Chiming complication
What is a minute repeater watch?
A watch that chimes the time on demand, sounding the hours, quarters and minutes on tiny hammers and gongs.
How it works
Pull a slide on the side of the case and a minute repeater plays the time: a low tone for each hour, a double high-low tone for each quarter hour since, and a high tone for each minute since the last quarter. At 3:47 you'd hear three low, three double, and two high chimes.
Inside, steel hammers strike wire gongs wound around the movement. The slide winds a separate spring, and a governor keeps the chimes evenly paced. Getting the tone right takes days of hand-tuning.
History
Repeaters were invented in the late 17th century so people could tell the time in the dark, before electric light. They're now considered among the most demanding complications, made by only a handful of brands.
Before you buy
Mechanical minute repeaters cost six figures or more. If you want a chiming watch for less, a few quartz and digital watches offer hourly chimes.
Questions
- Why are minute repeaters so expensive?
- Each one is assembled, adjusted and tuned by hand by specialist watchmakers, and making the gongs sound right can take as long as building the movement.