Automatic Watch Winder Blast from the Past

By Bruce Shawkey

You'd think with the hype surrounding automatic watch winders, that they were a fairly recent invention. You see them advertised everywhere, priced from ten bucks, and I've see some as high as $60,000. Here's one priced at $10,999. It holds up to 12 watches and is made of burlwood.

OK, I found a watch winder advertised in a March/April 1957 issue of Swiss Horological Journal. The price wasn't listed, but the interesting thing about it was that it was marketed to the watch trade, NOT watch collectors!

It looks like a beast! It must weigh a good 10 pounds or more, and it holds just four watches! Here's the scoop on it from the Journal:

Machine for winding and testing self-winding watches 

Communicated by Bergeon & Co., Le Lode (Switzerland) 

In recent years the self-winding watch has taken on a great importance in the sales and repair program of the retail watchmaker. In consequence, it has become essential to be able to check the functioning of the self-winding work. The machine developed by Messrs. Bergeon for winding self-winding watches will prove of considerable value to the watchmaker and jeweler. It is possible to mount four watches --with or without their bracelets—on its table, which is inclined at 30°. The table rotates clockwise at 35 revolutions per minute. Tests have shown that a higher speed is not desirable, since the swinging weight might be held in an extreme position by excessive centrifugal force. The uniform speed of rotation of the table makes it possible to wind the watch for a given length of time (for example, 5 minutes) ; after this it can be allowed to run until it stops, and the duration of the run will be an indication of the effectiveness of the self-winding mechanism of a particular caliber.

This machine will simplify considerably the daily winding of self-winding watches which are undergoing test, the watches held in stock, those which have been repaired, and those, again, which are intended for display in the window. Almost all self-winding watches have watertight cases. Owing to the fact that a gland must be provided on the winding stem, the button is somewhat difficult to turn, particularly in the case of small modern watches (this is so because the button should not normally need to be used except for hand setting). Since manual winding is rather slow and tiresome, this new piece of equipment will therefore be found most valuable. An important point to remember is that hand winding would here be to no purpose. The watch is wound, but that does not mean that it is wound automatically. This machine is of simple exterior appearance. The base is of varnished wood, the colour being beige. The rotating table is finished in dull chrome, while the spring clips are of steel, hardened and tempered blue. The synchronous motor which drives the assembly, will operate on either 110 or 220 volts, as required. Whether used for winding or testing, this device will be found most valuable in any organization which handles self-winding watches.

This is from 64 years ago! Just goes to prove that old saying: Everything old is new again!