On Companionship And Soul In Watches

[NickTrop]

About what the author prefers mechanical watches to quartz watches (so do I, incidentally)...

... posted because much the same applies to mechanical film cameras. (At least to me, anyway). There are practical advantages, but ultimately, this is what it's all about. Just replace "manual film camera" where it says "mechanical watches" in the article.


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These timepieces give back to us that visual splendour of a beautiful work of art. Its very beating heart laid bear by the window into its soul, allows us to gaze upon it in wonderment at the intricacies of its moving micro-organs. The graceful sweep of the seconds hand enthrals the best of us. The rapid beat of the tick-a-tick-a quickens our own pulse. And aahh, the quiet whirr of the rotor as we swing our arms What do you call this, but pleasure of the highest order, from its existence on your wrist? What better feedback can we ask for? This and the comforting feeling that they will be by our sides faithful companions sharing our lives and experiences being there with us for a long time to come. Something that we cannot say for sure with the quartz. Once their life is up, they will fall by the wayside.

http://forums.timezone.com/index.php?t=tree&goto=2224&rid=2
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"Manual" implies the instrument relies on us... It's aperture setting dependent on us, along with its shutter speed "waiting" for us (not a chip/algorithm) to set them. They're like our "children" in a sense. While modern digital cameras might "allow" us to make these decisions - as a "feature" (usually burried), it's just not the same.

 

[fishtek]

Hmmmm.....

I've got about 30 watches, and only 3 are quartz. I've got 9 cameras, and only 1 is digital. I don't like my DSLR less than the mechanical cameras, but see them as different-but-parallel tools. The technological differences (advantages?) of the DSLR allow me to do some things I couldn't do otherwise, but I appreciate fully the variables of creativity offered in both types of photographic machine.

As in quartz watches, I've alway worried about the dependency of a battery, and certainly agree that there's a mutual dependence that makes us "bond" with the watch or camera that doesn't run on electricity.

Regards!
Don

 

[wolves3012]

Hmmmm.....

As in quartz watches, I've alway worried about the dependency of a battery, and certainly agree that there's a mutual dependence that makes us "bond" with the watch or camera that doesn't run on electricity.

Regards!
Don

There are electronic watches that use a rechargeable battery and solar panel, or even a thermal pile. I think I've also seen of ones with a rotor-powered dynamo too. Probably still won't last as long as a purely mechanical watch though but they are not (disposable) battery-dependant. My light-powered one is claimed to have 80% of it's original capacity retained after 20 years' use and runs for six months off a full charge (8 hours in direct sun).

I do have a fair few mechanical watches too, my father's hobby was their repair and servicing.

As an aside to the original poster: My late father was forever correcting us that "watches have fingers, CLOCKS have hands!". Moot point, I guess, "hands" is in popular usage.

 

[fishtek]

I guess I was being a bit too broad, Wolves3012, lumping all the other-than-mechanical watches together. For me, however, what ultimately drives 'em all, if they're not mechanical, is some sort of electricity, ultimately. Maybe I'm incorrect, that that's how I tend to see 'em.

Cheers!
Don

 

[ywenz]

some pretty deep thoughts here, but what is the point of putting materialistic things onto such a high pedestal?

 

[fishtek]

This'n is ALWAYS gonna produce discussion, Ywenz.

For me, it's an appreciation of the craftsmanship to produce such intricate machinery that I know I can't do. There's a strong element of personal work that goes into a mechanical watch or camera of several decades ago. Modern production techniques use lots of robotics (amazing in it's own right), that minimizes the skill of a person. I've built fine cane flyrods for decades, and tied flies forever, too. There's just a lack of personal involvement in stuff that's too technologically advanced, IMHO.

Regards!
Don