How to Take Care of Your Luxury Timepiece
If you want to know how to take care of your luxury timepiece, the following ten tips will help you make sure your investment lasts your lifetime and then some. Luxury timepieces are meant to be worn, enjoyed and then gifted to the next generation. This is why you see these passed on as heirlooms from one generation to the next with pride.
Start With the Watch Manual
It is a good idea to start with the website for your brand’s watch. Often each brand, such as Rolex, Tudor, Patek Philippe and so on, will have a manual for caring for YOUR watch. It will show you step by step how to take care of your luxury timepiece. Each manual may show you how to wind the watch properly without overwinding or harming the mechanism inside. It tells you how often you should service the watch, and what your warrantee is if you have any issues with it. You might even be able to extend your warrantee before the end of the initial one.
Rolex has an extensive FAQ’s section. Tudor has multiple articles on everything from how to change the time properly, how to clean the timepiece and so on. Patek Philippe has a dedicated manual for 200 of their collection’s timepieces. If you don’t find what you are looking for, chances are good that there is someone out there that has written about it on some of the big watch sites like Hodinkee, and others.
Protect Your Caliber from Water
Almost all fine timepieces come with some kind of water resistance. Even 100 meters (300 feet) is still a formidable depth for the casual swimmer. It is critical to know your water resistance if you intend on going diving. Each watch is gauged to work under certain pressure. If you want to go with an extreme dive, you need to have a timepiece like a Rolex Deep Sea which has a helium escape valve.
Watches will gather tiny pockets of helium as you start to rise to the surface and begin the decompression process. Without the helium escape valve, your fine crystal will often pop off the timepiece like a cork on New Year’s Eve. If you are submerged at that moment, your expensive timepiece will be severely damaged.
Even if you don’t go deep sea diving, you should always make sure your timepiece’s winding crown is fully screwed down so it can protect and deter water from entering the timepiece. Over time the water resistance should be checked to make sure it is truly resisting water. The slightest seepage can cause irreparable damage. This is not to frighten you since most of these timepieces undergo extreme testing to make sure it will have far greater water resistance than a typical owner could test it with.
Service Your Timepiece Regularly
Each watch is different in the amount of time it recommends a full servicing. The most important thing is to go to a certified dealer who specializes in your timepiece. Although there are many fine watchmakers and servicers that could do a fine job and for less, you will want to make sure that the manufacturer keeps a log of your service entries so that in the future your timepiece will have greater resale value.
Protect the Sapphire Crystal
The watch crystal is the first thing that people notice when they see your timepiece. Although you might have some scuffs on your band and even a dent on the well-worn case, the crystal is the one piece you don’t want to mess with. A scratch or worse would make almost any watch owner want to get a replacement crystal. Unfortunately replacing the sapphire is both expensive and can negate the waterproof guarantees from the manufacturer.
For Rolex, it might be difficult to find a replacement crystal with the cyclops lens. In some cases, such as Seiko, you might be able to find a retailer that will replace the lens and test it for basic water resistance. However, if the timepiece is a diver’s watch, the retailer will not often guarantee over basic depths. If you want to do learn how to take care of your luxury timepiece, focus on protecting your sapphire crystal.
Choose a Band that Supports Your Active Lifestyle
If your timepiece came with anything other than metal for its bracelet, you should immediately consider changing your band to a vulcanized rubber band. Leather and fabric bands don’t hold up well to water, sweat, and the smells of activewear. However, rubber bands do. They can be easily cleaned and still fit and feel like your original band. You can often add the deployant clasp to a band such as Rubber B’s collection of bands for Rolex, Tudor, Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet.
Clean Your Timepiece After Active Wear
If you go to the ocean or the pool, it is advisable to wash and clean your timepiece to protect it against the chemicals or salt corrosion. This will help preserve the legacy of the timepiece for future generations. This goes double for the strap. We strongly recommend a rubber or steel strap if you intend to go swimming, or do other activities such as golf, biking, basketball or more.
A leather band looks exceptional, but one active outing can destroy it. If this is the original band, you will have lost its value for future resale. We recommend saving it in the original box, and replacing the band with a fine vulcanized rubber band which can withstand sea water, sweat, and many other things you can throw at it.
Avoid Direct Sunlight for Extensive Periods
Although you may enjoy a tan, your timepiece will not. Putting your timepiece into direct sunlight will often cause the dial to bleach out and fade. Also, the heat from the sun can also lower the battery life. Although it is fine to enjoy many activities when wearing your timepiece, if you intend on laying in direct sunlight for hours on end, you might want to remove your timepiece and put it in your bag. Plus you can avoid the watch “Farmer’s” tan lines on your wrist.
Wind Your Watch Often – Naturally
Just like a car that doesn’t get use for months or years, a timepiece that isn’t moving, will often have problems. It is meant to move. We don’t recommend over-winding the watch by hand, but instead let your normal movement wind your automatic timepiece.
If you have an extensive watch collection, you might even consider an autowinder – a case that both protects your collection and automatically moves simulating actual movement. This allows your timepiece to always be ready to wear and stay in tip top functional state.
Avoid Chemicals
This may be obvious, but if you are working with toxic chemicals to crystal or metal, you would be advised to leave your timepiece at home. For example, if you are perhaps working on your 1969 Mustang, and may be exposed to oil, gas or other greases, leave your timepiece in the house.
Avoid Strong Magnets
Although some watches like the Rolex Milgauss are made to resist strong magnets, most timepieces are not. Rolex has made a real push to find new materials that are less susceptible to magnetic influences. However, if you are going to be working with strong magnets, such as in a lab or medical environment, you might be looking at either getting a Milgauss, or leaving your Daytona at home. That is one race it should not be part of.
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