Adjusting Mechanical Watch Day/Date Precautions & Best Time To Change Date - Watch And Learn #36

Most mechanical watch manufacturer's tell you not to adjust the day or date between the hours of 9pm and 3am. Why not? Well, you can pretty easily damage the movement such that it needs to be repaired by a watchmaker.
Maybe you know this, and have heard this. But do you know WHY you cannot do it? Have you ever seen the mechanics in motion? Join us today as we dismantle a Seiko watch to show you how the day and date mechanically changeover, and why you should never, ever, change the day or date anywhere near midnight while setting your watch. We hope you enjoy this one!
Please visit our store at: www.longislandwatch.com

[@taegonlee8625]

Long Island Watch University with Professor Marc. Makes me appreciate the intricacies in even a basic watch like the Seiko 5.

[@islandwatch]

Thank you :)

[@renevalionus1227]

Very informative Marc and as already mentioned very well done!

[@islandwatch]

Much appreciated!

[@fabriziodutto7508]

This video will be mandatory to watch for every Seiko owner!! Thank you so much!

[@3rdstone1]

This is of course very informative, but what I love most about this video is how you manage to make it really fascinating showing us how these mechanical things interact, and how fragile parts of this machinery really can be. I've just recently discovered your channel, and are going through your Watch and Learn vids. So far, this was the most fascinating one. Great job!

[@RampartPh]

this vid helped me understand the intricacies of adjusting time and date on an automatic. being a newbie, this is very helpful

[@Simonr501]

Thank you SO much Marc! I made the same mistake as some of the others and was worried sick that I had damaged the mechanism. Amazing to see what is going on 'under the hood'. No damage done!

[@BarnOwl61]

Thank you Mark, very educational. Seeing is believing! I did feel a little sorry for the little Seiko. I love them so much!

[@islandwatch]

LOL, thank you.

[@thibodaux3424]

Thanks so much for all the details Mark! I'm an engineer myself so I love having detailed knowledge about how something works.

[@pltorok0515]

Mark, I love all you Watch and Learns, but think this is one of my favorite. Keep expanding our minds! Thanks

[@islandwatch]

I thought so, thank you!

[@iispanovic]

Just bought an skx007 and your video simply explained everything I need 👍

[@whiskyguzzler982]

This also helped put my mind at ease over having accidentally done this once. Thanks!

[@islandwatch]

Yes, you are probably OK!

[@DC-oy3gk]

I did it too last week. I'm still new to automatic watches and I was dumb not to read the manual. I turned the crown a few times at 12 pm to change the day. I got so worried that I might brake the day&date that I have been keeping an eye on the day&date change ever since. What I've noticed is that the date changes inconsistently, sometimes at 23:57, sometimes at 23:56. Not sure about the day though, because I always fall asleep right after I watch the date change. Does this mean it's broken?

[@TheZeSnow]

@@DC-oy3gk I don't know, I'm not a watch expert but I've seen it happen on my watch aswell, personally it works just fine

[@danielthomas1859]

Did this once and broke my Seiko 5

[@andrewquick1609]

Really good Marc, thanks for taking the time to deconstruct this for us 🖒

[@islandwatch]

Actually deconstructed two watches. haha!

[@chienlinchen8877]

Thank you for this informative video Marc. For me, this basic Seiko movement is already a piece of ingenious creation. Now, just imagine something like annual calendar, moonphase or other mechanical marvels!

[@islandwatch]

Indeed!

[@ngunguyenthanh5965]

Super helpful video. Love the zoom in cam and the detailed explanations. Very useful for a beginner like me to learn.

[@glennmathisen2537]

Brilliant explanation! I accidently changed the date at the wrong time on a new watch and freaked out. It still works, and like someone else said, calmed me down enough to know I didn't break anything. After seeing this I will definatly be more careful with the date setting from now on. Thank you. This was really helpful and Interesting.

[@chrisvda88]

I just got my first automatic and out of the box the time was set at around noon or 11:30, it was also date transitioning. I went to pull to second position to change time and going through the first position the crown shifted the date as I pulled it out, now I’m kinda freaking out.

[@chrisdoyle205]

Great video! The visual really helps to understand why not to change the day/date between 9pm-3am and shows the consequences! Also If its an affordable watch then it's probably not cost effective to repair after that and the watch is now junk. Cool to see that. Thanks!

[@adampluta9414]

Pure knowledge for me, absolutely great. Thank You Sir ⏱⌚️ I usually do one way "full circle" when setting my watch - always getting to 12 O'clock midnight (and later 2,3 a.m.) when the date and day change and turning it untill current time. 4R36 Seiko 2nd gen Monster.

[@islandwatch]

Great idea!

[@ghostindamachine]

Marc, you are a true hero, sharing your knowledge in the form like this!

[@islandwatch]

Thanks for watching.

[@cornycogwheels]

Thank you for this video, Marc, it's really informative and helps a lot :)

[@islandwatch]

Thanks for learning!

[@fayeh4412]

Excellent video Mark! Very educational, loved it.

[@brianmsahin]

Great. I was actually lucky and changed my day and date on my Seiko Sports 5 SRPD51K2 during the safe period.......before reading the manual.. I felt lucky when I found this information AFTERWARDS! I now know...thanks for the video!

[@erictrinh8731]

I've been on youtube since its inception. I'm not into watches. This is the best video that I've watched in all of KZbin. Informative, to the point, no fillers, speaks clearly, knowledged, clear video. Thank you very much.

[@jamesejudy3]

These vids are ridiculously interesting! Thanks so much for making them.

[@thegit8698]

This has been one of the best if not the actual best watch and learn videos, I've seen so far, i did change the day and date on my Seiko 5 when i first got it and it was near enough midnight by the time i was able to get the watch out of the box and set it up and of course I didn't read this manual so i set the time then the day/date, i was horrified when i saw that i wasn't supposed to do that and bloody relieved when i saw that i hadn't damaged my lovely new watch that i had to save for almost a year to buy, damn lucky.

[@islandwatch]

Thanks for watching, and now you know!

[@jdm2651]

You had not damaged it because it has protection against that. kzbin.info/www/bejne/b3bYeXpnl76DgdU

[@GR-gq1us]

Mark thanks a lot for this video. You are the man! Happy New Year!🎊

[@feralfeline6137]

Cool video. It's a terrible engineering/design flaw. An end user shouldn't be able to destroy a watch by turning the crown. Imagine destroying your television by pressing a button on the remote. You need to design products to be idiot proof.

[@islandwatch]

LOL. I would agree with that!

[@asdfkie]

Sjaak De Vries exactly... this is ridiculous

[@CompetentSalesUSA]

Sjaak De Vries that’s a good way to sell more watches.

[@mkien2005]

Exactly! Even a certain engineer tend to break the gears too *wink* *wink* (you know who) 😂😂

[@MrMadvillan]

you sould try this maybe. start your car, keep in in park or neutral, then press the petal until it hits the rev limiter. now this is the important part, keep it there until you engine blows up.

[@spookyspoots]

That was super interesting! I'd love to see a video on why it's not recommended to set the time by turning the hands counter-clockwise, how that affects the day/date, and why the second hand jumps around on cheaper movements. Also, how do some of the instant date-change mechanisms work, and can they be broken in a similar way, like say, between 11:59 and 12:01 or something? This is a great series.

[@islandwatch]

Okay, thank you!

[@StormShoukhan]

Absolutely fascinating! Nicely done!

[@islandwatch]

Thank you.

[@BenoitStPierre]

Love these videos showing the inner workings!

[@islandwatch]

Thank you.

[@viktj7]

Ever since I started collecting watches I knew this, but never really understood what was really happening in the movement itself , thank you Marc!

[@islandwatch]

Thanks for watching!

[@denisticic5150]

Very well done video, thanks Marc !

[@islandwatch]

Thank you!!

[@GuitaristZep]

Thank you so much this gave me peace of mind because I didn't know about the danger zone and I set the day on my Seiko 5 during 1:30am when the day is already showing the 2nd language (Spanish). I didn't feel anything being forced and everything runs smoothly.

[@animikhchakrabarty]

is it still working fine? because i did the EXACT SAME thing because I thought the different lang. was showing by mistake

[@romeotampo52]

thanks for the knowledge you have showed

[@TheLala9la]

Thanks so much for all the details

[@robhann99]

Excellent video Mark. Thanks.

[@islandwatch]

Thanks!

[@Mengelaus]

Wow man, best episode so far!! I love those things under the microscope, you have to do it again sometimes!

[@islandwatch]

Thanks!

[@paulbrady8107]

Hi Marc another great watch and learn, you are one of the Internets good guys.you are a very passionate and interesting human being. 👍 Thank you for taking the time to explain the machinations to me and all who want to be educated about how these little time telling devices we wear on our wrists work or don't work.I still believe you missed you're calling to be a teacher.👍

[@islandwatch]

Thank you! I appreciate the kind words.

[@gregcushing1716]

I'll say that Marc is a teacher,who happens to work in the watch industry.

[@afcordeiro2713]

great video . very informative and addresses the issue perfectly

[@islandwatch]

thanks.

[@7rslender]

Great explenation Marc. Now I do understand why I should not quick change the date between 21.00h and 03.00h. Thank you.

[@islandwatch]

Perfect!

[@DaveZula]

These videos are great. Thanks Marc!

[@714rsturk]

Excellent. Taking an automatic watch apart always seemed so difficult to do. You couldn't have done a better description of what's involved. The best channel for learning about the inner makings of a timepiece. I thank you for spreading your knowledge on a subject few would even try. Keep them coming, I've learned more from your channel then any manuals could show you. Another great video from Long island watch company. Do you sell a repair kit, or recommend a repair kit that would allow me to strip down an automatic watch to make these kinds of repairs. Thanks for your time, Rob

[@islandwatch]

Hello Rob - thanks for your message. The TSA7003 or TSA9011 kits we sell are great for fooling around.

[@wpherigo1]

Just awesome Marc. Also explains some of the cost differences. 7s26 is so in expensive because of fewer metal parts, I guess.

[@wissamal-ashaq7575]

Super cool video, this is one of the best produced watch learning video in the net, this is taking the channel to the next level, please keep the good work..LIKE all the way..

[@islandwatch]

Thanks so much. Is there another watch learning channel :)

[@SnakeFeeder]

Great video! Love your work.

[@islandwatch]

Thank you.

[@waukee321]

Intriguing, great video and excellent close-up microscopic filming of these watch day/date functions. Thank you. When my mechanical watches stop and need winding, I can fortunately just turn the crown from the base position to wind it up. If it requires a rotor wind up then I just have to shake the watch enough to get it to go. Now, if the hour hand is in the 9 to 3 danger zone, I just let the watch run to get it past that time frame. Sometimes I don't even know if that could be AM or PM. Don't want to take any chances. A few times I pulled the stem all the way out for the time setting when it was in that zone but I don't think that caused any damage to the date or day wheels. I have a watch that has a month wheel and I thought it would advance the month after the 31st but it didn't .The person who looked at it said you have to do that manually via a pusher. Thanks so much again, loved the video!

[@sekolahonlineteknikotomotif]

This video is the reason I subscribed

[@AlojzyZyrokompas]

So insightful! Thank You.

[@pansarakariyawasam8686]

I'm literally addicted to these episodes!

[@islandwatch]

There are worse things to be addicted to.

[@jacobvanroeyen]

thanks you for explaining so clearly marc :)

[@islandwatch]

Glad you enjoyed it.

[@bigpizzapie]

Great watch and learn once again. Thanks Marc.

[@islandwatch]

Thanks.

[@andymci5981]

Marc...congratulations on this excellent video. The level is ideal and fascinating for enthusiasts. Well done. Rgds Andy McI.

[@islandwatch]

Much appreciated. Thank you.

[@nikitapisek2901]

Thank You, Marc.

[@FitOutPost]

Very cool. Thanks for this lesson.

[@islandwatch]

Thank you.

[@amoblahblah]

Your videos are awesome - thank you for making them! I'll be buying from you in the future.

[@islandwatch]

Thank you!

[@islandwatch]

Thanks.

[@markbaker2620]

Excellent tutorial

[@huytranle8853]

Thank you Marc.

[@fluffyfreak505]

awesome video! always wondered what the big todo was about this, glad to know now

[@islandwatch]

Yup!

[@BoBurson]

Awesome video. Thanks!

[@andreashuttenlocher]

Great work Marc!

[@islandwatch]

Thanks!

[@baldponyta7940]

Very interesting!

[@StanO011]

This is a great video, Marc👍

[@islandwatch]

Glad you liked it!

[@obey2018]

Excellent presentation, Thanks

[@islandwatch]

Thank you!

[@watchmestress4182]

Awesome video!

[@ayamahei1393]

Super intéressant ! Très éducatif.

[@tompyszczuk6876]

Very informative. Thank You.

[@islandwatch]

Thanks for checking it out.

[@Kiwi_Dad]

Awesome vid. So good.

[@islandwatch]

Appreciate it!

[@Bruno_Powerlifter]

THANK YOU! THANK YOU!!

[@larryrichards3668]

Great video.

[@brGiel]

Nice video! Thanx Marc

[@islandwatch]

Thank you.

[@porschephile2k3]

This is very informative. What about if you set the time as it turns, but not necessarily just the day/date... will that cause the same type of damage?

[@samd.5203]

Nicely done professor!!

[@islandwatch]

Haha, thanks!

[@sarfarazshaikh771]

Marc you are great, keep the going 👍

[@islandwatch]

Thanks for checking it out!

[@siddhunkarthik]

Good video....I liked it....👍🏻😍

[@CoolCforlife]

Man you are the best! You really show great videos, valuable and interesting info :) Thank you for doing what you do! Always informative :)

[@islandwatch]

Thanks for watching.

[@VictorC1891]

I need to say it again, your videos are very good excellent work Mark ! At first i said to myself, why the industry become so cheap and they made the wheels from plastic. But i realized they made them out of plastic intentionally so they can be broken down, if to much force is applied on them, in order to cause less damage to the mechanism.

[@islandwatch]

Correct; it is the weak link on purpose, though it isn't in the most convenient location. Also, no lubrication is necessary.

[@VictorC1891]

That is interesting so when i was struggling to oil the damn thing, i was struggling for nothing. :-))

[@bernardocourrege6283]

Hi Mark! Great video. I have a Seiko Monster that used to have perfectly aligned day and date. All of a sudden the day(center wheel) became misaligned inside the day/date window. It still changes with the natural change and quick change function. What might be the problem?

[@kamaboko1]

That was really interesting. Thanks.

[@islandwatch]

Thanks!

[@rickyny78]

Excellent, thank you.

[@islandwatch]

Thanks!

[@Zeus-kj7nn]

Great video Marc! I've got a 2824 movement in Hamilton Khaki. I mistakenly nearly changed date in a quickset at midnight. I noticed just in time as the date 'started' to move, halfway through to pull out to 2nd position and move hands via its cycle to click date over 'naturally '. Have I averted damage??

[@martin.B777]

Very informative, thank you! Does the 9pm-4am restriction applies to the date change with time adjustment (time setting/second crown position)?

[@danbel34]

Thanks Marc, very cool.

[@islandwatch]

Thanks.

[@JacobFolena]

That’s a real amazing video that fully enlightens me why it is harmful to change date between the time people mentioned. I just don’t do it because I heard it, but now i can see it clearly. However, I still want to know Rolex GMT Master II also has a same mechanism is what’s shown in the video. Because I heard that the original purpose of GMT Master was to let Pan Am pilots can find the time and date in certain time zones, it is made to change date (which is moving an hour hand) and time whenever they want. I still wonder GMT Master II is going to damage the movement when it manually changes date in that “dangerous” time range

[@MD-go9vu]

Very informative thanks

[@islandwatch]

Thank you.

[@sergeyyatskevitch3617]

Great video. Thank you. Now I see what I have accidentally done to my Carrera Cal 16. How much do you think may it cost to replace this gear in eta 7750. I heard numbers from 120 to 400. Thank you.

[@adamk1520]

Hi Marc, thank you for this video. I damaged my quick date setting today actually and I've been searching online to find a video explaining it and this is the only one I came upon. I own a Sinn 556i with an ETA 2824-2. I get the dilemma with the top gear, where the stress of the spring action from constant date changing can cause it to break between 9pm-3am. But I'm not exactly clear on why the bottom gear snapped based on the 9pm-3am time frame. Is it simply because of the extra stress on the small gear arms from the top spring? In other words, the top spring hasn't cleared yet, so the bottom gears have a little more pressure on them as they spin and eventually snapped. Is that correct? Are the gears that delicate on an ETA?

[@EPYJ86]

Nice vid. Thanks! If my automatic watch only changes the day at 11.30pm (est.) & date at 4.45am (est.), what could have caused that to happen pls?

[@jonnaleenojonaleeno4786]

I really enjoyed the video Mark and it was indeed unfortunate you did'nt catch it getting clobbered on video . Slow motion please if possible for the retake in a future example of what can happen if you mess with date and time adjustments at the wrong time . I have a Seiko Kenetic Auto Relay which I had bought on a holiday to Denver about twenty years ago . It has never missed a beat and I'm still wearing it to this day . As I've clocked a few miles up as the hours , minutes , and seconds have passed , the only maintance necessary was because my wraist had lost weight and I've had to remove four links . I've gone through three girlfriends a dozen high insurance cars , and the only thing I've got left is my trusty old Seiko , which has never required any maintance , which is more than I can say for Jane, Sonia and Joan ! . All the best Mark , With kind regards from Jonathan , in Belfast Northern Ireland United Kingdom . Ps...has any-one seen Jane ? . Keep up the hard work as your vids are great .

[@MrMomo182]

Such a helpful video. If you say to yourself, only quick set the date after setting the hands to 6:30, would that be a less confusing, easier to remember rule? After all, who knows if the watch has stopped on am or pm until cycling past 12, especially if you have a bunch of them that just sit around.

[@rotorwind177]

Very interesting. Thanks

[@islandwatch]

Thanks!

[@viv3541]

This is a very well done video, thanks Marc! I have a question for you at 14:23 - I recently got myself a Seiko 5 Sports with a 7S36 movement. Being the idiot I am, did not read the manual and changed the day and date around 1:30 am when it was in the process. Don't think I broke anything, the watch works fine. Just that when I try to quickset the DAY, it does not engage in the first click - eg if I'm on THU and try to quickset, THU will move halfway up and then fall back down. Only on the second click does it go to FRI. Its as though the teeth of the gears are very slightly misaligned or bent - that's what it looks like from the plastic day/date wheel that shifts its centre. What do you think? Might seem like I'm nitpicking a very minute issue, please let me know your thoughts :)

[@gfwong79]

Very informative.

[@islandwatch]

Appreciate you watching.

[@Sturnburn772]

Thank you Mark

[@islandwatch]

Thanks.

[@KostasVrass]

Thanks for the great video Marc, it was very informative. Is it also possible to make some similar damage if someone adjusts the time counterclockwise?

[@islandwatch]

Yes, it is possible if you go backwards through midnight, but not advisable.

[@apax2901]

Damn I fucking love this Channel! Like u said it in the description we all heard it and know it but no one knows exactly why. Great Video thumbs up 👍🏼

[@henriverheyen6190]

Wow, super!!

[@islandwatch]

Thank you very much!

[@zengmingde]

Love this video! Could you possibly do something similar for an eta? I would like to understand how they manage to change the date instantly

[@islandwatch]

I am going to, yes.

[@belisariog6851]

Thank you!

[@islandwatch]

There will be a follow on, thank you.

[@fcobarrios19]

Great video! Does this also apply to quartz movements?

[@99thVeil]

Hi Marc, I really love this Watch and Learn series. I wonder if you could make a video explaining how an automatic rotor can wind the mainspring of a watch while the watch is running. I have watched many mechanical watch videos (including your mechanical v. quartz movement video) and this is still a mystery to me. I can't warp my head around how the mainspring is gaining tension while also losing tension via the escapement.

[@islandwatch]

Okay, will consider, thank you!

[@DLFfitness1]

Thank you

[@islandwatch]

Thank you sir!