[music_man]

concord is very fancy quartz but breitling is a far superior watch imo. i see absoultely nothing bad about breitling qaurtz watches. of course the jdm seiko's are super good for the price. possibly not as good as a breitling though i really don't know.

i was wondering if anyone else got that statement with their emergency as i had asked.

 

[immtbiker]

You already have , the Panerai PAM 0112.

 

[cifani090]

Quote:

You already have , the Panerai PAM 112.

Hahaha

 

 

[shane55]

Quote:

I said "cheap ETA movement". I don't want to be ripped off as badly as Panerai owners. XD (No offense intended)
 
 

In addition to ianmedium's great recommendation, here's what's on my wrist today. (ETA movement and all)

 
http://www.prestigetime.com/item/Omega/Seamaster-300m/212.30.41.20.01.002.html
 


 
 

 

[bhd812]

Quote:

You already have , the Panerai PAM 0112.

Still one of my all time favs!! Lately been digging the 40mm size of the Milly but the Pam still gets plently of wrist time!

 

[music_man]

i don't mean to be an idiot but i can't believe my luck with fossil. got this $50 ani-digi and set the hands and digi to the exact same place as a aerospace. 12 days later both are still exactly the same! the x-33 unfortunately is not. now i know this thing is not thermocompensated lol. i bet it does not have one stinking jewel. i call this good luck gotta love a cheap watch that actually keeps time.

 

[upstateguy]

Someone came into my office with a Pro Hunter:  what do you guys think?????
 


 
 
 
 
 
 

 

[ianmedium]

Not my cup of tea, but then again with the exception of the Gold green dial GMT the new GMT is my least favourite Rolex. Thing with these blackened watches is that long before the natural lifespan of the watch has expired (and that is an awfully long time with Rolex) they start to look really shabby with the coating rubbing off.

 

[shrimants]

For all you Casio fans, Ive been long looking at various casio watches but I cannot find one that suits my taste. IMO the resin strap that seemingly all casios come with are very uncomfortable feeling and I feel like it would induce all sorts of sweating. I'm a guy who never ever EVER takes his watch off, and it takes such a ridiculous beating as I wear it. I've been wearing a Timex Ironman series watch. The first was some random heart rate meter that I never actually used the heart rate function of. On that one, the actual strap broke and I ended up with ANOTHER timex. This one does exactly what I need but it isnt durable in the way I would like it.

Just from applying some bug spray, the plastic all over it has melted and the paint is coming off all over it. It is slowly turning that weird white plastic color everywhere and the screen has a haze formed over it. There are a few features I love about this watch despite how detestably ugly it is though:
1) Timer. I use this to cook ALL the time.
2) Interval Timer. My friend and I go to the gym and since we are both fat lazy f**ks we never want to straight up run forever. One exercise I learned that is really effective to beginner runners is 60-120's and 30-60's where you sprint/run for the first chunk of seconds and walk the second chunk of seconds. It sounds like its a wishy washy workout at best but it REALLY wears you out after even 5 reps, and its a great way to get your heart and lungs used to changing speeds, not to mention works out your legs. Anyways, I digress, I use the interval timer all the time at the gym, it keeps counting down from time A, then time B, and repeats.
3) 3 seperate LOUD alarms. I have my watch alarms set to go off in 10 minute intervals and they are LOUD. they also play some weird randomized chord that gets on my nerves and makes me want to wake up.

I also love the fact that it tells me the day, month, and date on top of the time. Plus it has this "night mode" feature where as soon as you press a button, the backlight is automatically activated for 5 seconds or so. But like I said, its so ugly I cant stand to look at it. See for yourself: http://content.westmarine.com/images/catalog/full/12243333.jpg

I think i'm just going to suck it up and buy a casio, but it better be chemical proof or something...

 

[music_man]

g-shock is not a "cheap" watch to me. it just happens to be inexpensive. imo, it must be the most indestructible watch made. much more so than stainless and people think it is plastic. it is not, it is a type of resin in fact. good luck ruining it. bug spray? i have spilled sulfuric acid on one and it did nothing to it. different purpose than timex. not to say that timex is not good as well. true story: i knew a guy at a store that was required by the store to smash g-shocks if the battery died before they sold it. as stupid as that policy is he had one heck of a time carrying out that task! required 40 pound sledge and at least 5+ strikes! so i am told, i never tried that. pretty much any of the g-shocks today have the features you want. you just have to decide what else you want on them. you also have to look around the web. don't buy one in a store or you will pay too much, unless it is wal-mart which has a very limited selection. they do however have the dw5600 which i highly recommend at probably the lowest price anywhere. my walmart is at $39.99 on it. that lists for $129 i think. if you need something that will not fail, other than the battery you can't beat that at that price. of course as for the ruggedness of said watch this is my own experience,ymmv. i am sure there are people out there that broke them but i would not want to meet them in a dark alley!

it is not nearly as cool as citizen or seiko but i do feel it is much more rugged if that is what is required. all my seiko's and citizen's that i used daily are trashed out now. my g-shocks look as new. ok, so i am a casio fanboy.

 

[shrimants]

I was not implying that casio is a cheap watch. I meant that the resin strap feels cheap and uncomfortable to me, even though it is probably the most durable watch strap on the market considering it cant even be dented and it is chemically inert.

I just didnt like the feel of that strap and I absolutely hate hate hate hate hate it when the strap kinda flails open from under the strap strap. uhhh i dont know how to explain that. The iron mans have a little nub at the tip which keeps the excess strap from just hanging there, it keeps the strap secured to the watch AND secured to the little band that the watch strap slides under. Its like a watch loop thing but it has a hole in it that the watch band nub fits into.

I also need a watch with a really loud alarm and a minute countdown timer. the timer is absolutely necessary. the interval timer not so much but its nice to have.

 

[Uncle Erik]

I am wondering what I want for a graduation gift. Best bang-for-buck watch for around $3,000? I was thinking about the Speedy Pro or IWC Portofino so far. I wan't an automatic that isn't some cheap ETA movement. A watch that will hold it's value would be nice too. For some odd reason the Calatrava is a bit out of my price range. XD

Don't discount ETA too much. One of the best I have is a Sinn 244Ti with a 2892. Chronometer certified and it keeps time very well. I like ETA because I know parts will generally be available. There's a lot of snob appeal with in-house movements, but I'd rather invest in something that can be easily repaired and serviced.

Speaking of service, do your homework and make sure you don't buy something that needs $600+ dropped into it every few years. This is a big part of the reason I've lost a bit of interest in watches. I'm not going to invest the time and money to DIY repairs, the parts can be difficult to find and service fees are escalating. On the other hand, it's not much trouble to replace a turntable cartridge or drop new filter caps into an amp.

Anyway, have you considered vintage? If you want to maintain or increase value, buy something that's already been through the depreciation cycle. New watches are going to drop a lot before they come back up. Also consider handwound watches. I only wanted autos for years and years. Seemed like the best idea. But a few years back, I bought an old 19j Zenith handwound. I wear it most days now since it's dead accurate and reliable. It is so light I hardly know I'm wearing it. I love its slightly aged cream dial and gold hands/markers, too. Winding it has become almost unconscious. It takes a few seconds to wind it each morning and I usually give it a few turns during the day.

For a good vintage watch, I'd look at Patek, Vacheron, LeCoultre, Audemars, IWC, and Zenith. Good stuff. They should all hold value, appreciate and remain classy for a lifetime.

Also, noticed discussion of the G-Shock in here. I've always liked them for being a real utility watch. If you don't like the band, IIRC West Coast Time sells G-Shock adapters so you can put a NATO strap on one. If I spend a lot more time in the shop (like I hope to) I'll probably pick one up.

 

[music_man]

ok here we go, forget pmwf. here is hobo-wf! wal-mart has two $13(!) watches that stand out one closely resembles a aerospace ant the other a x-33. neither has any name anywhere. chinese. ok quality for $13. the fact that wal-mart made a profit and so did the importer this is what, a $2 watch at best? the fact that it even works is impressive alone. they are stainless and not absolutely terrible quality. of course they are not near the quality of the watches they resemble but give them a break for $13. they are in the fashion watches area if anyone is interested. surprisingly they keep good time because they have miyotas! they have a press on back but at the price i can't complain. certainly more interesting than a timex if not as good quality.


which leads me to a question: as late as the 1970's some high end watches had press on backs. still, movado museum watches for 2 grand have them. i always thought these were a sign of low quality. by the 1970's i would have thought they had the ability to use screw on or screw down. so why did they use press on, and am i correct that it is a sign of low quality? thanks.

edit: i just realized the 5119 from 2007 has a press on back! that was like a 25 grand watch. maybe that was considered one of there "beater" watches? lol.

 

[ianmedium]

Yeah, I see you edited your post about press case backs. We have all become infected with the nonsense of most watch forums that say if it ain't got a 300m water resistance it ain't worth diddly squat !! Water resistance, screw in case backs or crowns have nothing to do with quality and everything to do with watches suitable for swimming or diving. I would say for most people a watch with 30m water resistance is all they would ever need in life in real world usage.

It's funny, I have largely abandoned watch forums as they just do not represent the average watch buying public...Then again I guess the same could be said for here

 

[music_man]

yeah, but we are mostly talking about high end watches in this thread. sure, it got to casio and timex. i am sort of at fault for that in fact. however, i thought the case back was an indicator of quality if not water resistance. i saw a patek today at a shop it's new solid 18k and has a press on! i suppose if that is the case(no pun intended) then you are correct. the average watch buying public probably maxes out at citizen,seiko. i'd expect a screw in case back on a 70 grand watch but apparently it really does have to do with water resistance and not quality as you have stated. so i, along with many others probably have the wrong feeling about this. the people at some horology forums can be snobs. here at head-fi for the most part everyone is kind. which is why these days i mostly visit the gear forum here instead of other boards. no one afaik has said that a headphone must have a certain part to be good!