More Watches

[mrpinter]

Some of my favorite watches are also the least expensive. Contrary to common thinking, you don't have to spend the mortgage payment on a really nice watch. Orient is a sister company to Seiko (same ownership), that makes timepieces that by all rights should cost several times what they do. The company is impressive: they make everything in-house, something a lot of respectable Swiss houses don't do. All of these cost less than $200. Unfortunately their prices have gone up a bit lately but they're still a huge bargain. Also, three out of the four I'm showing are no longer in production. One thing that is cheap about them is their straps (not so much their bracelets). The first thing I do after buying an Orient is to put a nice strap for it. Once or twice I've actually spent almost as much on a strap as I did for the watch. Here four of my six Orients:

 

[mayfly]

Nice! I'm thinking of picking up another, but I'm actually thinking more expensive! Looking at an Omega Speedmaster. Used one mind you...

 

[mrpinter]

Nice! I'm thinking of picking up another, but I'm actually thinking more expensive! Looking at an Omega Speedmaster. Used one mind you...

Speedmasters are great, but there are so many variants and versions it makes me dizzy; which one are you thinking of?

I just took a quick look at Bob's Watches - a respectable used watch dealer, and saw this beauty. It is a "Reduced" model, a very wearable 39mm, and some of the moon watch features, such as the Hesalite crystal. And it's only $2,995. It doesn't say what year it is. They were produced between 1988 and 2009. I'm by no means an Omega expert, but I think that is great price for a modern Speedmaster, if it's in excellent condition.

 

[TBurst Std]

Got my 1st Swiss watch last year for XMas. A Tissot.

 

[Rick]

 

[Rick]

It's solar powered so no batteries ever! No repairs, maintenance free. The only downside is that it will last forever, so if you want a new watch, you're out of luck, this one will outlast you. Plus it could be had for less than $300 and looks appropriate for a man. The only improvement I'd make is having the date bigger.

Let me add, it is always spot on accurate. So when DST comes and goes, it's not even off by a second, only thing I need to do is change the hour.

 

[mrpinter]

This is my pride and joy - a sixty year old hand wound chronograph that is spot on after three days from setting the time; that's better than any of my newer watches.

 

[mayfly]

I'm currently looking at some Canadian made watches (swiss automatic movements) and ran across this:

 

[mayfly]

 

[mrpinter]

I'm currently looking at some Canadian made watches (swiss automatic movements) and ran across this:

I love it when I see nice watches that are made domestically. Your selections are very nice examples. I like the treatment of the hands on the Canuck watch. Where are they made in Canada?

The micro brand sector of the watch market is alive and well in both Canada and the US. One American "micro" watch company I've been following and watching grow is Nodus. I believe they are still headquartered in Los Angeles, where I live.They are priced under $1,000, use serviceable Japanese movements (mostly Seiko NH35 I think), and are not "tributes" to other higher end watches, as too many micro brand watches are - but are attractive, original designs, They are at this time (or were a few months ago) just assembled here - and their components, aside from the movements, are probably Asian imports, as is the case with a lot of micro brands. Here is one I particularly like - their Trailtrekker model:


Here is a model from another American company - RGM. Headquarted in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, the former home of Hamilton watches, their name is an acronym for the founder of the company, Roland G Murphy. Roland studied watchmaking in Switzerland before staring RGM. They are higher end than Nodus - and are now a semi-mainstream brand. They make some of their own movements in house, which places them along with the top tier of Swiss, German and Japanese watch houses. Below is their entry model, the Pilot 107 (now 207). It has a Swiss ETA 2892-A2 movement inside - although heavily modified by RGM - a very respected watch engine. It retails for about 3x as much as the Nodus.

(Watch and photo are mine):

 

[mayfly]

I love it when I see nice watches that are made domestically. Your selections are very nice examples. I like the treatment of the hands on the Canuck watch. Where are they made in Canada?

Yep! Well, not including the Swiss movements.

They are made in Whitby Ontario, home of the former 'Camp X' where WWII allied espionage folks were trained (including Ian Flemming). Here's another one of theirs:

 

[mrpinter]

^^^NIce.