Timeless Ticks
Movements and calibers
The calibers inside the watches people actually buy: architecture, published rate, power reserve, servicing reality and what each one is worth paying for.
16 movements. Grouped by subject. Rate specifications as published by the manufacturer.
The caliber is the part of a watch that decides how it behaves, how long it lasts and what it costs to own, and it is the part buyers know least about. These pages cover the movements you will actually meet: architecture, published rate specification, power reserve, servicing reality, known weak points, and which watches carry them.
Published rate figures are what the manufacturer commits to, not what your particular watch will do. The accuracy calculator tells you where yours actually sits.
Citizen Eco-Drive
Citizen's light-powered quartz explained: the light levels it actually needs, the reserve in darkness, power save, and what the rechargeable cell costs later.
ETA 2824-2
What ETA actually publishes for the 2824-2: 25 jewels, 4.60 mm high, 28,800 vph, the four execution grades, what a service costs, and the faults it develops.
ETA 2892-A2
The 2892-A2 is 3.60 mm high against the 2824-2's 4.60 mm, with 21 jewels and a longer power reserve. What that buys, what it costs and where it is fragile.
Grand Seiko caliber 9S65
Grand Seiko's 72-hour automatic: the SPRON hairspring alloy, MEMS-made escapement parts, how the GS Standard compares with COSC, and servicing it abroad.
Miyota 8215
Citizen's cheapest widely used automatic: the specification from Miyota's own sheet, why the seconds hand stutters, the hacking question, and what it costs.
Miyota 9015
Citizen Miyota publishes 3.90 mm, 28,800 vph and minus 10 to plus 30 seconds a day for the 9015. The thinness, the rotor noise, and the NH35 comparison.
Omega Co-Axial Master Chronometer caliber 8800
What the co-axial escapement really changes about friction and oil, what the Si14 silicon hairspring buys, and what METAS actually tests at 15,000 gauss.
Powermatic 80 (ETA C07)
The 80 hour Swatch Group automatic: where the reserve comes from, the molded escapement argument, the regulator problem and the honest verdict on servicing.
Rolex caliber 3235
The Chronergy escapement, the Parachrom hairspring, 70 hours of reserve, and why the minus 2 to plus 2 second Superlative figure is not a COSC figure.
Seiko 4R35 and 4R36
What Seiko publishes for the 4R35 and 4R36, how they relate to the NH35 and NH36 sold to other brands, and the differences that are real rather than folklore.
Seiko 6R35
Seiko publishes plus 25 to minus 15 seconds a day and 70 hours of reserve for the 6R35. What that buys over the 4R36, and whether it justifies the gap.
Seiko NH35 (NH35A)
The NH35A specification from Time Module: 24 jewels, 21,600 vph, 41 hours, minus 20 to plus 40 seconds a day, and why replacing it beats servicing it.
Seiko Spring Drive: the 9R caliber family
A mainspring drives it, a quartz crystal regulates it, and there is no escapement. How Spring Drive works, what a second a day means, and who can fix it.
Sellita SW200-1
Sellita publishes what ETA does not: a rate table per grade. The SW200-1 specification, why it exists, and how far its parts interchange with the ETA 2824-2.
Sellita SW300-1
The thin Sellita automatic: 3.60 mm, 4 Hz, 56 hours, the Elabore, Top and Chronometre rate grades from the data sheet, servicing costs and known weak points.
Valjoux 7750
The ETA 7750 is 30.00 mm wide and 7.90 mm high with a cam-switched chronograph. Why it makes thick watches, why the rotor wobbles, and what a service costs.