I always do) . Just before going to bed last night, i noticed that it had completely stopped ! I gave it a tap, it started working again, but stopped again after a few seconds. I gave it a second tap and reset the time - it is working again - seems to have kept time through the night. Am busy monitoring.
Is this normal ? Is this a possible indication that I bought a 'lemon " ? Please help...I am feeling very disappointed.

Thanks

[Welshwatchman]

My first thought was that it had merely run out of reserve and needed a full wind.

The fact that you had to tap it to get it working and that it continued working all night afterward means it's time to take it back to the AD.

[Lol-x]

Welcome Colin

Yes, I would definitely take it in to get looked at while it is still within warranty. The watch should not have stopped and in doing so it is a pretty clear indication that some adjustment/servicing is required.

I'm sure your watch is a great watch, it is just that some watches do need to utilise the warranty because of slight manufacturing issues.

If all watches performed flawlessly from the factory, then no warranty would be needed. Even Rolex recognises the need for a warranty.

[colin]

Thank you for the prompt replies . I appreciate it.

[Tools]

I think I would still give it a full manual wind first and ensure that it just wasn't low on mainspring wind.

It's possible that when you re-set it you gave it enough inadvertant winding to keep it going through the night..

You could give it 40 or 50 full winds and set it down for a day or two to check it's capacity... It should stay running for ~40 or so hours, then give it a full wind again and wear it for a couple days to check if it is back to when you first got it...

Hope it's nothing major, but as Steve said, a percentage of almost everything made needs a bit of adjustment under it's warranty; watches are no exception.

[RW16610]

That sounds just like how one of my Automatic watches was after it drpped. It literally went for like 3 or 4 seconds after tapping it before it came to a stop. Good thing is you are covered by warranry so that is the only advantage. Do what was suggested above first of course and hope it gets resolved soon.

[Lol-x]

I fully agree with Larry, give it a good wind first and see how it goes

[gmh1013]

I would wind it up first and see if holds. If not i would take it back to the dealer and see if he will exchange it.
I would try to avoid in sending to Omega PA service center ...
It took 2 months to get my speedmaster back.
I bought a PO when they first came out and it stopped about 5 days after
We bought it. I had my AD in Phoenix exchange it for another one and I have had no Problems in 2.5 years now.

[colin]

You guys are awesome with the responses - thank you !! I am hoping - above all hopes - that it was a one-off ....some "blip" in the cosmic universe that caused it to just stop. If it happens again I will prob have no choice but to send it to Omega..
b.t.w what does "AD" refer to ?

[Ursa Major]

AD is "Authorized Dealer", presumably the one that you bought the watch from. They would be your first contact in getting the watch repaired.

I purchased a new Omega a couple of weeks ago from an AD who shipped it to me. The watch had been working when it left his shop, but when I got it it was completely dead. I shipped it back to him and received a replacement in return, which has worked perfectly. I'm assuming that mine was just a statistical anomaly, and I'd guess yours is as well. If you fully wind it and it still doesn't work, take it to your AD and let them figure out what to do. It's unfortunate that it happens, but man-made objects sometimes fail.

[colin]

It is the next morning - my watch is still running fine. It has gained 2 sec in the last 24 hrs. Does the fact that it has not stopped, mean anything ? I truly hope so !? I intend to monitor it without wearing it on my arm. My thoughts are that if it does not get stuck/stop in the next few days, I may be OK ?

[Tools]

Originally Posted by colin

It is the next morning - my watch is still running fine. It has gained 2 sec in the last 24 hrs. Does the fact that it has not stopped, mean anything ? I truly hope so !? I intend to monitor it without wearing it on my arm. My thoughts are that if it does not get stuck/stop in the next few days, I may be OK ?

So far, sounds like it's doing good...

[colin]

Guys
Sorry to bug you again - I did the 40 - 50 manual winds, as proposed, this morning. The watch now gains 30 sec every 4 hrs. Is this normal after a manual wind ? OR does this definitively imply that the watch needs to go back ? Thanks

[RW16610]

Originally Posted by colin

Guys
Sorry to bug you again - I did the 40 - 50 manual winds, as proposed, this morning. The watch now gains 30 sec every 4 hrs. Is this normal after a manual wind ? OR does this definitively imply that the watch needs to go back ? Thanks

Needs to go back for sure. That is WAYYY outside of Chronometer specs.

[colin]

Thank you RW

[RW16610]

No problem, that was just one of the odd few so it would seem. When you get it back you will be more than happy

[1MAC]

Let's hope it's not too late to exchange it for a Rolex.

[RW16610]

Originally Posted by 1MAC

Let's hope it's not too late to exchange it for a Rolex.

[Perdu]

If it makes you feel any better, I've had a Rolex stop on me.

[colin]

Actually - that does make me feel better. I was beginning to be anti Omega.
That being said - my watch is back to keeping extremely accurate time. It has not stopped again. In the last 2 days it gained a mere 1 second !!! What is going on ? - is this normal behavior ? Seriously - could it have gone all wonky / stopped due to say a power / electrostatic surge in the area I live ??? My watch is back again - but is this just a false sense of hope ?

[colin]

Oh forget it .. scrap what I just said a few minutes ago. I gave the bloody thinig a manual wind just before typing the message. (30 manual winds) ...Between then and now it has gained 6 seconds....

[CPCC]

Get a full refund! you spent too much to have such a high priced headache.

[jm433]

Sounds like something is wrong with it. I had an Omega Speedmaster Automatic that just flat out died on me after about 8 mos. I bought it from a reputable grey-market dealer -- Ashford.com -- and it was still under their warranty. They replaced it for me with the Seamaster Pro that I now have, which by the way has not given me any trouble.

I believe that the problem with the speedy was that the dial was collapsing on the movement. I guess it was just easier for them to give me another watch than to fix. I did have to pay the difference in value between the Speedy and the SMP but got full value for what I paid.

Best of luck!

[haakon59]

Sounds like something is wrong--it might be magnetized. Take it back and let the Dealer look at it.

[TARDIS]

Originally Posted by haakon59

Sounds like something is wrong--it might be magnetized. Take it back and let the Dealer look at it.

I agree.

You may be exposing the watch to a magnetic field somewhere. This can cause the hairspring to bond and the watch movement becomes erratic.

Can be fixed if that's the cause.

[Perdu]

Let us know how you get on Colin.

[mickeydainish]

good info on this thread... Thanx.... Let us know what you do with the PO, Colin?? :-)

[colin]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I really appreciate it.
Well after a few weeks my watch seems to be back to it's 'old self'. I am in love again.In 3 weeks it has lost only 3 seconds !!! It is like a quartz watch. And it has not stopped. ( In saying this, hopefully I am not jinxing myself !)
Please tell me this is a good sign and that the watch is actually fine / perfect...

--------------------------------------------------------

"Happiness is not getting what you want..... It's wanting what you have "

[colin]

OK - I jinxed it. I KNEW IT !!! My watch stopped this morning at 7:30am ! Mortified yet again ! I am wondering if it has anything to do with the date? Last stop was on 20 June ( always around 20/21? co-incidence ???) . Could the date change be causing some kind of stick ? I am scared to send it in to AD to fwd to Omega. I am very particular about the seal and perfectly clean watch face ( I will no doubt dive with this watch at some stage) If they do open it up to work on it, what are the chances of me getting it back with a. scratches on the hands and b. tiny bits of fluff/dust in the face or c. heaven forbid, fingerprints on the glass/dial ? This will be the end of me...Please let me know what I should expect. Or can I expect the face to be in the same exact dust free/print free/ perfect , clear, clean shape it is in right now. ( PS: I have had bad experiences with jewellers in the pat who opened / worked on my watches - hence the concern.

[sleedawg]

If there's any chance of being able to return the watch, do it. The Omega Co-Axial 2500 movement has been famous for "stopping." I believe I read that they've been through 3 generations. Depending on how old stock the watch was will probably determine which revision of the movement you got.

If you can't return the watch, you have no choice but to send it to Omega. Their service center is not on the level of Rolex and some have had horror stories, some have had fine experiences. I wish you the best of luck w. the Omega service center. This is the one reason why I stayed away from the Planet Ocean myself.

Lastly, are you using a watchwinder when you're not wearing the watch. If you're not active enough, the watch can stop from not moving the winding rotor enough. Just in case you didn't know that.