I agreed to change a battery in a cheap quartz watch for a family member recently (the brand is Sovereign or something similar, I didn’t note what the movement was), the battery can only be changed by removing the crystal which I did with no problems, I then removed the crown/stem in order to remove the dial etc and popped the new battery in.
The watch now seems to run fine for a few hours and then stops, if you pull the crown and move the hands and push the crown back in sometimes the second hand will tick backwards for a couple of seconds before ticking away normally. It will then stop again after a few hours, it always stops at different times so I don’t think any hands are catching each other.
I’ve also noticed that sometime the crown pops out to the first click/date change position instead of staying firmly against the case, the watch still ticks in this position.
Considering the value of the watch I usually would have given up by now but it has sentimental value to its owner (case back engraved by his late wife), any ideas what may be causing this?
The battery I used was a Renata one for which I paid £1.65 for a pair from eBay, is it likely to be a dodgy battery?
Apologies for the long winded post and thanks I’m advance for any suggestions
I guess the difficulty is knowing if it was working properly before the battery change, stopping and starting may have appeared to be the symptoms of a battery problem but it could be a mechanical fault. Do you have a multimeter to check the batteries?
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My gut feeling is that it’s not a battery problem.
Eventually, a quartz movement will need stripping, cleaning and re-oiling. This can be confirmed with the right test equipmment to measure how much current the movement is drawing. If the figure’s too high tha battery won’t last long or the watch won’t even run with a new battery. If the movements a cheap one it makes sense to fit a replacement rather than 2-3 hrs stripping and rebuilding it.
The other scenario is a circuit fault, which needs specialised test equipment (and knowlege) to diagnose. I don’t have the test equipment or the know-how to do this, I work on the basis that if the crcuit shows signs of life it’s likely to be OK so it’s worth time and effort to clean the movement. This isn’t ideal, I can’t charge someone if the watch still doesn’t work, you don’t get points for effort!
A new movement’s probably the best way forward, but this can be fraught with problems. Some movements are only available on a ‘loosepack’ basis, they’re not in the original sealed packing and I’m always concerned that they’ve picked up dirt etc. Ideally, one of these should be cleaned wnd re-oiled before use. They’re a good option if the circuit is faulty, circuits can’t be bought separately thesedays. A movement in sealed packing should be OK, but if it’s 20 years old it might need lubricating too. Another complication is the height of the movement, or rather the hr wheel. Some movements are available in different heights, if the only available one is the wrong height you need to strip it to swap the hr wheel, cannon pinion and centre seconds wheel over from the original, so it starts to get involved.
Ideally, this watch needs to go to someone who has the test equipment to accurately diagnose what’s wrong. However, if a new movment’s available (and cheap) it makes the job easier for the lesser watch monkeys like me.
If the watch you had to take the glass off was one of those 9ct gold sovereign watches, then the movement won't cost more than £10, if your feeling adventurous then swap the movements.
Otherwise as above, service.
Thanks for the replies chaps, after the battery change anything else is likely to be above my skill set, still not sure why the crown tends to pop out to the date change position (first click) instead of staying flush though 🤔
Clean where the battery sits?
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