Help me understand manual wind Speedmaster Pro

[ppierce]

Fairly new to the watch world. Why do you have to manually wind the speedmaster pro every morning and is it a barrier to entry for some? Seems like a pain to me.

[gamingdoctor]

You need to wind it in order to generate the energy for the watch to work every 2 days. I doubt many people who are in the market for a traditional moonwatch are going to be turned off by this.

In any case, Omega offers a ton of speedmaster variants that have automatic movements that you do not need to manually wind every 48h, so you're covered :p

[Tools]

Originally Posted by ppierce

Fairly new to the watch world. Why do you have to manually wind the speedmaster pro every morning and is it a barrier to entry for some? Seems like a pain to me.

The Speedy Pro is a manual wind watch - how else would you expect it to be wound if you don't do it?

If you don't want a manual wind watch then get the automatic (self winding) version or a quartz moonswatch.

There doesn't seem to be any barrier here, there are a lot of options.

[brandrea]

The Speedmaster is a classic. If you don’t want to wind it, you probably aren’t a suitable wearer

[ExplorerI]

It’s manual wind to maintain the history of it. Their whole marketing shtick is the speedy being worn on the moon so the movement in the current day one is pretty similar to the manual wind watch from the 60s. They have modern automatic movements too if you want that but it’s not the “moon watch”

[77T]

Several reasons for a manual wind movement.

Less moving parts to go haywire.
Cheaper construction.
Less case thickness.
Reduced TCO (no electric winder box).

But the main reason is to fuzz off lazy tossers. (not naming anyone here…)


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[omar-rye]

One cool thing about manual watches is that they don't have a rotor blocking the view if its got a clear caseback. That half-circle weight in automatic watches can hide away a lot of the beautiful mechanics. Another plus is how slim manual wind watches can be. They don't need that rotor, so they end up thinner. And when you've got a collection of watches, having some variety is a goal for most. The Speedy makes for an excellent choice if you're into adding a manual mechanical watch amidst your automatics, spring drives, and quartz pieces.

Not entirely sure, but automatic watches might not play nice in space. That's probably why NASA went with the manual winding Speedy. And it’s really cool it stuck to being a manual wind to keep that historical vibe alive

[gamingdoctor]

Originally Posted by omar-rye

Not entirely sure, but automatic watches might not play nice in space. That's probably why NASA went with the manual winding Speedy. And it’s really cool it stuck to being a manual wind to keep that historical vibe alive

Automatic watches do perfectly well in space, many automatics from a variety of brands, including Rolex, have done it. There may have been a suspicion, at the time, however, that automatics wouldn't work (purely conjecture on my part).

If OP really doesn't want to wind there's a much loved speedy reduced that's available, and the somewhat contemporary quartz gen 1-2 x33 which still is on current day astronaut's wrists.

[AEC]

Wow

[sambb]

i didnt understand it, but once you read the history, then you love it. everyone should have a speedy. And looks much better than a daytona.

[alllexandru]

It takes literally 10-15 seconds depending how you do the move, what means to your daily routine?

There are 86.400 seconds in your day, give the 15 second to your Sepedy

Winding daily gives your watch a constant accuracy besides not being out or power.

As you don’t have a double barrel but only one winding daily keeps your spring healthy and not loosing too much time as the power reserve comes to the end life towards the 24 to 40 hours it will loose more time.

[Eagles4133]

It's a great watch, winding every other day should do the trick although I wind my daily if It's in the rotation just to keep it topped off. Takes a couple seconds out of the morning routine, or make it part of your routine to wind it each time you remove it from your wrist at the end of the day. The other nice thing is that there is no date and if you have more than one watch in your collection, it's especially nice to wear it for a day here and there because you just set the time and wind the crown a couple times.

[doyall]

If only one of those dials was a power reserve indicator ...

[airchitect]

Originally Posted by doyall

If only one of those dials was a power reserve indicator ...

How to destroy the aesthetic in one move.


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[Andad]

Originally Posted by doyall

If only one of those dials was a power reserve indicator ...

One of the dials is a PR indicator.

When it stops ....wind the watch.

All things aside I find the winding crown is a bit small on my Speedmaster and is not as easy to wind as some of my other watches.

[Polar Bear]

At least it has a second hand
I have a manual wind, 2 handed Panerai and i've walked out of the house on many occasions with it not running...

[Laszlo]

My question since we are talking about winding, how many winds does it take to meet optimum performance?

[Tools]

Originally Posted by Laszlo

My question since we are talking about winding, how many winds does it take to meet optimum performance?

You wind a manual wind until it stops.

It's similar to an automatic in that about 40 winds would wind it all the way from a complete stop and you get ~50 hrs of power.

Typically you wind a Speedy each morning when you put it on and it takes around 25 winds. This keeps your power in the upper half of it's band width for best performance.

[Laszlo]

Originally Posted by Tools

You wind a manual wind until it stops.

It's similar to an automatic in that about 40 winds would wind it all the way from a complete stop and you get ~50 hrs of power.

Typically you wind a Speedy each morning when you put it on and it takes around 25 winds. This keeps your power in the upper half of it's band width for best performance.

Awesome, thank you!!

[Rolex2008]

I like manually wound watches, but I found my 3861 Moonwatch to be a pain to wind.

I understand the history and appreciate its simplicity, but Omega should’ve made the winding of this watch a real pleasure, instead of a fiddly chore.


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[ErichPryde]

Originally Posted by gamingdoctor

Automatic watches do perfectly well in space, many automatics from a variety of brands, including Rolex, have done it. There may have been a suspicion, at the time, however, that automatics wouldn't work (purely conjecture on my part).

If OP really doesn't want to wind there's a much loved speedy reduced that's available, and the somewhat contemporary quartz gen 1-2 x33 which still is on current day astronaut's wrists.

I believe the first automatic chronometer was a Zeinth, and it came out AFTER the Speedmaster had established itself pretty thoroughly with NASA employees and astronauts of the time and been approved. NASA wanted the chronometer features. Also, I'm not certain that the el primero would have passed NASA's testing at the time. And be very curious to know how the relatively High beat rate would be impacted by the extreme temperature that NASA tested these at.

[brandrea]

Originally Posted by Laszlo

My question since we are talking about winding, how many winds does it take to meet optimum performance?

I can get about 60 winds on my 321.

Winding it is super easy if you don’t try and grip the crown between your thumb and forefinger. Instead, I just hold the watch so that the top of my first knuckle (forefinger) is under the crown and I move it back and forth under the crown to wind.

I probably didn’t explain that very well, but with the right technique it’s super easy. I never understand why people say they are difficult to wind.

[Normunds]

Originally Posted by Laszlo

My question since we are talking about winding, how many winds does it take to meet optimum performance?

There’s no such thing as winding to achieve optimal performance. What do you even mean by that?

You wind until crown stops and then wear the watch.

[WatchGuy1966]

It's rewarding to actually engage your watch than simply admire it's beauty

[WatchGuy1966]

Originally Posted by sambb

i didnt understand it, but once you read the history, then you love it. everyone should have a speedy. And looks much better than a daytona.

As a Daytona owner as well as 2 Speedmasters, I agree.