I have magnetized a few of mine. I don't know if it was magnets on my desk (headphones and the such) or going through airports. It is fairly easy...

 

I second this. When you track accuracy of your watches you become more aware of magnetism. I was unaware of how easily magnetism can affect a watch until about 10 years ago I bought a planet ocean 2500 used off the forum. It kept time at -1 second per day for a month and then suddenly started gaining 5 seconds per day.

I bought a demagnetizer off eBay and ran the watch though it. Immediately it was back to -1 spd. Anyone who says a watch is only magnetized if it's "gaining minutes per day" has no idea what they are taking about. I see this repeated often on this forum.

Magnetic fields are everywhere. They can vary in strength and there are degrees of magnetism. I have never had any idea how my watches have become magnetized, it just happens.

I now have adopted a standard procedure of running any used watch I buy off the forums through a demagnetizer on arrival.

What's funny is a few months ago I bought a Brand New Seiko SBDC053 from Gnomen. It arrived gaining 12 seconds per day out of the box. After a week I ran it through my demagnetizer just to see what would happen before regulating it, and it started running -3 seconds per day immediately. I can only guess it was magnetized in transit somehow.

My demagnetizer has become an important tool in my watch box.

 

Modern movements with non iron based hair spring have a very low chance of magnetization. In general, modern movements have high alloy metals so any magnetism is easily repairable. In the 90's I use to have to work in a magnetic environment around large power plant generators and I never had any issue with magnetics. Out of all the watches I have owned, several hundred, I have only had one that I could even remotely consider to have been magnetized and to me it was just terrible at keeping time, but it may have been magnetized. I never checked as it was cheap and not worth repairing.

 

Fascinating. I get the feeling that magnetization is a bit of an "is it real or imagined" phenomenon.

 

Would you please post an example of the type of demagnetizer you use?

 

I use this one purchased off eBay a long time ago...



I'm not sure it matters tho. It looks like there's a newer style I paid $35 for this one, and I wouldn't spend more than that. I bet they all do the job.

 

Also, a cheap REAL compass will tell you if you have a problem. Lay the compass flat then move the watch around it. If the needle moves with the watch you have some degree of magnetization. Check any metal bracelets and buckles too.
In addition to the magnets on your earbuds they also produce a small magnetic field simply because they're tiny speakers. I don't think your earbuds could affect anything unless maybe you left them on the watch for a long period of time. Larger speakers can cause much larger disturbances in the force. Just be aware that those influences are all around us. And if you are infected, you are easily cured.

 

I use a compass to test as well.

 

Thanks! Looks like I'm going to give this a try.

 

In my years of collecting and wearing mechanical watches I have magnetized only one, a watch powered by an ETA 2893-2.

The watch went from being highly accurate to gaining many minutes per hour.

I believe Stellite's post above is accurate. Many companies now use spring materials which are resistant to taking a magnetic charge. For example, Seiko uses their SPRON spring material for their 6R (and likely other) calibers.

From Seiko's website:
"SPRON 510 is a strain age-hardening type Co-Ni-Cr-Mo alloy with material characteristics that are more advanced than SPRON 100.
It is non-magnetic and features ultra high elasticity and high mechanical strength, as well as high durability and heat resistance."

 

Isn't Spron a mainspring and not a balance spring?

 

I have been talking about this recently because of the popularity of induction hobs and there high levels of magnetism anyone consider this potential problem and what levels the hobs operate at?


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I have been talking about this recently because of the popularity of induction hobs and there high levels of magnesium, anyone consider this potential problem and what levels the hobs operate at?

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Magnesium?....or... did you mean Magnetism?

 

How long is a piece of string. Some folk seem to have no end of trouble with magnetism yet I have never had one fall under its wicked spell in all the years I’ve worn a watch. Saying that degaussers are so cheap on the Bay that it’s worth getting one “just in case”

 

It's easier than you may think, unless your watch has a movement with higher antimagnetic capability.

 

Personally I have never encountered any of my watches I knew had gotten magnetized, despite traveling through magnetometers several times per week and operating in advanced cockpit environments. I do have a decent demagnetizer I use from time to time, but have never known it to be a necessity. That's not to say it isn't easy to do under the right circumstances, but I don't know I have encountered one in decades of wearing mechanical watches.

 

Most Japanese movements and ETA 2824 clones are prone to magnetism. Tons of magnets hidden in the products we use daily. Have you ever placed your watch next to your cell phone? Yeah that ought to do that job for you.

 

You need to look at what materials he springs are made of. This will tell you how prone he movement is to becoming magnetized. Most movement specifications will tell you their anti-magnetic properties (if there are any).

For example, Seiko uses SPRON, an internally developed minimally magnetic material, for their springs in mid to upper tier movements. Other manufacturers use silicone (non-magnetic) for springs.

Generally speaking however, putting your mechanical watch near a magnet is no bueno in any regard.

 

From my own experience, it's easier than you might think. I had a dive watch magnetized when I accidentally put it on top of an item with a small magnet overnight.

 

I agree, and your laptop has many magnets inside too.Unless a faraday cage in inside the midcase I'd urge keeping your watch away from these electronics at all time.

 

I got one of mine close to a magnetic pick-up tool (strong magnet on a stick used to help retrieve bolts or tools when you drop them down in some hard to reach place) while fishing through a toolbox last summer. Wasn't gaining minutes or anything, but it went from gaining 5-6 spd to +15-20. Demagnetized it and it dropped back to ~+6.

 

So what Seiko movements use Spron?

 

All of them, to my knowledge. There are different types of "Spron" and the material is used for both mainsprings and hairsprings. The 6R15 uses a Spron 510 mainspring, which supposedly gave it its longer power reserve vs the 4R.

 

Seiko Spron is a type of alloy they made to make their mainspring and hairspring correct?

 

the major culprit around my house.
and that's just the front...

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a true renaissance man

 

I used to keep a pocket watch on a stand on my desk at the office. Someone on the cleaning crew felt the need to rearrange my desk one night, and put the pocket watch right in front of the computer speakers... Magnetizing a hairspring can be REAL easy...

 

I can’t help but think my electric guitars can magnetize; I seem to find it necessary to use my de-magnetizer pretty often.

 

I had never even considered this, but I will now…

 

I use a app called Ultimate EMF Detector pro.

This is a great app and accurate. I have all sorts of speakers and other electronics so I check my areas of high EMF and avoid putting a watch in them areas ever.

Try this one out if you can..you will be surprised how strong fields are around you at times.
60 microtesla is about average fwiw.

 

How significant of a difference in the EMF do u see between those speakers/appliances being on or off? My desk is rather cramped, I try to put my watch away from the speaker.

 

On or off my desktop monitors have large EMF around them, I need at least 36-48 inches to feel comfortable with a watch being stored around them. 10 inch subs under desk are off charts so nothing below waist height around desk is safe.

Also laptop speakers have a good pull to them believe it or not, and most are in front corners of laptop so if using built in keyboard, watch is sitting on one. I use external Mech keyboards and no fields from them at all.

Edit:Words

 

i'll add to this older thread as it might be googled by others involving watch magnetism...my story is my small new Yema Pearl Diver, a 39mm watch with a smaller case all around that may give it less protection to magnetism than my other huge cased diver watches.

whenever i put my Yema on any of several watchwinders i have, the thing gained 5min/day, ending up 15min fast over a few days. i checked angles, etc, and the only time it ran anything but spot on was when it had been on a winder. after a half day on a winder it was a few minutes fast, and then when left on longer, it was gaining 5min/day.

i checked for magnetism with a downloadable compass phone app, which did show about a 3degree change on the compass every time i put the watch near the compass. i've now kept it off the winders and it's running perfect again.

i think the winders, which are mid to good range winders, may have some protection, and with normal or thick cased watches there may be little issue. also, my Yema is a Yema-made movement (or so they say) which may have less antimagnetic material in the mainspring.

as an aside, all my other watches, the thick heavy divers, all seem to run 10sec fast. i always have them on the winders, and now will keep them off and check if the rate goes down to a more accurate pace.