I think that alignment should be bang on in every watch over $150 The trouble is probably 90% of people who buy a watch don't care about it. The manufacturers know this so their not to concerned unfortunately.

Hello . I own a number of Casio Marlin Duro dive watches . Quarts 200m water resist . The second hand hits the mark on each watch without fail . $50 !!!! Perhaps some of what your describing is accurate but in truth - it’s the manufacturers choice . Let’s be honest - 🙏🏻

I bought a Tissot Classic Dream directly from the manufacturer in Switzerland , had my eyes on it for 6 months and even though it is an entry level dress watch, I thought that everything would be in perfect alignment.... It wasn't. Had begun thinking that maybe I should send it back to fix/switch it, but...the vide made me rethink my action. Still got a same price Fossil Tachymeter and Casio Edifice which are bang on the markers. Shame, really wanted a Swiss made one to be proud of ...:(

Thank you for the explanation. I really do love when the seconds hand aligns with the markers. Really makes that Oceanus so impressive!

The video makes sense. I used to think it was a quality issue but I can see the logic. I can see how a larger watch face with a longer second hand will make the misalignment appear worse. I suppose a solution would be for manufacturers to create gears with greater accuracy but that kind of precision will add to the cost.

So far, every Casio I bought has no problem on alignment of seconds hands. I believe there is some way to encounter this problem

The gears backlash is one of the reasons why a movement wouldn't be able to stay aligned. Yet I was told there were others : - Incorrect dial printing - Misaligned dial - Misaligned hands. When the misalignment is constant it's indeed a good sign, since it means one adjustment could line the whole watch again. Interesting theme and explanations. =)

Citizen very often get the alignment right, even on the more affordable models, as opposed to Seiko and many entry level swiss quartz watches. The latter are particularly poor and indeed even some higher end ones like Omega. I think it's certainly a quality issue, not meaning that it's poor movement if it's not aligned. But aligning things takes extra effort and thus cost, so some watch makers may not make it a priority. The same goes for tolerances in the movement and the resultant prevalent stutter of the second hand in cheaper quarts movements compared to the precise action of the more expensive ones. Granted there must be some give to accommodate heat expansion etc. but considering the miniature size of parts in a watch movement, surely this slack need not be so large as to be clearly visible to the naked eye.

This is exactly what I was looking for. Thanks for the much needed explanation!

Great video,I just purchased a Citizen BN0080-05L Promaster 300m and it misses between the 4 and 5 mark thought about sending it back but what you mentioned in this video made absolute sense. Citizen also told me that this is normal and that nothing could be done. THANK YOU!!!!

Great explanation. I recently got a cheap Casio MDV quartz diver and assumed it was just quality control issues but now it makes more sense.

Thanks for taking the time to explain how this mystery occurs.

Alternate video title: "What it's like to have OCD"

Interesting! A solution would be to have the seconds hand attached to a large gear, say 1/3 of the dial's diameter, then the backlash wouldn't cause any noticable misalignment. But this makes another design of the movement necessary. I own a radio-controlled CASIO Lineage tough solar and the alignment is quite good.

I do not think this was a very good explanation, because it does not explain why some watches are made in a way that the second hand is aligned. They have gears in them too.

I have a cheap q and q watch. Perfectly aligned

Thanks for your explanation, its really spot on. My OCD just can't get over hands not hitting the marks, too bad because most watches i really like, design wise have this horrible misalignment.

Thanks a lot. I own a new T200 Oceanus and the second hand is sometimes a bit off. Now I understand why

I completely agree w/ @dave5765. Simply reattach the second hand accordingly & issue solved.

Very informative video! The best alignment I had on a quartz watch was on my Casio Oceanus T200. Great looking watch and it has made me appreciate the Oceanus line. Thanks for the info!

I don't agree. I have personally realigned the second hand in several of my quartz watches from G-Shock to luminox all running quartz movements. Some are Japanese quartz movement and some are Swiss quartz movements. The issue from my personal experience is a lack of care by the person assembling the watch and poor quality control. I have managed to perfectly re-align every one of my second hands on all of these different quartz watches by removing the second hand and reattaching it. And they now hit the mark all the way around the dial. The problem is usually causes by the person who is assembling the watch doesn't understand how to take the slack out when they preload the second hand onto the mark. The newer G-Shock and citizen watches seem to be near perfect from the factory as they have better equipment to help them accomplish that. Luminox has been the worst I've seen but after I realign the second hand it looks perfect all the way around the dial and it's super easy to do on most of these.

Excellent! Thank you. I got a Timex Expedition metal field watch a couple of days ago. And was wondering about this. For a cheap watch, I'm impressed and now more so!

That's a good few reason for this explained I've never thought of it like that but I now feel better about non baton alignment as I've just bought another😮 watch hanowa Swiss military watch which doesn't hit alignment and it's Swiss made. But your view on this just reassure me. 😊

Thank you very much for the explanation. But why the Casio, even the cheapest, is perfectly aligned (I have four), and a more expensive one (Citizen) they have this issue? Meaning: I understand and accept your explanation, but why Casio don't have this issue? Also: why is it aligned in some marks, and others not?

I have a 20 yr old Omega quartz that doesnt allign

i have a casio f91w and the seconds are always bang-on

At what arbitrary price-point do 'quality' quartz mechanisms begin, where perfect alignment can be expected?

I do not accept the faulty movement of the second hand. I expect precision from quartz. If the watch is not precise, I don't buy it.

One of the reasons the casio lines up... Is printed on the dial of that Oceanus. Tough movement.! There is an LED inside that shines through the gears.... If the sensor at the other side doesn't get the light it's expecting, it automatically corrects the discrepancy. Yeah.... Its amazing. Just another reason why i have not been able to buy a new 'Day to Day' watch since i bought a Casio GPW 1000 in... 2016 or something? Every watch i look at seems like a downgrade. It doesnt have something i now consider a must have.... Like solar, and Hybrid Wave Ceptor, which for some reason they only have in 2 or 3 models in 2021....(I think all in the £2000 plus range). Ican still buy a dressy watch though thank goodness. I just sold 2 watches to acquire a dream of mine. An Apollo 8 Speedmaster Blue Side of the moon. The images online dont do it justice. The laser engraved image of the near and far side of the moon.... Its like a photograph. Its a work of art.... And even THAT.... Thing of total beauty in the watchmakers art... Annoys me just a little bit because it doesnt have a perpetual calender, and it's unfair to compare the two, as they are from half a century apart, technology wise... But.... That is how highly i rate what Casio did with the Gravity master series. Yes a £1100 (at the time) watch... Makes me just a little bit disapointed in a £7500 watch... That i adore totally and will never sell. But also wont ever be on my wrist everyday, because thats where my Casio GPW1000 lives. Crazy isnt it? Well.... Im sure someone reading this will get what i mean. I hope so, as im not disrespecting Omega in any way. My Apollo 8 Speedmaster is one of the most aesthetically perfect items i own.... But Casio got closer to timekeeping perfection with the Gravitymaster (with 50 years of technological advances to lean on, of course!). I even feel guilty about thinking that way, BUT, Im sure just as much... Even more work went into perfecting the Casio, as the Omega.... Isuppose there is just that ridiculous 'romance' aspect standing between the two timekeepers. One robotically keeps utterly perfect time in all conditions at all times and on any spot on the planet, automatically. The other ... Handmade, keeps time well but will lose 10 seconds a day plus or minus when working perfectly.... And yet is still just so damn pretty, and the one most people would pick, if asked to choose between the two.... Oh well. Ill shut up now.

What about when the MINUTE hand doesn't align with the markers?

Hi, nice video. I have a question, though. The backlash is a problem only for quartz watches? Isn't it the same problem for mechanical watches?

Also backlash is irrelevant. When it's running you can see the backlash effect on hand position so YOU TAKE IT BACK APART AND CORRECT IT.

Thank you so much for this! I appreciate this.

Simple, they can't be bothered

Rambles on for 4 mins and tells very little.

My Oceanus hits the marks between 30 and 60 seconds but not between 1 and 29 seconds. Any explanation for this? Thank you.

This is a great video. I have a citizen EcoDrive diver. I've noticed the minutes hand is slightly loose, it's hard to notice but it is there for about a hair. Is it possible that it is also by design in the case of the minute hands? I mean, not misaligned, but it wobbles a little bit

If you have the same WRONG move in every second, why not make it align in the design? I assume they made it in temperature that is normal to mine?😅 Or you could have two colored half seconds so that you can't miss😅 Otherwise the marks doesn't make sense.

Just got a Certina DS-8 and they aren't even close. Yet, my two Oceanus are perfect.

This is driving me crazy. Automatic watches seems to be better because its harder to spot the misalignment because the seconds hand is moving so fast.

If it's misaligned only on some portion of the dial, does that indicate unevenly worn our gears?

Great..explaination 👍👍👍👍

Thanks for video! Several of my watches(Citizen and Seikos, and all are ECO/Solar) have the second hand very spot on at the second mark. Therefore I soon reacted about that with my latest watch the second hand is pretty much half second wrong, it's in the middle between the markers. It disturbs me a bit. I understand it in practise does not matter, but anyway. Shall I accept it? And if not, would the dealer accept a replacement for that reason? I don't know yet.

Great video and explanation. Thanks!

I got a seiko quartz that aligns better than a tissot prx. For on 90 Bucks. 😂😂😂😂

I think Bulova/Citizen nailed it on their 262 Hz FLAT CRISTAL Quartz Moon Watch. Right ?

A great review!!! Keep doing what you do!! Awesome

I know it's not a fault or that most watches don't align... but I have a boner for watches that have perfectly aligned hands.

My Tissot Visodate quarts is also like this ...😐 Not happy...

I like your content... really detailed and entertaining... I watched you review on the S100 and it was the one that pushed me the most... and the alignment is just spot on every time... I must say my Gravitymaster has perfect alignment too.... now I know these watches are calibrated every hour or just before the hour... but when I saw the Grand SEIKO quartz these are also perfect, and they have no gadgets to keep them aligned... guess it's down to how the second hand flips which you mentioned... then on the flip side, my vintage Bulova accuquartz has a smooth sweep which beats everything :-P Fantastic content and you're welcome to add a comment with this link on my S100 review on my channel... you need more subs my friend :)) Cheers for sharing and making so much effort with informations :))

I have a Mondaine Giant. And the misalignment drives me mad, because of the lollipop design of the second hand! Gahhh.

Quartz???

Digital watches never have misaligned second hands.

I'd just align it myself. It's not that difficult

5:03

Pleeease write a script before recording. It will help you avoiding to repeat everything you say and you won't have to make so many cuts in order your speaking to make sense.

poor excuse! why necessary? 2 from the 3 watches you show do not need the big tolerances - in fact just means, some movements are just cheaper with higher tolerance ... 2 of the 3 watches show it can be done right !!

Hey buddy, just realised there's a mistake in your title... if you read it you'll see it, once found delete my comment :))

If it's that fucking hard just make it beat more often instead of the horrid once a second beats!!!!! It's that simple!!!!