A community for watch & horology discussion.
Hi, I’m new to the watch world. I am in love with this watch, what are your thoughts about it and is it a good brand? I appreciate it so much! I’m 45 and the only watch I’ve ever had is the Apple Watch, but I’ve been getting a lot of interest in real watches. This watch is $3800 a little too much for me, are there any other similar brands that look like this one maybe? I appreciate your input.
Longines is my favorite watch brand. It's just the best value for money there is. If this is the watch you want I suggest you wait and save instead of trying to find a cheaper look a like. It'll just be a waste of money buying a watch that isn't the one you want.
I would just suggest you think about if you can actually wear a dress watch like this often. Because I made the mistake of buying something like this as my first expensive watch just to see that I couldn't wear it often due to my casual utilitarian clothing.
change the band and it's not a dress watch. the face is beautiful and reminds me off some non-moonwatch speedys. Love the color!
People here can be kind of stuffy. I wear my Planet Oceans with everything. t-shirts, suits, etc. If my boss can wear a fitbit with a suit, I can wear anyhthing I want!
I will also say, plenty of people wear dress watches with casual attire. There are norms that some people want to follow, and more power to them, but I know people who confidently rock a dress watch in a tee and sweats and others who wear a sports watch with a suit. I personally love doing both!
If you like it, go for it.
Longines is a great brand. Go to an ad and negotiate some discount
I think this may be the cheapest annual calendar chrono that I know of. You may be able to negotiate with the ADs rather than going straight to boutiques.
The Longines isn't an annual calendar. That's a more sophisticated complication which only requires date correction between Feb - March.
This is month, day, date, moonphase, chronograph based on the Valjoux 7751, a common movement used by multiple swiss and German manufacturers.
https://calibercorner.com/eta-valjoux-caliber-7751/
https://wornandwound.com/surprising-value-a-brief-guide-to-the-annual-calendar/
Is this a legit website? Prestigetime.com - They have the best price
They are legit. Have ordered a few watches through them.
Good chance you can get 20% off from an AD with Longines warranty.
Topper is a great AD, stand up folks whom I've dealt with multiple times before.
I like the older version of Master Collection Moonphase Chrono. As others said, large discounts off of Longines MSRP are available from reputable sellers
Longines Master Collection $2,500 https://chrono24.app/longines/master-collection-stainless-steel-silver-dial-40mm-l26734786-full-set--id29708570.htm?SETLANG=en_US&SETCURR=USD
Louis Erard Excellence $1,074 https://chrono24.app/louiserard/le80231aa01bdc51------783051--id31545319.htm?SETLANG=en_US&SETCURR=USD
Chronoswiss Lunar $2,799 https://chrono24.app/chronoswiss/chronoswiss-lunar-chronograph-moonphase-38mm-steel-ch7523l-leather-automatic--id31281233.htm?SETLANG=en_US&SETCURR=USD
Mido Baroncelli Chronograph Moonphase. The price is about $2900 which I think is a very good alternative to it if you want to save a little bit. The rose gold variant is my fav
Love it! Thanks
The second hand prices on Longine are terrible so try to pick up one nearly new.
Thank you so much!
let me tell you about longines. They had a setback-- a huge one- as most brands did from the 80s "quartz crisis". That is why you see some older rolex and omega quartz watches, they were trying to compete with seiko at the time which was killing all of the old established brands. Look on ebay at all the brands, cyma, eterna, benrus, elgin, for example- many swiss brands, gone. Some like bulova were huge and almost didn't make it. Longines I recall was very prominent in the olympics in the 60s-70s for "longines time" You see omega, tissot and others, and there were many tv commercials for longines. Then it almost died. It took longines 30 years to really recover---which they have and are---and are becoming the big respected brand they were back in the day. I suspect you will see prices go up up up, demand go up up up on all longines products. They have been around for a long time, everything they make is excellent and the fit and finish is superb. They use (mostly) their own in house movements, and in short, you cannot go wrong with a longines product. In fact, I have been buying alpina lately---and now will start adding several longines to my collection. WHY? quality, value, style, and in short I like them. I think Rolex and most other "luxury/popular watches" are way overpriced and I would put a longines up against a rolex anyday. That is what I think of them. FYI I have taken classes and worked as a watchmaker on and off and do my own overhauls on vintage watches so I do know somewhat from where I speak.
The watch market is very strange and subject to "what others think" so I would just ignore what others think and get what you like. I would never buy a watch as an investment unless it was an investment like a 100-500K watch---but then it would never be worn or see the light of day- so that isn't my thing and is way beyond my capability. I buy watches to wear and enjoy---not because they are the "in" thing or others like them. GOod luck.
I’ve been recently considering taking watchmaker classes. May I ask how you found the classes, the cost of said classes and which brands you were able to work on?
That’s a great read. I agree that longines is a great watch brand. The only reason they seem to be “lacking” is cause of their plethora of options and that they’re not marketed to be a high end product. Even though they are one. You can never go wrong with Longiness. Love that fucking brand to a fault.
Tiddy Bulbasaur is that you?
This looks so fun! A chronograph and moonphase in one i wish they had one for women too!
If you need a good quality mechanical watch like the above ( except the tachymeter) I suggest the following:
Cheap, affordable, good quality weather and mechanical movement. Definitely underrated. The watch came in around 3 weeks.
If you need a brand watch
Something like that maybe?
Check out Sugess Moon phase. Not quite as nice, but definitely a better price.
I would suggest you wait and save if this is the watch you really truly enjoy. Imo
For a thousand less if you are too tight there are the Frederique Constant Classics!
You might consider if you need a Chronograph, triple date (month, day, date), and moon phase all in one. Don’t get me wrong, it’s handled beautifully here. However, a less complicated watch would cost less all else equal.
Frederique Constant makes some quartz Moonphase watches for a fraction of the price. Longines is fantastic, I’ve had my eye on a similar model for a bit.
Buy it pre-owned, don’t buy most watches msrp
Almost 4k for a 7751 caliber is another proof that current watch market has become insane.
Moreover the Longines chronograph is huge, 42mm case and an outrageous 12.4mm thick.
Unless you need a chronograph, with the same budget I would get an Omega De Ville Prestige such as 424.13.40.20.03.004.
If you've never owned a mechanical watch, I'd start with something like this to see if it's something you'd really like it/wear it.
Sugess is doing some awesome designs and uses a reliable movement. It's an awesome value at this price point, and is a better introduction to mechanical moon phases imo. AliExpress is selling it for like 190 right now. Just a thought if price is a concern.
It's really nice! I just hate roman numerals.
That watch is stunning with the blue Roman numerals. It's worth saving up for.
Beautiful watch. Only you know from your finances and preferences whether this is an advisable purchase.
Ok so i tried this watch on in person. Its a beautifully made watch and the complications for the price, honestly you cant do better. I highly recommend it. In house movements from a great and respected brand
Get it that watch is absolutely amazing
It’s gorgeous. Imo, save a bit and go for it. The watch addiction starts small and involves a lot of bargaining with one’s self. If you’re like most people one day you’ll spend several times as much as what you once considered your absolute maximum. So rather than start off on a bad foot and purchasing a few lower end pieces that won’t even scratch your initial itch, just bite the bullet. Give in. Watches have your attention. This isn’t over, not by a long shot. Save yourself the trouble of taking the scenic route and start with a watch you’ll truly love.
That watch is nice. Column wheel chronograph, silicon hairspring, free sprung balance, complete calendar, blued steel hands and numerals to boot as well. It's pretty in real life. Though I would suggest their master moonphase, or the small second collection in silver , black and my all time favorite, salmon
I got the blue dial 40mm version earlier this year for well under $3000 at an authorized dealer department store in Bangkok. Longines usually has a pretty good discount off retail. Wempe is usually really good with discounts and adds a year of warranty. I highly recommend them.
I highly recommend the watch and I wear mine a lot. It is very accurate and has a lot of features enthusiasts love. For me, it is jam picked with complications and I love a busy dial.
The leather strap is real alligator, but there should be a bracelet version available too. I recommend getting the bracelet, as you can purchase the strap with deployant buckle for $300 later. The bracelet looks a bit more sporty while the alligator is more formal. Roman numerals trend to be more formal anyway so just get what you like. It is much harder to get the bracelet after the fact than the leather strap though.
If you get this watch, absolutely get a watch winder for it. You can hand wind these, but the crown is very small and you have to pinch it. Continually manually winding can harm the movement after a while, so watch winders remove that risk. It is also an absolute PITA to set if you let it run down.
The case is all polished. This can show scratches easily. Use Cape Cod Cloths to polish out the small scratches to keep it looking like new.
So go for it. It's a great watch!
Thank you so much! I appreciate it
Something to consider (as you’re new to watches) is the servicing cost. If you wear the watch often then you’re meant to get it disassembled, cleaned and re-oiled every 5 - 6 years. Depending on the brand and place you take it to this can get pricey. I’m also new at this so perhaps I’ve not found the right places, but my only local Rolex/Omega/etc qualified servicer for miles charges upwards of £500 for a full mechanical watch service.
First off, please know that this is a dress watch with complications that are fairly sensitive and very expensive to service. It is not an Apple Watch that can be banged around, it will require services every 5 years that will likely be over $1k with all those complications... likely more frequently if you accidentally bang it on anything while wearing it. That being said, I like Longines and respect their history - I even owned an 18k Longines with a porcelain dial from the early 1900’s as part of my collection. But I’ve learned the hard way to stay away from this level of complication because it’s just a matter of time before I break it and will spend a lot of money on servicing it.
Interesting! Thanks so much
