If you have invested in a beautiful automatic watch, it means that you are someone who enjoys the finer things in life. You have a love for the hand-crafted and an attraction to the precise. Because you want to care for your automatic watch even when you are not wearing it, you have also made the effort to look into watch winders. Spend any time at all studying the details of these combined watch storage and winding accessories and you will realize that you have a wide variety of choices available to you. Because watch winders are as beautiful as they are functional, you can pick from different exteriors such as assorted woods, metals and leather, but that’s not all. Before you entrust your timepiece to just any watch winder, you also need to think about the motor, which, combined with the gearbox, is the mechanism that ensures the reliable and safe winding of your watch. The motor you ultimately choose will determine the durability, noise level and quality of your watch winder.
As you have probably already learned, the cost of a winder for your watch can be anywhere from one or two hundred dollars to well into the thousands. For devices on the lower end of this continuum, Asian-made motors are often what is used to make them run. Particularly when it comes to Chinese-made motors, you get what you pay for. While they might run quietly at the outset, they soon become noisy. Furthermore, their rotors can start to vibrate and they are prone to stopping suddenly. If you would prefer an Asian-made motor, the Japanese-manufactured Mabuchi is your best choice because they are long-lasting, run quietly and are generally of higher quality. Well-known automatic watchmakers such as Versa and Heiden feature Mabuchi motors in their winders for these reasons.
Just as automatic watches can be on a long price continuum, so too can winders. When it comes to the higher-end brands, European-made motors are usually the mechanisms of choice. In particular, Swiss and German companies have earned a reputation for making motors that are top of the line. For example, motors made by Elma are used in Buben & Zörweg timepieces and are virtually soundless, making them a fine choice to be placed in quiet areas such as a bedroom. Perhaps the most respected motor manufacturer is Maxon, whose headquarters are in Switzerland. Premium automatic watch companies such as Underwood and Scatola del Tempo use these motors in their fine premium automatic watches. As an interesting side note, Maxon motors are not made only for timepieces; they are manufactured for numerous companies and clients, including NASA. If Maxon motors are entrusted to take rocket ships to the moon, they would certainly be the mechanism of choice for any watch winder you use for your high-end timepiece.
If you are like many connoisseurs of fine watches, you enjoyed the process of finding the piece that was just right for you almost as much as you now love owning it. The same is true as you scope out your various options to keep your watch wound even when you are not wearing it. Take the time to make a well-researched choice, and you should expect that your automatic watch winder will provide years of quiet and reliable service.