Timepieces

Ready for next watch. I figure fine watches go hand-in-hand with fine bicycles...sooo...guide me, fellows.

Requirements:
sapphire crystal
durable

Want:
Day/Date
good visibility in the dark

I've been swapping between a Swiss Army watch that's about 4yrs old and an Oakley Minute Machine that I won.

The glass on the Swiss Army gets scratched too easily, and the Oakley watch is a little over-the-top for work and events, but the crystal is superb.

I keep going to back to the B and M series Lum-Tecs and a couple of the Christopher Ward pieces. I'd love to sport something that's pure class, but need something that is practical day-in, day-out - from the shop to a nice dinner.

Any recommendations?

RGM would be badass, but about 3x what I'm willing to pay.

Stowa?

Submariner Date. Job done.

+1 for Stowa

Or a Sinn. I like my 856.

Yeah, Sinn. For me, it's a 656.

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Originally Posted by sbornia

Or a Sinn. I like my 856.

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Victoria ???

http://www.topnews.in/files/images/Victoria-Sinn5.jpg]

seamaster is a way better deal than a submariner. huge fan of omega. btw, all nicer watches aside from the speedmaster moon watch will use a sapphire crystal. you won't have to worry about scratches. what is your budget and do you just want a simple quartz? hamilton makes nice watches. only problem with sinn is that you can't try it on at a store .

Skip the pseudo-military watches and pick up a Marathon TSAR.

I have a Hamilton Khaki. It's a fine, inexpensive automatic. I love the black face and leather strap; substantial and classy. The whole unit is quite understated.

I could go on and on about my Omega Seamaster Pro. wow.
I've had the watch about 6 yrs. and it is not babied. The watch stays on for racing, swimming and yard work...I'm brutal with it. This watch is a sleeper in the world of fine automatics. The automatic mechanism is as stout as they come and finish is supreme. I've JUST got my watch back from the Omega "Spa" and thanks to a forum member who help facilitate the refurbishment it is now snicking away on my wrist once again.

The reason I sent it for refurbishment was not because the watch stopped working. I beat unholy he!! out of the case and the band was broken. The watch came back looking as good as new :) Omega rocks.

FWIIW during the interlude I purchased an Seiko "Neo" Monster automatic from Ebay and it really surprised me. The silly think only cost about $130 and kept perfect time and took all the usual abuse I dish out. Came with a very nice metal band and only downside is that it is a truck. The watch itself is pretty large and heavy esp. if you are used to wearing thinner watches. I'd recommend that too. The hands are nicely illuminated if you are underwater ;) Honestly I've never seen a watch that you can see in pitch black with exception of Luminox which are absolutely brilliant. The watch itself is a bit crude.

Good luck with your search

what is a watch?:blink1:

I agree with too tall, I love my omega, but I find myself wearing this one more. It is much less common and bomb proof also avail with divers bezel and several different dial colors. I have the basic SAR pictured. Mine is about 5 years old and has just about supplanted all my others.

http://www.watchbuys.com/store/pc/vi...4&idcategory=0

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Originally Posted by 54ny77

what is a watch?:blink1:

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Backup, in case my cell phone dies.

I'm liking both the Stowa and Sinn offerings...the Marathon is a little to bold for me. Hamilton Khaki is nice as well.

The Stowa Airman, specifically.

Budget of $1k, max. No problem buying used.

Anything that doesn't require maintenance on your part.

i too have an omega seamaster pro and its been through hell. its old and great looking. stainless band, black face, date/time, not too big. i've had it over 20yrs and its been refurbed a time or two and i'll never wear anything else for any reason.

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Originally Posted by akatsuki

Skip the pseudo-military watches and pick up a Marathon TSAR.

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Or Marathon GSAR. I'm wearing mine today.

For something a bit less bulky check out Bill Yao's MK II watches. He's got some interesting stuff going on.

Another really good, affordable and durable are the Seiko dive watches with automatic movement.

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Originally Posted by -Dustin

Budget of $1k, max. No problem buying used.

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Didn't realize that there were so many Omega fans on velocipede. I opened the first Omega boutique in the US in 2006 - Rodeo Drive, and enjoyed the watches. I didn't have to buy one since I had my choice of watch to wear, but after leaving the company, I've since purchased 5 of them. I truly believe they are the best bang for buck in the industry. The finish is truly up to standards with watches 2-3x the price.

For $1k, you can get a ton of used watches, you really can't go wrong with fine time pieces. A used co-axial aqua terra will set you back about $1k, they are great because they are pretty versatile and come in 3 sizes.

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Originally Posted by hokoman

Didn't realize that there were so many Omega fans on velocipede. I opened the first Omega boutique in the US in 2006 - Rodeo Drive, and enjoyed the watches. I didn't have to buy one since I had my choice of watch to wear, but after leaving the company, I've since purchased 5 of them. I truly believe they are the best bang for buck in the industry. The finish is truly up to standards with watches 2-3x the price.

For $1k, you can get a ton of used watches, you really can't go wrong with fine time pieces. A used co-axial aqua terra will set you back about $1k, they are great because they are pretty versatile and come in 3 sizes.

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Good for you.
Glad to see you made it out alive. That's a rough walk.

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Originally Posted by jscottyk

Or Marathon GSAR. I'm wearing mine today.

For something a bit less bulky check out Bill Yao's MK II watches. He's got some interesting stuff going on.

Another really good, affordable and durable are the Seiko dive watches with automatic movement.

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For Seiko, I'd go with a Japanese market one from seiyajapan.com. Unless you are getting that large Seiko monster dive watch.

-Dustin, have you considered a windup watch? Omega SpeedMaster REALLY gets my attention :)

I may have posted this here before; I can't remember. I've had a number of Sinns and Omegas (lots of other stuff...) but needed to get some $$ out for bike stuff and went with this:

Seiko Diver from Chronograph.com
http://www.chronograph.com/store/index.asp

Parts from Bill Yao @ MKII
http://www.mkiiwatches.com/

Build by NE Watch Works
http://www.newatchworks.com/index.php

http://img252.imageshack.us/img252/6...cn3447copy.jpg

I think I have just under $450 in this total. I had one done a little differently for my Dad with a strap and less mods and I think it was around $350.

I'm also a big Omega fan, I have a Seamaster Pro and a '68 Constellation and I love both of them.
The now-discontinued 2254.50 is also beautiful and I keep thinking that I should have got it instead of the Bond.

However there are so many options that I don't know where to start.
Many Seiko are very nice, and I'm also happy with a swatch :D

I love my 1979 Seiko 6306 [rare] which only comes off for sleep and shower. Sent it to Jack at IWW a year ago (first service in approx 10 years)--haven't touched the time for almost 2 months now and it's currently running only 3 Seconds fast. I've always wanted a Yao, one of these days I'll order me up a Sea Fighter.

Here's a Seiko that's been modified with Yao parts by the man himself. This was one of the last Seiko mod's he did as he was starting the MKII line.

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Originally Posted by musgravecycles

I love my 1979 Seiko 6306 [rare]...

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Beautiful. I just recently found a great deal on a 1981 6309-7040 that is in great shape.

Cool. The 6306 was a 21J (versus 17 on the 6309), hacking, Japan-only model. I paid top dollar for mine (compared to a 6309) but was lucky as they are pretty rare and I've been told it's worth more everyday...

Knock yourself out:

http://www.makedostudio.com/watches/seiko-divers/

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Originally Posted by musgravecycles

Cool. The 6306 was a 21J (versus 17 on the 6309, hacking Japan-only model. I paid top dollar for mine (compared to a 6309) but was lucky as they are pretty rare and I've been told it's worth more everyday...

Knock yourself out:

http://www.makedostudio.com/watches/seiko-divers/

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Oh yes, that is a great reference.

Seiko SBDC003.

Too Tall is right....Omega Speedmaster is a good choice for the requirements you laid out. You can probably pick up a nice used one on e-bay for less than $800.

Good looking watch, durable, comfortable, accurate, and very visible in low light conditions.

Only downside is it's difficult to adjust/wind due to the relative small size of the knob. But if you plan to wear it every day, and won't be crossing time zones frequently, it's a great choice.

Good luck!

Looks like I'm going to have to get another metal bracelet for my Luminox. Anyone care to suggest a good place to get a decent replacement?

(The service place that just replaced the battery said that Luminox no longer makes this particular bracelet.)

FYI, I've been quite happy with the Luminox. Keeps good time, basic, not too fancy, and as TT said, incredibly bright.

Vote for a sea-dweller. I got mine 7 years ago and it has been flawless despite constant use and rough treatment.

ok...i'm starting to give in to this Omega Speedmaster trend...

the problem with the original speedmaster is that it has a hesalite crystal unless you get the sapphire crystal sandwich (with the finished 1863 movement - that'll bump up the price past what he wants). op already commented that he wants a sapphire crystal and the original speedmaster also lacks a date.

While it lacks the "day" function, I really like my Omega Seamaster Pro for everyday wear. I tend to be rough on watches but this one has held up well (I've had it for years). It's basically a "Bond" model but with a polished bezel, so slightly more acceptable for socializing. The Ref # is 2532.80. I really enjoy it when people that are used to "disposable" watches ask to check it out; comparatively it weighs a "ton". They tend to consider it as a weapon. :toung: If I wanted to spend more money I would definitely consider the same watch in titanium/rose gold. It's a beautiful watch. And I love the Speedmasters; just haven't felt the urge to pull the trigger.

Attachment 13423

She says to look at the Bulova Accutron's in the 1k
range...http://www.bulova.com/brands/accutro...brand=accutron

She likes watches from Panerai to Seamaster, Cartier, Rolex.

I'm a big fan of Panerai, Rolex, IWC, etc., etc.

http://www.vendettacycles.com/pics/g...mtii-c-001.jpg

http://www.vendettacycles.com/pics/p...pam243-003.jpg

http://www.vendettacycles.com/pics/p...pam106-001.jpg

http://www.vendettacycles.com/pics/tent/tent1-006.jpg

I'm also a big fan of the Debaufre Nav-b series and others of course.

conor

Panerai and IWC do it for me. But I'm a bike mechanic.

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Originally Posted by sloji

She likes watches from Panerai.

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Now we're talking. I too like the Seamaster, but the Panerai, that's next level for me. I'm just a voyeur though. I cannot bring myself to purchase one of these timepieces. I will however drop $3-4K on a frame though...

It's interesting also to see just how many folks are into watches, sorry timepieces.

a co-worker of mine was sporting a nice watch once...i complimented him. he responded "it's a timepiece, not a watch." since then, the term "timepiece" has been sort of a joke to me.