Reply #23: They still exist today...Rolex watches are one example [View All]

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but many other manufacturers produce self winding or automatic watches.

6. How does an automatic watch work?

The movement of the wrist and body causes the rotor, a metal weight attached to a winding mechanism, to pivot freely on its staff in the center of the movement. The rotor rotates back and forth in a circular motion at the slightest action of the wrist. The rotor's movement winds the mainspring, a flat coiled spring that powers mechanical watches.

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8. Why do we see more automatics these days?

Like all mechanical watches, automatics fell out of style during the quartz watch revolution of the 1970s. Electronic watches were the rage then and were far more accurate than mechanicals. In the mid-1980s, however, as quartz watch production soared to hundreds of millions of pieces each year, some people, mostly watch collectors, began to appreciate the value of a fine mechanical watch. In the past 10 years, fine mechanical watches have staged a comeback on world markets. Automatics have rebounded as part of the mechanical counter-revolution.
http://www.europastar.com/europastar/watch_tech/automa.jsp#anchor104046

It is recommended that you wear a self winding watch for 8 hours a day. But devices exist that will wind the watch off your wrist. For example:

Product Description
Double automatic watch winder with built in MULTI SETTING SMART IC TIMER, rotates clockwise, counter-clockwise or alternate it will work with all kind of automatic watches This watch winder will keep your automatic timepieces wound and ready to wear when you need them. Comparable watch winders sell for well over $350 in fine retail jewelry stores, now you can have one of the finest automatic watch winders at a fraction of that cost. World's finest watches manufacturers use automatic movement fo their watches like Rolex , Patek Philippe, Breitling, Movado IWC Tag Heuer as well as many other known brand name watch manufacturers, today's most extravagant timepieces come equipped with the world's most advanced automatic, perpetual movement.
http://www.amazon.com/Double-automatic-watch-winder-SETTING/dp/B001XTVLY6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=watches&qid=1245265901&sr=8-1