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The Encyclopedia of Horology

Glossary · Mechanism

Detent

A spring-mounted locking piece that releases the escape wheel once per balance vibration, as in a chronometer escapement.

Explanation

The detent escapement gives impulse directly to the balance on only one swing in two, avoiding the frictional rest of lever and cylinder designs and yielding very high accuracy, at the cost of being non-self-starting — hence its confinement chiefly to marine and pocket chronometers.