# My first mechanical. A Hamilton! But it's running fast....



## Stryder420 (Dec 17, 2010)

Hello all new to forum and to mechanical watches,

I did a lot of research before i purchased my watch and have been lurking around the forum for a month or so now and now i'm glad to say im a proud new owner of my new hamilton viewmatic 

Now i've only had my watch for 3 days now, but it seems to be running 8 seconds fast :-s I've read on the forums that it sometimes takes a week or so to adjust or "break in" but i was wondering if i should take it to a local watch repair shop which they claim to have a swiss certified watch repair person or would that 1 void my warranty? or should i send a email to hamilton warranty office if my problem continues to persist?

Please help thx. here are some pics of my new watch.


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## vlad.ica (Oct 12, 2009)

Hi Stryder and welcome! You bought a beautiful watch, without a doubt!

+8 seconds in 3 days is actually great! Mechanical watches are much less accurate than quartz. And during following months or even year it should get slightly slower.
Just one remark - when measuring watch accuracy - best way is to use some accurate source - timeanddate.com could be good choice! You have to know that there are other facts influencing watch accuracy - such as watch position, power reserve (is it fully wound or not) etc.

I suggest that you enjoy your new watch and don't bother too much about accuracy, as your Viewmatic is well within movement specifications!


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## Stryder420 (Dec 17, 2010)

Hey Vlad thanks for the reply. I'll try the timeanddate.com, but my watch actually runs 8secs fast per day for a period of 3 days now...i've just been using my stopwatch feature on my ipod, but i've been comparing it every 24 hrs and it's roughly 7-8 seconds fast per day. i read that 3/sec per day was the avg?


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## vlad.ica (Oct 12, 2009)

Hi Stryder,

I was not sure if it was 8 per day or 3 days, but still - 7-8 seconds/day is completely OK. My Hamilton Khaki Auto Chrono came with +8 or even more and after 1 year it is +3/+4. Specification of average rate for ETA 2824-2 movement is: +-12s/day for Standard version, +-7s for Elabore and +-4 for Top.

I would still recommend being patient , but of course you could consult retailer where you bought the watch.


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## Jeff_C (Feb 11, 2006)

Yep, thats not too bad. COSC Standards are -4 to +6 per day. So you are just outside of that. 

I have a Seiko thats about 12 sec perday. I set it back a few minutes let it run a few minutes over and then re-adjust it. 

But I am NO kind of stickler for accuracy. If you are, you may want to consider an atomic digital watch. Autos are living little mechanisms...  They have their quirks, but thats what makes them so cool!

And most brand new autos do kind of settle in.


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## Stryder420 (Dec 17, 2010)

Thanks for the replies guys (assuming ur guys). I'm not too anal about how accurate the watch is running, but I would like it to be closer to the +/- 3sec per day. I'll give it some time and hopefully it settles in a bit


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## lvt (Sep 15, 2009)

Stryder420 said:


> Thanks for the replies guys (assuming ur guys). I'm not too anal about how accurate the watch is running, but I would like it to be closer to the +/- 3sec per day. I'll give it some time and hopefully it settles in a bit


Your watch isn't COSC certified so anything between +/-8s per day is great enough, most of non COSC watches are less accurate than yours, you should enjoy the watch instead of waiting it doing something that it wasn't designed for |>


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## Jeff_C (Feb 11, 2006)

lvt said:


> Your watch isn't COSC certified so anything between +/-8s per day is great enough, most of non COSC watches are less accurate than yours, you should enjoy the watch instead of waiting it doing something that it wasn't designed for |>


Agreed! I didnt mean to suggest the Hammy's were COSC certified... just presenting a reference for what the "top of the line" could be.  Even a COSC certified watch has variations.  I guess that was my point.


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## ragamuffin (Jan 22, 2010)

My Hamiltons are in the area of 5-10 sek fast per day, so this is 'as it should be'.

But

The way you put it on your desk at night can significantly effect a watch timekeeping ability.
I you place it laying flat with face/dial up it will go faster (gain some seconds) and if you put it sideways with the crown pointing up it will slow down.

So depending on if a watch runs fast or slow during the day, you can somewhat make up for it at night. If you are lucky you might tune it in to 0...


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## Watchdog (Nov 18, 2006)

+8 seconds a day for a non-COSC watch is quite good and it being a consistent 7-8 seconds per day is even better.


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## lvt (Sep 15, 2009)

ragamuffin said:


> The way you put it on your desk at night can significantly effect a watch timekeeping ability.
> I you place it laying flat with face/dial up it will go faster (gain some seconds) and if you put it sideways with the crown pointing up it will slow down.
> 
> So depending on if a watch runs fast or slow during the day, you can somewhat make up for it at night. If you are lucky you might tune it in to 0...


That's what I did with my Tissot, I managed to keep the watch running within +/- 1 minute per month by simply putting it face down at night to compensate the losing seconds when I wear it in day time.


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## Stryder420 (Dec 17, 2010)

ragamuffin said:


> The way you put it on your desk at night can significantly effect a watch timekeeping ability.
> I you place it laying flat with face/dial up it will go faster (gain some seconds) and if you put it sideways with the crown pointing up it will slow down.
> 
> So depending on if a watch runs fast or slow during the day, you can somewhat make up for it at night. If you are lucky you might tune it in to 0...


cool thx for the tip...i have been placing it sideways with the crown up whenever i set it down or when i go to bed.


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## soke (Dec 27, 2010)

I have a khaki pilot 46mm. I regulated it myself,from +13 sec/day to +4 sec/day, it took 30 min with some little screwdrivers and a loopglass.It's not that difficult if your hands don't shake too much.


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## solowatch (Mar 17, 2008)

First, that's a nice watch. 

As for accuracy, +/- 8 secs per day is pretty fair for a automatic mechanical. I have an O&W diver that is 15 seconds fast daily, but it doesn't bother me one bit. Over time it may slow down a tad as it breaks in, so in a year it may slow down to about +3 to +5, which would put it in COSC territory. Also, you may find the watch accuracy varies a bit based on position of the watch, and whether it is on the wrist or just in the box. Don't sweat it and enjoy your beautiful watch.


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## GreenHornWatch (Apr 18, 2010)

That is a nice watch and the time isnt bad all things considered.


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## SwedishElite22 (Apr 16, 2010)

I just bought the same watch and found some interesting points which lead to a long 'break in' theory.

When I first got the watch I was running -5 a day for the first 5-6 days. After this it looked like it settled and was running -2 a day. I then started testing different resting positions, etc and one day in a 24 hour period the watch GAINED 23 seconds. After that it has been running about +2-+3 seconds a day.

Ive gone a fair amount of research, trials and bugging more experienced members here and have come to learn as others have pointed out that accuracy is the nature of the automatic beast. Checking it daily unless you are changing nothing but position is pointless.

The best way to check accuracy is to wear a watch regularly for a week then divide the +/- figure by 7 and get your +/- per day figure. Then the next week try a different resting position and again check after a week, and so on. 

Despite us having the same watch we could have different results but I have found that dial up gain a second or so a day and dial down slowed the watch down by 3-5 seconds per day. Crown up or down didnt seem to matter. 12H or 6H positions I havent tested much but they are used in general wearing motions.

The movement in your (and my) watch is said to average +/-7 a day with a max variation of +/-30 a day... without being COSC you technically arent with a problem until you are running outside of the +/-30 a day. Keeping in mind you are going to be resetting the date every other month or so as it is you will probably be resetting the time as well depending on how much of a stickler you are for accuracy

I will also end with this note, it is always better to be early than late, so Id rather run fast than slow.


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## Bird-man (May 19, 2017)

Hello, friends! I'm resurrecting this thread by random chance, having had it come up on a google search.

And, BTW, it's my first post in the forum!

On topic, I took delivery yesterday of a modestly-priced, but well-regarded, automatic (not my first). The accuracy, however, is not encouraging. It's been running for 12 hours now and the hands are spinning like propellers. Hyperbole? Try a full five minutes fast over the past three hours!

Yeah.

I'm refraining from identifying the watch and its manufacturer as I don't want to provoke or embarrass them unnecessarily. I've sent an email and hope I'll hear back within a day or so. 

Or, going by my watch, two days.


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## JustBlueFish (Oct 2, 2016)

Bird-man said:


> Hello, friends! I'm resurrecting this thread by random chance, having had it come up on a google search.
> 
> And, BTW, it's my first post in the forum!
> 
> ...


That's definitely to fast. It could be magnetized or have some other issues. Assuming you have a warranty I'd send it in for repairs or perhaps return/exchange it if the retailer will allow you to. This is why I always let a new watch run for a day before taking off the stickers. I'd rather just return it than have to send it in for warranty repairs.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Bird-man (May 19, 2017)

Okay, closing in on 27 hours since I first began to track the accuracy of this new watch (18 of them with it stationary, face down), and it's now 20 minutes fast.

Wow.


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## filthyj24 (Dec 28, 2013)

What exactly causes a watch to be this inaccurate? Magnetism, shock or both? I guess I've just been incredibly lucky (twice now) as my titanium auto is running about +1-2 per day.


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## lvt (Sep 15, 2009)

If the watch is not expensive and not worth sending it back, any good local watchmaker could fix the problem for some bucks. 20 minutes fast by 27 hours doesn't necessarily mean the watch is magnetized, it might just need some tuning for better accuracy.

Sent from my LG-H630 using Tapatalk


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## Bird-man (May 19, 2017)

Well, the vendor (located across the country) asked me to return the watch and they'd "make [the situation] right." I'm unclear if that means a replacement, but I'll soon know.


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## watchman1221 (Jun 11, 2016)

I would say your watch is really accurate! But there are also timekeeping apps for smartphones if you want to DIY...


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## Bird-man (May 19, 2017)

About a half hour fast in a bit over a day is "really accurate?"


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## Ke0bfy (Mar 6, 2017)

wrong trread


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