Watches and Denim

[aho]

@Foxy2 for some reason you strike me as a JLC Reverso type though I have no inkling or indication as to why lol...That said, 33mm could be quite small on a modern wrist so I'd suggest trying it on first to see if you like the size. Tudor Black Bay 36 might also be a good option for a daily wearer light on the wrist, otherwise, go vintage if the larger Nomos' don't do it for you either!

[Nei.Nor]

@Foxy2The tangente - like other Nomos watches - wears quite large. I’d say the 33mm is like a normal 35mm watch and the 35mm wears like a 36-38mm watch. So as an example, the 35mm tangente wears notably bigger than the 36mm club. That basically because it’s all dial with very narrow bezel.

so based on that, I’d say the classic dress seamaster that are typically 34-35mm would fit the bill. You could get a Longines conquest potentially - I especially like the black dial vintage ones. Stowa has some nice alternatives as well - the antea. If you want to spend a bit more I quite like vintage ingenieurs as well.

Edited January 16, 2018 by Nei.Nor

[volvo240thebest]

potential rabbit hole of a thread if ever there was one (or 3, or a million) on sufu.
not much funds here (my new work contract enthusiasm put me and the wife on a terrific shopping spree last month, just received a fabolous credit card bill!) but I've always wanted to buy a flieger myself as a 4th watch for my little collection. Time to seek what I want.
so watch illuminati, enlighten me with suggestions.

My needs are: no quartz movement (I just hate the idea, forgive me, I know it's not a sacrilege at all), excellent value for money (!).

merci

 

[Nei.Nor]

@volvo240thebest what sort of style are you looking for? New or vintage? Any preference on max or min size? What’s sort of budget? Is second hand okay?

Edited January 16, 2018 by Nei.Nor

[aho]

@volvo240thebest look to Laco or Stowa!

[volvo240thebest]

13 minutes ago, Nei.Nor said:

@volvo240thebest what sort of style are you looking for? New or vintage? Any preference on max or min size? What’s sort of budget? Is second hand okay?

2nd hand is more than ok. Vintage is fine but I'm not that knowledgeable myself so must find a trustable seller.

Not keen on watches over 40 mm size, although have big wrists and arms so they don't look bad.

budget small let's say 250 euros or around it.

[Nei.Nor]

@volvo240thebest like @aho said, stowa and Laco are great brands and both original producers of the German Flieger watches. Might be difficult to find the stowa for the price you’re looking for but the Laco is very doable. The only thing is they both wear very large even the 40mm versions. They’re probably comparable to a 44 diver watch.

Other brands to check out would be tissel, Archimede and orient (flight).

Just consider whether you want a manual or auto - personally I like winding my watches and prefer the thinner dimensions of the manual versions.

[Maynard Friedman]

Thanks to @rodeo bill I’ve just bought one of these at an excellent price for my birthday (next month) - the Longines Heritage Diver.

Unfortunately it’s under wraps until then, so it’s Interweb pictures only. I love the late 60s/early 70s aesthetic as this is basically a reissue of the Ultra Chron from that era (albeit in red rather than orange, with the date moved from 4 to 3 o’clock).

I’ve ordered a couple of NATOs from Crown & Buckle too.

Edited January 16, 2018 by Maynard Friedman

[aho]

^Indeed, probably the most dangerous thread on sufu right now...

Excellent pick up though! Awaiting real life pictures upon unwraps 

[STINGER93]

Figure this as good of a place for a first post as any, so here is my ref. 1603 Rolex Datejust with my Stevenson 727s in the background.

Glad I finally got around to making an account here!

[goodrain]

hey Volvo I have this made in Korea(Miyota movement) Fleiger that costs $200. Looks like they are sold out at the moment but you can email them about restock date.

http://shop2.tisellkr.cafe24.com/product/sold-out/31/?cate_no=1&display_group=2

I do see a 43mm one used for sale but looks like there has been some work done to it, for better or worse

http://forums.watchuseek.com/f29/fs-tisell-pilot-watch-43mm-4574781.html

[Denimstoyevsky]

Volvo... I'd say just go ahead and shell out for a Stowa, b/c if you're anything like me (or the rest of us), you're gonna get it, love it, do more research, and then wish you went with Stowa or Sinn or something like that in the first place. Also, I'd recommend buying a new and not a vintage one. With vintage, you really have to get serious about the maintenance, which involves looking for a good watch maker, shelling out extra cash fairly regularly, and always being worried about your watch when you wash your hands. While I posted my Patek earlier, most of the time I wear my Seiko SKX 173 and don't think twice about water, dirt, ocean, bike riding, or anything else I get up to in the course of a day. Take it from me... Women tend to look quite unenthused when you have to pause the proceedings to safely take off your watch. 

[Foxy2]

14 hours ago, aho said:

@Foxy2 for some reason you strike me as a JLC Reverso type though I have no inkling or indication as to why lol...That said, 33mm could be quite small on a modern wrist so I'd suggest trying it on first to see if you like the size. Tudor Black Bay 36 might also be a good option for a daily wearer light on the wrist, otherwise, go vintage if the larger Nomos' don't do it for you either!

the Reverso is actually an interesting one - also one price bracket higher...

13 hours ago, Nei.Nor said:

@Foxy2The tangente - like other Nomos watches - wears quite large. I’d say the 33mm is like a normal 35mm watch and the 35mm wears like a 36-38mm watch. So as an example, the 35mm tangente wears notably bigger than the 36mm club. That basically because it’s all dial with very narrow bezel.

so based on that, I’d say the classic dress seamaster that are typically 34-35mm would fit the bill. You could get a Longines conquest potentially - I especially like the black dial vintage ones. Stowa has some nice alternatives as well - the antea. If you want to spend a bit more I quite like vintage ingenieurs as well.

was also looking at  Mühle Glashütte and their small Sport models...

still, keep coming back to Nomos and their 33 and 35 models - will have to try their 35 models to see if they would work for me - the fact that they are only splash-proof makes me hesitate. 

[Nei.Nor]

@Denimstoyevsky assuming you get a vintage watch in good condition, you’d have to do as much/little maintenance as a new watch. Vintage movements are typically just as robust. I’ve had some vintage watches for 10 years and they are still running well - they probably weren’t serviced for some time before I bought them as well. A normal service is also not too expensive £75-125 - so the cost per year is very reasonable.

Having said that, you definitely need to do more research and vintage watches don’t tend to be as waterproof. On waterproofness though, I’d say unless your watch has been serviced and it’s seals have been changed in the last 1/2 years I wouldn’t risk getting close to water anyway - even with newer watches. 

Edited January 17, 2018 by Nei.Nor

[rodeo bill]

12 hours ago, Maynard Friedman said:

Thanks to @rodeo bill I’ve just bought one of these

Wow! with great power comes great responsibility. Love to see pictures when you have it. Nice one!

[TheIntelligentHoodwinker]

17 hours ago, volvo240thebest said:

potential rabbit hole of a thread if ever there was one (or 3, or a million) on sufu.

 

Big time. I just won an eBay auction for a Seiko that I randomly put a bid on. Was cheaper than the 'beaters' I was look at so thought 'why not?'.

 

 t

Edited January 17, 2018 by TheIntelligentHoodwinker

[rodeo bill]

that's a beauty! I'd love a bell-matic. Is the alarm working? Please post when you receive it. Really enjoying this thread, and the denim world approach to watch choices. 

[TheIntelligentHoodwinker]

1 minute ago, rodeo bill said:

that's a beauty! I'd love a bell-matic. Is the alarm working? Please post when you receive it. Really enjoying this thread, and the denim world approach to watch choices. 

I don't know. To be honest, I got instant buyers guilt when the email from eBay arrived. The face is pretty tatty and I didn't even check if the alarm worked.

CURSE THIS THREAD!!

Will definitely add photos when it arrived.

[rodeo bill]

at least watches don't take up as much space as boots...

[Flash]

Slightly better picture of my black bay 

 

Edited January 17, 2018 by Flash

[Spiraltoy]

2 hours ago, rodeo bill said:

that's a beauty! I'd love a bell-matic. Is the alarm working? Please post when you receive it. Really enjoying this thread, and the denim world approach to watch choices. 

Well put, looked at Bell-matics forever until I got bit by the divers estethics.

[JDelage]

Of all the 'complications', rings, chimes, and alarms on mechanical watches are the most intriguing to me.

 

As a side note, I'm in the middle of researching Grand Seiko; I'm starting to get it.

[aho]

3 hours ago, JDelage said:

As a side note, I'm in the middle of researching Grand Seiko; I'm starting to get it.

[TheIntelligentHoodwinker]

9 hours ago, JDelage said:

Of all the 'complications', rings, chimes, and alarms on mechanical watches are the most intriguing to me.

Yeah, same. Also the reason I really like the Omega multifunction watches. All those features with a really limited way to control them.

[rodeo bill]

aho that snowdrift dial looks incredible! I'd love to see one in person. I also really like the nibble in the side of case behind the crown, strikes me as very Seiko somehow

[JDelage]

There's a newly announced GS LE that would look great with denim:

https://www.grand-seiko.jp/sbgj231/

[aho]

1 hour ago, JDelage said:

There's a newly announced GS LE that would look great with denim:

https://www.grand-seiko.jp/sbgj231/

Indeed, this is my favorite LE of all the GMT's so far! Unfortunately you'll have to be in Osaka or Tokyo, or at least know someone who can proxy it there for you if they aren't already accounted for...

(Not to mention, you'll end up paying MSRP for any LE bought in Japan)

[JDelage]

Yeah, it's unobtainium for us here.

What's the pricing of GS generally, LE in particular, and how does it vary in US vs Japan? I had assumed MSRP for LE always, but maybe not...?

[Nei.Nor]

Here’s my favourite watch that I have. It easily has the worst movement of any watch I’ve ever owned (possibly even seen/handled). The breguet font is lovely but the execution is pretty terrible as well. I also didn’t use to like the engraving on the dial. But - it’s my grandad’s old watch - so it’s one of the watches I wear the most. So my favourite watch

(oh and some lmc in the background)

[aho]

3 hours ago, JDelage said:

Yeah, it's unobtainium for us here.

What's the pricing of GS generally, LE in particular, and how does it vary in US vs Japan? I had assumed MSRP for LE always, but maybe not...?

US has generally the best pricing, unless you come across a deal in Japan at say Bic Camera, etc. 

I'd expect up to ~20% off MSRP with a good AD (Topper in SF, Timeless Luxury in TX) depending on your negotiation skills, here in the states. LE, they're less willing to discount, but maybe 5-10% if you have a solid relationship. The Seiko boutiques (NYC, Miami, LA) will sell at MSRP only.


@Nei.Nor, beautiful watch, I wish the male figures on my side passed down timepieces, but I guess it'll have to start with me! That said, my family have always worn Seiko, being from the Philippines...