Time Adjustment

[Lex_Ordo]

Hello fellow watchaholics...

Tech question?

Watch is running slow. I would prefer the watch to gain time. I have had other Rolex watches that gained time and this is the first that consistently looses.

Reference 116710 Caliber 3186. I have had it into service previously, but unfortunately, it continues to loose time.
Would a a mainspring change be warranted or the balance wheel/balance spring combo?

I am leaning towards the balance wheel and spring, because the weight adjustment doesn't seem to be correcting the time loss. I placed the watch in several different positions, using a time grapher, and the +/- S/D varies which I expect. however some of the readings seem a bit too varied to be within chronometer specs.

Amplitude is a bit low, under 270 degrees, but the beat error is pretty even at 3ms.
Could the amplitude be the culprit?
Could the balance wheel be weighted incorrectly?
Is the hair/balance spring tension not tight enough?

I am going to bring the watch in for service, but I figured I'd ask the group too.

[Ron P]

You are asking questions but not giving us facts. So impossible to give a meaningfull answer specifically aimed at your watch.

The only fact is 3ms beat error, but is that for real? Measuring a movement in the case sometimes does not equale the real value when the movement sec is measured on a professional measurement machine like a Witschi for example.

[Lex_Ordo]

Correct. I didn't want to clutter the thread with 6 different measurements, figured it was too specific, thTa why the general question.

However, that being said, it's getting a full overhaul so it's moot now.

[padi56]

In general movement should be able to achieve between 270 -310 degrees of amplitude in the horizontal positions,ln different positions could vary, by how much is it slow out of 86400 seconds in a day.

[brandrea]

The horror … a slow 31xx movement (sort of).

I hope you get it sorted OP

[Lex_Ordo]

Most of the amplitude readings were less than 270.
I don't have the actual numbers now, as the watch is at service, but I thought they should have been higher.
The watch was loose about 4-5 seconds a day, but this wasn't always the case. It started about a month ago, so I thought maybe the balance spring had something to do with it.

[padi56]

Originally Posted by Lex_Ordo

Most of the amplitude readings were less than 270.
I don't have the actual numbers now, as the watch is at service, but I thought they should have been higher.
The watch was loose about 4-5 seconds a day, but this wasn't always the case. It started about a month ago, so I thought maybe the balance spring had something to do with it.

Wow 4-5 seconds out of 86400 in a day how could you possibly live with a watch loosing between 4-5 seconds out of 86400 in a day.Take my advice sell your timegrapher machine and just wear and enjoy wearing your watch. If running these few slow seconds effect the daily running of your life please except my condolences.

[Smobews]

amplitude sounds fine. just go to AD and get it adjusted. Wear the watch consistently for a week straight and calculate the deviation. Tell them that at AD and they will adjust it back to close to 0 spd. easy. they will stick it on a timegrapher, so they can tell you if anything is out of spec. Most likely, everything else you are worried about is not happening. 4 spd is still extremely accurate, but leaning toward the slow side. if it was fast, it would be easier to let it go.

[olpercy2]

Good answer !👌