The Watch Appreciation Thread (Reviews and Photos of Men's Timepieces by Rolex, Patek Philippe, Brei

[DLJr]

$3.50 for the open case back?

I should look for that one! Thanks for sharing the movements, this will definitely makes the search easier! Thanks!

Haha not sure if you are joking, so to be clear those were the reference numbers.

Original Speedmaster is ref # 3570.50.0000 and retails at $4,500
"Sapphire Sandwich" Speedmaster is ref # 3573.50.0000 and retails at $5,500

So an extra $1,000 at retail gets you sapphire in front, sapphire in back, synthetic parts (Delrin brake) replaced with metallic, and some finishing. Most of the cost difference is for the sapphire though. The inscription on the case back is also different between the two. The original reads "The First Watch Worn on The Moon", The Sapphire Sandwich reads "The First and Only Watch Worn on The Moon".

EDIT: Also the hesalite on the original has a small Omega logo in the middle of it, and I don't believe the Sapphire Sandwich has that.

 

[Betelgeuse]

Haha not sure if you are joking, so to be clear those were the reference numbers.

Original Speedmaster is ref # 3570.50.0000 and retails at $4,500
"Sapphire Sandwich" Speedmaster is ref # 3573.50.0000 and retails at $5,500

So an extra $1,000 at retail gets you sapphire in front, sapphire in back, synthetic parts (Delrin brake) replaced with metallic, and some finishing. Most of the cost difference is for the sapphire though. The inscription on the case back is also different between the two. The original reads "The First Watch Worn on The Moon", The Sapphire Sandwich reads "The First and Only Watch Worn on The Moon".

EDIT: Also the hesalite on the original has a small Omega logo in the middle of it, and I don't believe the Sapphire Sandwich has that.

BUAAAAHAHAHAHAHA! I'm sorry i read the references as if those were the prices!

My bad!

So according to the last sentence, if you were the buyer would you go for the #3570.50 or the #3573.50?

 

[DLJr]

I have been the buyer, I went with the original (3570). I like the domed hesalite more. I also like that I can easily get rid of the scratches on the hesalite. It definitely scratches much easier than sapphire, but it's a simple at home fix. The inscription on the 3573 also bugged me because it's wrong. All that said, there are plenty of people who have chosen the 3573 and loved it. I'm not sure there is a wrong choice, in fact both isn't even a bad choice. In the end, I didn't consider the price tag, I just went with what I preferred and that would be my recommendation after trying both side by side if possible.

 

[dddrees]

BUAAAAHAHAHAHAHA! I'm sorry i read the references as if those were the prices!

My bad!

So according to the last sentence, if you were the buyer would you go for the #3570.50 or the #3573.50?

I couldn't resist the ability of being able to look at the movement.

 

[DLJr]

This popped up on Hodinkee and is related to all the NOMOS discussion.

 

[Keith T]



You say it like it's a bad thing.

I love it when this thread gets geeky, BTW.  Education in spades.

+1 excellent discussion.

Watch nerds of the world, unite.

 

[Keith T]

You have nothing to lose but your Armitrons!

 

[rnguy001]

IIRC this was in your budget, but it's long been sold out. SINN Jubilaum. I'm sure with a little work you could find one. At your budget it would be hard to beat SINN.

After a few months of lurking I’m ready to ask for some advice from this knowledgeable crowd. Seeking  suggestions for my son’s college graduation present within the following parameters:

• 
  Appropriate for an everyday business casual environment, but not out of place with a suit
  
• 
  Stylish, but not flashy
  
• 
  Medium case size, with a 6½” wrist I’m guessing 40mm and under
  
• 
  Strap, not bracelet
  
• 
  Automatic movement
  
• 
  Budget of $2,500 – higher than the Poor Man’s thread, but perhaps sub entry level for you guys. Would consider venturing into the preowned market, but would have more comfort if the sellers had a U.S. brick and mortar presence too, e.g., Govberg
  

Thanks for your thoughts. Welcome all suggestions, comments and questions.

 

[Belligero]



i cant say i love arial, but i certainly can get on board with the hate level some have for it.

Look, it's not about hating Arial, as crappy and lame as that typeface happens to be. There's no emotional component involved, and it's only a symptom of the real problem.

The issue here is that they're so obviously illiterate in what ought to be their core fluency. It wouldn't matter if you commissioned Adrian Frutiger himself to create an ode to his home country of Switzerland in the form of the most elegant and brilliant wristwatch typeface ever conceived; once you stretch, distort and arrange it as badly as Patek has done in the above example, it's going to be pretty clear that you don't know what you're doing.

The fact that they use two extremely lame typefaces that are strongly evocative of soul-crushing cubicle environments — one of which is a blatant ripoff of a legitimate but overused and unsuitable-for-this-application Swiss celebrity — really shows how fundamentally clueless the person behind the screen was. I showed that 5140 dial to a graphic designer friend, and she literally laughed out loud when I told her that it was on a $91000 MSRP product. With this level of basic incompetence from the top house in watchmaking, it's no wonder that normal people consider watches to be a way to separate fools from their money.

Seriously, show that dial to anyone who's clued-in about visual design generally, or typographic design specifically, and see what they think. If it's like today's experience, their first reaction will be that you're trying to pull some kind of joke; it's that bad.

 

[Keith T]

Belligero is en fuego.

 

[Belligero]



Belligero is en fuego.

Crocs with a suit, dude... crocs with a suit.

That's the level of faux-pas we're talking about here. That 5140 dial is the exact horological equivalent of this:

I wish I was kidding, but I'm not.

 

[Keith T]

@billsmith: this could actually get me killed here, but I'm going to suggest....a Tag.



Specifically given your parameters... on strap, <40mm, business casual, less than $2500 new (from a gray dealer such as Authentic Watches) ....how's about this Carrera? I would think it a decent "starter" watch for a college grad, class of '14.

Certainly the recipient would recognize the brand (how can you miss all the billboards and magazine ads?) And it's your basic all-rounder type of piece, but cheaper than say, an Aqua Terra.

 

[in stitches]

lol belli. you can rant until your keyboard wears through, but its not changing anything for me. yes, i think the stretched numbers are poor, and yes i agree to some of your points, or a lot of them, but arial will never trigger and watch aneurism for me.

you keep harping on it, and how it was obviously a brainless decision.... but you have no idea how they came to that conclusion. i keep looking at the 5140, and of the things that bother me, the "font" is not one of them. no not in the least.

sure, call me a boor, but i think its fine. could it be better? sure. is it horrific and indicative of all the things you say, i dont think so.

 

[Keith T]



Crocs with a suit, dude... crocs with a suit.

That's the level of faux-pas we're talking about here. That 5140 dial is the exact horological equivalent of this:

I wish I was kidding, but I'm not.

Tie length?

NAILED IT!

Everything else....LOL...

 

[in stitches]



Tie length?

NAILED IT!

Everything else....LOL...

shirt and croc color matching is neeeeeeeeeeeext level.