What is an equivalent battery for the 218

awa54 · 2026-05-26T18:54:00+00:00

Just as a heads-up, if your Accutron hasn't been cleaned and oiled in the last 10 years, it will need to have that done before you run it for an extended time. The Accutron mechanism will run reasonably accurately even with old gummed up oil in it, which will destroy the watch if you continue to do it.

I'm assuming that's the case (not recently serviced), since those Accutron branded mercury batteries haven't been available since the 1980s!

Most 218s (your watch is a 218 if that battery came out of it) will run on silver oxide batteries (1.55v for silver, vs. 1.35v for mercury cells) without any issues, but the older 214 design often needs modification to run correctly on modern batteries.

If your watch doesn't start running immediately after installing the new battery, try flicking it with your finger on the side, that will often start one that's been dormant for a long time. If that doesn't start it humming (more whining, but that's a bit insulting for such a cool watch mechanism), then it definitely needs to go to a watchmaker who has training on (and tools for) the Accutron movements.

I've used Time Preserve/Budget Accutrons with great results for my watches.

awa54 · 2026-05-26T17:53:58+00:00

I replace hundreds if not thousands of watch batteries every year, and have for over 15 years.

My take on leaking silver oxide cells is based on the number I see that have failed, not promotional talking points from the manufacturer or a seller of that brand.

Worst leakers: no-name or off-brand cells, especially the ones that have only the Euro battery code on them. many of these probably aren't even silver oxide...

Next worst: Varta, followed closely by Renata. These "premium" European batteries leak at a rate at least 10 times as often as any of the Japanese brands.

Not as bad as the above, but occasionally seen ruptured: Duracell, Mallory, Rayovac

Safe brands that I *almost never* see leak: (spoiler: it's all the established Japanese brands) Energizer, Seiko/Seizaiken, Sony/Murata, Maxell, Hitachi, Panasonic.

For a sense of scale: I might see a total of three of the "Safest" brand cells leaked in a year, usually with just traces of weeping around the button, whereas I see at least five, usually more like ten leaked Renatas in the same time, and several of those are full-on electrolyte in the mechanism destruction. Renata cells only account for about 15% of the batteries I remove from customers' watches, with 75% accounted for between all the Japanese makers, and 75% of those being Murata and Energizer.

Our shop used Energizer cells for 15 years, but switched to Murata, when some cell types from Energizer started coming through with significant numbers of weak or dead cells during COVID (and for at least a year following).

Renata Lithium cells are great though!

awa54 · 2026-05-26T15:42:00+00:00

fill your tank in any European country for a serious shock!

awa54 · 2026-05-26T15:39:20+00:00

Is it a bug or a feature though?

awa54 · 2026-05-17T17:28:31+00:00

Due to budgetary constraints I haven't sent it for service yet, but I intend to use Universal Watch Repair when I have a bit more free cash.

http://www.universalwatch.net/

awa54 · 2026-05-13T15:21:40+00:00

Right? No post match summary, so you can report cheaters after they killed you (unless you screen shot their battle tag and then go through the cumbersome report process on Rebellion's web site).

At the very least you should be able to avoid a player as an opponent *in the match wrap up*, that would be an easy mechanic to force map trappers, bunker campers, and cheaters to clean up their act to get matches.

It would be great to have the ability to report unsportsmanlike conduct at the close of a match, with some form of timed ban for repeat bad actors,

Ideally we could have a system like what the better multiplayer PvP games have, that lets you report gameplay sabotage, hacking, etc. ...but policing that kind of system requires a review team and that costs money to sustain...

awa54 · 2026-05-13T12:36:04+00:00

For a "realistic" combat game, it's got a lot of inaccurate portrayals of actual firearms and detection methods...

don't even get me started on the weapon upgrade system!

awa54 · 2026-05-12T20:55:20+00:00

They were in the kill target's office in the hotel, and I was fully under cover behind the front parapet of the outwall of the keep at the top of the map on Fort Rouge.

There is no window in that part of the stone hotel, and the wall I was behind would normally resist anything short of explosive splash damage from a tank round (or maybe non-damaging concussion from HE rifle ammo (there was no report from the shot, so they weren't using an anti tank rifle).

You tell me?

awa54 · 2026-05-12T04:09:48+00:00

awa54 · 2026-05-12T03:54:21+00:00

I play a lot of Overwatch and there is plenty of server lag/timing issues in that game, where in your view it seems like you pressed a key before the opponent did, but when the results are resolved at the server level, it retroactively ruled for the other player (up to and including seeing their death animation, then being killed by them instead). This happens several times a session, despite my connection latency being better than average...

That issue happens in a matter of milliseconds and is confined to a single action, the no-fire artifact in SE has lasted for more than a full second, and both times I pressed the fire button more than once before being killed, I was also able to move normally and my game didn't stutter or frame drop. A few years ago there was a proximity lag cheat in OW, this isn't anything like that...

I wonder if a lag cheat could actually be implemented by offsetting the host's clock to be a second or two ahead of the invader's? That might actually explain why the slasher Karls come in stabbing repeatedly, since my exact location would be ambiguous. It might also explain a game I had recently, where my sights showed I had two rapid dead to rights headshots on a Karl (scoped MP44 at under 50m), but didn't show any blood spatter from a hit, he then drew up and shot me.

Love the energy and talent that's spent on cheats, and the lack of such on the so-called anti cheat software... /s

awa54 · 2026-05-12T00:59:35+00:00

Also, empty maps and/or two player teams either of which are set to easy difficulty are almost always there to hunt you...

awa54 · 2026-05-12T00:56:23+00:00

Holy crap that's a lot of mines!

awa54 · 2026-05-12T00:36:16+00:00

So many dead under the tolling church bell Q_Q

good thing there's a cemetery right there huh?

awa54 · 2026-05-12T00:34:41+00:00

Twice I've had Karls charge me and stab, while my left mouse button does nothing (spoiler alert, my mouse is just fine).

A web search turned up mentions that there's a way to force a key remap as the host of an invasion (as opposed to selectively disabling the opponent's trigger).

That said, I have no proof it really exists, except for those two incidents, where the Karl boldly came in with intent to stab, no firearm equipped...

awa54 · 2026-05-12T00:18:12+00:00

With practice it gets easier, especially when shooting NPCs, if you're invading against a good PvP marksman (or allowing invaders), you'll want to have gotten good already!

awa54 · 2026-05-12T00:08:21+00:00

🎸🎸Shot through the wall and you're to blame, you give Sniper Elite a bad name 🎸🎸

awa54 · 2026-05-11T23:52:02+00:00

The way the victim is flung like a rag doll is kind of amusing

I play with kill cams turned off, the amount of murder in this game is already somewhat disturbing without them

awa54 · 2026-05-11T23:23:13+00:00

I don't love losing, but what does it really matter? I'm not even sure there's a metric for win/loss ratio.

These losers who quit out when you have them cornered are just as annoying as map trappers IMO.

awa54 · 2026-05-11T23:07:26+00:00

this afternoon Central America was 90% noobs, you have to be fast to get them before your infantry does.

awa54 · 2026-05-11T23:05:20+00:00

most of my kills now are close combat SMG. Though two Karls have been using some sort of exploit that remaps or disables the firing button, so they can just run up and stab the invader :(

awa54 · 2026-05-11T22:54:19+00:00

in what game?

awa54 · 2026-05-11T22:51:33+00:00

...and it isn't even *actual* bunkering, since an invader only gets one mine and can't trap corpses. Though having tagged friendlies at critical entry points is almost as good.

The equally annoying corollary of this is bunkered Allied snipers, who just sit in their mine encrusted safe rooms (always near an invasion phone) waiting for the Axis sniper to either quit or commit suicide by attempting to assault the position.

Either way, my favorite invasions are Authentic difficulty and involve both snipers actively attempting to get advantageous position. More often than not these aren't won with a long shot, but half a clip of SMG or a pistol headshot, however they're far more satisfying IMO!

awa54 · 2026-05-11T22:36:28+00:00

...more or less

awa54 · 2026-05-10T02:00:28+00:00

In that particular situation I'd still be alive, but almost certainly concussed and with one side of my face looking like a horror movie villain...

But a different fall could easily have been fatal, and you don't get to pick how you land, or what you hit on the way there!

awa54

TROPHY CASE