Watch Terminology Glossary
A
- Amplitude: The degree of swing (rotation in degrees) of a mechanical watch's balance wheel, indicating how much energy it receives from the mainspring; a healthy range for modern watches is typically 270° to 310°, with lower values often signaling issues like dried oils or friction, while very high values can cause over-running.
- Antimagnetic: A feature that protects a watch movement from magnetic fields, which can cause the watch to gain or lose time.
- Aperture: An opening in a watch dial that displays information, such as the date or moon phase.
- Automatic: The degree of swing (rotation in degrees) of a mechanical watch's balance wheel, indicating how much energy it receives from the mainspring; a healthy range for modern watches is typically 270° to 310°, with lower values often signaling issues like dried oils or friction, while very high values can cause over-running.
B
- Balance Spring: (or hairspring) is a tiny, coiled metal spring in mechanical watches, crucial for accuracy; it works with the balance wheel to create a controlled back-and-forth oscillation (the "tick") that regulates the watch's movement and keeps time, forming a harmonic oscillator that dictates the watch's precision.
- Bezel: The ring surrounding the watch crystal, which can be fixed or rotating and is often used to display timing features.
- Breguet Hands: A distinctive type of watch hands that are typically blued and feature a circular tip.
C
- Caliber: The specific type of movement within a watch, often denoting the manufacturer and any unique features or complications.
- Chronograph: A watch with a stopwatch function, allowing it to measure elapsed time as well as display the current time.
D
- Dial: The face of the watch that displays the time and other information, including markers and complications.
- Date Complication: A feature that displays the date on the watch, often found at 3, 6, 9, or 12 o'clock positions.
E
- Escape Mechanism: A part of the movement that regulates the release of energy from the mainspring to the gear train, allowing the hands to move at a controlled pace.
- Evaporation: A technique used in watchmaking to apply coatings to parts to enhance durability and aesthetic appeal.
F
- Flyback Chronograph: A type of chronograph that allows the user to reset and restart the timer function with a single push of a button.
- Flywheel: A device that helps stabilize the movement of the escapement, ensuring consistent timekeeping.
G
- Guilloché: A decorative technique involving intricate, repetitive patterns engraved onto a watch dial or case, often used to enhance visual appeal.
- Gross Weight: The total weight of a watch, including packaging and accessories.
H
- Horology: The study and measurement of time; the art and science of designing and making timekeeping instruments such as watches and clocks.
- Hacking: A feature that allows the second hand to stop when the time is being set, enabling precise synchronization.
I
- Ion Plating: A process that bonds a layer of metal onto the surface of the watch to enhance durability and aesthetic qualities.
- In-House Movement: A watch movement designed and manufactured within the same company that produces the watch, often associated with higher quality.
J
- Jewels: Synthetic or natural jewels (such as rubies) used in watch movements to reduce friction between moving parts and enhance longevity.
- Jump Hour: A complication that displays the hour by "jumping" to the next hour at a set time, rather than moving continuously.
K
- Keramik: A high-tech ceramic material used in watchmaking that is lightweight, scratch-resistant, and can be produced in various colors.
- Kinetic Movement: A type of quartz movement that is powered by the movement of the wearer's wrist, combining mechanical and quartz technology.
L
- Luminescence: A feature that allows watch hands and markers to glow in dim light, often achieved through luminous materials.
- Lug: The protruding part of the watch case that holds the strap or bracelet in place.
M
- Mechanism: The various parts of a watch movement that work together to tell time and provide complications.
- Moon Phase: A complication that displays the current phase of the moon as part of the watch's features.
N
- Nickel: A metal often used in watch movements due to its resistance to corrosion, though less common in luxury watches due to allergic reactions.
- NATO Strap: A style of watch strap made from nylon that features a simple design, often favored for its durability and versatility.
O
- Oscillator: A component of the watch movement that maintains the frequency of the watch's timekeeping function.
P
- Perpetual Calendar: A complication that automatically adjusts for different month lengths and leap years, displaying the date accurately without manual correction.
- Power Reserve: The amount of time a watch will operate when fully wound, before it requires winding again.
Q
- Quartz: A type of watch movement that uses a quartz crystal to regulate timekeeping; known for its accuracy and low maintenance.
- Quickset: A feature that allows the wearer to rapidly set the date without having to cycle through all the hours.
R
- Rehaut: The inner bezel of a watch case, usually sloped, where the hour markers are engraved or printed.
- Regulator: A type of watch that separates the display of the hours, minutes, and seconds on different sub-dials.
S
- Sapphire Crystal: A virtually scratch-proof, transparent cover for a watch's dial, made from crystallized aluminum oxide (synthetic sapphire) that's incredibly hard (9 on the Mohs scale, just below diamond's 10) for superior clarity and durability, though it can shatter from sharp impacts, making it a premium choice over mineral glass.
- Skeletonized: A watch design that exposes the movement through the dial, allowing the wearer to see the inner workings of the watch.
- Subdial: A smaller dial within the main dial that displays additional information, often used for chronographs or other complications.
T
- Tourbillon: A complication that compensates for gravitational bias on the escapement by rotating it within a cage, originally designed for pocket watches.
- Tachymeter: A scale on the tachymetric bezel or dial that allows the wearer to calculate speed based on elapsed time.
U
- Underpricing: A strategy employed by some brands to position luxury watches at competitive prices, influencing market perceptions.
- Universal Time Coordinated (UTC): A time standard that serves as the basis for timekeeping worldwide, often used in aviation and global time systems.
V
- Vintage: Refers to watches that are at least 20-30 years old, often sought after for their unique designs and historical significance.
- Vibration: A measure of the frequency of the escapement, typically noted in vibrations per hour (vph), indicating the watch's accuracy.
W
- Water Resistance: A feature indicating a watch's ability to withstand water exposure, usually measured in meters or atmospheres (ATM).
- Winding: The process of tensioning the mainspring in a mechanical watch, which can be done manually or automatically via the movement of the wearer's wrist.
Z
- Zirconium: A material used in watchmaking for its high durability and scratch resistance, often used in cases or bezels.
- Zulu Time: Another name for Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) or Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) used in aviation and military, and sometimes Zenith, referring to the brand or the highest point of a watch's arc/movement, though 'Z' terms often highlight the difficulty in finding a term for the last letter.