Poor man's watch thread

[SidewinderX]

That horn one is really neat! How much were they, if you don't mind saying.

List price was about $180 for the horn one (little better than the website because I was paying in HKD) and the timezone one was listed at ~$300. They gave me a 10% discount for buying both (and a friend bought a purse) at the same time; I forget what the threshold we had to hit to get the discount. It's definitely expensive for a pair of quartz watches, but I was willing to pay the premium for the uniqueness factor. Plus these were my keepsakes from this Hong Kong trip so I was able to convince myself a bit on that end haha.

 

[ShawnBC]

And now for something slightly different... I was visiting Hong Kong a few weeks ago and I stumbled upon this little shop called Squarestreet (on, believe it or not, Square Street on Hong Kong island). I spent some time looking around and walked out with two (very cool, IMO) watches. They're both a little off-the-wall:



They're both single-handed watches -- took me a day or two to get used to it, but now I can glance and know the time (within a 5 minute window) as easily as my other watches.

The black-banded watch is called the Minuteman -- quartz movement with a polished horn case. The larger watch is from a brand new line that they're releasing this summer (but were already selling in the store... apparently I was only the 2nd person to buy one!). The hand moves on a 12 hour cycle (just after 5pm in my photos) and the inner dial moves on a 24 hour cycle (I'm west-coast based, so Vancouver is at 1700) -- basically you can tell what time it is all around the world in a glance! (daylight savings obviously causes problems, but a glance gives you the time (+/-1 hour) all over the world. It's now my go-to casual watch and a great conversation starter.

Just what I needed, another new boutique watch brand to add to my already-long wish list. One thing though, they mention on their website that the Minuteman is powered by a Swiss Rhonda movement, but on pictures of the watch, the back side is stamped "Japan movement". They mention in their fact that if one wants to know what powers their watch they should drop them a line. Is the movement inside the watch a random thing?

 

[SidewinderX]

Just what I needed, another new boutique watch brand to add to my already-long wish list. One thing though, they mention on their website that the Minuteman is powered by a Swiss Rhonda movement, but on pictures of the watch, the back side is stamped "Japan movement". They mention in their fact that if one wants to know what powers their watch they should drop them a line. Is the movement inside the watch a random thing?

I'd e-mail them -- my minuteman says Japan Movemovent -- the other watch says Swiss Movement, maybe that's where the confusion comes from?

 

[motosacto]

No picture, just a thumbs up for Steinhart. Two years after I purchased an Ocean One Vintage Military directly from Steinhart, I had an issue with the bracelet. After a brief email exchange to explain the issue, they sent replacement parts, extra springbars, and a springbar tool, all direct from Germany at no cost to me.

Steinhart customer service was excellent, and only let down a bit by slow mail. I am very happy with them as a vendor (and I like my watch, too!)

 

[ShawnBC]

Steinhart sure are on top of my wishlist!

 

[TheWraith]

^ Speaking of Steinhart, here's mine:

 

[New Shoes1]

@TheWraith , what are your thoughts on the quality of the watch itself? The pictures look great. It's got a standard ETA movement. How is the bracelet and overall finishing?

 

[TheWraith]

Very high quality, especially for the price, @New Shoes1. Ceramic bezel, too. Keeps excellent time. For those who love the Rolex aesthetic but don't want to (or can't) pay Rolex prices, you can't go wrong with this, or any other, Steinhart.

 

[thefoxtooth]

Am super stoked over my new skx009. Love it with all bands, but I put in an oyster because it just looks perfect to me.

Even with the extra band the whole thing came in under $150.

 

[cs451]

Am super stoked over my new skx009. Love it with all bands, but I put in an oyster because it just looks perfect to me.

Even with the extra band the whole thing came in under $150.

Very nice, I did the same thing with mine. The stock band was to jangly for me.

 

[theh00d]

where you get that skx009?

I'm looking for a skx007. Anyone know where I can find it for the lowest price?

 

[thefoxtooth]

Very nice, I did the same thing with mine. The stock band was to jangly for me.

Thanks! Yeah, I like the Jubilee band—it's very comfortable and breathes well—but I think it works better on a smaller watch; the skx flops around too much on it. Plus the beefiness of the oyster just seems right aesthetically.

I think one day I'm gonna get another one of these with the black rubber band for more casual wear. I like the Cousteau, 1970s SCUBA look of them.

Not that mine lacks anything: if I had one watch, this would be it.

 

[thefoxtooth]

where you get that skx009?

I'm looking for a skx007. Anyone know where I can find it for the lowest price?

Good old eBay. After much snooping, I lucked into a "used" one which was so "used" it still had the protective blue film on the back of the case. Also, the seller forgot to include the model number in the title and ended the auction on a Saturday morning, so I did fairly well.

But you can get new ones for under $200 regularly there or on Amazon. Those seem to be as cheap as anyplace I've found.

For the Seiko oyster band (if you want one) go to eBay. $36, which is the best you'll do. Sports Watch Store in Singapore sells skx with the oyster already on for $202.

 

[Twotone]

I posted this in the general discussion forum and also adding it to the PMW thread.

Bauhaus on a Budget – a Rodina Review

I love the Bauhaus look, but unfortunately neither the Stowa nor the Nomos fit in the current budget. I’ve been on the lookout for a similar style at a price point that I could afford. A little Internet research turned up several good reviews on this Rodina Bauhaus homage so I decided to pull the trigger. For one hundred ten dollars shipped, I figured I did not have much to lose. I’ve spend more on high-end watch straps.

I remember seeing some vintage Russian “Rodina” brand watches when I lived in Moscow in the 1990’s. They were one of the first Soviet Union automatic watches made during the 1950’s – 1960’s. It looks like the Chinese bought the rights to the name – a Russian watch now made in China!

It’s much better than I expected. It’s by no means a Swiss or German watch, but very impressive for Chinese (or any) manufacture, especially at that price point. Using the same criteria I would grade entry-level Japanese (Seiko 5), German (Limes) or comparable watches, I see no flaws in the case, dial, hands or strap.

Case fit and finish is excellent including those typically missed areas such as the inside of the lugs, etc. The angled lugs are a nice touch and help it sit comfortably on my thin wrist. The narrow bezel makes it wear bigger than the 39mm diameter suggests. The case is 9mm high and fits great under a dress shirt cuff. The front sapphire crystal (according to the manufacturer) is perfectly flat and flush with the bezel. The screw back case has a mineral crystal.

The dial printing is clean and crisp. The small seconds sub-dial has very faint concentric circles visible with a loupe. The thin hands are a nice deep blue (painted, I’m sure). The small “China Made” on the bottom of the dial at 6:00 is a nice touch. It tells me that they are actually proud of their country of origin. Rumor has it, that some Swiss and German companies have been sourcing cases, dials, hands and crystals from China. Judging by the quality of this watch, I can understand why.

The leather strap is nice and soft. Tanning color is even and the inside has a nice soft suede feel. This watch comes with either a brown or black strap. The etched buckle “RODINA” logo is crisp and clean. A small but nice detail – the buckle prong is solid machined and polished steel, not a folded cheap piece of sheet metal I’ve seen on some after-market straps. Most Asian watches straps are sized for small wrists like mine. This one has a very long strap which I may have to shorten and punch another hole.

The Sea-Gull ST1701 automatic movement has some machine “finishing”, but it’s nothing special to look at. I would compare it to Seiko 5 or Miyota movements I’ve owned in other watches. I’d prefer a solid case back in this, Miyota or Seiko 5 based watches, but it’s OK. It can be hand wound, but does not hack. Just a few days on the wrist, and it’s running about +8 seconds/day.

If this watch is any indication of what is coming out of China, then some entry-level European watch companies need to pay close attention. I expect to see more interesting Chinese watches in the near future.

As a side note – I ordered the watch on their website one evening two weeks ago. It shipped the next day and they emailed me a USPS tracking number as soon as it left the factory. It looks like China Post has a shared tracking arrangement with USPS. The tracking number was in the USPS system before it arrived in the US. It took two days to get from China to San Francisco and another six days to clear customs and arrive here in Denver (no duty or tax). It even came in a decent looking box on a padded pillow.

Thanks for looking!
Twotone

 

[BLAUGRANA]

Wondering if someone can help with a few questions. I own some solid quartz watches which I thought I'd keep for life along with my 90s Tag Heuer which is still in near perfect shape. However in the past 12 months or so in reading a few watch blogs and a few articles online I discovered a few of the Tudor Heritage watches and am now rather set on them. So I was searching through this thread the other night and despite already knowing about Tudor's new releases I hadn't heard that they were now making in house movements. I'm be no means a watch expert so bear with me and my questions, but I'm hoping I can get a few answers to the following questions:

1) How much better will Tudor's in house movement be than it's current movement?
2) If it will be better, how much better and how much does it matter?
3) Will the in house movement be easier to get serviced if needed?
4) Will the in house movement be the same as in a Rolex? I'm guessing not.
5) I'm interested in the Heritage Ranger as well as both Black Bays. Eventually they'll make both with the new movement, right? If so, how will I be able to tell them apart, IE how will I know which movement is in the watch I'm purchasing?

Any help would be greatly appreciated and my apologies if the questions are rather simplistic.