Smiths_fan137

In an Omega Constellation 300hz quartz watch...if the date wheel is broken, how much would it normally cost to repair it?

The wheel is in plastic and I'm not sure if they're still made at all. We're talking about a watch that gives the time super well but in which the date function got stuck in a number due to said wheel being broken and I am trying to evaluate if it's worth acquiring and restoring it mostly because they're quite rare

The seller says this issue with the date wheel is also very common in these watches so wouldn't it also eventually just break again? The watch was created originally as an adaptation of the plain dial constellation quartz models that did not have any other functions besides time telling

I was doubtful between a Eterna (Tangaroa automatic) and a Oris for my next purchase and...this factor made it a no brainer to go with the Eterna. But while that can be seen as a positive thing...why is Oris now making such beefy thick cases? They make post Swatch Omega look thin by comparison and that's saying something.

Sure for most people it will be fine...but Oris didn't use to have this issue back in the day normally. So what happened?

I am in other words asking why are their movements thicker. Is it because of the using of ETA and Sellita based stuff?

While on the topic, it's good to see Tag Heuer is going the opposite direction with newer releases coming out with progressively thinner cases

It makes me quite sad to observe this but there's a series of watch brands that albeit still existing and rather good, are getting forgotten or just...not talked about.

• Certina
• Paul Picot
• Maurice Lacroix
• Baume & Mercier
• Eterna
• Timex
• Ulysse Nardin
• Blancpain

I'll go over each of them briefly. Certina became part of Swatch group in the 90s and since then they make even smaller production numbers in volume and the distribution issues, have meant that they're not very broadly known

Paul Picot: Paul Picot is seen as jewelry brand for some reason now and people seem to have forgotten that they actually make serious watches with their own movements or eta/sellita

Maurice Lacroix: They're just not as talked about as Frederique Constant or even Raymond Weil. I think to be honest that they don't really have a design that stands out. But it's still a nice watch. They're also a bit overpriced perhaps

Baume & Mercier: Once one of the biggest swiss brands, nowadays they're not as well known to new enthusiasts because they haven't come up with a truly new design in a long time

Eterna: The company that ETA originally produced movements for and which invented ETA itself. Due to this alone their contribution to watches is massive. But they also have some interesting models and few people buy them now. Again I suspect due to steep price increases

Timex: Timex...is still very much talked about and bought commonly. That being said they don't have the same range of watches everywhere. There's some small distribution issues. And more importantly the brand seems to lack a sense of direction

Ulysse Nardin: They released the Freek one which is a masterpiece but other than that, no one talks about them and they have other, equally impressive models. At this price point however people forget they exist, unfairly so in my opinion

Blancpain: The oldest watch brand which forgot when it was founded, until that it magically knew again. Their collaboration with Swatch has been disastrous, and overall, I don't think most people would pick a Blancpain nowadays in their price point. It has no allure or particularly attractive models anymore. It once did.

Do you agree? Are there any other brands you think fit here?

I have three Casios from the period before I actively collected watches...and all 3 are great watches but also all 3 have horrible quality straps/bracelets. The F91-W simply broke and the connector itself rusted and snapped. The Casio Edifice Classic has a broken clasp and misaligned lug. And the duro has a snapped out bezel.

None of them went any out of the ordinary circumstances except maybe for the F91-W which was used for jogging and exercising in...adverse conditions let's say.

To be honest this was also actually how I learned the hard way to buy Swiss watches...say what you will. And yes surprisingly it solved it

Normally when people think of man watches they think of large stuff. Even some Bauhaus ones despite thin are rather large, thinking of Junghans for example.

But if like me your wrist is more on the small side, I think smaller watches definitely look better. Stuff like Vintage Omega, Longines be it new or vintage, Timex or any brands that can deliver smaller sizes.

With this being said I have to admit sometimes I've considered wearing "women's" watches precisely due to this. Is that acceptable?

Concluding all this I'd just like to say I obviously hate Diesel watches

As you may know, or not, I have close family that works within the Swiss watch industry and lives there. A cousin works at Tudor currently, and another, younger, just graduated in horological engineering also in Switzerland.

The cousin that works at Tudor, tells me that although it is a successful brand, it isn't quite having the edge over founding brand Rolex or the also older Omega in terms of sales on a global scale.

The cousin that just graduated...can't find a job. And neither can his former classmates. Swiss watch brands don't have the need nor the budget to spend in more workers.

Swiss watches usually are expensive, they're not as attainable as their Japanese or American or quite literally elsewhere else's counterparts. The more the price of an item increases, the more likely people are to look for an alternative. Although there's still good reasons to go swiss in watches, due to this, fewer and fewer people see their brands as a obvious choice. It almost only makes sense if you are either looking for a more special watch, or if you're simply a watch person, a collector. And the people in these situations...are not the general public. They're not most people. They're restricted groups.

As a result it overall is a industry that's barely worthy of that name still and slowly disappearing with time. And the more exclusive and expensive the swiss brand we talk about, the worse things tend to get. The only exception is Rolex and it's purely due to brand recgonition but not everyone will be able to afford a Rolex and Rolex also won't employ just anyone

By contrast in Japan we have a booming watch industry. Realistically, for most people unless they're into watches, a quartz watch is better and a more common buy than a mechanical watch. It's more convenient. Often more accurate. It's not as heavy. It can be charged using light sometimes. And the quartz watch was invented in Japan, by Seiko. And Seiko...is a brand that still has the capacity to outsell most Swiss watch brands. Even in a upper market level, Grand Seiko and Orient Star can give swiss brands a run for their money. Or even lines such as Casio's Oceanus

You also have more variety outside of Swiss brands without needing to break the bank. The truth is Swiss brands have the best mechanical movements, but they don't have the best quartz movements usually, and since most people don't really care that the watch is mechanical and think first about aesthetics: The future isn't very bright. The closest to a good value brand in Switzerland is Tissot. But even then they're more expensive than many other non Swiss brands. And Swatch can cost easily more than a Casio but it won't offer usually more quality than a Casio.

Anyways, if you've made it this far into the article, what are your thoughts on this?

Basically I realized as off now I don't have a watch that I can take out on a jog or more physical activity without worrying that it will get damaged or simply looks too dressy for the context.

I mean sure I have a couple digital watches good for it. But eventually their buttons become stuck and they're more of a hassle to operate than it's worth. They're still pieces to have but not very functional anymore

In this more purely utilitarian concept, this watch caught my eye because it's both rugged and understated at the same time. However not sure how to feel about a fabric strap. Specifically:

• Will it lose color more easily compared to a leather one?
• Isn't it probably going to make my wrist sweat less during outdoor activities? (This would be a plus)
• what are the odds of it unstitching with time?

Thanks

So basically I've been wanting at least one piece with a green dial for a while now because it always reminds me of playing 8-ball billiards 🎱 with friends or nature. It's just one of those colors that definitely catches my eye. I'm counting all greens in for this purpose but dark green if possible would be best suited.

I like the watch itself. I don't like the strap options so I selected the least bad one but even that one isn't exactly a strap I love...is there anything to be done?

We're told: "buy whatever you like regardless of price and origin"

But then, if someone buys a fashion watch or a Seiko they're snobbed at by the people who have Rolexes and Pateks because...this hobbie when taken too seriously, is above all, about being a watch snob.

I mean, movement making on mechanical watches is advancing much slower nowadays in terms of innovations, few people care about watches as more than a fashion item to begin with, and smartwatches are slowly taking over along with "minimalist" styled watches from Chinese brands being more popular with young folk.

That leaves only one point in watch collecting: being a watch nerd or watch snob. Seeing it as a tradition and a object with history and knowing technical data about watches.

• Watch collecting People know quartz watches are more advanced than the mechanical watches available at the same price as them: and yet they prefer mechanical watches generally on a irrational and purely phylosophical reasoning to the point of mocking quartz sometimes

• We also say "get any watch you like". But then...for most serious watch collectors, why is that watch always a Audemars Piguet, or a Breitling, or a Rolex or something that costs above 2.000? And why ridicule people, because it does happen, that only have say a Casio or so?

• it very much is mostly about brand name, and not about using the watch as a "tool". Few people do that anymore, and, many hate Hublot and even Richard Mille for example. These are expensive and advanced watches. But they haven't fallen in the good graces of the community! There's also a part of the community for whom it's funny to pick on TAG Heuer as a brand for a no longer valid reason.

• Watches are a terrible "investment". They never gain value these days, if anything some retain better value than others. Then why do we still care about value retention? Or are told we should care about it?

My point is, all of the above is true, but people into watches act like it's not true. It's a status symbol or an accessory more than a utility item now, and to be respected in the game you have to buy from very expensive brands. There's cheaper watches snobs can't hate on sure. But there aren't many cheaper watches that snobs will get impressed by, and it's sometimes purely because maybe it says there Seiko or Casio instead of Rolex or Omega. And those names carry a reputation with them that's associated more often with their price categories than with their actual quality because I would say a Grand Seiko can sometimes be better than a Rolex

I've recently realized that their designs are more my taste than the Certinas I was originally set on. Their prices seem fair too but I don't know much about how much they last without issues or anything the sorts.

I do know however that they started by selling watches only in USA after many years of making only Swiss Army knives and then they went global. The movements seem to be highly decorated ETAs for the most

Anyone can advise? Thanks

So there's several things that confuse me about this Swiss watchmaker.

Starting by...is it really Swiss? The story is that some Polish people started a watch brand in Le-Chaux-de-Fonds in Switzerland and that's where it started which technically makes it a sort of Bulova (or is it more of a sort of Swatch/Tissot?)

Then the second thing I can't understand is, what movement exactly do they use? They claim they make and use their own in-house proprietary movements, but, from seeing their website, it looks a ton like a ETA movement. Which is more than fine actually but then why act like it isn't one?

Finally: What's going on that somehow despite being a very old Swiss brand they really never caught on and are generally cheap watches price wise?

Do you think someone with one could genuinely say they even have a Swiss watch?