Anything a watch does beyond telling the time counts as a complication. Because watch complications drive both the price and the servicing bill, they are worth understanding before you buy. Therefore this guide keeps to the ones you will actually meet.
The calendar family
A simple date changes on a 31-day cycle, so you correct it five times a year. An annual calendar knows every month except February. Meanwhile a perpetual calendar knows all of them, including leap years, and runs untouched to 2100.
However, that intelligence sits in a stack of levers under the dial. As a result, a perpetual calendar costs more to service, and it must be set by a watchmaker if it stops for long.
Chronographs, and the split-seconds version
A chronograph times an event. In addition, a split-seconds chronograph times two events that start together, because a second hand can be stopped while the first keeps running. For example, you can take a lap time without losing the total.
Above all, this is the complication that most rewards a manual movement, since the pushers stay crisp under the finger.
Tourbillons and what they actually do
A tourbillon turns the escapement inside a rotating cage, which averages out the effect of gravity in the vertical positions. However, on a wrist that moves all day, the gain is small. Therefore treat a tourbillon as fine finishing rather than as accuracy you can measure.
A flying tourbillon holds the cage from one side only. Consequently the case can stay flat, which is why it suits a Tank.
Power reserve, moon phase and the rest
The Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie catalogues these mechanisms in detail. Meanwhile, a power reserve indicator shows how much winding is left, so a manual watch tells you when to wind it. Similarly, a moon phase tracks the lunar cycle to within a day over roughly a century. Neither changes how a watch keeps time, though both change how it reads.
Which watch complications are worth paying for
Buy the complication you will use. For example, a date window earns its keep daily, while a split-seconds chronograph earns it once a year. In short, complexity should follow habit rather than ambition. Meanwhile, remember the servicing cost scales with the parts count.
Watch complications in stock now
Below are examples available as we publish. However, each one is a single unit, so stock moves quickly.
- A. Lange & Söhne 1815 Perpetual Calendar Rattrapante
- Cartier Tank Americaine White Gold
- Roger Dubuis Much More Quantieme 47mm
- HYT Hastroid Cosmic Hunter 48mm
Meanwhile, you can browse the full watch collection, or read what to check on a pre-owned watch first.
If the case matters more to you than the complication, our guide to Royal Oak sizes compares the 33mm to the 41mm.
Common questions
Do watch complications hold their value?
The well-known ones do, particularly perpetual calendars from established houses. However, novelty complications depend entirely on the maker behind them.
Does a tourbillon make a watch more accurate?
Not measurably on the wrist. In short, you are buying craft and finishing rather than timekeeping.
How much does servicing a perpetual calendar cost?
Expect several times the price of a time-only service. Because the calendar works must come apart and go back together correctly, the labour is the expensive part.
1 response