I know there are a few watch aficionados on here.

I have an overwhelming desire to buy a Rolex milgauss. What are people’s views on these? Worth it or overpriced brand image? They are a tad rude on price to put it mildly and can’t rationalise the head vs heart aspect of such a purchase. Maybe that’s not the pony. Any other options?

Life is short and I’ve always wanted a nice watch and would hand it down to my son when he’s older (he’s 7 now).

Before anyone asks I have a cheap casio!

If you want one, get it…… It will be with you every day for many many years….

Others pay for big ticket bikes, use them occasionally and swap them far quicker….

That’s sort of what I was thinking. Its the price of a car price tag I’m finding hard to rationalise in my head. Maybe that’s not the point!

Look on Hodinkee.com as there is a recent article on the milgauss.

You do realise you have to be a physicist at CERN to be allowed to wear one? Same as only divers can wear Submariners.

PS the overwhelming urge will pass. Put the cash into school funding for your son instead.

Air King: same watch except dial and a a set of 36s cheaper. Waiting list around 2 months when I last checked.

This predicament can be solved very easily.

Buy a more expensive car 😀

You can’t rationalise an expensive watch, they do the same as cheaper watches. But, they are bloody lovely, and if you buy well (Rolex is very safe) then you’ll not lose money and will have a something that will last indefinitely if it’s well looked after.

If you can afford it and you want it, buy it.

The mistake people make with watches is comparing them on a purely functional level. Once the simple matter of telling the time is covered, anything more is jewellery and needs to be regarded in those terms instead. Does a diamond ring do anything that a cubic zirconia does not ? No. So if you can afford it, and it makes you happy, knock yourself out.

It’s a Rolex
He probably will knock himself out when he accidentally hits his forehead with it…

The milgauss is a nice watch. I’ve had my eye on one for a while but want an airking bracelet as I don’t like the polished middle links of the milgauss.
I popped in to the Rolex HQ a last week and they said it isn’t possible as they won’t service it – only non modded watches can be officially serviced and supported.

I don’t regret buying my deep sea, sea dweller. It’s worn everyday and is now worth more now that I paid three years ago.

You won’t lose money on it. I love the design of the milgauss but couldn’t live with one day to day as it doesn’t have a date. I’d have a white 42mm Explorer though….

only non molded watches can be officially serviced

Changing the strap counts as ‘modded’, does it? Blimey.

I can never work out to what extent these threads miss the point of a watch as an investment. Yes, I guess the value won’t drop lots over the years, but aren’t you expected to pay £500 every few years for servicing? Genuinely interested. My Seiko automatic diver is lovely but deep down I have a hankering for something more spendy!

Lovely watches.
Tried on a few times, but too chunky for my wrists.
New omega railmaster is justout and similar. I would be waiting to see whether these railmaster become discounted, if they do then you could be paying half the price of the milgauss..

There are relatively few directly comparable (from a technical perspective) alternatives, but Omega and IWC also both make mechanical magnetically-shielded watches. I’d go for the IWC Ingenieur, but the Rolex will probably have better residuals for when you inevitably get bored of whichever one you choose (so says the owner of a Tudor Ranger I’ve got an itch to change 😉 ! ).

Life is short and I’ve always wanted a nice watch and would hand it down to my son when he’s older (he’s 7 now).

£4-5k will pay for a lot of adventures to share with your son and the memories will last forever.

I looked at the Milguass before I bought my Explorer 2, the dial is a little smaller than the Ex2 even with girly wrists I preferred the larger dial.

The Air King had have the same movement than the Milgauss which if you want a magnetically shielded watch it is ideal. If you’re after one because of the Aesthetic. Buy one, you won’t lose on it if you change your mind. I bought a Zenith Elite GMT watch 18 month ago for £1200 on Ebay, they’re going for nearly double that now.

I do like the Omega Auqa terra magnetic resistant watch though.

Life is short and I’ve always wanted a nice watch and would hand it down to my son when he’s older (he’s 7 now).

“Dad, can I have a car when I am 17?”
“No. You can have a watch when I die, and bloody well like it!”

😉

“Dad, can I have a car when I am 17?”
“No. You can have a watch when I die, and bloody well like it!”

Sure he could have both if he wanted.

I edited my post as I messed up the quote and accidentally deleted my winky.

Just tried to pee and it went everywhere.

😉 😉

The problem with owning a Rolex but without the accompanying Porsche lifestyle is that people are always going to assume its a fake.

The mistake people make with watches is comparing them on a purely functional level. Once the simple matter of telling the time is covered, anything more is jewellery and needs to be regarded in those terms instead. Does a diamond ring do anything that a cubic zirconia does not ? No. So if you can afford it, and it makes you happy, knock yourself out.

I guess a posh watch is more akin to a piece of art than a casio. Are you in the income bracket that could justify a £5K bit of Art for your wall? If so I guess £5K on your wrist is reasonable. Only those people I know with £5K bits of art and an otherwise normal level of affluence tend to be more interesting than those I know with £5K watches and a similar afflence 😉

Pre-owned could be an option Rolex Milgauss

Those prices are shite. Buy from airport if flying out of eu or get a very cheap flight to Geneva and enjoy a few days biking with the 20% saving you’ve just had.

I tried one on. Nice but not that nice and that lightning seconds put me off. I doubt id buy a rolex, aside from the money there is no chance in the world I’m joining a waiting list (which is NOT an orderly queue) and the brand is a bit “golf club” for me. The DSSDs are nice though.
I’d sooner have a Tudor, omega, IWC etc.

Those prices are shite.

Not for the seller they not.

I’ve seen the new Daytona going for £5k more second hand then they are new. It’s bonkers.

A former colleague was assaulted leaving work and his Rolex was taken. He started to change his story after a while saying he thinks they were trying to steal his car but changed their mind when they saw the watch ( I think he started to reconsider the wisdom of brandishing such a famously expensive trinket).

or alternative?

There’s a chap I follow on instagram who restores old cars and collects antique watches which he puts his own straps on. I don’t know much about watches but they seem to range from four or five hundred to a few thousand. To me, that seems much more interesting than just buying something off the shelf and I assume real watch geeks would be more interested in something fifty or one hundred years old than another Rolex?

My son will be able to have our old Honda jazz when he’s 17 🙂

couldn’t live with one day to day as it doesn’t have a date. I’d have a white 42mm Explorer though..

Really, I assumed that the whole ‘telling the time thing’ was a sort of afterthought when it came to “luxury Swiss watches” never mind telling the date.

My brother in law has a well paid job, a large Audi and wears a fake Rolex GMT.

I have a battered Seiko SKX007 on an oyster strap, but I think it’s cool.

David Lynch wear a bright yellow Swatch, I saw in a documentary about him the other day.

There’s a moral in there somewhere.

Your brother in law is a knob ?

There’s a moral in there somewhere.

My brother in law has a well paid job, a large Audi and wears a fake Rolex GMT.

I have a battered Seiko SKX007 on an oyster strap, but I think it’s cool.

David Lynch wear a bright yellow Swatch, I saw in a documentary about him the other day.

There’s a moral in there somewhere.

So there is.

Your brother in law is a knob ?

An Omega Aqua Terra looks much nicer and has moar gausses. You could buy it instead and a second hand Honda Jazz with the change.

If your son is 7, maybe try and find a pre-owned 7 year old one – always think a birth year watch is quite a cool thing to pass on.

David Lynch wear a bright yellow Swatch, I saw in a documentary about him the other day.

There’s a moral in there somewhere.

Don’t spunk your money paying for people to ‘meditate’ for world peace?

The milgauss is a nice watch. I’ve had my eye on one for a while but want an airking bracelet as I don’t like the polished middle links of the milgauss.
I popped in to the Rolex HQ a last week and they said it isn’t possible as they won’t service it – only non modded watches can be officially serviced and supported.

Say what, now? Putting a different style bracelet from the same manufacturers counts as modding, and they won’t service it?
I’ve never really gone for Rolex watches, but that level of pettiness is just bloody ridiculous.
Buying a quality, expensive watch is not unlike buying an artwork, first of all you should buy it because you like it, any investment potential should come second, as a long-term thing.
I have two watches that I wear regularly, my Yema Rallygraf, which I bought when I first started earning enough money, and it probably didn’t cost much more than about £50-100, if that, back in 1970-ish, but I’ve seen going for around €1000, although its recently cost me £450 for a mainspring repair, service and new crystal, but I treasure it as one of the very first nice things I bought with my own earned money, the other watch is my Seiko SPORK, which cost £300-ish, NOS, bought with money left by my mum, because it’s just a beautiful watch with a very clear face; if it increases in value, which it’s likely to, because Seiko never make many of these sort of watches, then great, but that was never the point of buying it, it’s just a pleasant extra to add to the enjoyment of owning a nice timepiece.

I’ve a few nice watches but my favourite is my Oris Aquis.

Ok it won’t hold its value like a Rolex but it was about 25% of the cost of one and compared to my Rolex, I think it’s 85% there, re comparative tactile quality, strap, glass, dial, weight, build etc.

Worth a look anyway.

For what it’s worth, non of my “nice” watches are as accurate as my £200 (reduced) mechanical Seiko Sportura.

Swap your Son for one then sell the watch and buy a Honda jazz ?

Say what, now? Putting a different style bracelet from the same manufacturers counts as modding, and they won’t service it?

Yup, if you send a watch to Rolex that is not 100% original, including the bracelet, they will not service it.

There is also the Railmaster, which is 15,000 gauss

https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/the-new-omega-railmaster-collection-and-a-contestant-for-the-surprise-favorite-of-the-show-live-pics