Watch Geeks Needed

Neil

Lots of very nice vintage watches about, I have a thing for Speedmasters personally.

Here is my collection...

http://www.freewebs.com/neil271052


TBH if you are buying one watch you won't go far wrong with used Rolex sports models. Money in the bank really.

I bought these two for £2000 and £1600 respectively, now worth around £9k for both and going up all the time. You can wear them for nothing and make money if you sell.



Cheaper?

Always go for Seiko IMO. Not interested in watches that purposely try to ape Rolexes or whatever .

Some lovely auto Seiko's at great prices, try to go for 4R15 movement models. Good quality and more accurate than the old 7S26. 

I do like vintage Seiko and have quite a collection. You can still buy them reasonably if you know what you are looking for.

I prefer the 1960's myself...

Seiko's first chronograph from the Tokyo Olympics in 1964












Omega's Seamaster is probably the best value in  top marque Swiss sports watches, you can probably pick one up £1500.

Great watches. Everything is high quality. Case, bracelet, the lot. I have the blue (Bond) and black model. They come in auto and quartz.





If you want a quality classic watch you won't go far wrong with a Datejust.

It's not a classic for nothing.




If buying top quality Swiss (or Japanese) watches I would always be looking at the used market.

Rather like guitars, you get a lot more for your money and the latest models may not always be to your taste.

Hope this helps a bit.

UnclePsychosis

I really do appreciate the recommendations guys, but I think it's fair to say I won't be buying a £2k Rolex sports model when I'm interested in Bauhaus designs on a budget ;-)

RaymondLin

UnclePsychosis said:

I really do appreciate the recommendations guys, but I think it's fair to say I won't be buying a £2k Rolex sports model when I'm interested in Bauhaus designs on a budget ;-)

I think you are mistaken...they were £2000, they are now worth more like £6000 

stickyfiddle

UnclePsychosis said:

I really do appreciate the recommendations guys, but I think it's fair to say I won't be buying a £2k Rolex sports model when I'm interested in Bauhaus designs on a budget ;-)

Sorry, my fault! Got carried away

ThePrettyDamned

RaymondLin said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

@stickyfiddle oh my, what have you done.

https://www.seikowatches.com/global-en/products/presage/SRPB46J1

Hardex Crystal though.

What does that mean? Is it bad for the money? 

Not that I'd ever spend more than half that amount in a watch... 

exocet

ThePrettyDamned said:

 but you wouldn't catch me dead with an apple watch on my wrist (yet ) 

Watch? Show some decorum, it's a "Time Piece"........I can recall Tim Cook stating that when it was launched....in Rose Gold.

RaymondLin

ThePrettyDamned said:

RaymondLin said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

@stickyfiddle oh my, what have you done.

https://www.seikowatches.com/global-en/products/presage/SRPB46J1

Hardex Crystal though.

What does that mean? Is it bad for the money? 

Not that I'd ever spend more than half that amount in a watch... 

Hardex crystal is your normal watch face and they scratches easily.  I have had seiko in the past with this and they scratch over time.  Sapphire Glass, on the other hand, is much tougher.  My watch face is scratch free but the bezel is full of scratches.  You don't need to spend a lot to get Sapphire Glass but just need to look out for it.

MichaelAT

OP, if you dig Nomos, I can only really motivate you just to save up for it. It is totally worth it, plus you're not missing anything if you wait a little bit more. Maybe for Christmas? I personally dig the Nomos Club. Very classic and understated, yet with a little twist so never 'boring'. They are at around the 1k Euro mark (for manual winds) and a little bit more for automatic, so still reachable I would say.

                 Talking Hands on the NOMOS Club Automat               

Neil

ThePrettyDamned said:

RaymondLin said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

@stickyfiddle oh my, what have you done.

https://www.seikowatches.com/global-en/products/presage/SRPB46J1

Hardex Crystal though.

What does that mean? Is it bad for the money? 

Not that I'd ever spend more than half that amount in a watch... 

A lot of Seikos have hardlex glass. It's a mineral glass not much different to window glass. It's cheap but not really suitable in a sports watch IMO as it scratches easily. You can buy sapphire replacements for some popular models. 

Swiss watches are generally sapphire. 

fields5069

This thread just reminds me that my Zenith has been in a drawer for the past 10 years or so with a cracked front crystal and in dire need of an internal clean. My wife refuses to let me sell it since it was an engagement present. It seems most sites will give me what I paid for it, even in the state it's in, and I can't help thinking that would buy a pretty nice guitar....

boogieman

Neil said:

Lots of very nice vintage watches about, I have a thing for Speedmasters personally.

Here is my collection...

http://www.freewebs.com/neil271052


TBH if you are buying one watch you won't go far wrong with used Rolex sports models. Money in the bank really.

I bought these two for £2000 and £1600 respectively, now worth around £9k for both and going up all the time. You can wear them for nothing and make money if you sell.



Cheaper?

Always go for Seiko IMO. Not interested in watches that purposely try to ape Rolexes or whatever .

Some lovely auto Seiko's at great prices, try to go for 4R15 movement models. Good quality and more accurate than the old 7S26. 

I do like vintage Seiko and have quite a collection. You can still buy them reasonably if you know what you are looking for.

I prefer the 1960's myself...

Seiko's first chronograph from the Tokyo Olympics in 1964












Omega's Seamaster is probably the best value in  top marque Swiss sports watches, you can probably pick one up £1500.

Great watches. Everything is high quality. Case, bracelet, the lot. I have the blue (Bond) and black model. They come in auto and quartz.





If you want a quality classic watch you won't go far wrong with a Datejust.

It's not a classic for nothing.




If buying top quality Swiss (or Japanese) watches I would always be looking at the used market.

Rather like guitars, you get a lot more for your money and the latest models may not always be to your taste.

Hope this helps a bit.

This reminded me that I’ve got my Dad’s old Seiko so I dug it out today. It’s a SeaLion DX M35 stainless steel automatic. There doesn’t seem to be an awful lot of info on t’internet about it but I vaguely remember him getting it in the late 60s. It hasn’t been used since I inherited it in 2011. I gave it a quick shake and it burst into life straight away. 

UnclePsychosis

So went on a fishing expedition yesterday and tried on the Paulin watch I linked to the other day.

Turns out my wrists aren't quite as puny as I thought. 38mm on an 18mm strap actually looked a bit small for my tastes. 

So now I've disappeared back down a rabbit hole which is frankly awful. I'd love a Junghans Max Bill Chronoscope but I know I'd be uncomfortable wearing something that valuable. I love the look of the Sternglas Topograph but there's a niggle in my head about 8-series miyota movements that is probably just ill founded watch snobbery based on reading reddit but there you go. Then you get into the real VFM stuff like Seiko 5 and Orient but they don't wow me. I *do* like the SKX007 a lot but I don't think I would wear it to work and that defeats the point.

boogieman

UnclePsychosis said:

I love the look of the Sternglas Topograph but there's a niggle in my head about 8-series miyota movements that is probably just ill founded watch snobbery based on reading reddit but there you go. 

I wouldn’t get hung up on it, a lot of it IS just snobbery. The most accurate mechanical watch I own is a cheap copy, it actually keeps better time than my £400 Hamilton. Any lower end mechanical watch is going to need the odd small adjustment every now and then anyway. I think if you like the look that’s more important than what’s inside the case. 

UnclePsychosis

boogieman said:

UnclePsychosis said:

I love the look of the Sternglas Topograph but there's a niggle in my head about 8-series miyota movements that is probably just ill founded watch snobbery based on reading reddit but there you go. 

I wouldn’t get hung up on it, a lot of it IS just snobbery. The most accurate mechanical watch I own is a cheap copy, it actually keeps better time than my £400 Hamilton. Any lower end mechanical watch is going to need the odd small adjustment every now and then anyway. I think if you like the look that’s more important than what’s inside the case. 

Yeah, thing is once I convince myself that, it then becomes "well why bother with an automatic" which then becomes "you already have a quartz that you like" and then it goes full circle :-D

I think the only sane thing for me to do is to try and refuse to buy online (infinite options at infinite price points is terrible for an obsessive like me) and find something in person that speaks to me. 

ThePrettyDamned

RaymondLin said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

RaymondLin said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

@stickyfiddle oh my, what have you done.

https://www.seikowatches.com/global-en/products/presage/SRPB46J1

Hardex Crystal though.

What does that mean? Is it bad for the money? 

Not that I'd ever spend more than half that amount in a watch... 

Hardex crystal is your normal watch face and they scratches easily.  I have had seiko in the past with this and they scratch over time.  Sapphire Glass, on the other hand, is much tougher.  My watch face is scratch free but the bezel is full of scratches.  You don't need to spend a lot to get Sapphire Glass but just need to look out for it.

Thanks for the tip seems a shame that a high end watch wouldn't have this - they cost between 3 and 500 quid! 

stickyfiddle

That Sternglass is a fine looking thing, tbh. I wouldn't get hung up on the movement - Miyotas have a "cheap and cheerful" reputation, but they're popular for good reason.

My only concern would be the physical size, as it's "all face" as far as the width goes, so might feel quite large on your wrist. It's also relatively thick at 12mm and square-edged, so you'll notice that thickness, which might annoy you. FWIW I have 3 main watches; a Hamilton Khaki 40mm and Speedmaster Pro (42mm) which both wear fairly small, and an IWC which is 43mm and chunky at 15mm thick, and is absolutely the biggest I would ever get away with. Worth trying the Sternglass in person if you can. 

UnclePsychosis

@stickyfiddle yeah my current watch is quite large but the dial isn't so the Sternglas would probably wear a lot bigger. The depth would probably be ok although my current watch struggles a bit with double cuffs.

This is what I currently have. I do really like it but after a couple of years its beginning to show its price (£20 plus a decent aftermarket Nato) 

 
 

UnclePsychosis

Just me thinking out loud again. In the spirit of "get what you really want and nothing else" - I think what I really want is a Junghans. The Form C / Max Bill / Max Bill Chronoscope all seem to tick every box. 

RaymondLin

ThePrettyDamned said:

RaymondLin said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

RaymondLin said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

@stickyfiddle oh my, what have you done.

https://www.seikowatches.com/global-en/products/presage/SRPB46J1

Hardex Crystal though.

What does that mean? Is it bad for the money? 

Not that I'd ever spend more than half that amount in a watch... 

Hardex crystal is your normal watch face and they scratches easily.  I have had seiko in the past with this and they scratch over time.  Sapphire Glass, on the other hand, is much tougher.  My watch face is scratch free but the bezel is full of scratches.  You don't need to spend a lot to get Sapphire Glass but just need to look out for it.

Thanks for the tip seems a shame that a high end watch wouldn't have this - they cost between 3 and 500 quid! 

On the grand scheme of things, it’s like getting a Korean made Chapman, not much heritage but 100% functional and well put together.  

Relatively inexpensive for the spec.

stickyfiddle

UnclePsychosis said:

Just me thinking out loud again. In the spirit of "get what you really want and nothing else" - I think what I really want is a Junghans. The Form C / Max Bill / Max Bill Chronoscope all seem to tick every box. 

If it helps, Watch GAS does function much the same as guitar GAS in as much as if you buy a cheap one you'll often be thinking about what to replace it with after a couple of years, while if you buy The One, you'll keep it forever and never regret it.