Atomic clock - I've finally done it...

[London Gent]

...I managed to last 6 weeks from the day I purchsed my GMT2c.
Yesterday however, despite my best efforts, I synchronised my watch to an atomic clock following website.

In a depressingly predictable manner I am now checking my watch every few hours. It is satisfying that it hasn't lost any time whatsoever (yet!) but despite this it is bordering on obsessive/idiotic.

Is this what the life of a WIS has to be like?

Has anyone managed to beat this addiction?

[esm]

Originally Posted by London Gent

Has anyone managed to beat this addiction?

does not get bothered to start with count....?

[Route 66]

I would say that checking your watches's accuracy "every few hour" is excessive.

Have you considered how long it takes for the signal from the Atomic Clock to reach your computer? It may be off by several milliseconds right there.

[theibis]

I set mine to the time listed on this website. I'm gaining a few seconds every day, but no big deal. I too wonder how long it takes to get the signal over the internet and on my display. It could be off depending on the speed of the connection.

[London Gent]

Originally Posted by Stevarn

I would say that checking your watches's accuracy "every few hour" is excessive.

Have you considered how long it takes for the signal from the Atomic Clock to reach your computer? It may be off by several milliseconds right there.

I hadn't considered that, I'll adjust my watch accordingly.

[AstroBoy]

Dont' worry, the romance will wear off with time.....But for how long....?... Well in my case was that "When the milk dry up....! "

Enjoy Your Watch !

I too have two atomic clocks (However, wife and daughter said they are ugly Clocks? )

[swish77]

Quite normal for a lover of mechanical watches. Try to check just once every day, though. Otherwise you might go insane.

[fc3s2k]

Originally Posted by swish77

Quite normal for a lover of mechanical watches. Try to check just once every day, though. Otherwise you might go insane.

Too late for that!!

[Garys]

As a compulsive techy I like to put you mind at easy.

Yes there is a small delay between the atomic clock and your computer but it typically is less than your ability to quantify. Further if what your validating is accuracy of the movement, +/-X seconds, the actual time is not as important as repearability of the measurement.

So check you watch at the same time every day and pick a time when Internet traffic is low and use a lock site as close to you as possible to minimize routing problems and any accuracy deviation will be in the noise level and so small that you will be incapable of measuring it without very expensive electronics.

And make a number of measurements over several weeks, every morning at 3am, and average the measurements.

Then enjoy your watch is you can stay awake after getting up every morning at 3am.

[t e x]

Originally Posted by London Gent

...I managed to last 6 weeks from the day I purchsed my GMT2c.
Yesterday however, despite my best efforts, I synchronised my watch to an atomic clock following website.

In a depressingly predictable manner I am now checking my watch every few hours. It is satisfying that it hasn't lost any time whatsoever (yet!) but despite this it is bordering on obsessive/idiotic.

Is this what the life of a WIS has to be like?

Has anyone managed to beat this addiction?

i would say ocd'n, lol

the last time for me took 5 weeks before checks which was about 5 days ago... was self regulating for 1st few days than crystal straight up for the duration and it was 4 seconds slow.

[Garys]

Damn I hate my iPad. Lock should be clock & is in the last sentence should be if.

[dooder202]

Originally Posted by theibis

I set mine to the time listed on this website. I'm gaining a few seconds every day, but no big deal. I too wonder how long it takes to get the signal over the internet and on my display. It could be off depending on the speed of the connection.

The time listed on this website is synchronized with your computer! Don't use that!

Use time.gov

[RedwinGV]

I'm checking maybe once a day- in the a.m.
What makes it worse is that I own a Citizen that automatically checks/resets the time every day- so I have a readily available source. Arghhh.

The good thing is that both of my mechanicals are accurate.

[GradyPhilpott]

Originally Posted by London Gent

.

...it is bordering on obsessive/idiotic.

Is this what the life of a WIS has to be like?

Has anyone managed to beat this addiction?

What you are experiencing is what I went through for nearly three decades with quartz.

I was obsessed with accuracy and set my watches daily by WWV.

When I bought my first mechanical after all those years of quartz and NIST, I started to become less obsessed.

I still want my watches to be accurate, but my expectations are far less demanding and I'm a lot more laid back about it.

It really doesn't do much good to check every few hours. Every day or so and getting an average for a week should be sufficient to know whether your watch is within specs or not.

Mechanicals are never going to blow you away with stable timekeeping and they will drift over time and require periodic regulation.

I like to set mine slow by about 30 seconds and then reset them when they are about 30 seconds fast, as mine gain a couple of seconds a day.

That's more than enough accuracy for my needs.

I still like to run little tests from time to time just for fun, like when I wore both my Rolex watches for about several weeks recently.

[theibis]

Thanks dooder. I went on the www.time.gov website and I'll see how close my watch stays to that time.

[Atomant]

Originally Posted by London Gent

...I managed to last 6 weeks from the day I purchsed my GMT2c.
Yesterday however, despite my best efforts, I synchronised my watch to an atomic clock following website.

In a depressingly predictable manner I am now checking my watch every few hours. It is satisfying that it hasn't lost any time whatsoever (yet!) but despite this it is bordering on obsessive/idiotic.

Is this what the life of a WIS has to be like?

Has anyone managed to beat this addiction?

Congrats to you on being a WIS.

[Gottog]

Go on, you know you want to check the Atomic Clock right now... It'll take 5 secs. No one will know. Do it. Just a peek. Quick.

[mike]

I used to check my watch by the Atomic clock all the time....I just got tired of wearing that lead suit.

[jamesbondOO7]

Originally Posted by Garys

Damn I hate my iPad. Lock should be clock & is in the last sentence should be if.

I am with you. Impossible to type with that thing.

[manandjoe]

LOL, After a few weeks you will be healed.

[Badfish179]

W-I-S it's not just a disease...it's an EXPENSIVE disease!!!

[dannyboy123]

I've had a sub for 12 yrs and have never really checked it's accuracy!!! It used to run a little fast and when it got to about 5 mins ahead I'd just change it. It's just had it's first service (came back immaculate) and it still hasn't dawned on me to check it - seems I'm the odd one here!!!

[renfield33]

i don't wear mine enought to keep it running for 6 weeks!

[Newportkrieger]

Brace yourself for a lot of depreciating, insulting, tacky comments from most of the TRF members here.

Welcome to the club on this issue regardless. Its not that unusual. At least we are not obsessing about the minute and second hands lining up on the indexes perfectly which another TRF member came up with the other day. I think that was novel enough to most of the "gentlemen" on TRF to avoid crucifixion.

To make it all the more complicated here are a couple more time sites:

US Naval Observatory time:

http://tycho.usno.navy.mil/simpletime.html

US Naval Oceanography time:

http://www.usno.navy.mil/USNO/time

Greenwich Mean time:

http://wwp.greenwichmeantime.com/tim.../pacific-time/

Good luck with this...and just ignore all the self appointed WIS gods who may offer irreverent, sophomoric comments.

[darthmouse]

I did the same at first, OP.

Now I leave it alone- I like being early due to my watch's +2.5 sec/day.

[m5blitzer]

I only have atomic clocks all around my house and use one specific clock to sync my Rolex to every 24 hours. Only losing +/- 0.5 secs a day. I guess I should let my obsession go and live my life/watch.