Buy Winders based on TPD

Many sellers proudly display only the winding sequence of their watch winder on the product specifications. You may see such winding sequence as stated below and also hear of words such as “gentle rotations” and “programmable”. But what does all this mean?


Firstly, the winding sequence tells you how long the winding operations take and how long a pause the unit will make before the next cycle begins. Let me give you an example.



Clockwise 10 minutes,

Pause for 20 minutes, and then

Unit repeats sequence again.

This is the winding cycle with a sequence of 10 minutes CW and a pause of 20 minutes.



There’s nothing mentioned about TPD at all. What if this winder actually gives you a 2880TPD in a clockwise direction? Would this be far too much for your Rollie?



I would be very nervous using this winder as my Rollie needs only between 650 ~ 800 TPD. 1200 TPD is actually the maximum I’ll go for. Underwood and Scatola have a very high TPD which I’m not comfortable with.



When buying a watch winder, have the seller take it out of the display cabinet for a test run. Plug the unit to a wall socket. Using your watch, time the rotation. Let’s say it’s at 6rpm (rotations per minute). Wow! That’s surely a “gentle” speed. But wait till you calculate the TPD. The results will shock you.



Refer to my previous blog “Confusion at TPD Calculations” and you’ll see how to calculate the approximate TPD for any watch winder.



2880TPD for just the CW direction is far too much. The clutch will really take a beating. Its better choosing a Watch Winder based on TPD and not some fanciful winding sequence or just knowing the “gentle” RPM.



No matter how GENTLE the rotations may be, if it provides 2880TPD, I’ll stay away from it!



The words “programmable watch winder” simply mean that the unit actually has a selectable TPD and a selectable Direction switch. Nevertheless, if your unit has both mentioned selector switches, well and good! If it doesn’t, just make sure it alternates in both direction and has a TPD not more than 1200. Some winders are factory preset to that.



And talking about “programmable”, isn’t the Basic Watch Winder I’ve shown you a programmable type too?

People argue that when a watch is on the wrist, the person doesn’t keep count on the arm swing rotations since this will definitely be more. So 2880TPD shouldn’t be a problem on a watch winder. Yes, I do agree that a person doesn’t count the number of arm swings but once it’s off the wrist shouldn’t you pamper your investments? Don’t overstress the mainspring on and off your wrist. Even costly racecars go through pampering and maintenance after a big race.




A watch winder is a very convenient tool to keep your watches wound and ready to wear anytime. Protect your investments. Buying a winder based on TPD makes more sense and truly meet your watches requirements. Be prudent!

Labels: turns per day, watch winder