Mechanical Watches

Whenever true love is involved, purely rational arguments recede into the background. Choosing a mechanical watch may be determined by emotion in many respects, and yet – a glance at the technology behind it explains why it fascinates the men of the world so much. Added to that are your own subjective style, a weakness for tradition, and ideally for the phenomenon of time itself. The impressive interaction of sometimes over 100 miniaturized individual pieces that set the hands in motion makes an analog mechanical watch a fascinating masterpiece of the highest watchmaker’s art. In the following explanations, we would like to set out in more detail how the Victorinox watch experts at the company’s own competence center in Delémont contribute to this and what that looks like specifically in our various models.

Hand-wound or automatic mechanical watch – a fundamental decision:
Whereas electronic movements are powered by a battery, ever since the invention of the first pocket watch mechanical watches have been driven by a spring. There are generally two types to be distinguished here – with mechanical wristwatches wound by hand the necessary energy is introduced manually from outside on a regular basis; a mechanical automatic watch, on the other hand, translates the movement of the wearer into the drive energy required via a rotor. The challenge here is to transfer the external impulse into an even oscillation that remains constant irrespective of the position and location of the watch. This is where the balance wheel driven via the spring comes into play, a small flywheel that acts as a mechanical timekeeper.

Automatic movements – Made in Switzerland:
All mechanical watches from Victorinox have an automatic Swiss movement to ensure the greatest precision and accuracy. We use the Kaliber ETA 2824-2 with a power gauge of 38 hours, the Sellita SW 200 with a power gauge of 38 hours, and the ETA VALJOUX 7750 with a power gauge of 48 hours. We prefer to use the last of these for our Swiss mechanical watches with a chronograph function. Robust cases made from stainless steel protect the watches safely against knocks and other external influences. Because durability is a Swiss quality.

Transparent caseback – an homage to technology:
As we mentioned at the beginning, the small high-performance mechanism, which ensures the heartbeat of mechanical wristwatches, exerts a special attraction on enthusiasts of this type of watch, and also on us as the manufacturer. That’s why all automatic mechanical watches from Victorinox are fitted with a transparent caseback that lets you look inside these most accurate mechanical watches, revealing a sophisticated mechanism of screws, springs, cylinders, and cogwheels.

Useful complications – additional functions for every lifestyle:
While in general usage complications are not at all attractive or desirable, in the world of watches this term summarizes all the functions in a watch above and beyond the display of hours, minutes, and seconds, those functions that give the timepiece further added value. Examples of this are the date display, stopwatch function or moon phase display, power gauge or second time zone. Every additional function makes the mechanics and thus the movement more complex; what looks very simple on the surface of the display places great demands on the technology within.

Innovative materials – state of the art in research and development:
As with all our products, with every one of our individual models in the Swiss Army Watch collection we place the greatest value on the consistent application of our brand values. The most recent coup to prove the iconic design and intelligent functionality, innovation, and tradition in mechanical watches is the creation of a watch strap made from wood, which combines pioneering spirit and comfort with the sustainable conservation of resources. We have already taken a step in a similar direction with the AirBoss range, which we have fitted with a strap made from ecologically tanned leather.

True character types – watches for all life’s adventures:
With Victorinox, choosing an electronic or analog mechanical watch does not mean restricting the functionality. Our collection encompasses the whole spectrum of different characters – selected by hand during manufacture, from everyday and business watches to chronograph watches, pilot’s watches, and diving watches. And who ever says that you have to choose one thing or the other in life? As collector’s items that increase in value, exclusive Swiss watches are ultimately timeless. Take your time to have a look around online in our shop window or get advice in person from an authorized specialist dealer; it’s always worthwhile to try a watch on your wrist, and a little shop talk will always make you that extra bit smarter.