We speak of Watches! And if, suddenly, the clock starts to move forward?

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Scappamento

and if suddenly the clock starts to go very fast ... maybe not a serious problem!

Two words on watches in general:

The hardest tests (1) for a mechanical watch, prevedeono an accuracy in the 24 hours between -4 and +6 seconds per day.
This concerns movements with the title of "cronometer" that need to maintain a highly accurate measurement of time.
The difference in accuracy between a mechanism and another is due to the "alternating", or the frequency of oscillation of a rocker. This frequency can vary between 21,600 to 36,000 alternations / hour (3 to 5 Hz (2))
Obviously, if the watch has a precision engineering, is more complex adjust the frequency of the rocker.

There are many causes that can affect the accuracy of the clock; the most frequent are the temperature, the position of the clock, and small "upheavals" as the constant vibration of an engine or the constant changes of position imposed by a game of tennis.

It should also be said that, like any machine, a mechanical movement requires maintenance in order to avoid the decay of the lubrication of its gears, with the consequent increase in friction.

But we come to the fact that, unexpectedly, the clock has started to go very fast: many minutes in an hour, or even hours in a day:

Probably the damage is minor appearances!
Most likely, the clock has suffered a small knock in a particular moment of carrying out of the spiral of the rocker.

This involved the overlap of the spiral with the result of shorten its stroke, and consequently to increase significantly, the frequency of oscillation of the rocker arm.
In this case, the frequency increase will not turn into a higher precision but in a scroll faster than time.

If you have a good hand, you could remove the overlap (obviously very carefully), although we suggest you contact your jeweler / watchmaker who will carry out the quickly repair and probably at no cost.


notes:

(1) The Institute most known and respected for granting certification of quality and precision of a mechanical movement is the COSC (Controle Officiel Suisse's Chronometer), an association founded non-profit in 1973.
The release of such certification is subject to a period of 15 days trial clock, during which the movement is tested in various positions and in conditions of exposure to different temperatures. At the end of the test, the gap must be contained between -4 and +6 seconds a day.

(2) If we consider that the quartz movement has a oscillation of around 32 kHz, (compared to 3-5 Hz of mechanic clock), it becomes obvious why the "Quartz" is very precisio, at a discount of a technical quality that is certainly superior in mechanical movements

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