MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
We will be in touch
Cheers for that. Sounds like you just squeezed through.
I'm not convinced being on the other side of Brexit would have made any difference. It shipped from a UK address on UK Postage.
Regarding @dmorts original query about alloy bezel inserts, I’ve just taken some photos of the three watches I own with alloy inserts, trying to get as close-up as I can, to show the wear and tear, the first one is just over fifty years old, the second one thirty-seven, and the bottom one twelve years old, all three have had significant wear over the years I’ve owned them.
99% of the time with a dead solar watch, it’s the capacitor.
I was going to post something similar, having just read about the problem. I don’t own a solar watch, but I’ve read forum threads about issues with them failing, and it’s the capacitor that always seems to be the culprit.
Eddie opens up tomorrow, 2pm....New website and 2nd run of new 200 in and that's it folks system. I have had several Solar Seiko and Citizen. All have been faultless if allowed to have daylight by a window every month or so for a day. The only way to ruin a solar is 6 months plus in a drawer, so hard to do, but neglect will kill. Even harder with the better solar watches that go into hibernation after 2 days of darkness and then awaken by a frenzy of hand spinning to the second - sorry Citizen landmaster - I promise not to put you in that dark drawer again.....
Eddies Top grade Selita 200 Navigator series keeps better time than an Omega coaxial 8500 for 1/10th cost. I have replaced Capacitors in Seiko Kinetic watches that die after 8+ years and it's a faff, that can be easily messed up. Their are folks who do this professionally as a small side line - use them.
I do firmly believe howver that Solar will eventually rule them all. Citizen/Seiko have this nailed. Why buy a 200m watch to open it after 3 years? or have to regulate it?
I do firmly believe howver that Solar will eventually rule them all. Citizen/Seiko have this nailed. Why buy a 200m watch to open it after 3 years? or have to regulate it?
Why indeed. Apart from the fact that electronics can die, and replacement parts become almost impossible to find, whereas a fully mechanical watch will go for years without needing to be touched - if it needs adjusting, so be it, it’s not too difficult to take the case back off and tweak it, I did it with the SPORK above, but really, adjusting the time once every month or two is hardly a chore, takes about thirty seconds or so.
@Wally who is the mysterious Eddie? You recommend him to me specifically a couple of pages back, I'm still non the wiser.
Eddie Platts - Timefactors ownerThis is his website
This is the forum - Sign up if you want to join into the watch chat.
Thanks Wally. I was right with my guess.
I was given a citizen solar watch for my 30th and bought myself a Seiko kinetic about the same time.
The capacitor in the kinetic died last year and I replaced it myself. Fiddily but doable with a YouTube tutorial.
The citizen has stopped once as my watch box has a glass top and I didn't twig that would block the Uv the watch needs.
So 12 years in and they both still keep almost perfect time. As in only CV correcting the time every year/ 6 months or so!
They are both a bit scratched. I thought about getting the glass replaced when I turned 40, I can still tell the time and no one other than me will notice and of the scratches.
Time factors watches are very good, although only Smith's because Eddie bought the name I believe. They have a strong following.
The forum is good, I just it, good community.
The new Smiths Everest looks really good, not surprised it's sold out
Incoming!
Thought these had all sold out but just saw one on Creation so I accidentally impulse bought it.
Generally I'm not a fan of chunky PVD cases, but I do quite like that.
Regarding @dmorts original query about alloy bezel inserts, I’ve just taken some photos of the three watches I own with alloy inserts, trying to get as close-up as I can, to show the wear and tear, the first one is just over fifty years old, the second one thirty-seven, and the bottom one twelve years old, all three have had significant wear over the years I’ve owned them.
Thanks @CountZero, appreciate you doing those
Who does the hivemind recommend for online sales of cherished watches? I'm thinking of a pre-owned Seamaster or Submariner.
Just placed on classifieds due to E-bike fund management.
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@Wally - any chance of a link to the classified ad? I can never get the search to work (though having just ordered another MTB (I know, bikes) I don’t think I’ll be sufficiently well funded).
Nice though.
Look at the Random category, it's at the top. That's really nice, a little tempted myself.
Nice. But I must pay for the bike first.
Lovely Watch Wally, I've a 1961 manual wind with sub seconds that looks very similar. Called Ranchero style I think.
I've just pressed the button on something myself.... photos in due course.
Today I'm completely miffed by Seiko.
In addition to the SKX007 I got from Creation Watches, I now have a SPRE55, the bezel-less version of the SKX007 replacement (from a UK supplier).
Firstly, the SKX007. I think the bezel might have more issues. These are in addition to the alignment and lume pip. It's supposed to be 120 clicks. But it's like every other click almost isn't there, so it's more like 60. It also has some slightly backwards movement. I suspect the bezel spring needs adjustment. Approaching Seiko for warranty is an option I suppose.
Secondly the SPRE55. I got this for an everyday watch and in terms of looks and wear, it's great. However it's losing 30-35 seconds a day (only just in spec). I could regulate it but I want to be sure its water resistance and warranty remains intact. It looks like the lever is all the way to "-" so obviously little regulation was done in the factory. I imagine getting regulation by Seiko to preserve the warranty would be more than the watch is worth.
Essentially, I'm annoyed that I've got 2 new Seiko watches and they both have issues. I'm almost considering selling both to buy something I can enjoy owning instead.
I've counted the clicks on my SKX007, it's definitely 90 and not 120.
120 on mine. But it does move with a two tone tick-tock sound.
90? What is the use of that!?
Well I'm not a diver, so it doesn't really make much odds to me. It's weird though, because I've popped it off today to change the insert, and the click spring isn't a flat washer with a couple of pawls like the ones I've seen in photos, it's a single wire spring which on vertical teeth.
Anyone heard of Boldr Watches? Stumbled across the website and liking the dive watches, particularly this one.
https://www.boldrsupply.co/collections/odyssey-freediver/products/odyssey-freediver-288
Ranchero/Railmaster theme is what I would live Eddie Platts to produce at some point.
Tried a Ranchero on at Burlington Arcade - only 5K and 50+ years old. Lovely though.
Bullet
Full Member
Anyone heard of Boldr Watches? Stumbled across the website and liking the dive watches, particularly this one. https://www.boldrsupply.co/collections/odyssey-freediver/products/odyssey-freediver-288
/blockquote>I've looked at them a couple of times, seem to have a decent reputation and that diver is pretty smart.
Anyone got an opinion on the Tudor Black Bay 58? I was thinking of buying one, not as an investment, but in the hope of not losing much and to pass it on in the future. In the past, I have (stupidly) sold a Submariner and a Speedmaster. If I'd only kept the Submariner .....
I've not got an opinion on the BB58 as such (well, I do but you don't want to hear it) but I couldn't be arsed buying something like a watch, considering it an investment and worrying about marking it etc etc.
I'd rather buy the watch I wanted, wear it and chuck some money into BTC or whatever if I wanted to have a punt at making some money long-term.
I think the BB58 is good value and looks nice. I can't afford one though.
@failedengineer. I have one, picked up the BB58 about 9 months ago.
I quite like it. Gets used a lot. The only thing I don’t like about it is the bracelet isn’t as comfy as the bracelet on my Rolex (glidelock).
Beauty in the eye of the beholder and all that, but I like how it looks. I don’t wear a suit, normally just jeans and casual clothing with it, probably better as a casual watch rather than a full on smart dress watch. It’s probably the most worn watch out of my small collection (8 watches and 3 being considered “better” watches than the Tudor).
Well, regarding the bracelet, I fancy the leather strap anyway. I don't like the look of the false rivets. I didn't say I expected to make money - just not to lose too much.
120 on mine. But it does move with a two tone tick-tock sound
Ok, that sounds like mine. The 'tock' being quite quiet. I dont think the two leaf springs are even. Less wobble at 15 than 12, which makes sense as they alternate.
You probably wouldn’t lose much on the BB58. They’re certainly not in the Rolex category of increasing in value, you’ll get a decent return when you sell it.
You may want to buy the bracelet and add a strap though, I’d take
It off the bracelet straight away, would help with resale price.
Regarding solar watches, my Citizen EcoDrive Tough is 22 years old this year and hasn't missed a beat so far, despite lots of abuse. Doesn't get much wear of late but still love it's simplicity.
Might send it off for a service at some point and treat it to a new kevlar strap, having lost the original a long time ago.
Anyone got an opinion on the Tudor Black Bay 58? I was thinking of buying one, not as an investment, but in the hope of not losing much and to pass it on in the future.
I have owned a BB58 for getting on for 2 years & is a great watch.
Not a cheap watch but great value - not much gets close to it in terms of spec & finish for the money.
I took mine off the bracelet when purchased & had it on a really nice leather strap for a while, but put it back on the bracelet after a few months & has stayed that way since.
The bracelet is great, super comfy & looks so good on the watch - a lot of talk about fake rivets (which is not generally by owners of the watch), but they are barely noticeable when wearing.
I personally prefer the original black/gilt model, the blue on does nothing for me.
I went for the leather on my BB41 instead of the bracelet and I am glad I made that choice. The Tudor deployant has the same ceramic ball bearings as the bracelet and it's very comfortable
@dmorts I've got an SKX007J that's just under a year old from Creation and I've just counted the clicks - also 120, but they're definitely in a tick-tock-sounding configuration where every other click is quieter.
I still love it but the charm of adjusting it by 2 or 3 minutes every week to bring it back to accuracy is starting to wear off. Which means I may be about to start down the slippery slope of modding / upgrading, although I want to keep it as original as possible, so I think a new mechanism and flat crystal glass is all I'll go for.
If you mean you're having to regulate it by 2-3 mins every week, rather than just alter the time I'd be thinking about claiming on the warrantee.
I'm perplexed about the 90 click bezel. Going to try and find a Seiko forum to ask on as there's no general web info that I can find.
Considering a lot of the watches are blatant "homages" they spend quite a lot of time telling you how achingly individual they all are.
If you want a value homage a friend of mine picked up a Depth Charge the other day: https://www.watchshop.com/watches/depth-charge.plp
Quite good money for sapphire, ceramic and nh35. Personally I can’t get on with the name.
If you mean you’re having to regulate it by 2-3 mins every week, rather than just alter the time I’d be thinking about claiming on the warrantee.
Dunno what the seiko warranty actually says about regulation but seikos were, are and always will be accurate but poorly regulated out of the factory. I don't know if their movements are particularly susceptible to position or what but they are almost famous for running 25+ seconds fast
If you are patient you can get them really well regulated (+1-3s aa day) and they seem to run very consistently when you do. They are fiddly to adjust though. A seemingly tiny movement of the adjuster sends them crazy.
If you mean you’re having to regulate it by 2-3 mins every week, rather than just alter the time I’d be thinking about claiming on the warrantee.
That's +/- 20-30 secs a day and within the spec of the 7s26 movement?
When I say regulate I mean he's taking the back off to adjust, getting it accurate then it's going out of whack by 2—3 mins so having to do it again the following week. That suggests a fault to me. If it just needs the time correcting every week, then yeah, quite normal.
Apologies if it's been discussed before, anyone had dealings with watches of mayfair
Look like a grey import shop from the reviews.
Advise?
It's arrived! (hope the photo works!)
Christoper Ward Trident C60 bronze. Sellita automatic movement (ETA 2824 clone), CuSn6 Bronze 43 mm case, 600m water resistance. I'm loving the flat blue dial although the faux aged lumed markers are a bit too yellow (but kind of ok given the bronze), I quite like the logo at 9 but I know many don't, So far I'm liking the nylon/rubber hybrid strap which is a surprise, I normally fund rubber straps sweaty by the end of the day. I'm also loving the bright pink Copper tin bronze, although I am researching forced patina's and suspect I'll have a play. bezel action is phenomenal, really strong click, crown is super smooth too, it seems a lot of watch for £850, good value like many microbrands. i picked this up pre owned though 🙂
oh and 600m WR but no HeEV...yeah....well i dont dive anyway
Milk and red wine Neil and post up pics...
IMO a really fun Summer watch and she's on her way.
Yeah I read that the other day. I've been googling and found lots of blogs/articles on patinaring watches on sites like worn and wound, and I saw the milk then fix with red wine gave a faint but interesting iridescent patina.
The thing is, it's chemistry, and results depend on the bronze (cusn 6 or 8 or 12, or cu Al) and the crystal size and surface finish and the patina agent concentrations, and temp and presence or not of catalysts and time and and and ! I would like something brightly coloured, a mix of green, blue, purple, red.... But I suspect I'll end up with black or brown. So long as it adds character though I'll like it. Probably.
Clearly some experts on this thread. I have many watches in a draw. 20+ year old Tag, something massive with a compass(!), Animal with a Ti Bezel (I think), Torgoen that I really liked but never wear. Mostly I wear my Fenix 6.
For some reason I'm quite taken by this: https://www.panzera.shop/product/time-master-42/raptor/raptor-mk5/
I worry it'll be like the https://torgoen.com/collections/t10-collection/products/t10-troupial-black-carbon-sapphire-45mm-orange-silicone-strap (Not quite the same but close) and once it turns up, it'll also end up on the drawer.
Anyway before I even think of wasting my money, any opinions on the brand. I did a few googles which seemed to suggest they were okay and not likely to fall apart in the first few months.
Anyway before I even think of wasting my money
...walk away from this thread...
I’ve counted the clicks on my SKX007, it’s definitely 90 and not 120.
Well I’m not a diver, so it doesn’t really make much odds to me. It’s weird though, because I’ve popped it off today to change the insert, and the click spring isn’t a flat washer with a couple of pawls like the ones I’ve seen in photos, it’s a single wire spring which on vertical teeth.
As others have said, the SKX should have 120 clicks and they 'should' be even, but with manufacturing tolerances and wear they tend to be uneven.
If you've got 90 clicks and a bezel spring different to the one below then I'd question the authenticity.
Lol at kryton!
As for experts.... enthusiastic hobbiests, some very knowledgeable (not me...I know enough to have fun, no more!)
I should post some pics of mine. Not quite at the level of some of what I've seen on here 😉
Anyway I've asked Panzera what the import cost would be. I think 'a lot' probably!
If you’ve got 90 clicks and a bezel spring different to the one below then I’d question the authenticity.
It's not that type at all! It's a wire with a small 90 degree bend that sits in a single hole drilled in the body. It curves around inside the bezel and clicks against a vertical track on the inside the bezel. There's a Vostok type retaining/tension spring in there too. I wish I'd taken a photo of it!
I've looked at a few YouTube clips on how to spot a fake, and absolutely everthing else looks legit though so I'm really not sure.
Is there a Korean Japanese Seiko difference maybe?
Is there a Korean Japanese Seiko difference maybe?
The K and J SKX models are identical, apart from text on the face and case back.
Bad weather has apparently caused my DHL flight from Singapore to divert to Germany so my hopes of getting my M-Force by the weekend are shattered.
#1stworldproblems.
It’s not that type at all! It’s a wire with a small 90 degree bend that sits in a single hole drilled in the body. It curves around inside the bezel and clicks against a vertical track on the inside the bezel. There’s a Vostok type retaining/tension spring in there too. I wish I’d taken a photo of it!
That's the same setup used on 80's/90's vintage Tag Heuer but with 60 clicks and it's never been used on any Seiko to my knowledge.
Get a pic up of the front and case back if you can. It might not be 100% fake but I know for certain the bezel isn't a genuine SKX.
Nth watches anyone?
More NH35/Miyots but they got the name right
They have a very good rep as far as I've seen. Well built, good service and the designs aren't generally straight copies. It's pretty hard to create an original diver style these days but some of their dial texture, colour & layering combos are interesting.
If I was buying a diver now it would probably be between an NTH, Halios (if I could find the pale green Seaforth anywhere), Crepas or Doxa.
Though there are a tonne of micro's putting out decent looking, well built divers under £800 at the moment.
This watch is absolutely amazing
Unlike Cavalier Malvern I love "extravagant" watches, original and out of the ordinary. On the other hand I must say in all honesty that I love the watch that you have posted on the photo, it is a sporty watch but I find it not simplistic at all. Personally my favourites are the technological watches.
Dear watch geeks,
After a long time of not wearing a watch I currently have a:
but i've started looking at shiny things & i really like the look of:
https://g-shock.co.uk/gmw-b5000d-1er
@ 49.3 x 43.2 x 13.0 mm on a 6.5" wrist, will it be too big ❓
(this is part idle musings)
I think I would like those Urwerks if I was twelve years old or a professional footballer, otherwise it’s a no.
This watch is absolutely amazing
Which watch? Is there a photo there that isn't loading for me?
Urwerk and MB&F make really interesting watches. If I had the money I'd definitely have a few even just to stick on a stand as a piece of functional art.
I like slight twists on more traditional styles & some of the classics for wearing normally but there is definitely a place for far more innovative timepieces.
Qwerty - you already own the perfect watch. Anything else is just affectation, and I speak as a watch geek (although my geekery is inexpensive, quirky watches, rarely more than £40).
And G-Shocks ming, regardless of size 🙂
Update - the ETA on my M-Force was 24/2 but the flight from Singapore got diverted to Germany because of bad weather and as a result of which I've just received it now.
No, I don't understand that either...
Either way the watch is mint!
After wearing my trident again yesterday I found the usual sweaty irritation from the rubber strap by the end of the day, so started looking at sail cloth or canvas. It seems all sail cloth have a leather lining which is surely pointless on a sports/dive watch? Canvas options from the likes of Barton straps look reasonable. It's just a shame that, as far as I can see, the buckle is intended to be removed from the CW strap so I'll not have a bronze buckle on the canvas. Could go rose gold coloured... But I guess it won't patina like the head. Hmmm.
Feiko? What do you reckon then? Sorry about the big images, but these were taken with SWMBO's iPhone, so should be able to zoom into the details. The bezel insert and movement are the originals which came with the watch. I've looked at photo's of the case back on Google Images, I don't think the wave is stamped to a good enough quality. edit - it doesn't really show on the last photo, but the lume pip on the insert is definitely inset and not printed on or raised.
The lume on your dial looks wrong. It has quite large borders
Also, on the case back the O on Seiko is round on yours. Looks more like an oval here
Yeah the dial looks pretty poorly executed if it is real - Seiko's generally have first class lume.
The constant need to regulate can be a sign that it needs de-magnetising.
As to the originality of the watch, the logo on the back does change from time to time. As mentioned the lume on the face looks off. The placement of the serial number, and it looks lasered not stamped/engraved. That doesn't match any seiko I've seen.
Having said that, the case, bezel and movement look about right. The 7s26b is a later movement iirc.
I have a bit of trouble believing it's worth taking a seiko, they aren't insanely expensive, and parts can be had relatively cheaply.
More likely I'd have thought, is it's been modded. Plenty of that around.
I think the most noticeable difference, (apart from the quality of the photography) is the stamping of the sea below the big wave, and that the Seiko doesn't line up above the big wave.
How annoying. 😥
Edit - bezel is defiantly not right, see my comments above. Also, there are fakes of everything. I also like a Vostok, and there are Chinese copies of those, even though the originals are about 40 quid from Russia!
Actually the chapter ring doesn't quite! Proper attention to detail. 🤣
Just to add, the movement is a genuine Seiko 7S26 but the rest is fake as pointed out above.
I have a bit of trouble believing it’s worth taking a seiko, they aren’t insanely expensive, and parts can be had relatively cheaply.
There's a ton of fake Seiko's on Wish. You're right that they're not expensive to us, but there are countries in Asia where Seiko are an aspirational brand and the average wage is a fraction of what we earn in the UK. A SKX might be a months wage if you've got a good job in Vietnam, so if you can fake them and knock them out for a weeks wage there will be demand.
See also the Casio F91W. Less than £10 for a new one but it's also one of the most faked watches in the world.
Edit to add: Just looked on Wish and a fake SKX is less than £20 direct from the factory in China.