This week brings four stories with a clear bench connection. A modular smartwatch puts user replacement at the centre of its design, customs officers have intercepted hundreds of counterfeit watches, and two new mechanical releases show very different approaches to power reserve, display and future servicing.
A modular smartwatch makes its battery and display replaceable
ZDNET has reviewed the Una Watch, a fitness watch designed so its battery and display can be replaced by the user. The back is held by six screws, while a separate screw secures the battery. Una also shows additional navigation, Bluetooth, sensor and processor modules that could be replaced, although ZDNET notes that those extra modules are not yet available.
For repairers, the useful point is the design choice. Access is built around fasteners and replaceable modules rather than a sealed assembly intended to be discarded. Long term repairability will still depend on parts supply, but this is a practical example of a wearable being designed with service access in mind from the start.
Source: ZDNET
Customs officers seize 300 counterfeit watches
US Customs and Border Protection seized 300 counterfeit Audemars Piguet watches from a shipment passing through Indianapolis on 14 October. WWD reports that the parcel had arrived from Hong Kong and was bound for Illinois. The agency valued the shipment at US$12 million if the watches had been genuine.
The repair angle is straightforward. Counterfeit watches do not only create problems for buyers and brands. They can also arrive at a bench with unknown movements, inconsistent materials and parts that do not match genuine service information. Identification and careful inspection should come before quoting a repair or ordering components.
Source: WWD
Oris refreshes its ten day manual wind calibre
Oris has updated the ProPilot Calibre 111 while retaining the manually wound movement that gives the watch a ten day power reserve from a single oversized mainspring. Monochrome Watches reports that the refreshed model uses a 43mm case, with the date moved to six o’clock and the non-linear power reserve display remaining at three o’clock.
For a repairer, a long power reserve changes the scale of the energy system being handled. Mainspring condition, torque delivery and power reserve indication all need to be considered together. The update is also a reminder that familiar calibre names can appear in revised cases and dial layouts, so reference checks remain important before parts are ordered.
Source: Monochrome Watches
Ressence combines an oil filled display with its own movement
Ressence has introduced the Type 10 DN, its first oil filled watch powered by a proprietary movement. The watch separates the automatic base movement and the oil filled display module into sealed chambers. Magnetic transmission carries motion across a thin titanium membrane, while an expansion chamber manages changes in oil volume as temperature shifts.
This is highly specialised construction. Monochrome Watches lists 538 components across the movement and display system, including 196 in the oil filled module. For most independent workshops, the practical lesson is to recognise when a watch depends on sealed chambers, magnetic transmission and brand specific procedures before any attempt is made to open it.
Source: Monochrome Watches
What this week means at the bench
These stories all come back to access and identification. A product designed around replaceable modules gives repair a better starting point. A counterfeit needs careful identification before work begins. A long reserve calibre and an oil filled display both demand that the movement architecture is understood before tools touch the watch.
For anyone building a conventional mechanical bench, WRT’s guide to the first watch repair tools worth buying covers the basic equipment needed for controlled handling and inspection.
