Bokey TimeIn the evaluation and authentication of Swiss mechanical watches, preliminary inspections of the movement’s operating conditions through manual adjustment and other methods are important links in watch authentication and evaluation. For example, using the characteristics of the movement for rapid identification, such as: Rolex’s instantaneous date change, Omega’s hourly quick date change, etc. Today, I will share how to identify the authenticity of a mechanical watch through the way its date changes.
Ordinary calendar adjustment method
Pull the crown out to the second position (date setting position) and turn the crown clockwise to test whether the date can be adjusted normally. Pull the crown out to the outermost position, toggle the hour hand to rotate 24 hours, and test whether the hour hand can drive the date to change. The date changing modes are divided into “slow creep” and “instant jump”. Most watches adopt the “slow creep” mode for date changing. “Slow creep” date changing means that during the process of the hour hand driving the date, there is an obvious initial movement before the date changes, and the entire date changing process takes half an hour to 4 hours.
Instant jump calendar
The instant jump is a special way of date changing. When the hour hand reaches the date change point, the date will jump to the next day instantly, with almost no initial movement. The time window for the instant jump date change is very short, and the date change usually occurs within 2-3 minutes. The instant date jump requires modifying the movement components, which is slightly more complex than the ordinary date jump. It is an important step in preliminarily determining the authenticity of the movement, and this feature can be used for a feel test. For example, Rolex uses the instant date jump. During the test, if you use the hour hand to drive the date change and can see the date slowly moving down with an initial movement during the process, it is necessary to open the case to inspect the authenticity of the movement.
Date quick jump by the hour
Omega’s in-house 8xxx series movements cannot quickly adjust the date independently. When the crown is pulled out to the second position (which is the date setting position on ordinary watches) and rotated, the hour hand rotates rapidly in hourly increments to drive the date forward for adjustment. The hourly quick date jump is a special function; besides Omega, Panerai’s in-house movements also feature this function. Preliminary identification of the movement’s authenticity can be made through manual adjustment tests.
The above methods of identifying Swiss watches through their date-changing mechanisms are only preliminary ways to distinguish authenticity. With the advancement of domestic watchmaking technology, many factory-produced movements can also achieve instant date jumps and hourly quick date jumps, especially in high-end replica watches. Therefore, it is necessary to make a comprehensive judgment by combining other aspects!
