Have you ever dropped your watch? Remember that feeling of reaching down to pick it up?? Have you ever misplaced your watch? Remember that panicked feeling when retracing your steps to find it?
Whether you own once nice watch or a dozen, they should all be treated with care and love. The watches will take care of you as long as you take care of them. Watch care reduces stress. Here are five tips that should be employed for practicing good watch behavior:
1. Insure it. Buying insurance is about as fun as a root canal. I admit it, I hate it, but I’ve heard so many stories about watching being stolen, lost, and falling off a boat (I’m serious). Could you image what you would do if your watch was stolen, or worse: lost? It’s a multi-thousand dollar investment where replacement would be extremely lucrative. Insuring a watch (or watches) is as simple as calling your insurance company, and adding the watch to your Homeowner’s policy. Piece of mind is worth a few bucks a month.
2. Have it serviced regularly. The first thing you should do after buying a luxury timepiece is to read the instruction manual. While I’m not a huge instruction manual guy, it’s a good idea to know the ins and outs of your watch. Beyond what you’ve studied about your watch’s movement and idiosyncrasies, there are good tidbits of information that will enhance ownership. One piece is the regular service and repair schedule. Remember that your watch is a huge investment, and will become a major piece of your Everyday Carry. Keep it in tip-top shape by having it regularly serviced…usually every two years.
3. Store it in a smart place. This actually a lot more important that you’d think. Throwing your watch on your nightstand or in a dish next to your bathroom sink is risky. If it gets knocked off and hits the floor, you are in trouble. At minimum, I’d recommend getting a good watch box. It doesn’t necessarily need to have a cover, but at least something with edges that will keep the watches from moving around. There is always the option of storing them in a personal safe, which isn’t a bad idea if there is a lot of foot traffic at your place. You never know…this proves why #1 is so important.
4. Travel well. This is a no-brainer. Please don’t travel with your Rolex stored in your toiletries case next to the deodorant. There are so many discreet travel cases for watches, there is almost no excuse. Whether it’s a leather roll or a box, take care of your watches while you are out gallivanting all over the world.
5. Wear it appropriately. And by this, I mean wear it often! Watches are meant to be worn (unless they aren’t, but these are usually in a glass display case). However, be smart with where you wear it. For example, don’t shoot guns while wearing the timepiece. The jolting action can wreak havoc on the inner workings. Keep it away from magnets, as they can create negative force on the gears. Make sure the band is in tiptop shape so it doesn’t fall off, and wipe it clean after you wear it.
Good behavior is usually rewarded, and by practicing these five ideas, your reward will be a long, healthy relationship with your watch. That’s what time it is.
This article was originally posted on Crown & Caliber’s blog Unwound. 100% worth a follow…
This is a solid list and much appreciated. I was recently maligned for discouraging someone from wearing a Speedmaster in the bird blind (if it’s good enough for the moon, it’s good enough…). Hopefully that chronos service fee will accomplish what I was unable to!
I’ve had my Submariner for 26 years and it’s traveled the world with me. I’ve always taken excellent care of it, and just got it back from the RSC in Dallas and it looks and runs like brand new. When my son graduates college in a few years, I’ll be passing it down to him and hopefully replacing it with the new red-letter Sea Dweller–if I can find one by then.