Guides · The movement

What is power reserve?

The power reserve is the time a mechanical watch runs, from the mainspring being fully wound until it stops — without being touched. A watch with 80 hours runs for a good three days: take the watch off on Friday evening and it's still running on Monday morning. Many older automatic movements have 38–42 hours, and then the watch stops after a weekend on the bedside table.

In practice: if you wear the watch most of the day, the rotor keeps it charged by itself. If it lies still for several days, it stops, and you wind it at the crown (20–30 turns) and set the time and date. That is normal behaviour, not a fault. The power reserve is listed on every automatic item's page under specifications.

If you have a question about a particular watch, ask Nord, our assistant, at the bottom right — or write to us.

More guides about the movement

The movementHow an automatic watch worksAn automatic watch has no battery. The movementHow a quartz watch worksA quartz watch runs on a small battery. The movementWhy does an automatic watch cost more?An automatic movement is around 150 parts that have to be assembled, oiled and adjusted; a quartz movement is a circuit board and a small motor that are mass-produced.