I have a few watches that I try and rotate on a daily basis (not expensive ones) but as I leave them all running the whole time I’m always having to replace countless batteries. Can I pull the button out on the side to stop the hands and save the battery or doesn’t this work?
This all sounds really stupid now I’ve written it down, but maybe someone can answer my daft question?

I’m guessing the internals are still rotating at a set rate and the button just disengages the cogs that move the arms so as you can move them manually with the button so may save a little but probably not a lot.

Yes. That does work.

You can get 10 watch batteries for about a quid on ebay, seems simpler than having to set your watch every day.

I’m guessing the internals are still rotating at a set rate and the button just disengages the cogs that move the arms

I’d have guessed the same, but I don’t actually know.

Some do some dont, all depends on the movement. Some movements just disengage the drive train or apply a mechanical brake to the hands so the watch is still going but just doesn’t do anything.

Personally I’d just leave them to run, you should get s couple of years out of them anyway so it’s not really a constant issue and if a watch stops you can change the battery – if they are left not ticking for months then you risk the battery leaking and corroding damaging the movement. Oh and don’t use cheap batteries.

So every time you go to change watch you’ll then have to find the previous watch to know the time as all the other watches will have stopped. You obviously have watches because you like them and the way they look so why not just take the batteries out of all of them and just look at your phone when you want to know the time. This allows the hands on all the watches to be set at an aesthetically pleasing time and will increase your viewing pleasure.

You obviously have watches because you like them and the way they look so why not just take the batteries out of all of them and just look at your phone when you want to know the time.

There’s always one. Thanks for being the one to make the usual predictable comment.
🙄
I have a smartphone, I also wear an analogue watch, that’s probably older than you are, and I use that to tell the time despite my phone being right in front of me.
Why? Because my phone is also my satnav, and the time at the top of the screen is far too small to see from the driving position, also most cars I’m driving haven’t had their internal clocks adjusted, and are usually wildly inaccurate.

Sorry Count Zero I wasn’t making the usual anti watch comments, I genuinely believe the op has watches because they like them, and clearly also wear them, I just had this vision of them having to constantly find a watch with a battery in or look at their phone to set the time, I was amused at the thought of a man with a watch collection having no idea what the time was 🙂

Oh and your watch probably isn’t older than me, do not mistake my childish comments for youth.