Omega

Is this overkill or what?!?

Is ALL this armor for real? Yes..we saw people banging their fists on the table and we even saw a "kung fu" master slaming over 1000Gs or whatever.

If you missed all that..go back to our good old JLC forum, type in search.."extreme chronograph launch".

But I was thinking…you know, if we slam, or thwack with a mallet, the watch..the impulse of even 2000G or 6000G is just ONE hit! One sharp hit that may drive the balance wheel against the sides of the narrow little hole it is placed in..making it hit the bridges for a split second.

Then it bounces right back.

What if…we swung the balance around and bumped it when it was swinging?!?
Could the balance spring be ripped out?

Could the screws on the balance wheel's rim be sheared off ?

Would the balance wheel be scraped against the bridges?

THAT's why I chose the chronographs!!!

Look again at these watches!!!

Look at the bulk and heft of the Omega, made more than a decade ago, and more than a decade OLDER than the JLC…can this beast stand against the wonderful claims made by JLC???

All those inner cases of springs..4 springs, 2 carriages, and one shock absorbtion chamber!

The Omega has NOTHING but a trusty reliable 7750. OK..it's waterproof..but we ain't doing the washing machine inside the diving bell test here ( that's later ).

The watches will be started TOGETHER, the stopwatch functions.

Then..they will be duct taped to the wheel rim.

Now, I have practiced duct taping a rock to the rim. I can't do it across the axle obviously, because there is a shaft there! So I will have to squeeze around it if I want it in a certain position..say in position B..in blue.

It takes well over 5 minutes to tape a watch, and over 15 mins before I can get into the car.

I have tried both watches at 15 mins with the chrono, and they BOTH keep time together..EXACTLY.

Now, when I drive the car..

As the balance wheels fail to keep the balance wheel spinning..well I hope they do, or I would have wasted my time!

The watches SHOULD lose time differently, as they smash the balances against the sides or even get the wheels ripped off!!!

I have chosen to bind the watches in position B, as even JLC says that Z is the worse force a watch can take..see diagram.

These forces are so great, and perpendicular to the dial, the balance should be pulled right out of its socket!

With luck..bOTH watches will still work..but which will loose more time?
 
Does loosing time mean a failure in the watch's shock absorbing system?

Does it mean that the balance scraped the bridges?

Finally..before I begin..ANY LAST REQUESTS????

TEST will begin on the 12th of April..first day of Basel!!!

Don't we all just love audience participation?!?

This message has been edited by bernard cheong on 2007-04-06 17:20:23

. . .would have done, but if it's axis Z, so be it .

I am not so sure the elaborate armor of the JLC is necessarily going to help.  There's a big difference between damping the effects of a sudden deceleration, and tolerating sustained high G loads.  I suppose you could even pull the hands off their pivots except what might save them is that their mass is awfully low.  One possible outcome I guess is that the balance pivots will be under such high pressure that the balance will simply stop. 

I guess it's possible that the vibrations will work parts loose as well- although we might perhaps all be surprised at how well the watches tolerate the test; everything's held in place with screws after all and for something to tear loose the screws would have to have their threads sheared off. . .

I dunno.  I guess we'll just have to wait and see

Jack

I'm eagerly awaiting your results and can't wait to see pictures of the watches after your test!

Cheers,
Anthony

This will be fun!

. . . I will never, ever play backgammon with you - I like the action, but you're da gamblin' king.  Respectfully, Art

Hi Bernhard,

This sounds like a lot of fun and I'll be interested to hear the results.  It's pretty hard for me to imagine either watch actually surviving intact or even giving enough timing related feedback to make a judgement about which one "won", but it'll be fun to see what happens.  For the watches' sake I really hope the duct tape holds!

Any chance you could get a watchmaker to open them up and give them a cursory examination afterwards, maybe even with some pics?

_john

coming down "hard" on you, I would have a good watchmaker on hand. Maybe if they stop running, their balance wheels can be massaged back to life. Just a thought.
Actually I think this is a sissy test. Why not strap them to the bottom of the tires to see which gets the best traction. Now that's a contest to the death

. . . for sacrificing these watches to science.

Bernard,

Please STOP. I am shocked at the community  -  baying like wolfhounds for blood  -  it's just not decent.

Don't you see that they are only frenzied spectators lining the sides of the Coliseum because these are not THEIR watches? 

Only go ahead with the test if but only ONE of the hordes volunteers one of their watches as a challenger.

Since it is Easter, does anyone want to cast the first stone........er....watch?

Regards, MTF

nt

Cartier would never even be considered 'utility' or 'resistant' to this treatment.
Why, that smacks of being.......well.........working class

No No No -  a Cartier would simply admit to total frailty even if it was built like a Tank. THAT would be the gentlefolks' way of doing things - walk away from the riff raff in the bull pit - nothing to prove, when one knows that one is......simply superior. One can always hire brawn; it's the breeding that takes time.

Besides, I'm a conscientious objector to this 'spectacle'.
Not even a Rolex should be maltreated this way..eh?


MTF

nt

I think both watches will run just fine...Omega will lose 7 seconds compared to the JLC. Let the games begin! Duct Tape rules!

. . .I don't know why, but I have a funny feeling it's not going to be as bad as we might think.  There is a chance that both watches will simply stop though. 

Incidentally, Nirvair, it is a great pleasure to have you checking in with us again. 

Jack

.

You are funny, Bernard, using the Good Friday's national newspaper as the background.  Ok they are real watches!!

So what time is the test on 12 April, Thursday?
Will you be having some of us there to 'witness' the execution?

Kong

Little did I expect to find extreme sport at this site, and while I don't know you, Bernard, your expression in the photos suggests a diabolical delight that invigorates the imagination!  I don't feel slighted now to have never stood in the coliseum,  blood coursing, thumbs gesticulating down under a searing  sun.
Too, I can stop scanning cable channels for savage cage fights.  I only need remember the 12th day of the cruelest month, and for that, I thank you, Bernard.

98% condition, slightly worn, pictures on request. Then send back a picture duct taped to a tire when requested.  

Enjoy the idea of what you are attempting. If they survive, take them fishing for a depth test.

DaveB

. . . . 6 1/2 + for the Omega, and the over/under is 39 1/2* . . . . I'm taking the Omega and the 6 1/2 points, and parlaying the over; the parlay should pay at 7 : 2.    "Diamond" Art

* delta seconds / day

Not sure we should be allowed to have that much fun with someone else's watches ...

Bernard, may I suggest you include a typical Singapore downpour in your test circuit for added drama and make sure you drive through a few puddles just for the splash ...

Dirk

cant wait to see whats going to happen!!!