Many first time buyers of high-end watches buy them to celebrate a life achievement or milestone and only then realize they really don’t know very much about watches. How accurate are they? How often do they need to go in to a rolex watch repair center for maintenance? Which brands hold their value the best? Are watches good investments? Can you wear your high-end watch in the pool or the shower? We’ll try to answer a few of those questions and set your mind at ease on a few other points for good measure.

How Accurate?

How accurate is a high-end mechanical watch? Many high-end watches are what is called chronometer-certified. Chronometer is just another name for a highly accurate watch. In Switzerland a mechanical watch has to be tested by an independent testing agency and proven to meet a certain standard—it has to earn the right to be called a chronometer. It’s not a term thrown casually around. The standard is usually described as being a range of between -4 seconds and + 6 seconds a day under varying temperatures and positions.

What Can I Do While Wearing My Watch?

If your watch has a depth rating of 100 meters or more, by all means swim with it. True dive watches are usually regarded as those with depth ratings of 200 meters or more. Taking a shower with a high quality water-resistant watch will not hurt it, but the high temperatures of a sauna or hot tub might degrade its rubber gaskets over time. The hard smack of a golf club hitting a golf ball can be tough on the internals of the mechanical watch. That is one activity you may consider enjoying with a pocketed wrist watch.

Service Intervals and Value

A service is required after 3-5 years of use. Some stretch this to seven years or more, but you run the risk of damaging more parts in doing so and paying more at service time. The movement inside a high-end watch like a Rolex or Omega is mechanical, not electronic. Just like your car’s engine, it needs periodic maintenance. During a service the watch is completely disassembled and cleaned and any parts needing replacement are replaced. Service at a reputable service center will cost several hundred dollars, but most owners find that’s a small price to pay for an heirloom quality watch they can pass down to later generations. Fine mechanical watches can be very fine investments, and often give their owners more pleasure than entries in a stock report do. Rolex has the highest brand-name recognition, and their watches (especially their sports watches) are among the soundest investments. The best advice may be to buy the watch you will enjoy wearing and let your heirs worry about the investment potential.

For excellent watch repair and service by true CW-21 Certified Watchmakers, consider the rolex service center. They use only authentic factory parts and offer impeccable service with very attractive and competitive pricing.