Glossary

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General Rolex Omega Breitling Hublot TAG Heuer Dial & Hands Materials Complications Collector Slang

General watch terms

Automatic / Self-winding A mechanical movement that winds itself via a rotating rotor that moves with the wearer’s wrist. Mechanical movement that winds itself by wrist motion.
Manual / Hand-wound Mechanical movement that must be wound by turning the crown. Movement that requires winding by the crown.
Quartz Battery-powered movement regulated by a quartz crystal; highly accurate and low maintenance. Battery-powered electronic movement regulated by quartz.
Calibre / Caliber The movement model or architecture inside a watch (mechanical or quartz). The model/name of a movement.
Escapement Mechanism that releases gears in precise increments, regulating timekeeping. Component controlling the release of energy to regulate time.
Balance wheel / Hairspring The balance wheel oscillates and, with the hairspring, controls the movement rate. Oscillating wheel and spring that set the timing rate.
Rotor Weighted semicircle in an automatic movement that winds the mainspring when the wrist moves. Weighted part that winds an automatic movement.
Power reserve How long a watch runs after being fully wound, usually given in hours or days. Running time available after full wind.
Chronograph Stopwatch function integrated into a watch — start/stop/reset sub-registers for timing. Stopwatch complication with timing subdials.
Tachymeter Scale used to measure speed over a fixed distance (often on bezel or dial). Scale for speed calculations using elapsed time.
GMT / Dual time Complication showing a second time zone, typically with a 24-hour hand and/or bezel. Function for tracking a second time zone.
Date / Quickset date Date display; quickset allows fast date adjustment without turning hour hands many times. Calendar date display; quickset speeds adjustment.
Annual / Perpetual calendar Annual requires one correction per year (Feb→Mar); perpetual compensates for leap years automatically. Calendar complications with different levels of automatic correction.
Moonphase Complication indicating the current lunar phase on the dial. Dial display showing lunar phase.
Tourbillon High-end rotating escapement cage designed to average positional errors. Luxury rotating escapement for positional accuracy.
Minute repeater Complication that chimes hours, quarters and minutes on demand. Chiming complication that audibly sounds the time.
Helium escape valve (HEV) Valve that releases trapped helium during decompression — used on some professional dive watches. Pressure-relief valve used in saturation diving cases.
Unidirectional / Bi-directional bezel Bezel rotation direction; unidirectional is for dive safety, bi-directional is common on GMT or timing bezels. Rotating ring for timing/GMT; direction affects function and safety.
Screw-down crown Crown that screws into the case to improve water resistance. Crown design that increases case water resistance.
Hacking seconds Stops the seconds hand when setting time for precise synchronization. Feature to stop seconds hand during time-setting.
COSC / Chronometer Swiss institute certification for high-accuracy mechanical movements. Official accuracy certification for movements (COSC).
Master Chronometer (METAS) Omega's + METAS certification combining COSC and tests for magnetic resistance and performance. Brand plus institute certification for accuracy and resistance (Omega term).
Dial finishes (sunburst, matte, guilloché) Different textures and surface treatments that change how light plays on the dial. Surface styles that affect appearance and light reflection.
Sapphire crystal / Hesalite Sapphire is scratch-resistant synthetic crystal; hesalite is acrylic used on some vintage and Speedmaster models. Common crystal types: scratch-resistant sapphire and acrylic hesalite.
Perlage / Côtes de Genève / Anglage Decorative movement finishes — pearling, Geneva stripes and beveled polishing respectively. Decorative finishes used on movement plates, bridges and edges.
Endlinks / Springbar / Lugs Endlinks attach bracelets to the case; springbars are small bars fitting between lugs to secure straps. Parts connecting straps/bracelets to the case.
Panda / Reverse panda / Tropical / Gilt Common dial slang: panda = white dial/black subs; tropical = sun-faded warm brown; gilt = gold-tone printing. Collector descriptors for dial layouts and aging/finishes.

Rolex — terms & nicknames

Oyster case Rolex’s sealed, waterproof case design introduced in the 1920s. Rolex’s sealed, waterproof case design.
Perpetual Rolex’s trade name for their automatic self-winding movements. Rolex name for automatic movements.
Cyclops Magnifier over the date window (typically 2.5×). Magnifying lens over the date window for easier reading.
Rolesor Rolex term for steel-and-gold two-tone watches. Two-tone steel + gold Rolex models.
Oystersteel / Cerachrom / Parachrom Oystersteel = Rolex 904L steel; Cerachrom = ceramic bezels; Parachrom = shock-resistant hairspring alloy. Rolex proprietary materials for durability and performance.
Triplock / Twinlock / Glidelock / Easylink Crown sealing (Triplock/Twinlock) and bracelet adjustment systems (Glidelock/Easylink). Rolex crown seals and clasp/adjust systems for water resistance and comfort.
Nicknames Hulk — green Submariner (green dial & bezel).
Kermit — early green-bezel Submariner anniversary model.
Smurf — white-gold Submariner with blue dial/bezel.
Batman — black/blue GMT-Master II bezel.
Pepsi — red/blue GMT bezel.
Paul Newman — collectible Daytona with exotic dial.
Root Beer — brown/bronze tone variants.
Red Sub — vintage Submariner with red script.

Omega — terms & nicknames

Co-Axial escapement Low-friction escapement inspired by George Daniels, adopted by Omega to reduce servicing. Omega’s low-friction escapement system.
Master Chronometer / METAS Omega’s METAS certification that tests for precision, magnetic resistance and overall performance. Omega’s combined COSC + METAS certification standard.
Naiad Lock / Sedna Gold / Liquidmetal Naiad = aligned caseback system; Sedna = Omega rose gold alloy; Liquidmetal = metal/ceramic tech for bezels. Omega proprietary systems and materials for alignment, gold alloys and bezel tech.
Nicknames Moonwatch — Speedmaster Professional linked to NASA lunar history.
Ploprof — nickname for the professional Seamaster dive model.
Snoopy — special Speedmaster editions tied to NASA Snoopy Award collaborations.

Breitling — terms & nicknames

Navitimer / Slide rule Navitimer = iconic pilot's chronograph with circular slide-rule for flight conversions/calculations. Pilot chronograph famous for slide-rule bezel used as a flight computer.
Chronomat / Superocean / Emergency Chronomat = chronograph line; Superocean = dive family; Emergency = model with distress transmitter. Breitling families for pilots, divers and emergency locator models.
B01 Breitling’s in-house automatic chronograph calibre with a column-wheel design. Breitling’s in-house chronograph movement.
Nicknames Panda / Reverse Panda — classic white dial/black subs or vice-versa.
Bentley — models from Breitling’s Bentley collaboration.

Hublot — terms & nicknames

Big Bang / Fusion concept Big Bang = flagship line; Fusion = combining unusual materials like rubber, carbon, ceramic and gold. Hublot’s bold collection and its material-mixing design philosophy.
Unico / Magic Gold / King Gold / One-Click Unico = in-house chronograph; Magic/King Gold = proprietary gold alloys; One-Click = quick strap change. Hublot’s movements, gold alloys and strap systems.
Nicknames All Black — blacked-out editions emphasizing dark finishes.
MP — Hublot Masterpiece experimental/complicated models.

TAG Heuer — terms & nicknames

Carrera / Monaco / Autavia Carrera = racing chronograph; Monaco = square-cased icon; Autavia = automotive + aviation heritage line. TAG Heuer’s famous model families with motorsports and aviation roots.
Heuer prefix / Calibre Heuer 02 Heuer = pre-TAG vintage logo; Calibre Heuer 02 = modern in-house chronograph movement. Vintage branding and modern in-house movements.
Nicknames Steve McQueen Monaco — blue Monaco associated with McQueen in Le Mans.
Skipper — name used for certain yachting chronographs.

Dial & hand terminology

Baton / Dauphine / Sword / Mercedes hands Common hand shapes: baton = stick, dauphine = faceted triangle, sword = tapered blade, Mercedes = Rolex-style hour hand with round segment. Common hand shapes used across brands.
Skeleton / Applied indices / Lume Skeleton = cutaway to show mechanics; applied indices = raised markers; lume = luminous paint for night reading. Dial and marker terms describing appearance and function.
Panda / Reverse panda / Tropical / Salmon Panda = white dial with black subdials; tropical = faded warm-brown dial; salmon = pinkish dial color. Color and layout nicknames common with collectors.

Materials & finishes

Stainless steel / Titanium / Ceramic Common metals: stainless steel for robustness, titanium for lightness, ceramic for scratch resistance. Primary case and bezel materials used across brands.
Proprietary gold alloys / Carbon / Rubber strap Brand-specific golds (Sedna, Magic Gold), carbon composites and rubber straps for sport models. Specialty materials and strap choices used for style and performance.
PVD / DLC Surface coatings used to color and harden metal surfaces (dark finishes). Coatings for color and scratch resistance on cases/parts.

Complications & certifications

Chronometer / Master Chronometer Chronometer = COSC-certified accuracy; Master Chronometer = stricter brand + METAS testing. Accuracy certifications: COSC and brand-specific extensions like METAS.
GMT / Worldtimer / Regatta Time-zone and nautical countdown complications for travel and racing. Complications that display multiple time zones or yacht-race countdowns.
Tourbillon / Minute repeater / Sapphire display back High-end complications, chiming mechanisms, and display casebacks to view the movement. Luxury complications and display features that showcase movement craft.

Collector & shop slang

Full set / NOS Full set = original box, papers and tags; NOS = New Old Stock — unworn vintage/older piece. Terms describing completeness and condition for resale.
Unworn / Service / Franken / OEM vs Aftermarket Unworn = no visible wear; Service = overhaul; Franken = mixed parts; OEM = original maker parts. Common resale/collector descriptors regarding condition and authenticity.
Panda / Tropical / Root Beer / Smurf / Hulk Common nicknames based on dial/bezel color or style across brands. Color/style-based nicknames used loosely by collectors and sellers.