Modders, please let me know if this post is misaligned and rather belongs to another thread/forum/room...
TL;DR
Rate, within +/-10 s/d or even +/-5 s/d for high end watches
Amplitude should be 270° and 310°
Beat error value below 1.0 ms is considered acceptable for a watch in good condition
When I was sent QC pics I got a picture of a testing machine called MTG-9900. What the heck is an MTG-9900? I was presented with some results of a watch measurement and it just didn't make me any smarter. Retarded as I am, I did some research and here's what I found. Mind you, this might be something you already know of, or have worked with. Sorry in that case... and please ignore everything I wrote. This writeup is intended to clear the view of first time buyers who initially don't understand the technicalities. This is what I lacked in this forum after having tried to find anything everywhere. So here it goes...
MTG-9900 is a timegrapher developed by TYMC Tech Center for the high end market. It is equipped with a digital colored LCD touch screen and a normal microphone. The device can test normal watches and coaxial watches. The device has three diagram display modes: horizontal high definition, horizontal thickened and vertical high definition. The programming test program is convenient and practical, and is not only applied to watch factories but also for repair shops.
It measures a few variables which we normally seem to be presented in photos of our QC. Some values of these variables can be a showstopper for your deal, but only if you know what they mean and what they show. Here's a brief explanation.
Beat Number
"Beat number” refers to the number of beats per hour (b/h) that a watch produces. The MTG-9900 can test beat rates of 12000, 14400, 18000, 19800, 21600, 25200, 28800 and 36000 b/h. The beat rates are automatically identified by this tester in just a few seconds or you can change and manually set the beat rate to be tested.
Lift Angle
“Lift angle” refers to the angle through which the pallet fork moves while interacting with the balance wheel in a mechanical watch. The lift angle is pre-set to a default value of 52 degrees for normal watches and 38 degrees for coaxial watches.
Rate
“Rate” refers to the daily rate of a mechanical watch, which is measured in seconds per day (s/d). The MTG-9900 displays the daily rate with an accuracy of +/-1 s/d and a range of +/-300 s/d.
A good rate value for a mechanical watch measured with the MTG-9900 timegrapher would be within the range of +/-300 seconds per day (s/d). However, the acceptable rate value can vary depending on the specific watch and its manufacturer’s specifications. High-end watches typically have tighter tolerances and may have rate values within +/-10 s/d or even +/-5 s/d.
Amplitude
“Amplitude” refers to the maximum angle of rotation of a mechanical watch’s balance wheel. The MTG-9900 can measure amplitude values between 90° and 350° with an accuracy of +/-3°. A good amplitude value for a mechanical watch can vary depending on the specific watch and its manufacturer’s specifications. However, a general rule of thumb is that an amplitude value between 270° and 310° is considered acceptable for a fully wound watch in good condition.(Sidenote: I didn't find any info whether this is relevant for automatic movements).
Beat error
"Beat error” refers to the difference in time between the tick and the tock of a mechanical watch. The MTG-9900 can measure beat error values between 0 and 4.0 milliseconds (ms) with an accuracy of +/-0.1 ms 1. A good beat error value for a mechanical watch can vary depending on the specific watch and its manufacturer’s specifications. However, a general rule of thumb is that a beat error value below 1.0 ms is considered acceptable for a watch in good condition.
And please, I stay humble to all help I can get to perfect these details, if some errors have sneaked in or if we need to complement anything.
I hope this can help you decide whether to accept or decline your QC.
That's all folks! Enjoy your watch and forum mingles.
TL;DR
Rate, within +/-10 s/d or even +/-5 s/d for high end watches
Amplitude should be 270° and 310°
Beat error value below 1.0 ms is considered acceptable for a watch in good condition
When I was sent QC pics I got a picture of a testing machine called MTG-9900. What the heck is an MTG-9900? I was presented with some results of a watch measurement and it just didn't make me any smarter. Retarded as I am, I did some research and here's what I found. Mind you, this might be something you already know of, or have worked with. Sorry in that case... and please ignore everything I wrote. This writeup is intended to clear the view of first time buyers who initially don't understand the technicalities. This is what I lacked in this forum after having tried to find anything everywhere. So here it goes...
MTG-9900 is a timegrapher developed by TYMC Tech Center for the high end market. It is equipped with a digital colored LCD touch screen and a normal microphone. The device can test normal watches and coaxial watches. The device has three diagram display modes: horizontal high definition, horizontal thickened and vertical high definition. The programming test program is convenient and practical, and is not only applied to watch factories but also for repair shops.
It measures a few variables which we normally seem to be presented in photos of our QC. Some values of these variables can be a showstopper for your deal, but only if you know what they mean and what they show. Here's a brief explanation.
Beat Number
"Beat number” refers to the number of beats per hour (b/h) that a watch produces. The MTG-9900 can test beat rates of 12000, 14400, 18000, 19800, 21600, 25200, 28800 and 36000 b/h. The beat rates are automatically identified by this tester in just a few seconds or you can change and manually set the beat rate to be tested.
Lift Angle
“Lift angle” refers to the angle through which the pallet fork moves while interacting with the balance wheel in a mechanical watch. The lift angle is pre-set to a default value of 52 degrees for normal watches and 38 degrees for coaxial watches.
Rate
“Rate” refers to the daily rate of a mechanical watch, which is measured in seconds per day (s/d). The MTG-9900 displays the daily rate with an accuracy of +/-1 s/d and a range of +/-300 s/d.
A good rate value for a mechanical watch measured with the MTG-9900 timegrapher would be within the range of +/-300 seconds per day (s/d). However, the acceptable rate value can vary depending on the specific watch and its manufacturer’s specifications. High-end watches typically have tighter tolerances and may have rate values within +/-10 s/d or even +/-5 s/d.
Amplitude
“Amplitude” refers to the maximum angle of rotation of a mechanical watch’s balance wheel. The MTG-9900 can measure amplitude values between 90° and 350° with an accuracy of +/-3°. A good amplitude value for a mechanical watch can vary depending on the specific watch and its manufacturer’s specifications. However, a general rule of thumb is that an amplitude value between 270° and 310° is considered acceptable for a fully wound watch in good condition.(Sidenote: I didn't find any info whether this is relevant for automatic movements).
Beat error
"Beat error” refers to the difference in time between the tick and the tock of a mechanical watch. The MTG-9900 can measure beat error values between 0 and 4.0 milliseconds (ms) with an accuracy of +/-0.1 ms 1. A good beat error value for a mechanical watch can vary depending on the specific watch and its manufacturer’s specifications. However, a general rule of thumb is that a beat error value below 1.0 ms is considered acceptable for a watch in good condition.
And please, I stay humble to all help I can get to perfect these details, if some errors have sneaked in or if we need to complement anything.
I hope this can help you decide whether to accept or decline your QC.
That's all folks! Enjoy your watch and forum mingles.
