The (Less intimidating) Watch Thread
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Re: "ultra tough mechanical movements"
It's an oxymoron. Ultra tough is relative. A digital watch will always be tougher (I take my watches through firearms training regularly, and workout with them as well).
Any amount of moving parts will be more fragile than a device that's essentially one piece.
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I‘m in no way a watch collector or aficionado. I like automatic watches which can take a beating, because I don‘t go easy on my watches and don’t want to think about changing a battery. I chose my first automatic watch for the aesthetics (thank you Pierce Brosnan) and kept it that way with the other ones. Money is limited, because Giles is snatching any spare cent I have out of my pocket, so don‘t move in the expensive watches market, like some others here.
For the last 19 years I only had one watch and that was/is my Omega Seamaster Professional. 19 years without service, worn every day and on every activity (office, sports, physical work such as moving whole households and everything else you can come up with) and it is still going strong. This watch is a tank and goes as well with a suit as with a denim outfit or sports gear. A true heirloom piece.
My second watch is my Steinhart Ocean Vintage Military Mark I that I bought this year. I love the look of it, it has a high quality feel and a Swiss ETA movement. Overall an incredible value for money piece.
The latest addition is a modified Seiko Snzf17j, which now has a new saphire cristal, new hands, new bezel and new dial. I like the looks of it, because it is modded to have a lot of similarities with the Omega Seamaster 300, which is totally out of my price league.
There is one more watch that I want one day. The Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean 45,5mm. But it will be another 2 or 3 years before I will be able to pick one up in the used market without risking instant divorce.
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Any thoughts on service intervals?
There seems to be two groups of thought. One is to let it go until it breaks and then deal with the massive repair cost. The other is to service at regular intervals and eat the cost slowly.
I haven't figured out which camp I belong to yet, but in general I stick to maintenance schedules because I hate broken things.
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Well, Cole is 19 years into his Omega without service- that's probably saved him 1.5-2k in maintenance costs. Even if the watch needs massive service work eventually, he's still ahead.
I'm definitely in the "wear it until it breaks" category.
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My new affordable timepiece.
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Thanks man. It keeps flawless time. And it lights up like a Christmas tree when I press that round button.
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My current watch, very happy with it.
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They did two different sizes of it. I liked the chronograph version which was slightly bigger too if I recall.
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Wahey, love a good pun.
I thought I had a photo, but alas I do not. I’ll take one this evening, forgot to wear it to work today!
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Currently leaning towards an Orient Ray II
Great choice. I've said it for years- Orient makes amazingly good watches, and possibly the most beautiful blue dials at any price.
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Currently leaning towards an Orient Ray II
Great choice. I've said it for years- Orient makes amazingly good watches, and possibly the most beautiful blue dials at any price.
I still have months to consider my purchase, but from a few YouTube reviewers, it's been stated that the Ray II is a bot better than the Seiko SKX007, which is my other top contender.
I'll keep their opinions in mind while I do my own research as well.
Maybe @Graeme or @Louisbosco could come in with their opinions as well?
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Here you go Neph93.
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@UnTucked I'm pretty certain that @louisbosco will advise you get a Rolex Submariner instead!
I don't know enough about the Seiko or Orient to advise. I found a thread on a watch forum in which people were divided.
I also found an article at Hodinkee about the Seiko, and another one at Monochrome. They both like it, and point out that it's a full ISO 6425 diver's watch, which is relatively rare in that genre.
One thing that appeals with the Orient is that it's a hacking movement. This means the second hand stops when you pull out the crown, whereas it'll keep on moving on the Seiko, and allows you to set the time more accurately.
There's a piece on the Orient at aBlogToWatch.
My suggestion would be to see both in the metal, and then decide which you like the best.
If you're after any other ideas, Hodinkee have a piece on the Tissot Swissmatic, which is basically an uprated Swatch Sistem51.
Another suggestion would be a piece from GS/TP. This is an offshoot of Tender, and are Japanese made watches.
Note that they're really, really small. The Real McCoy's store in London had a few in when I was there in September,
@Anesthetist and I both own watches by Tender, and we both rate them highly. Mine has a copper dial, and gets an awful lot of attention, which is surprising given it was a cheap piece.
