# LACO Pilot B (Miyota Movement) Noisy Movement



## ggray830 (Feb 5, 2011)

I recently acquitted a LACO Pilot B with the Miyota movement from the sales forum, and I am more than happy about the quality of the watch. It keeps great time (+sub 10 seconds daily) and I think it looks awesome. However, I have noticed that the watch does have a noticeable rattle when you give it a shake. The sound is audible from the wrist if the room is quiet enough. I would describe the sound as a kind of high pitch rattle, and distinct from the clicking sound it makes when I rotate it counterclockwise (winding the movement).

Anyway, I was just curious to see if any other owners have noticed similar sounds, or if the sound might be a result of some kind of malfunction/defect in my movement. 

Thanks


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## boeing767 (Nov 18, 2009)

ggray830 said:


> I recently acquitted a LACO Pilot B with the Miyota movement from the sales forum, and I am more than happy about the quality of the watch. It keeps great time (+sub 10 seconds daily) and I think it looks awesome. However, I have noticed that the watch does have a noticeable rattle when you give it a shake. The sound is audible from the wrist if the room is quiet enough. I would describe the sound as a kind of high pitch rattle, and distinct from the clicking sound it makes when I rotate it counterclockwise (winding the movement).
> 
> Anyway, I was just curious to see if any other owners have noticed similar sounds, or if the sound might be a result of some kind of malfunction/defect in my movement.
> 
> Thanks


I have the same problem too. It's noisy (more noisy than my other Miyota movement I own), but probably it's normal?!? My watch is gaining about 8 seconds a day (nothing wrong with this), but you can definitely hear it when it's quite. I think it's still acceptable, but what would the sound be in a couple of years? Would it increase, would it decrease?


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## hanz079 (Feb 14, 2011)

Same here... noisier than most watches that I have... since it runs quite accurate... I will go ahead say that there's not a problem.
Hope this sentence won't come back and bite me in the butt... lol


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## Uwe W. (Jan 7, 2009)

There have been other threads in this forum about the Miyota noise. It's normal for this particular movement; both Miyota powered Laco watches that I own do it. I have a couple of Miyota powered watches from other manufacturers and they do it too. It's just the sound of the rotor swinging back and forth - nothing to worry about.


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## ggray830 (Feb 5, 2011)

It is good to hear that I am not the only one experiencing this issue. It sounds like this is something I'm going to have to live with (not a problem at all) or upgrade to an eta powered model. 

I've got an older seiko with a 7s26 movement and that watch actually makes a tapping sound when you shake it. I opened the watch up and noticed that the rotor moves a few mm perpendicularly to the winding plane. I think the barring is worn out and the tapping is coming from the rotor hitting the case back. It keeps pretty good time so I'll probably leave it for now, but luckily a replacement movement for this watch is not horribly expensive if I change my mind. 

Thanks again guys for the help.


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## sci (Aug 6, 2009)

The Miyota rotor winds the main spring unidirectional. If the rotor goes in the non-winding direction, it rotates almost without resistance and makes relatively high RPM  And this sound differs significantly from the noise of the rotor, when it winds the movement. For most of the Seiko, Orient, all Vostok and ETA movements, the rotors wind bi-directional and there is no difference in the sound. I wouldn't consider this as a defect of Miyota, it is just the way it is designed.

The problem you have with the Seiko is a nasty one. You should change the rotor if the bearing is worn, or it will ruin the rest of the winding mechanism.


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## monick88 (Feb 25, 2011)

I have a Ticino Pilot watc with a Miyota movement and yes, it's quite noisy compared to my Tag heuer calibre 5 and Omega seamaster, you can really hear the movement rotating....


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## kubelwagen (Apr 14, 2011)

I must say it was a bit worrisome for me hearing that noisy movement at first -- good to know that its normal for the Miyota.

Hey monick88 -- am sure I've seen your handle from somewhere? ;-)


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## kevral (May 10, 2011)

Either I have particularly good hearing, or a particularly loud Laco Miyota - because I can hear the rotor spinning at arms length _over the ambient noise of a quiet daytime city street_.

Other than that the watch is an incredible value for money.


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## boeing767 (Nov 18, 2009)

kevral said:


> Either I have particularly good hearing, or a particularly loud Laco Miyota - because I can hear the rotor spinning at arms length _over the ambient noise of a quiet daytime city street_.
> 
> Other than that the watch is an incredible value for money.


I use the watch now for about 2 monts and the noisy movement becames more and more quite. So maybe it was just the beginning? New unused materials? I don't say thats it's completly quite now, but it's acceptable now :-!


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## pavel36 (Mar 20, 2012)

ggray830 said:


> I recently acquitted a LACO Pilot B with the Miyota movement from the sales forum, and I am more than happy about the quality of the watch. It keeps great time (+sub 10 seconds daily) and I think it looks awesome. However, I have noticed that the watch does have a noticeable rattle when you give it a shake. The sound is audible from the wrist if the room is quiet enough. I would describe the sound as a kind of high pitch rattle, and distinct from the clicking sound it makes when I rotate it counterclockwise (winding the movement).
> 
> Anyway, I was just curious to see if any other owners have noticed similar sounds, or if the sound might be a result of some kind of malfunction/defect in my movement.
> 
> Thanks


I don't think this is just with Miyota... 
I bought the pilot A Munster couple of days ago...with the ETA. 2824.2 movement, and the rattling sound when i shake a watch is quite loud... I was worried that there was something wrong with it, but it keeps time perfectly. Looses about a second a day... I am accepting this for what it is ..it is workiing and the noise is not really bothering me. The posts I came across just reassure that I am not alone who has the same experience with their Laco...


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## sci (Aug 6, 2009)

The Miyota and ETA have completely different winding mechanisms. The sound of Miyota is free spinning of the rotor and the ETA is "jumpy" with small oscillations of the rotor between two gear resistances. Don't assume that every type of mechanism mounted in a Laco becomes noisy  Also, the watches with glass backs tend to be more noisy than those with solid-back cases with same movement inside. Every mechanical movement have it's own noise and it is not only normal, it is a preferred effect for many watch fans (especially the ticking).


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## arnz3 (Dec 8, 2011)

pavel36 said:


> I don't think this is just with Miyota...
> I bought the pilot A Munster couple of days ago...with the ETA. 2824.2 movement, and the rattling sound when i shake a watch is quite loud... I was worried that there was something wrong with it, but it keeps time perfectly. Looses about a second a day... I am accepting this for what it is ..it is workiing and the noise is not really bothering me. The posts I came across just reassure that I am not alone who has the same experience with their Laco...


This what scares me the most actually. Other thread in this forum has discussed about the noise of ETA which makes me hold my intention to purchase Laco (thinking to buy Paderborn). I owned Laco before, type B Miyota Auto, and the problem I had with it is only the sound of the rotor (but it keeps accurate time though, which is very important).


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## Uwe W. (Jan 7, 2009)

arnz3 said:


> Other thread in this forum has discussed about the noise of ETA which makes me hold my intention to purchase Laco (thinking to buy Paderborn). I owned Laco before, type B Miyota Auto, and the problem I had with it is only the sound of the rotor (but it keeps accurate time though, which is very important).


And this is how rumour turns into a perceived, but untrue fact. Someone new to this forum will read this statement and parrot it into something else - that Laco has watches with noisy ETA movements, which is simply _*not true*_.

The Miyota rotor, based on my direct experience with that particular movement, makes noise regardless of which manufacturer's watch it's in. So that makes its noise a moot point here. And with respect to noisy ETA movements, I don't recall that being something discussed with any frequency here. If there are noisy ETA movements out there, they account for a very small percentage of the Laco watches being sold. I've yet to come across a noisy ETA in any Laco I've owned - or in any other manufacturer's watch for that matter. The odds of you ending up with one of these in a Laco would to be the same for any other watch brand - very slim.


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## Uwe W. (Jan 7, 2009)

pavel36 said:


> I am accepting this for what it is ..it is workiing and the noise is not really bothering me. The posts I came across just reassure that I am not alone who has the same experience with their Laco...


It's not normal, so I'd get it checked out. And I sure wouldn't keep shaking it around if it was making a "rattling" noise. I've never owned a Laco with a noisy ETA movement, and I have a number of them. Also, this issue isn't something that has been reported with any frequency here. Just because it's keeping good time doesn't mean that something isn't right inside the case, something that might come back to haunt you down the road.


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## pavel36 (Mar 20, 2012)

Uwe W. said:


> It's not normal, so I'd get it checked out. And I sure wouldn't keep shaking it around if it was making a "rattling" noise. I've never owned a Laco with a noisy ETA movement, and I have a number of them. Also, this issue isn't something that has been reported with any frequency here. Just because it's keeping good time doesn't mean that something isn't right inside the case, something that might come back to haunt you down the road.


...you just have to scare me don't you .... I honestly don't know any good places to take it... I am in Montreal... There must be a few here, but I don't know any....


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## Uwe W. (Jan 7, 2009)

pavel36 said:


> ...you just have to scare me don't you .... I honestly don't know any good places to take it... I am in Montreal... There must be a few here, but I don't know any....


I have a buddy in Montreal who is pretty handy with watches; however, I'd suggest posting in the Public (main) Forum that you're looking for a good watchmaker in your area. Some suggestions will be sure to come your way. You should contact Laco too since it's new. I've always preferred to have small issues taken care of locally: peace of mind, quicker turn-around times, and none of the hassles associate with shipping something.

Oh, and I wouldn't worry too much about it. It's a very common movement and in all likelihood it'll be something very minor.


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## arnz3 (Dec 8, 2011)

Uwe W. said:


> And this is how rumour turns into a perceived, but untrue fact. Someone new to this forum will read this statement and parrot it into something else - that Laco has watches with noisy ETA movements, which is simply _*not true*_.
> 
> The Miyota rotor, based on my direct experience with that particular movement, makes noise regardless of which manufacturer's watch it's in. So that makes its noise a moot point here. And with respect to noisy ETA movements, I don't recall that being something discussed with any frequency here. If there are noisy ETA movements out there, they account for a very small percentage of the Laco watches being sold. I've yet to come across a noisy ETA in any Laco I've owned - or in any other manufacturer's watch for that matter. The odds of you ending up with one of these in a Laco would to be the same for any other watch brand - very slim.


Thanks for the reassurance Uwe, it's helpful. I think that spending that amount of money (for me quite a lot) need good judgments and considerations.


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## arnz3 (Dec 8, 2011)

Uwe W. said:


> I have a buddy in Montreal who is pretty handy with watches; however, I'd suggest posting in the Public (main) Forum that you're looking for a good watchmaker in your area. Some suggestions will be sure to come your way. You should contact Laco too since it's new. I've always preferred to have small issues taken care of locally: peace of mind, quicker turn-around times, and none of the hassles associate with shipping something.
> 
> Oh, and I wouldn't worry too much about it. It's a very common movement and in all likelihood it'll be something very minor.


By the way, I'm curious, if something wrong happen to your watch (still under warranty) and it's not normal, will Laco covers the shipping fee?


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## pavel36 (Mar 20, 2012)

Uwe W. said:


> I have a buddy in Montreal who is pretty handy with watches; however, I'd suggest posting in the Public (main) Forum that you're looking for a good watchmaker in your area. Some suggestions will be sure to come your way. You should contact Laco too since it's new. I've always preferred to have small issues taken care of locally: peace of mind, quicker turn-around times, and none of the hassles associate with shipping something.
> 
> Oh, and I wouldn't worry too much about it. It's a very common movement and in all likelihood it'll be something very minor.


Following your advice and getting tired of the anxiety over this i took the watch to a watchmaker recommended by someone on this forum...

The guy first just listened to the watch and said that everything seems to sound normal, but i insisted that he opens it and checks..

a few minutes later i was looking on my open Laco. the only piece that made the noise was the rotor. They watchmaker said he will try to tighten a little the rotor screw, but i don't think it made much difference.. 
Anyway, $10 bucks later i walked out reassured that there is nothing wrong with the watch (small price to pay for a piece of mind ) 
I still find it a bit noisy, but again this doesn't bother me. The only reason i checked this out is to make sure that there is nothing is broken inside.

It is a beautiful watch and i had nothing but outstanding experience with laco shop representatives... I definitely don't want to say that all Laco watches are noisy, but it my particular case that is the experience. .. and I am OK with it.


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## Uwe W. (Jan 7, 2009)

pavel36 said:


> Anyway, $10 bucks later i walked out reassured that there is nothing wrong with the watch (small price to pay for a piece of mind )
> I still find it a bit noisy, but again this doesn't bother me. The only reason i checked this out is to make sure that there is nothing is broken inside.


That is good news. I think it was good that you had it checked out, but I'm still mystified by an ETA that makes noise. I'm going through my watches right now to see if any ETA autos make any noise - in comparison to a Miyota. Obviously with your ear next to the case you'll be able to hear a swinging rotor, but I can't think of a time when I heard one while it was on my wrist.


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## pavel36 (Mar 20, 2012)

Uwe W. said:


> ... Obviously with your ear next to the case you'll be able to hear a swinging rotor, but I can't think of a time when I heard one while it was on my wrist.


... I can hear it when slightly shaking may hand while wearing the watch.. at the distance of a stretched out arm... ... I am not kidding...
if i only heard something listening with my ear to the case I wouldn't even think about it, less post on the forum.

..but hey, i am truly relieved that nothing is wrong. cause honestly i was starting to get over anxious over this... (like i am sure 90% of the members of this forum would..)

Thanks again..

P.S.

I may be moving to Toronto later this year.. If so, I will invite you for a drink and let you listen to my noisy ETA


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## Uwe W. (Jan 7, 2009)

pavel36 said:


> I may be moving to Toronto later this year.. If so, I will invite you for a drink and let you listen to my noisy ETA


Sounds like a plan! :-!

I've been toying with the idea of organising a WUS get-together in the GTA; there are many here in the Toronto area that I think would be interested.


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## Brynar (Jul 12, 2012)

Hallo!
I just got my brand new Laco Aachen, when i shake my arm I hear a noisy rattle, otherwise its very quiet. Now, im not sure about if i notice the same noise as you do on this thread? I hear it as if something is loose in the watch. When looking at the rotor it seems to have trouble to move seemles, but since im not sure about how the rotor should move, im not sure. 
When winding the watch i cant find no "end". Is that normal? 

But, have to say, otherwise the Laco watch loks and feels magnificent!


André
Sweden


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## marzen (Jun 15, 2008)

Normal folks. It's normal. Wear them in good health!


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## Brynar (Jul 12, 2012)

Bad news...
I had to return the new Laco Aachen back to Pforzheim. It didnt end with the rattle, after wearing it outdoors, the watch glass became foggy. So now im waiting again. Im missing it already.


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## Brynar (Jul 12, 2012)

Brynar said:


> Bad news...
> I had to return the new Laco Aachen back to Pforzheim. It didnt end with the rattle, after wearing it outdoors, the watch glass became foggy. So now im waiting again. Im missing it already.


Today I got my watch back from Laco. With a new movement and with a tightened hull. A big difference! No fog and no rattle! Just a nice spinning sound that reminds you of a automatic Fliegeruhr. Far from the rattle before: No wonder im in such a good Mood...


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## StufflerMike (Mar 23, 2010)

Brynar said:


> Today I got my watch back from Laco. With a new movement and with a tightened hull. A big difference! No fog and no rattle! Just a nice spinning sound that reminds you of a automatic Fliegeruhr. Far from the rattle before: No wonder im in such a good Mood...


Good to hear ot turned out well.


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## Jon Butcher (Jun 22, 2012)

Glad I found this thread, I too have my eye on a Laco Flieger type A Miyota pilot , the local seller has it priced @ $300.00 which I assume is about par, sure hope I get one that dosen't have any issues..


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