goldblumspowerbook

Christopher Ward Sealander GMT might be close enough to your parameters.

As others have said, Ball is a zombie company so doesn’t really have heritage. That said I hear from many people the watches themselves are good. I personally find the design a little thrown together and I haven’t found the one i would actually want to own, but overall they’re a cool brand. But yeah, Joma sales are perpetual and those prices are pretty typical for Ball. Definitely don’t ever pay full retail for a Ball. Even at an AD, get a steep discount.

You’re not going to like mine. I don’t save for watches. If I can’t afford it incidentally, then I can’t afford it yet. That money needs to be able to disappear without affecting me. I don’t want to be freaking out about resale values or not wearing the watch due to fear of theft. Any saving I might do for a watch begs the question of why that money isn’t in a retirement account or something else, given how unnecessary a watch is. As a result I get about a $1000 watch a year, and next year when I get a better job might get a Tudor or Omega. I won’t be buying a nicer Rolex until I make A LOT more money, and that might not actually ever happen.

At your age and likely finances I’d be a little more conservative for awhile. You’d be surprised how happy you can be with Mido or Christopher Ward if you’re not in it for the name. And if you’re in it for the Rolex name, well, you might be making different decisions from me anyway.

Go on Jomashop (grey market retailer, legit but customer service sucks). You can find some cool older Tissot’s for like $250 with powermatic 80.

Christopher Ward for sure, I have a c60 diver and it’s basically stopping me from buying an omega because build quality wise it’s just as good (obviously not so much the movement). The C60, the Dune, and the Twelve are all amazing and roughly in your price range.

Do you want something fully clockwork that you wind or wear to keep wound up (called an automatic) or do you want a battery powered watch (usually called quartz)? If the former, I like to recommend the Invicta Pro Diver. The brand is not well regarded, but that specific watch looks like a Rolex Submariner so has a classic design, and has a good Seiko movement in the back of it (meaning the clockwork that runs it). They’re like 80 bucks, less on sale. If you want quartz, there’s a million options from Casio or Timex that could match about any style!

I don’t. I have a .611 in a Mido that doesn’t have the plastic bits, but wouldn’t hesitate to get a Tissot myself.

I wouldn’t worry too much. A lot of people talk about those movements not being serviceable etc.. and then go ahead and buy Seiko NH35’s that definitely get thrown out when you service the watch. I think the concept of plastic makes people nervous but Tissot isn’t looking to generate a bunch of warranty claims.

I don’t know how serious you were about all black, but this one is a beauty:

https://seikousa.com/collections/seiko5sports/products/srpd79

Seiko is a well regarded brand. On Amazon or eBay you’ll find it cheaper than this. I’ve almost bought this watch 2-3 times.

Hot take, but i like these better than the Submariner. They're just fancier, and no one's REALLY diving in their Rolex.

I have one watch I really can’t afford because I inherited it from my dad (he died bankrupt, so it’s actually the only thing I inherited from him). I really enjoy wearing it and no one has ever really noticed it. Ironically, the only time I got noticed for “out wearing my wage” was when I was wearing my MoonSwatch and someone’s mind was blown that I had bought an Omega. I had to explain that it was actually more of a swatch. Very funny.

I too want a diamond-encrusted butthole.