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Updated November 20, 2000: In addition to what I've written on this page, you may wish to read updated information on the La Crosse Technology web site. Look in the customer support section of their web site or click here for the direct link. They're also offering more detailed advice on how to adjust the size of the watch band. Click here for that link. It's good advice. Rather than use a small, jeweler's screwdriver (as was suggested in previous instructions) they recommend using a straightened paper clip to displace the pin which holds the links together. It's good advice. The screwdriver's tip may get wedged between the links and, well, you don't want that to happen. Another option would be to cut the sharp tip off a straight pin and use that as your tool.
And, now, here's what I wrote about these watches...
 | This watch has an "off" setting to conserve battery power during shipping. This way, when you receive the watch its battery will be as fresh as possible. If you would ever like to return your watch to the "off" position, press and hold the button on the side of the watch for 6 seconds and the display will then look like this. |
 | When the watch is set to "off" mode, tap the button. The entire LCD display will become active for a moment... like this. |
 | At this point, the lower part of the display will show "-:--" and the colon will begin to flash. Several seconds later, the radio tower icon in the upper, right corner of the display will start to flash (Remember, it will not begin to flash immediately). As the tower is flashing, the watch's WWVB receiver is active. The three digits in the upper part of the display will also begin to show various numbers. I'm sure those numbers mean something, but I can't tell you definitely what they indicate. Suffice it to say that reception may take several minutes and, if you're in an place where reception is poor, the watch may suspend its reception mode without setting itself. Consider initializing reception in a better area and/or overnight. At this point, you may want to set the watch to your time zone. |
 | The watch's default time zone is the Eastern Time Zone. If you need to set it to another time zone, press and hold the button for about 2 seconds until the upper part of the display begins to flash. While it's flashing, tap the button. The Time Zone will switch from the East to the West by one hour per tap. The watch is capable of showing the time in any of 24 time zones around the world. So, if you accidentally go past your own time zone, you'll have to scroll "around the whole world" to get back to the proper setting. Once you've set the watch to your time zone, stop tapping the button. Within about 8 seconds, the time zone setting will stop flashing. |
In the above illustration, I've placed the watch in the Time Zone Setting Mode before the watch was able to process time information from WWVB. If you also suspend WWVB reception before the watch has processed the WWVB data, you may manually initialize WWVB reception. You may also manually initialize WWVB reception at any time, even when the watch is already set. To manually start WWVB reception, press and hold the button. After about 2 seconds, the time zone setting will begin to flash. You must continue to hold the button until the time zone setting disappears. Then release the button immediately (If you hold the button for too long, you will switch the watch to its "off" mode).
If you follow the above instructions, the radio tower icon should begin to flash after several seconds. Don't panic if the tower doesn't start to flash immediately. Wait a minute or two and see what happens. One possible drawback on this watch is that you cannot set the time manually. You can only set the time zone. So if WWVB reception is impossible where you are, that's going to be very frustrating. However, if you set the watch at night and/or near a window which faces Colorado, you should be okay.
That's it. Remember, the watch has no alarm function, no hourly chime, no stopwatch, no night light, etc.. The only things it can do are display the time and date and tell you whether or not we're observing Daylight Saving Time in North America (and, if so, there will be a "DST" display beneath the radio tower icon). It's a very simple display. The watch battery should last at least three years. The watch will attempt to receive WWVB every night and adjust itself if necessary. Mine keeps very good time throughout the day. Be careful that you leave the watch in a good place overnight. I mean, if you leave it next to electrical devices (like that clock radio on your nightstand) then WWVB reception may not be possible.
 | Here are some links from the watch band (as they appear on the underside). The arrows indicate the direction in which you're supposed to insert a small (about 1mm) jeweler's style screwdriver between the watchband links. If you don't have something that small, you'll probably have to take this to a jeweler. |
 | And here's what it looks like when you push that screwdriver in. What you're trying to do is push out a pin between the links which holds those links together. In this illustration, the pin is beginning to come out. |
 | Here's a better shot of the pin being displaced. Make sure you're pushing in the same direction that the arrow is pointing. |
 | Pull out the pin. Be very careful you don't lose anything at this point. Make sure you're doing this in a well-lit spot where things aren't prone to rolling and/or falling off onto the floor. |
 | With the pin removed, it's easy to pull the links apart. By removing the pin on each side of a given link, you can remove that link to make the band fit more snugly on your wrist. In my case, I had to remove three links. So I removed 2 from one side of the clasp and one from the other side (so that the clasp would still be in the middle of the band). |
 | There's a small pin-holder on the link... on the side opposite the arrow. The pin-holder may or may not fall out when you remove that pin and pull the links apart. You will have to put the pin-holder back in place before putting the pin back in place, so make sure you don't lose it. |
 | And here's an extreme close-up of that pin-holder. Its actual diameter is only about 1mm. Now, of course, once you've removed as many links as necessary, put the watchband back together by reversing the procedure I've just shown you. |
Return to the "La Crosse Technology Watch" Review on my Digital Clock Reviews page.
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