Seiko Kinetic keeps stopping ?

[silverclaws]

I know with these things they are much like the automatic movements in that they require motion to wind up, but the kinetics were supposed to store that motion and keep the thing running, but mine has developed the situation that if there is little motion for a couple of days the thing loses time. It is the 5M62-0A10 movement which I thought had the rechargeable lithium battery as opposed to the old ill fated capacitor models, so should it be suffering these issues? Or is it the rechargeable battery is shot, bearing in mind I have had the watch for about ten years?

Was thinking of lashing the watch to the spokes of my bike to wind the thing, but it not storing charge, there's no point or I would have.

 

[David B]

I know with these things they are much like the automatic movements in that they require motion to wind up, but the kinetics were supposed to store that motion and keep the thing running, but mine has developed the situation that if there is little motion for a couple of days the thing loses time. It is the 5M62-0A10 movement which I thought had the rechargeable lithium battery as opposed to the old ill fated capacitor models, so should it be suffering these issues? Or is it the rechargeable battery is shot, bearing in mind I have had the watch for about ten years?

Was thinking of lashing the watch to the spokes of my bike to wind the thing, but it not storing charge, there's no point or I would have.

If it's served you well for nigh-on a decade I'd suspect that the battery needs to be retired, after all even Li ones don't go on forever.
I have a mechanical Seiko 5 automatic watch, generally speaking it starts to lose time if not worn for 2-3 days.

David

 

[silverclaws]

An automatic seiko diver is what I want eventually as my kinetic 'pepsi' diver, well they don't go on forever because of the battery issue, but ten years isn't bad. The idea I had back then was I liked the hybrid design, sort of a cross between an old automatic and a modern battery powered watch and Seiko were always good for accuracy and accurate is a thing that appeals to me. My Kinetic loses hours after about two days of low activity now, where when it was new, it could keep time for six months unworn.

I 'll have to get a battery kit and seal then and fit it myself, as I have destructions of how to do it found on the web.

 

[Neil]

Even the Lithium ion cells can go bad in Kinetics, perhaps not quite as predictably as the capacitors, but all the same.

OEM replacements are readily available on t'internet or ebay. I've replaced them in 3 of my Kinetics, still have 3 to do.

It's not very difficult, you'll just need to do it in a well lit environment, because the screws are truly tiny, and you'll probably need a sharpening stone for your precision screwdriver as, I'm not sure whether I mentioned, the screws are truly tiny.

As much as I love them, Kinetics are truly a solution looking for a problem. Implemented with charge storage that was never truly reliable, long term, and all (well most) of the downsides of mechanical autos (ie those the wind a spring rather than drive a generator and store charge in a cell).

Seiko 5s (7S26 movements) go on forever and are damn robust, even if they can be the Devil's own job of regulating for accuracy.

 

[silverclaws]

Ha, I found a review on my watch, mine is the 'pepsi' dialed one on this page;

http://quartzimodo.com/seiko-kinetic-sk ... er-review/

But mine is battered to hell as it is always worn regardless of what I am doing and it has interfaced with various car parts before when fixing engines, but the one way rotating bezel deflects most of the impact and the glass has even got a chip out of one edge from a past impact.

So possibly made in 2002 and now 2012, I have read lithium batteries start going odd after about ten years, so perhaps that is the issue I have.

 

[Neil]

Ha, I found a review on my watch, mine is the 'pepsi' dialed one on this page;

http://quartzimodo.com/seiko-kinetic-sk ... er-review/

But mine is battered to hell as it is always worn regardless of what I am doing and it has interfaced with various car parts before when fixing engines, but the one way rotating bezel deflects most of the impact and the glass has even got a chip out of one edge from a past impact.

So possibly made in 2002 and now 2012, I have read lithium batteries start going odd after about ten years, so perhaps that is the issue I have.

Well the symptoms sound exactly like the cell going bad, and before you mention newer Kinetics having Lithium ion cells rather than capacitors, I've had Li-ion cells I've replaced myself going bad after a few years, and I've got a jewelers Seiko induction charger for Kinetic watches.

Get yourself a replacement cell and it'll be sorted, probably... can you still hear / feel the oscillating weight spinning freely?

 

[silverclaws]

Yeah, the weight is still moving freely, one can hear it even and sometimes feel that thing swinging around, but I agree, it's likely the battery has passed it's best.

 

[Neil]

Yeah, the weight is still moving freely, one can hear it even and sometimes feel that thing swinging around, but I agree, it's likely the battery has passed it's best.

The other common fault is the main gear stripping so the generator won't turn, but if the oscillating weight still spins freely and movement gets the watch running then it's almost certainly the cell.

The good news is that's relatively cheap and easy to fix, the bad news is it's a little fiddly, and have I mentioned that the screws are truly tiny? One of the eBay sellers of the cell / capacitor replacements, also sells the screws individually.

 

[videojetman]

i have replaced a number of the capacitors over the years.
hopefully yours hasnt leaked. fairly simple job but like its already been said, if you drop the screw good luck finding it again.
just get a good watch makers screwdriver.

 

[Rich34]

I've got a Kinetic I bought in the late '90s, still going strong but requires a service and new battery every few years. I also have a few automatic Seiko divers - fantastic watches and in the opinion of the guy who looks after my watches (who served his apprenticeship in Switzerland before the quartz phenomenon) the Swiss can't hold a candle to Seiko when it comes to well-designed, solid products.

I've heard the Seiko Divers watch described as the AK47 of watches (it's cheap but you can bash it, drop it, get it soaked, and it keeps on working regardless).