The desire to buy this or that wristwatch, sometimes, arises for no particular reason - it is enough to see some model in the window, as an inner voice is already whispering "Yes, they look great, take it quickly!" However, when buying a wrist watch with a chronograph, everything happens exactly the opposite - it is not for nothing that they are rumored to be “instrumental watches”. With the money spent, we all certainly want to get a reliable, convenient tool, our mind wants to take into account the smallest details. We will tell you six truths about chronograph wristwatches. These truths will become your raft in the endless ocean of modern chronograph watches.
The first truth. It is important to understand the purpose of the chronograph.
Most visitors to watch salons do not think about the functions that a chronograph watch is supposed to perform. And there are so many of them! It is a watch with a chronograph that can accurately measure jogging or cycling, business meetings, and even the advertised “food deliveries to the nearest second”. Chronographs are used by doctors to measure the heartbeat, by hearth keepers when preparing meals, by the military in calculations.
Using a chronograph is usually quite simple: press the top pusher located next to the crown, after which the second hand starts to move. Press this button again, the arrow will stop, the time period has been successfully measured. Would you like to move the hand to the "zero" position? You are welcome! To do this, simply press the bottom pusher, located in the same place, next to the watch crown.
Why do you need a chronograph if you have a stopwatch? The stopwatch is still an amateur device for measuring time intervals, while the chronograph is a separate device. All your measurements will be carried out separately, while the watch mechanism will not be busy, the watch will fulfill its main purpose - to show the time. This is very important for professionals, in which each device must accurately perform the assigned tasks. But, as mentioned above, a chronograph is useful in everyday life for any person.
It is important to remember that if you want to use your chronographs underwater, you must start it while on land.
The second truth. The chronograph should be easy to read.
Recently, more and more manufacturers present on the world market watches with the declared presence of a chronograph, but only its readability leaves much to be desired. Each company tries to make its dial “different from everyone else,” which is why chronographs sometimes suffer greatly. Due to the bizarre shapes of the dials, the chronograph is sometimes simply inconvenient to use, it is impossible to understand exactly what measurements it produces. People who intend to use a chronograph in the dark should be especially careful in choosing a watch.
Truth three. Chronographs work in different ways.
It is enough to look closely at the work of the mechanism to be convinced of this. The high-frequency chronograph movement is able to measure time periods down to the smallest fractions of a second. The frequency of the mechanism is usually measured in units hpv (vibtarion per hour - the number of vibrations per hour). The mechanism wheel swings left and right, forward and backward. Obviously, this process generates vibration, which, in turn, pushes the chronograph hand one division forward.
28,800 vph is the most common frequency of the movement today. Let's calculate how many vibrations are per second. Divide the most common frequency by the total number of seconds per hour - 3,600. That's the answer - 8. As a result, our watches with a movement frequency of 28,800 vph measure time intervals with an accuracy of 1/8 of a second. You can find models that can measure up to 1/5, 1/6, 1/10 of a second ...
The fourth truth. Chronographs are classified by type.
One watchmaker can come up with something new. And the other will look at his invention, think, and make it even better. In the world of chronographs, there are only two such unusual inventions so far - a chronograph with an instant restart (the so-called “flyback”) and a split-chronograph.
A chronograph with instant restart capability is best used when timing down to a fraction of a second is not needed. Such chronographs are used by airplane pilots who perform maneuvers at certain intervals. Until the next time interval, the pilot has time to restart the chronograph and prepare for a new turn.
The split chronograph will become an indispensable assistant in the time dimension of two actions. Do you need to measure the running of two athletes competing with each other? You can easily do this and more with a split chronograph. Some models have two seconds, one above the other, in the center of the dial. However, in order to measure the duration of several events, beginning at the same time and ending at different times, a conventional chronograph with split function can be used.
Fifth truth. The chronograph will be useful even when you least expect it.
A wristwatch with a chronograph can do much more than meets the eye. On shop windows you can see chronographs with a variety of scales on the edge of the dial (tachymetric, telemetric, logarithmic scales, and others). With such a set, you can always and everywhere professionally complete the tasks.
The sixth truth. "Quartz" and "mechanics" are always good in their own way.
For several decades, the owners of wristwatches have been divided into two camps - some prefer mechanical watches with a chronograph, others prefer quartz wristwatches equipped with a chronograph. Mechanics is definitely a passion for aesthetes. Mechanical watches have reached the 21st century through centuries of development; today they represent a living legend that even time itself could not throw into oblivion. Chronographs in mechanical watches are inherently capricious and much more complex than their counterparts in quartz watches.
Chronographs in quartz watches are a reliable, unpretentious instrument. With them, you can measure time intervals even while running, even in a jump. A quartz wrist watch with a chronograph will cost the future owner much cheaper to purchase and maintain than a mechanical one.
We hope that these simple truths will help you make an informed choice of a wristwatch with a chronograph. You can join the ranks of adherents of both "quartz" and "mechanics", but in any case, choose a high-quality, reliable watch that will serve you faithfully as long as you want.
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