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Watch with unmovable GMT hand?  Rate Topic 
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 Posted: Sun Jan 30th, 2011 06:46 am
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IW
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I recently had a customer, who is a pilot, ask if I offered watches with a GMT hand. Watches with GMT hands have become synonymous for dual time zone watches.

What this person was looking for was a watch, where he'd set the GMT hand to true GMT time, and when he changed the time on the 12 hour scale (primary), the GMT hand wouldn't move.

It got me thinking. . . it makes perfect sense as GMT never changes. Quartz/digital could do this easily, but is there a mechanical watch out there that does this; that is, portray GMT constantly, even with time changes - without rotating a bezel (that's cheating!)

thanks-
Marc

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 Posted: Wed Feb 9th, 2011 01:12 am
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Nighthawk
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One of my GMT watches (a quartzie, though) sets up like that. When you pull out the crown to the third position, you set the minute hand and the GMT hand to whatever time you need. Then, pushing in the crown to position two sets the local hour hand as well as the date. I actually think it might be my Citizen Nighthawk, but not sure right now. If it's important, PM me and I'll check further...

Still enjoying that Zeno Basel Diver, by the way - thanks Mark.

 

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 Posted: Wed Feb 9th, 2011 07:13 am
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Thanks for replying!

That does indeed sound like the right thing; but is it done in a mech/auto?

Glad you're enjoying the Zeno.

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 Posted: Wed Feb 9th, 2011 11:27 am
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oagaspar
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 In a true GMT movement the GMT hand is set to the proper GMT time and the hour hand is then set in 1 hour increments relative to the GMT hand(the hour hand has the ability to move without the minute hand moving)...you will find this is many quartz GMT watches like the Benarus Worldtimer.
.... I believe Seiko and Citizen still have auto/mechanical GMT watches that the 12 hour hand (linked to the date) quicksets in 1 hour intervals forward and back...the eta 2893 quicksets the 24hr hand aka GMT hand.

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 Posted: Wed Feb 9th, 2011 12:27 pm
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stew77
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If I'm reading your question correctly Marc, you are asking about a true "travelers GMT" which you can set the GMT hand to GMT time (or your HOME TIME which is how I prefer to use it). 

Then when traveling from timezone to timezone you can adjust the main hour hand in increments of 1 hour jumps forwards and backwards without affecting the GMT hand (and also without hacking/stopping the seconds hand).

This is the type of modified GMT movement that the Omega SMP GMT, and Rolex GMT II use (I think there are others such as IWC that also use this type of modified GMT movement).  As Oscar stated above, I think there are also perpetual calendar models from Seiko that use this type of movement.

The negative of this setup is that you loose the ability to quick-set the date independently through the crown...and must set the date via rotation of the main hour hand in increments of 1 hour (really not a big deal IMO). 

Now, the standard ETA-2893 used more commonly on a number of GMT's does not operate in this way...as Oscar pointed out above, this movement allows you to quickset the GMT hand (while also allowing you to quickset the date)....but, you have to hack the movement and set the main hour hand in the conventional way which also stops the seconds.

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