40th is coming up, wife asked for gift ideas, all I can come up with is garbage. After discounting a guitar (want the dream guitar next, already have a couple) and a Playstation 4 (I’m not 12) I’m thinking watch.

I already have a fairly chunky Seiko Divers and my everyday (ie didn’t cost much and is scratched to hell) is a G Shock. Budget is about 400 quid and I’m thinking something relatively subtle and a bit dressy.

So far

Victorinox Officers

Tissot Visodate

Any other ideas or i’ll just go PS4 and a Bin Laden Casio

Any other ideas or i’ll just go PS4 and a Bin Laden Casio

It’s only a birthday – pointless going for an unnecessary purchase when you aren’t really fussed about it all. Maybe have a nice family/friends day out instead.

my missus does this, i can never be arsed, so i think it would be good i’ll go ona bike holiday or something – nope that will turn into a family thing… BUT ITS MY BIRTHDAY..

sorry no help on the actaul subject..

Actually, Suunto – it’s like a PS4, watch, spacecraft all rolled into 1

http://www.suunto.com/en-GB/Products/Watches/Suunto-Essential/Suunto-Essential-Copper/

you’ll find it cheaper..

edit

this one

http://www.suunto.com/en-GB/Products/sports-watches/Suunto-Ambit3-Peak/Suunto-Ambit3-Peak-Sapphire/

Have a look on http://www.christopherward.Co.uk English company but Swiss made.

Have a look at Certina – I got a Certina DS Podium Auto for a ahem, significant birthday recently. I’ve got an old-ish Omega Speedmaster too, but I prefer the Certina – it’s lighter and much easier to read at a glance. And more waterproof, too.

You can’t discount more guitars. There’s always something different.

Mrs B got me an Ovation for my 30th, wouldn’t have thought of it myself at the time but it’s my most played now.

Just bought the Suunto Peak Saphire last week with the HR belt for £280 (shop on eBay).

http://en.uhrenlounge.de/shop/certina-herren-automatik-kollektion-s-69-483.html

There you go – I got mine from these people in Germany. The website lets you make an offer of a lower price!

You can’t discount more guitars. There’s always something different.

Mrs B got me an Ovation for my 30th, wouldn’t have thought of it myself at the time but it’s my most played now.

Yeah, this was on the list, fits in with her budget, lord knows I could use a new acoustic and it still leaves room for a Gibson SG

Japanese domestic market (aka “JDM”) automatic Seiko. Ignore any “it’s only a Seiko” nonsense and enjoy the fact you have a watch as good as a rather more expensive Swiss equivalent. And Seiko manufacture their own movements (which you don’t get on a Tag Heuer).

I have this for every day wear – Seiko Sarb065 “Cocktail Time”:

(not my picture)

And have one of these waiting for me to collect from the post office – Seiko SBDC003 “Sumo”:

(also not my picture)

Even after import duties (mine are from Seiya Japan), they’re both under your budget.

Yep, agree with the above. Seiko it should be. You’d me mad to buy anything else at that price. Jdm Seiko’s are different beasts to some of the high St stuff they sell. Have this on my wrist right now…

That Sumo looks like something James Bond would have worn in the 80s.

Archiymede.

£25 over budget but nicely designed and made watches with good movements.

that sunto thing is gopping, fine if you have unkempt hair, live in a camper van and work at a youth activity centre playing action man but it’s ugly as sin.

Not a big fan of wearing a watch but I do have a stainless Citizen Eco Drive and 10 years later it’s still doing its thing, albeit on my desk most of the time.

It’s a lovely bit of kit. Some nice Ti ones in that bracket.

Whats the largest/smallest diameters you would consider? And do you mind quartz or does it have to be mechanical?

I’ve got a hankering for one of these – right on your price point and description. Smart, modern, understated.

http://www.uniformwares.com/watches-and-timepieces/

Didn’t he say he had a chunky Seiko divers…?

Otherwise I would have suggested something seiko and tweaked…

Cocktail time is classic..

Couple of guys at work have uniform wares watches; simple, understated & stylish.

Not Swiss & below your budget, but Daniel Wellington make nice simple timepieces too

https://www.danielwellington.com/uk/men

Why not give the money to charity??if your struggling to think of something to waste money on

Buy from Europe, the weak euro is making Steinhart and Stowa watches very tempting.

The Sumo and Tuna can are really nice, I have a hankering after Ioddric’s Tuna, I must admit!

@ CountZero – will do pics when I’ve got it.

@ Twinw4ll – interesting thought!

The Tissot is nice and classy as are some of their powermatic models. A good watch will last a lifetime and tis always nice to put a dress watch on to make you feel like it’s special event/party time 🙂

Leather strap all day for a gentleman’s dress watch.

I have a Tissot Visodate automatic as an everyday watch and I like it. Mine is the same age as me (from 1968) but it doesn’t look much different to that one.

FWIW two colleagues have the Tissot and it’s very nice.

You could buy a steel strap instead to match if leather is not your thing.

http://www.elliotbrownwatches.com/

Mentioned it before and still not got round to buying it, but for 300 sheets, the Inox will be my next watch. It has a strange lug width, but leather straps can be bought, it’s not the most technologically advanced watch – but just look at it….

Tis nice, but date is in a poor place/angle.

Seiko brightz like this maybe

http://www.creationwatches.com/products/seiko-japan-82/seiko-brightz-automatic-sdgm003-mens-watch-6068.html

Bit over budget but a very well made watch.

Tis nice, but date is in a poor place/angle.

Not really. It’s in that position on my Seiko SPORK, and my Yokobies Mod Seiko 5 Military has the window in that position; it means you can get a day/date in without losing the indice for 3 o’clock, perfectly sensible, it doesn’t spoil the aesthetics of the face. It doesn’t make it any more difficult seeing the date, and how often do you need to do that anyway?
And dammit, guys! I passed over buying a Tudor Pelageos, because I really couldn’t justify paying £2850 for another watch, when my £350 Seiko is just as accurate, and looks as good, then someone goes and puts up a link to Seiya Japan, who just happen to have a 1000 Metre Marinemaster Tuna auto, for around £2100/£1300!
How could you do this to me!
Not at all what the OP had in mind, but what the heck…

When exactly is your birthday?

The reason I ask is because the correct answer to the op is to find a birth date watch – a nice and all original 40yr old Seiko classic such as the 6139-6002 will easily fit the budget but Seiko serial numbers also include the month it was made so finding the right one is approximately 12x harder than finding any other watch that was made the year you were born.

Happy hunting!

Not really. It’s in that position on my Seiko SPORK, and my Yokobies Mod Seiko 5 Military has the window in that position; it means you can get a day/date in without losing the indice for 3 o’clock, perfectly sensible, it doesn’t spoil the aesthetics of the face. It doesn’t make it any more difficult seeing the date, and how often do you need to do that anyway?

It makes the date harder to see if you wear your watch on the right arm and I appear to need to check the date every 5 minutes as I can never remember it and I have to sign and date everything I do.

It’s nice to look at, but it’s a very chunky quartz that would drive me mad with the date placement/angle. And on reading it has a non-standard lug width? I couldn’t live with it.

Not a highjack as such, but does anyone know a reliable replica watch site? I’m liking the look of Bell and Ross phantoms, but for occasional use, disliking the price.

I have an Elliot Brown – it’s a classic looking and attractive watch, that although quartz and requiring a battery at some point, is more accurate than an auto and won’t need horrendous servicing.

They are also very nice guys to deal with.

Someone in the office acquired from the web, a watch looking very much like a Tag Heuer Space X. IIRC, they paid <£100.

Strange, the case, buttons, glass all seemed indistinguishable from the genuine swiss watches I own. Being of the correct weight, well finished and highly polished as you’d expect an original to appear.

Made me realise that prices for genuine examples, reflect costs of sponsorship, paying likes of Lewis and Leonardo, isn’t cheap and adds nothing to the ownership experience, for me.

I also wondered whether the premium brands are now manufacturing in the far east?

It makes the date harder to see if you wear your watch on the right arm and I appear to need to check the date every 5 minutes as I can never remember it and I have to sign and date everything I do.

Good point, well made! 😀
Sorry, of course that would make quite a difference; it seems obvious to wear a watch on the left arm, even if the wearer is normally left-handed, but I’ve seen right-handed people wearing their watch on the right wrist, which is just totally counter-intuitive to me. I’m sort-of ambidextrous, in that I write and do most other things with my right hand, but plenty of times I just naturally find myself using my left hand, and if I get an opportunity to shoot a rifle, I’m left-handed, I just can’t use my right eye to aim.

I’m right handed and wear my watch on the right – as a kid with my first watch no-one told me it was supposed to be on the left.

Right was right to me.

According to some that means I’m gay – which is news to me. 😉

I also wondered whether the premium brands are now manufacturing in the far east?

Define ‘premium’. Fashion brands will use movements from Japan like Miyota, nothing wrong with that but the real cheap Quartz movements that feature in most Diesel/Nixon types cost peanuts. A lot of premium brands are using the cachet of in-house movements not just modified ETA’s / Valjoux etc. so some watch buyers would ignore Bell & Ross and Panerai simply for the fact the same movement can be had in a £400 watch.

Some people don’t care and just want a wrist bauble, others like the idea of a movement that no other manufacture has.

AFAIK none of the high end brands manufacture in the Far East, it would kill their brand overnight. There is The Gran Seiko’s but they are looked at differently to a cheapo citizen.

AFAIK none of the high end brands manufacture in the Far East, it would kill their brand overnight.

True, but many of the bracelets and other components are certainly made in China. Final assembly in Switzerland- Swiss Made on the dial…