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10 months ago- 1 Post
- 12 Comments
Joined 11 months ago
Cake day: October 9th, 2023
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if accuracy is so important why don’t u just buy a 50 bucks quartz and be done with it instead of going into mechanical watch.
Exactly what I’ve done, very early, after I started having an interest in watches. My most expensive quartz is a The Citizen (fka as Chronomaster) HAQ: accuracy -/+ 5 SPY (Eco Drive). And yes, that ‘Y’ means year.
Most others feature ‘assisted accuracy’ (GPS or atomic clock radio signal time sync). I’ve found my niche, and there’s much to enjoy.
I crave accuracy, my brain is wired that way. I’ve said it elsewhere: my heroes are Japanese station masters who apologise publicly and profusely when the Shinkansen is 10 seconds late.
I don’t care about second hands not ‘sweeping’, or not ‘hitting the markers’. Please note, that I greatly respect the craft that goes into mechanical watches. But their lack of accuracy (compared to quartz) would drive me mad.
Please show this to fellow GS fans at https://www.reddit.com/r/GrandSeikos/
Laco is a very respectable brand with a great history.
Have a very close look at that ‘Hunter Green’ dial. I rest my case ;-)
I’ll give you the Casio Oceanus OCW-T200S-7AJF. I own one, and it’s one of my most worn watches.
The Oceanus line is Casio’s premium watches line and JDM-only (Japanese Domestic Market - the watch is imported from Japan). Official Casio product page (Japanese-language only). It’s a solar-charged quartz watch (powered by light), and has atomic clock radio time signal sync, which means it’s always 100% accurate.
Build quality and finishing are superb. It’s a set-and-forget watch that looks great and is very versatile.
Interested in owner feedback and images of Oceanus watches? Browse or search this dedicated topic - registration not required, unless you actually want to post something.
My personal observations:
I admire Sinn for using the legendary Lemania 5100 calibre in some of their ‘special mission’ watches. I’ll quote from this required-reading article
The Lemania 5100 is not designed to be viewed reverently through a sapphire glass back. It’s not meant to be the recipient of anglage and côtes de Genève. Instead, it’s meant to work. And work under the sort of conditions that cause more effete movements to make their excuses and claim a prior engagement with their manicurist. Then, when those other movements are fanning their foreheads and fainting for a service, the 5100 is contemptuously ticking happily for at least twice as long. And when the back finally does come off, its construction means that doing the work doesn’t involve an electron microscope, parts made from distilled unicorn tears and the skills of a brain surgeon.
and
All in all, the 5100 is the movement equivalent of the million-mile-capable Mercedes OM602 2.5 diesel engine. It ain’t pretty, but it’ll run for ever and if you’ve got a 15mm spanner and a hammer you can fix it. For example, there’s no need to dismantle the whole movement to get to the barrel. Just pull out the central arbour and you’ve freed it.
If you want arm candy, Sinn is probably not for you.
Finally, I find it rather lame to bring WW2 into the equation. I’ve had family perish in the Nazi camps, but I don’t hate the Germans. Let alone the products they manufacture.
You’re probably aware of other existence of 2 major types: quartz watches (unjustly snuffed by most self-appointed watch gurus) and mechanical watches (seen as the only line to be taken serious by most self-appointed watch gurus).
You’ll be reading a lot of comments suggesting watches from the latter category, and probably none from the latter.
Finally: not all best watches are labelled ‘Swiss Made’. Something to remember. And not all quartz watches are cheap rubbish, not to be taken seriously. Today’s quartz watches are either powered by long-lasting, easy to replace batteries, or (my preference) solar-charged. And for ultra accuracy, I prefer automatic time sync via atomic clock signal (commonly known as ‘radio-controlled’, or RC).
I’m an unashamed quartz fan. I crave accuracy and ease of use. Affordability paired with extra functionality you often can’t easily get with mechanical watches (e.g. alarms, stopwatches, extra time zones, etc).
I’ll give you the premium line from Casio (more commonly known for its awesome G-Shock watches), Oceanus (solar-charged & RC). These are not all widely available outside of Japan, but it pays to go the extra mile and import one from Japan. Prices range from medium e-figure to medium 4-figure. Almost all look spectacular, are made with premium materials, built and finished to the highest standards.
Here’s the official Oceanus website (Japanese-language only), and this is the site run through google translate
The best showcase for Oceanus watches is the dedicated topic here, full of gorgeous images and owner comments.
Whatever you’ll decide on: good luck!
Yes!
Don’t worry about a scratch here and there: Many Citizen watches (and certainly this one) are built-for-purpose. They’re not meant to be flawless arm candy: a watch that has ‘lived’ and, as a result, shows a little character, adds to its charm. You’ve not bought this one as an investment piece. Well done, sir!
My advice would be to register with (very) large watch forums, like e.g. WatchUSeek (WUS), and/or The Watch Forum (TWF). You’ll find all you ever want to know (and much more) there, a veritable wealth of information.
I’ve almost given up on YouTube (YT) reviews: many are just there to attract views, parroting stuff from a watch product page, and reviewing watches that they received from the watchmaker. Not always helpful/insightful/impartial. Stay away from clickbait-titled videos.
Reading watch reviews on respected watch publications can be good, but some suffer from the same issues as many YT reviews. And some were great, but have gone downhill by editorial changes, becoming a sales portal for some brands (thus losing impartiality). Try a few, YMMV.
If an online publication, or YT channel sells watches as an extra revenue stream, you should be warned. Some YT channels are biased in one way or another: see which ones you like best.
Again: register at WUS or TWF, and start searching and reading. Members there can be biased, but there’s discussion, feedback, a real watch community. Online publications and YT reviews are just one man’s opnion, so always read comments, if present.