notausername14

Steel dive might have better lume. The movements will be very comparable. Steel dive will technically have better end links and clasp, but technically is the key word.

With more affordable Chinese watches, quality control is very meh in my experience. I think I’ve owned 7 or 8 different Aliexpress watches at this point. When they’re good, they can be really good. But, if you really know your way around a watch, they can be a bit disappointing.

That said, I’ve never owned an Orient. But I’ve had quite a few modern sub homages and they all have the same crappy brushed finishing. You probably won’t notice it if it’s your first watch or you haven’t been around luxury watch watches. Or at least you won’t at first. But, once you do, it’ll constantly bother you. My advice is to either go with orient or with a higher cost aliexpress brand, if you really want the sub homage.

I don’t remember all the details, but the gist of it is that several different “factories” make very similar watches using mostly the same movement and sell it under the same name.

The tldr of the situation is that Chinese manufacturing doesn’t necessarily follow the same ethical standards as western manufacturing. From teams that make reps, to some brand names essentially being public domain and used by different unrelated, to teams using or reusing OEM parts/CAD models and calling it their own work, etc. It’s kind of a shit show and western bargain hunters who care more about feeling like they purchased something that has more bang for the buck than about actual quality or business ethics enable this behavior.

FWIW, I’m generally a proponent of Chinese watches and have owned many, see my post history. But, at the same time, the business side of that world is a mess.

Also fwiw… I’ve done a lot of professional engineering work with Chinese factories. These problems are not limited to watches. Generally, unless your company is on the S&P 500, it’s considered good practice to have a shell company (or several) for placing orders with Chinese suppliers, and to use multiple suppliers in different regions, if you’re concerned about intellectual property theft and don’t want to pay for a legal team in China.

There are four Seiko 5's though...

I'm mostly in agreement with you.

I'd swap the traditionally finished jubilee bracelet on the GMT with the all brushed jubilee next to it. Speaking from experience of owning both, full brushed jubilee is way more versatile, ages more gracefully, and is so much easier to restore.

I could take or leave the blue field watch... Busier dials like that are just not my thing at all.

I might swap the gray g-shock for an identical model but in a darker color, if I was dead set on having a g-shock.

But for my own lifestyle, I'd probably sell everything but the GMT and get myself a tasteful Explorer or Datejust homage from a microbrand as a daily - such as a Lorier Falcon or Astra, or Traska Commuter. Those watches work in virtually every situation and have the better water resistance than the Seiko 5. If they're worn daily, there's no need to worry about setting them and, if you ever do, it takes no time at all.

Without having to supplement the investments with a Ponzi scheme? This is a good start.