# Question on Omega X-33



## brettbarnes1

I have often found this watch interesting but I've heard on various forums that it goes through batteries pretty often. Can any owners comment?


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## john wilson

brettbarnes1 said:


> I have often found this watch interesting but I've heard on various forums that it goes through batteries pretty often. Can any owners comment?


I've had no problems.John Wilson


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## zaphod

brettbarnes1 said:


> I have often found this watch interesting but I've heard on various forums that it goes through batteries pretty often.


I have never heard about that...:think:


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## zaphod

brettbarnes1 said:


> Can any owners comment?


Now I can... :-(

I bought my X-33 in January 2004. I wore it almost everyday since then, using most of the features several times a day, alarm in the morning, countdown timers all over the day, backlight whenever I needed it, which was very often. Today I pushed the backlight button but all that happened was the second hand switching to end-of-life indication and thus jumping every 5 second now.

Unfortunately I can't say how long the watch was already running with this battery when I bought it.

BTW: Did anyone change the battery himself yet? I'm planning to do this now (first have to google for the battery type, I only have CR2016 lying around).


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## john wilson

zaphod said:


> Now I can... :-(
> 
> I bought my X-33 in January 2004. I wore it almost everyday since then, using most of the features several times a day, alarm in the morning, countdown timers all over the day, backlight whenever I needed it, which was very often. Today I pushed the backlight button but all that happened was the second hand switching to end-of-life indication and thus jumping every 5 second now.
> 
> Unfortunately I can't say how long the watch was already running with this battery when I bought it.
> 
> BTW: Did anyone change the battery himself yet? I'm planning to do this now (first have to google for the battery type, I only have CR2016 lying around).


Screws are small,watch out! They are about $2.33 each.Get all the screws loose,leave them in the backcase,lift out the back with all screws still in.I find a cap that's a smaller diameter,also a little high,and put the back on it. You will also have a second domed back,it sit's (or floats)on a gasket,look along the edge of the batt,you'll see a notch,put in a small screw driver,flip it out.Make sure you have the dome back centered. You will have to redo time,date.John Wilson http://www.swatchbattery.com/


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## zaphod

Thank you very much for your help John, will try this tomorrow evening and post about my (hopefully) success.B-)


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## john wilson

zaphod said:


> Thank you very much for your help John, will try this tomorrow evening and post about my (hopefully) success.B-)


E-mail me if you need to,but I think you'll be OK. John Wilson.


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## Stala

Only had Omega Uk change the battery after I bought my first generation X-33 off of Ebay. Since then, I have the alarm going off each morning (it's the only one that wakes me up, it's that loud!), have the backlight on often at night and have even used it as a flashlight when needed, and it's still going strong after a year.

The battery is supposed to last 24 months with normal use of alarm and backlight (not sure wat is meant by normal use...maybe once a day for each:-S) or 36 months without the use of the alarm and backlight, according to the manual. Maybe all those reporting the battery becoming drained too quickly bought pre-owned or a new watch that had been at the dealer's for a long time?

Love my X-33 because it's a great watch when you're travelling and the alarm is the loudest I have ever heard on a quartz watch of any kind. Just wish that the WR was greater than 30m.....most pilot's watches are atleast 50m. Guess the lack of water in space meant compromising on the WR.


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## Stala

Zaphod,

According to Omega, the battery is not meant to last longer than 24 months if the alarm and backlight are used regularly (no use of the alarm and backlight means 36 months of battery life). So you actually got more out of the battery than Omega's apparently conservative estimate. You almost got 31 months, given you bought the watch in Jan 2004 and used the alarm, etc far more than most would. So I think the reports of the battery becoming drained too quickly on the model is exaggerated imho.

I'll be interested to see how you get along with replacing the battery yourself and what battery is in the watch. Good luck!


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## zaphod

Stala said:


> You almost got 31 months, given you bought the watch in Jan 2004 and used the alarm, etc far more than most would. So I think the reports of the battery becoming drained too quickly on the model is exaggerated imho.




Yes, you are right, I thought about it and I'm satisfied with 31 month.:-! 
After all changing the battery (CR2320) was no big deal, I don't mind doing this every 2 years or so.



Stala said:


> I'll be interested to see how you get along with replacing the battery yourself and what battery is in the watch. Good luck!


Next post...;-)


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## zaphod

Here I am again, sorry to keep you waiting but I was a little short on time for the last days.
Now battery change, here we go:










When the idea of taking some photos came to my mind I already had the watch open. I did it exactly the way John described and I'm happy not to have fiddled with those tiny screws.










First I carefully removed the gasket which looked like new all around, good thing cause I wouldn't have had a replacement.











Here the new battery is already inserted, forgot to take a photo without battery though. The battery is hold by some copper spring contact which really applies some pressure so it wasn't that easy to get it out and the new one in (at least I thought it would have been easier).











After some cleaning I put the gasket back in, first I applied some silicon lube to it which made fitting very easy.











Now the domed inner back carefully set on top of the gasket. It sits higher on one side because of another copper spring contact which has to be pressed down with the caseback.











Now the caseback. Due to the writing and logo it is fairly easy to fit it exactly over the screwholes, easier than it might look.











The screws themselves are very tiny and I first turned them counterclockwise until I feeled a "click", then I knew they just fitted in right and I turned clockwise very slow and carefully. After turning one in I always turned the opposite one next. when all screws were in I turned them on with little force one by one.










All done, backlight functioning normal again and end-of-life indication has gone for a few years. I will reset time and date this evening cause I'm in a little hurry now.











And here it is again back on a strap, not sure but maybe I'll fit the titanium bracelet for next week, however: I love this watch! 

Thank you John for your advices!:-! 

BTW: As you might have noticed I'm a real poor photographer, but I don't mind. :-D


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## anders213

Excellent pictorial. :-!:-!:-!


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## ronalddheld

Yes, thanks for the step by step instructions.


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## zaphod

Ahoi guys!

Just to keep you up to date: as you read above I changed my X-33's battery on around August 19th. Now look closely at this picture:










Found it? Exactly! I dared to replace a japanese Energizer battery with a chinese no-name CR2320. Not the best decision I made as the EOL on my X-33 came back on YESTERDAY... no 2 months later and this thing is empty again. :roll:


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## Bruce Reding

zaphod said:


> I dared to replace a japanese Energizer battery with a chinese no-name CR2320. Not the best decision I made as the EOL on my X-33 came back on YESTERDAY... no 2 months later and this thing is empty again. :roll:


Hey... It was good as a practice run. :-D


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## zaphod

Bruce Reding said:


> Hey... It was good as a practice run. :-D


:-D


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## stockae92

great photos

this got me thinking ... maybe i can live with a X-33 and DIY battery change too :-D


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## zaphod

stockae92 said:


> great photos
> 
> this got me thinking ... maybe i can live with a X-33 and DIY battery change too :-D


Thank you!

I did the second battery change last week in no time, piece of cake now.:-!


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## pew72

*My Omega X-33 is slow.*

My Omega looses about 2 seconds a week. I would rather like it to be fast or spot on of course. Is there a way for me to adjust the movement? Some older Omega Quartz watches like the Marine Chronometer have a +/- screw inside. Does anybody have any experience here please?

PS
Thanks for those great pictures on the battery change. I will do it myself and save a lot of money.


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## zaphod

*Re: My Omega X-33 is slow.*



pew72 said:


> My Omega looses about 2 seconds a week. I would rather like it to be fast or spot on of course. Is there a way for me to adjust the movement? Some older Omega Quartz watches like the Marine Chronometer have a +/- screw inside. Does anybody have any experience here please?


Unfortunately I don't know anything about adjusting the movement, but there's a service manual for the Omega 1666 movement on Chuck Maddox' site, maybe you find it in there:

http://home.xnet.com/~cmaddox/omega/manuals/service/1666/cal_1666_service_manual.html


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## pew72

*Re: My Omega X-33 is slow.*



zaphod said:


> Unfortunately I don't know anything about adjusting the movement, but there's a service manual for the Omega 1666 movement on Chuck Maddox' site, maybe you find it in there:
> 
> http://home.xnet.com/~cmaddox/omega/manuals/service/1666/cal_1666_service_manual.html


Thank you for this manual. Unfortunately the information was not included. I do appreciate you sending this though. Thanks!


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## Hippocampus

*Second hand is off*

I've got an X-33, a recent model one, (though strangely it doesn't have an engraved caseback), and the second hand stopped lining up the second markers. Has anyone had this problem and is there a way to fix it? It's not a major thing, but it does irk me a little...


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## john wilson

*Re: Second hand is off*



Hippocampus said:


> I've got an X-33, a recent model one, (though strangely it doesn't have an engraved caseback), and the second hand stopped lining up the second markers. Has anyone had this problem and is there a way to fix it? It's not a major thing, but it does irk me a little...


Can you show us a photo of the back?







John Wilson.


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## Hippocampus

*Re: Second hand is off*



john wilson said:


> Can you show us a photo of the back? John Wilson.


I'll upload some soon, as the batteries in my camera died, and I'm fresh out of AAs. :-(

But it looks just like that, only it doesn't have the "Flight qualified" inscription on it. I've wondered if it was a put together piece though. It's got the 2nd gen. crown and bezel, but has the old back and polished pushers.


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## Hippocampus

Got some here:




























Like I said, it seems like a hybrid between the 1st and 2nd gen models. But I like it. It's one of a kind! :-d


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## pew72

Is your watch accurate then? If not were you able to get the accuracy fixed? Thanks, Peter



Hippocampus said:


> Got some here:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Like I said, it seems like a hybrid between the 1st and 2nd gen models. But I like it. It's one of a kind! :-d


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## Hippocampus

^ The watch is still accurate, but the second hand just doesn't line up with the minute markers as it should. You can kind of see it in the third pic. Not quite sure how to fix it...


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## zaphod

Hippocampus said:


> ^ The watch is still accurate, but the second hand just doesn't line up with the minute markers as it should. You can kind of see it in the third pic. Not quite sure how to fix it...


The second hand has to be taken off and put on again to realign it.
Any watchmaker can do this in no time.


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## Hippocampus

zaphod said:


> The second hand has to be taken off and put on again to realign it.
> Any watchmaker can do this in no time.


:-! Thank you! I'm glad it isn't anything expensive.


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## mrbofus

I changed the battery and the display is back, but the second hand is still skipping every five seconds. The battery I purchased is brand new and I followed all the instructions. Is there some sort of reset/clearing procedure that I missed? Thanks!

-William



zaphod said:


> Here I am again, sorry to keep you waiting but I was a little short on time for the last days.
> Now battery change, here we go:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> When the idea of taking some photos came to my mind I already had the watch open. I did it exactly the way John described and I'm happy not to have fiddled with those tiny screws.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> First I carefully removed the gasket which looked like new all around, good thing cause I wouldn't have had a replacement.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Here the new battery is already inserted, forgot to take a photo without battery though. The battery is hold by some copper spring contact which really applies some pressure so it wasn't that easy to get it out and the new one in (at least I thought it would have been easier).
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> After some cleaning I put the gasket back in, first I applied some silicon lube to it which made fitting very easy.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Now the domed inner back carefully set on top of the gasket. It sits higher on one side because of another copper spring contact which has to be pressed down with the caseback.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Now the caseback. Due to the writing and logo it is fairly easy to fit it exactly over the screwholes, easier than it might look.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> The screws themselves are very tiny and I first turned them counterclockwise until I feeled a "click", then I knew they just fitted in right and I turned clockwise very slow and carefully. After turning one in I always turned the opposite one next. when all screws were in I turned them one with little force one by one.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> All done, backlight functioning normal again and end-of-life indication has gone for a few years. I will reset time and date this evening cause I'm in a little hurry now.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> And here it is again back on a strap, not sure but maybe I'll fit the titanium bracelet for next week, however: I love this watch!
> 
> Thank you John for your advices!:-!
> 
> BTW: As you might have noticed I'm a real poor photographer, but I don't mind. :-D


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## zaphod

mrbofus said:


> I changed the battery and the display is back, but the second hand is still skipping every five seconds. The battery I purchased is brand new and I followed all the instructions. Is there some sort of reset/clearing procedure that I missed? Thanks!
> 
> -William


Sorry for the late answer but somehow I missed your posting.
On your question: I didn't do any reset after both of my so far battery changes neither have I heard of a reset procedure on the 1666, I just know it from some of my G-Shocks.


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## stockae92

zaphod said:


> Sorry for the late answer but somehow I missed your posting.
> On your question: I didn't do any reset after both of my so far battery changes neither have I heard of a reset procedure on the 1666, I just know it from some of my G-Shocks.


casio does recommend a reset (shorting the AC contact with the +ve of the battery for most G-Shocks) after a battery change


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## tmurakoshi

Can you tell me what type of screwdriver did you use to open watch back cap? I tried to use cheap $1 value precision screw driver, but it did not fit.

Could you let me know where to buy screw driver?


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## mrbofus

I'm not sure of the technical name for these, but there are sets of really small screwdrivers that you can buy that are used to take apart laptops and other small computer parts. They come in Philips and flathead variants. I don't even remember where I got mine either...But I'm sure your local Fry's has one, or you could easily order one online from someplace like NewEgg. Hope this helps.



tmurakoshi said:


> Can you tell me what type of screwdriver did you use to open watch back cap? I tried to use cheap $1 value precision screw driver, but it did not fit.
> 
> Could you let me know where to buy screw driver?


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## benoize

brettbarnes1 said:


> I have often found this watch interesting but I've heard on various forums that it goes through batteries pretty often. Can any owners comment?


No problems with mine! 
Cheers, Benoit


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## fstshrk

stockae92 said:


> great photos
> 
> this got me thinking ... maybe i can live with a X-33 and DIY battery change too :-D


I just got one myself ;-)


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## uktrailmonster

Late reply I know, but only just found this interesting website!

I've owned my X33 from new since 1999 and it's only required 2 battery changes since then. So I'd say you've heard wrong


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## JackWReeves

A still later post: I got my X-33 in June 2003. I had to replace the original battery in March 2005 (EOL indication). I chose to replace it again in April 2007 (not really needed). As of this writing (March 2008) my light has gotten unacceptably dim. Whether this is battery related, or a problem I will determine as soon as I can get the watch to an authorized Omega service center.


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## stockae92

how about the EOL battery indicator?


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## fstshrk

Probably the EL backlight losing its efficiency.



JackWReeves said:


> A still later post: I got my X-33 in June 2003. I had to replace the original battery in March 2005 (EOL indication). I chose to replace it again in April 2007 (not really needed). As of this writing (March 2008) my light has gotten unacceptably dim. Whether this is battery related, or a problem I will determine as soon as I can get the watch to an authorized Omega service center.


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## JackWReeves

fstshrk said:


> Probably the EL backlight losing its efficiency.


No EOL indication. Other functions (alarm volume) still seem fine. Maybe the EL backlight is losing efficiency, but I would not have expected that to happen so soon (i.e. less than 5 years). Nor would I have expected it to be so precipitous; I would have expected something gradual. If it is the latter, any idea whether it can be corrected?


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## dwjquest

JackWReeves said:


> No EOL indication. Other functions (alarm volume) still seem fine. Maybe the EL backlight is losing efficiency, but I would not have expected that to happen so soon (i.e. less than 5 years). Nor would I have expected it to be so precipitous; I would have expected something gradual. If it is the latter, any idea whether it can be corrected?


On the Seamaster 120m Multi Function, the EOL is indicated by a flashing of the digital display.


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## fstshrk

You may want to ask a question on the other big watch forum site in the omega forum about the EL not working well. When I got my X-33, the backlight was the only problem that my watchmaker told me about. I thought it was strange since I was more worried about the collapsing crown issue.


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## norsten

Hello

How did you guys sync up the analog and digital times together -mine is completely out -is there a special sequence of buttons that allows the digital to sync with the analog time?

I would be very grateful for any help or advice on how to fix this.


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## zaphod

norsten said:


> Hello
> 
> How did you guys sync up the analog and digital times together -mine is completely out -is there a special sequence of buttons that allows the digital to sync with the analog time?
> 
> I would be very grateful for any help or advice on how to fix this.


Here you go:

http://chronomaddox.com/omega/manuals/X-33/X-33.html#Page_06

(RIP Chuck)


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## norsten

Thank you sooo much!!!


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## sml

zaphod said:


> Found it? Exactly! I dared to replace a japanese Energizer battery with a chinese no-name CR2320.


Looks like Japanese characters to me. Not sure why you think it is chinese.


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## zaphod

sml said:


> Looks like Japanese characters to me. Not sure why you think it is chinese.


I don't know anything about Japanese or Chinese characters. I bought a bunch of those batteries from an eBay seller located at Hongkong, so I thought it would probably be chinese. ;-)


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## Blueeyedninja

zaphod said:


> I don't know anything about Japanese or Chinese characters. I bought a bunch of those batteries from an eBay seller located at Hongkong, so I thought it would probably be chinese. ;-)


since the writing is katakana(japanese) maybe they are batteries made in china for a japanese company.


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## Jonpod

mrbofus said:


> I changed the battery and the display is back, but the second hand is still skipping every five seconds. The battery I purchased is brand new and I followed all the instructions. Is there some sort of reset/clearing procedure that I missed? Thanks!
> 
> -William


*The answer to this is to leave the watch without a battery for several minutes or more. This will allow any capacitors in the watch to drain and the watch will go back to normal (1 sec tics) when you reinstall the new battery. 
*


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## Neily_San

Hi all,

I just want to say a huge "thank you!" to those who have posted in this topic. I have owned my Gen2 for a number of years as my daily beater. I LOVE this watch.

Last week the second hand started jumping in 5 second intervals and I knew it was time to change the battery.

My local watch shop quoted £99 for the job. My local Omega AD wanted £140 !! Amazon charged me £2.50 for a CR2320 and this Topic gave me the confidence to do the job myself.










I had no problems with the screws ( well, except for the one I knocked into the carpet and spent 10 minutes searching for ;-) and the whole battery change went smoothly.

Thanks all,
:-D
Neily

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro


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