Watch date setting

[Christoefor]

How do I set the date on my Marathon automatic watch? No instructions I think it has to be set before midnite but not sure. Thanks for any help. Owned in 2003 from MWR Sar model.

 

[RyanA]

Not familiar with that watch. Does it have a screw down or pull out crown? Theres probably a half-setting...

 

[GLOCK18]

As with most automatic watch's you never want to set the date between 6Pm and midnight.

 

[Lee1959]

Most newer automatics have a quickset date feature. You unscrew and then pull the crown out approximately halfway and set the date. If it does not have a quickset date. If not you may have to wind the watch time forward to change dates, and in some cases roll them backwards, once you have gotten the date set, to get the day right. The best time to do so is just before midnight, so that it rolls over to the correct day and date after midnight. Never heard of the never set between 6Pm and midnight thing, will have to look into that. Wonder why that would be true if it is, which I have serious doubts about.

My Bulova Snorkel is like this, it can be a pain a couple of times a year. All my other automatics I own or have owned have quick date set features.

Checked a few websites and have not found a reference to the 6PM to midnight thing. Anyone have an explaination for the reasoning behind it?

 

[Aluminous]

... If not you may have to wind the watch time forward to change dates, and in some cases roll them backwards, once you have gotten the date set, to get the day right. The best time to do so is just before midnight, so that it rolls over to the correct day and date after midnight. Never heard of the never set between 6Pm and midnight thing, will have to look into that. Wonder why that would be true if it is, which I have serious doubts about.
...
Checked a few websites and have not found a reference to the 6PM to midnight thing. Anyone have an explaination for the reasoning behind it?

Don't know about 6pm as a start time for the 'don't set' period (it seems that from 8pm or 9pm until 3am or 4am is more what should be avoided), but I have seen some mentions of it not being a good idea to set when near midnight -- it seems to be more of an issue with some watches than others; particularly problematic for some watches (but others do allow this) if the time is rolled backwards during the setting process.

Couldn't recall exactly what references to this I'd seen before, but here's the first few that turned up:

http://www.chronocentric.com/watches/ownersguide.shtml#setbackwards

When I set my watch, is it okay to roll the time backwards?

As a general practice, no for mechanical watches, yes with some limitations for quartz watches. For some watches with mechanical movements, this is a bad idea for several reasons. First, the mechanisms are usually designed around moving forward, so some cannot take the stress of reversing properly. Second, after a mechanical watch settles in, reversing the watch against the pattern of wear may cause unnecessary additional wear.

Both mechanical and quartz watches with dates and other complications handled by mechanical parts can be harmed by rolling the time backwards -- especially near midnight.

Despite that, many modern watches can be reversed with no problem. But it is best to check with the manufacturer to be sure. The one general rule is that if your mechanical watch's second hand does not stop when you put the watch in time setting mode, then you should definitely not turn the hands backwards.

http://www.chronocentric.com/watches/troubleshooter.shtml#datechange

It is possible that a shock to the watch right around the date change can throw the mechanism off. The more common causes are from the owner manually changing the date within three or four hours either side of midnight, or setting the time backwards across midnight. The frequency that this problem occurs makes it disconcerting that few watch makers provide warnings about this in their instruction manuals. What happens is that if you alter the date setting while the date change gear is near to pushing the date forward, you may push the mechanism slightly out of alignment. This seldom causes any real damage, though it can. Most often, it will shift the time that the date change occurs--usually further from midnight.

http://www.watcharoo.co.uk/care.htm

Don't adjust the time backwards through midnight unless a watch specifically allows this. Secondly, when using the rapid date advance feature AKA the quickset feature, as a general rule avoid doing so between 8.00pm and say 4.00am - serious damage can be caused to the date mechanism if this advice isn't heeded.