All About Watches

Journeyman

Journeyman

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I just looked at the Hodinkee review of the watch and although it doesn't say it in the review, a comment by Jack Forster (the author of the review) in the comments section states that the original watch was also 43mm. It may have been based on a pocket watch movement which, of course, would have made it larger than your average watch at the time.
 
doghouse

doghouse

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Interesting. Still think its probably too big for the aesthetic it's going for.
 
güero

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Isn't that quite typical for the first military watches? Some of the old Pilot watches are ~50-55mm. Still unfortunate though.
 
Kingstonian

Kingstonian

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walker said:
despite it is french and the stupid name, I consider the black friday offer for the superman mysterious blue, thoughts?

BLACK FRIDAY 2019

eu.yema.com eu.yema.com

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It is a French brand with good sales. The watches look fine. Quartz would be my choice but the nice lagoon colour is automatic only.

I would go for it if you are happy with a mechanical watch. ETA movement will be easy enough to service.
 
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shookt

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Looks good! I believe the movement is French (MBP 1000) rather than ETA, but I'm guessing still easy enough to service.
 
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walker

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A friend of mine has his fortis serviced. I have to admit, that I wasn't aware that they make interesting and/or collectible pieces, hmmh.

alright, now the service charge is climbing into rolex territory and I was surprised again. he mentioned the lemania 5100 is difficult to work on. can someone give insight here? marking Pimpernel Smith for reference, check.
 
Journeyman

Journeyman

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Kingstonian said:
It is a French brand with good sales. The watches look fine. Quartz would be my choice but the nice lagoon colour is automatic only.
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I'm not such a fan of that particular model (the "Superman"), but Yema do have a couple of models that I like:

Superman II with "maxi" dial:
1574338330345.jpeg


Navygraf:
1574338367005.jpeg


They also have a bicompax racing chronograph that looks nice, the Speedgraph, with a Seiko auto movement.

1574338497388.jpeg
 
W

walker

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well, sexy ...

this decision would be driven by the budget, but then there is a black friday again. we'll see ...

thank you for the feedback, though. much appreciated.
 
Pimpernel Smith

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doghouse said:
Paging Pimpernel Smith

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Already clocked that, and yes, right up my street!

Can't answer anything in great deal. Was in South Africa all weekend and most of this week on the red eye this morning. And I need a 12 hour sleep.

Managed to get to Isandhlwana and Rorke's Drift from Fugitive Drift Lodge. Which is the place to stay for the tours and it is a spiritual experience. You've got tragedy and the heroic meeting in the arrogance of man in rugged landscape that superlatives and your iPhone cannot capture.

I wore my trusty CWC G10 Tritium for my whole S.A. experience.
 
Pimpernel Smith

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doghouse

doghouse

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Journeyman

Journeyman

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doghouse said:
...a fair price.
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It costs thousands more than a regular Seamaster. Yes, it is made of titanium, but Tudor sells an excellent diving watch made out of titanium for something like half the price.

I will admit that it looks better than the standard Seamaster and I can even sort of tolerate the skeleton hands and the scalloping around the bezel edge.

I do think it's a bit silly to put the military arrow on the dial, though, given that it's never been, and never will be, used by armed forces.
 
doghouse

doghouse

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Journeyman said:
It costs thousands more than a regular Seamaster. Yes, it is made of titanium, but Tudor sells an excellent diving watch made out of titanium for something like half the price.

I will admit that it looks better than the standard Seamaster and I can even sort of tolerate the skeleton hands and the scalloping around the bezel edge.

I do think it's a bit silly to put the military arrow on the dial, though, given that it's never been, and never will be, used by armed forces.
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Its almost exact the same price as the PO titanium, and it's a super limited run. Doesn't seem too out in left field to me.
 
Journeyman

Journeyman

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Perhaps that means that the PO titanium is over-priced?! 😋

Also, I don't think that the Bond watch is a limited edition - Hodinkee and other sites are saying that it's not being produced in limited numbers.

On a related topic:

Watches really have become a trendy obsession over the past decade, particularly over the past five or so years, with prices rocketing up as a consequence. The lack of availability of Rolex steel models and the plethora of Omega limited-edition watches that sell out and are then listed for inflated prices is pretty ridiculous.

On other fora I look at, there are people who are literally willing to choose a particular country for a holiday because they think they will stand a reasonable chance of getting a steel Rolex there, and also talking about how they bought one or two models that they didn't even want (spending $20k in the process) so they could get on a list for a watch that they do want.

Why is that? What is it about us humans that makes us do such ridiculous things?
 
Journeyman

Journeyman

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Pimpernel Smith said:
something seemingly rare and filled with status.
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There's the rub - it's not that rare, as Rolex makes about 800,000 watches each year. That makes a Rolex watch only slightly less rare than a Toyota Corolla, and although a Corolla is a nice car, I don't think that anyone regards them as collectable, or as a status symbol...

The whole status thing really intrigues me, as it's entirely a function of our social system and our insecurities, feeding in to how we wish others to perceive us. Of course, it's highly influenced by marketing - in particular, by decades of very clever advertising by Rolex.
 
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formby001

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Journeyman said:
There's the rub - it's not that rare, as Rolex makes about 800,000 watches each year. That makes a Rolex watch only slightly less rare than a Toyota Corolla, and although a Corolla is a nice car, I don't think that anyone regards them as collectable, or as a status symbol...

The whole status thing really intrigues me, as it's entirely a function of our social system and our insecurities, feeding in to how we wish others to perceive us. Of course, it's highly influenced by marketing - in particular, by decades of very clever advertising by Rolex.
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Well that Rolex number you quote is for ALL their models. It only certain models that are difficult to obtain.

As for your point about status, I very much agree with the late Tom Wolfe in that it pretty much drives everything, but manifests itself in different ways, where it isn't obvious at first, that the person is engaging in status seeking.

Virtue signalling on Twatter is an example.
 
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formby001

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I thought after watching Once Upon A Time In Hollywood that there would have been a bit of a craze for cuff/bund style watchstraps ala Brad Pitt's character. Doesn't seem to have happened unless I've missed it.

Ditto Bullhead chrono's too!

You can't beat a bit of Bully...
 
doghouse

doghouse

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Journeyman said:
On other fora I look at, there are people who are literally willing to choose a particular country for a holiday because they think they will stand a reasonable chance of getting a steel Rolex there, and also talking about how they bought one or two models that they didn't even want (spending $20k in the process) so they could get on a list for a watch that they do want.
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This is absurd. But unfortunately true. The Rolex forum is a scream to read sometimes.

I don't disagree with everyone's postulations here, except status is a driver for some, but not all humans. It's not a clear line where one is or isn't, but there's a balance of internal and external validation people seek, and some tilt more to one than the other.
 
Pimpernel Smith

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Kingstonian said:
if it is quartz it will not cost too much and you are sorted.

Alternatively you can forego a wristwatch and save £7000 Crompton.
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Like you do when you're on a budget!

Actually, the Elite range Rotary's are pretty good bang for your buck. I will post that chronograph tank I got sometime.

A good homage can give the vibe and style, at least from a distance. And whilst it's not entry level Longines or even a Hamilton, for a 100 quid that Rotary delivers. You could wear that with impunity in a meeting or as a decent beater on a mission overseas. If Crompton was sussed he would have got that.
 
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