What are appropriate intervals between services for relatively inexpensive Seiko movements ..........

[Wibble]

Hello again chaps,

I hate the idea of being a time waster so please forgive me if my posts are conceived as such.

Please, what would the shelf life of an unworn or very lightly used Seiko NH39,  NH35A, 4R36A or 5M62A be before worrying specifically about lubrication deterioration?

Thank you.

All the best,

Martin

[watchweasol]

Hi if it they were previously serviced using modern oils  and were  laid in an unused state probably five years. By that time I would reckon a service would be required.  Some NOS movements definitely need checking over before use.

[JohnR725]

6 hours ago, Wibble said:

5M62A

your question has some minor issues like the above watch isn't that a kinetic? in other words how old is that watch? Not how long have you owned it but how old is the watch? Depending upon where your watches were purchased from they may look brand-new they are brand-new but how long were they sitting in the store before you purchased it.

then the typical service intervals recommendation is five years. I don't think it really matters when the watches running or not as the whales will eventually migrate from wherever they are to someplace else no longer doing their job. There is also the problem of the gaskets they don't last forever. So if you have a watch with compromised gaskets and you get exposed to humidity of moisture that may get in the watch.

On the other hand if you barely run the watches even with compromised lubrication they might actually go quite a long time as you're not really wearing them out because of lack of lubrication. Unless of course you get moisture in through the lack of gaskets and then rust makes a really nice grinding compound.

 

 

[Wibble]

Gentlemen,

A very big thank you to both of you! The information and advice has been thoroughly digested and the thinking cap put on.

Yes JohnR, that one is a kinetic. It was the first watch that got me interested in any piece above the $150 mark and the one that sparked my curiosity about mechanical movements.

 

[oldhippy]

Don't consider questions as time wasters so please ask away. Answer to your question, it depends how and where it is kept, an average time between 5 and 7 years.   

[Nucejoe]

Good question , Martin,  specially of interest to those who collect watches, vintage/ antique ...

Listen to the heart beat. 

Rgds

[JohnR725]

the video below is interesting for variety of reasons. In the video a variety of questions are asked like at 18:00 Question 7. This is the question of how often should their watches be serviced and he explains why. So basically if you want your watch to last forever five years. Of course this is a modern Swiss automatic watch as we discussed above a variety of other factors could influence how often watches serviced.