ten10 Projects

Sunday, October 18, 2009

I Found a Spinner… URGHHHH!

Spinner? What spinner?... that was the question I asked myself when reading off some websites.

I always thought that it’s impossible for a manufacturer to make a spinner and market it as a Professional Watch Winder. I was proven wrong when someone brought this unit to me for repair.

The Housing

First shocker: - The viewing window was a complete turn-off. It’s made from clear thin mica sheet, something you’ll find in most confectionary. The least this manufacturer could do is get a perspex sheet to make it look more presentable but they didn’t.

Second shocker was when I opened the lid. The PVC used was already peeling off. Again, it’s a sign that the manufacturer chose to cut corners in buying poor quality PVC instead of the higher grade PU faux leather.

There were no external switches (Power Switch), so I guess the only switch present on the slanted panel controls the Direction as well as Power to the unit. It’s rather strange to have two power sockets on the rear. Perhaps, the manufacturer made this to allow the user to daisy-chain more winders working on a single power adaptor.

PVC scrapings were seen at the base because of the poor construction. The winding cup, with the weight of the watches, was rubbing against the wooden support constantly giving unnecessary resistance to the motor thus causing premature failures.

Here you can see the underside of the turntable which shows the “bruising” it’s received while spinning with the weight of the watches.

The third shocker came when I opened the front panel to gain access to the motor inside. I almost puked. This is indeed a spinner because there was a complete absence of any sort of microprocessor or timer chip inside. The circuit merely provides power to the motor to continuously turn the motor in the selected direction. Take a look at this Cheap Spinner’s circuit for yourself. Are you convinced now? Well, I am.

Please have pity on your expensive watches. This unit will give a very high TPD as it turns the whole day non-stop. This will eventually translate to an extra tight mainspring. I wouldn’t recommend this unit even as a cheap watch winder. It’s really not worth the money spent. I just wonder which insane seller would sell such a product and the buyer is equally insane to buy it.

I was in doubt initially about all the hype when referring to “spinners” marketed as watch winders. I was thinking it’s just a marketing ploy or a play of words. With this unit, I’m 100% convinced of its existence and how some people are fooled by it and in buying it.

The Motor

The manufacturer uses a very low cost China-made motor with a gear-head full of plastic gears. The owner claims that he bought this unit about 4 months ago without warranty. This is relatively a short time and true for the short life-span of a cheap product.

The Circuit

A total crap! It is obvious that…

The manufacturer doesn’t know about watch winders and just built cheap spinners for naïve buyers who are penny-wise-pound-foolish.

No microprocessor was used because the manufacturer has decided to cut cost right down to the bone.

The seller is indeed just making money from fools that buy this unit. And

Yes! I’m really disgusted in seeing such product ever build.

The Adaptor

I’ve experienced adaptors blowing up, sparking and some even overheating. An adaptor MUST always be safety-tested. UL and CE Approval are the most common safety standards that every adaptor manufacturer must comply to. Read up from the web about this to know what safety test were conducted and you’ll know the dangers. It’ll be a potential fire hazard and totally unsafe for use if the manufacturer fails to submit for the appropriate test.

The adaptor here has a CE approval marking and some other Safety approvals which I can’t figure out.

On measuring the output voltage, I read only 0.76V which means the power brick is dead.

The Verdict

You really get what you pay for. After just 4 months of usage, the owner has to face a dead motor and a dead adaptor.

Right after taking these photos, I called the owner to tell him that I can’t repair this unit. It needs more than repairs. All parts needed a replacement in order to even be an average winder unit.

From the exterior, it may look acceptably pleasing but this unit will hurt your expensive timepieces. DO NOT BUY! If you have one, for heaven’s sake please stop using it and have it upgraded as a standard watch winder. If you can DIY, follow my later blogs for a simple watch winder circuit you can build yourself. If you need any assistance now, I can advice you on this issue.

Labels: spinners

posted at 8:27 AM by ten10