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Affordable Watches


GottaB

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 2/1/2024 at 7:28 PM, GottaB said:

Arrived today. Its a good feeling watch. I like it. I would buy again. I did like the fact that the bracelet has screws for link adjustment and they included the screwdriver needed. I’m still pissed I have ditched OEM bracelets on my Seiko Monster as the pin came out of the collar at the worst time more than once.
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I like the looks except for the back. Just guessing all those groves and stuff will catch a lot of dirt and sweat

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Posted (edited)

I received an email from AnOrdain this week for a show in Atlanta.  My email said the event was free entrance, but I had to RSVP.  If you get email from AnOrdain, you want to check it if you are in the area.  If it were in the HTX, I'd figure out a way to go. I find the Arcanaut brand is piquing my interest.  Here's the link.

Atlanta — Intersect (intersectwatchshow.com)

Edited by Bevo&Pevo
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I received an email from AnOrdain this week for a show in Atlanta.  My email said the event was free entrance, but I had to RSVP.  If you get email from AnOrdain, you want to check it if you are in the area.  If it were in the HTX, I'd figure out a way to go. I find the Arcanaut brand is piquing my interest.  Here's the link.
Atlanta — Intersect (intersectwatchshow.com)
I'll be at the Atlanta show and I'm going to talk with them about having a show in Houston in the future. Several great independent brands at the Atlanta show including anOrdain, Arcanaut, Vortic, and Fears. Great microbrands as well. The Dallas show last year was good but only microbrands. I know the guy who runs the Atlanta Watch Society and he really busts his ass for that group.

I didn't have a Vortic, but I want one. Not inexpensive though. Here's the other three though.

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Finally got my watch back from the manufacturer who centered the bezel for me after two watch repair shops refused. Looking much better.

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Couldn’t resist. Really like the look of this watch and had to order one for myself. Should be here in 4-8 days.
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  • 2 weeks later...

I know almost nothing about watches, so I need some help.  I'm looking for a replacement for this watch, which has been my go-to for out door activities / farm work the last several years.

TimexWatch.thumb.webp.d15dd5745658b46823e91d799258c46f.webp

 

Of late it's been very unreliable despite a battery replacement, and I'm heading to Africa in a few months and I need something damned dependable.

I don't want to spend a fortune since the watch will be for outdoor use, travel, and it's Africa.

 

What I'm looking for:

-Analog as I find that beneficial for tracking time and general sense of time

-Colors in earth tones, drab, etc - I like that look

-Need a divers bezel; I use it all the time

-I greatly prefer something that can be backlit so that my sucky old-ass eyes can see the time in the dark (e.g. Indiglo or Illuminator)

-Prefer to avoid shiny metal bezel, case, strap

-Water resistance a must for rain and slight immersion - I'm not diving with it.

 

I've perused Timex and Casio websites.  There's a lot of love for G-Shock in this space, but those don't seem to employ divers bezels.  I feel like I'm missing other brands, and perhaps y'all can point me in the right direction.  

TIA.

 

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I was critical of Jack Mason before. They were basically a mall brand. But they have recently been really working to reform the company. A few people I know have been very impressed with the Strat-O-Timer GMT and I was able to check that out along with the new Ellum last weekend. While neither is for me for different reasons, they are impressive. The linen dial on the Ellum is excellent.

Credit where credit is due.



Screenshot_20240328_193431_Firefox.jpgScreenshot_20240328_193513_Firefox.jpg

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Posted (edited)
10 hours ago, solamente73 said:

I know almost nothing about watches, so I need some help.  I'm looking for a replacement for this watch, which has been my go-to for out door activities / farm work the last several years.

TimexWatch.thumb.webp.d15dd5745658b46823e91d799258c46f.webp

 

Of late it's been very unreliable despite a battery replacement, and I'm heading to Africa in a few months and I need something damned dependable.

I don't want to spend a fortune since the watch will be for outdoor use, travel, and it's Africa.

 

What I'm looking for:

-Analog as I find that beneficial for tracking time and general sense of time

-Colors in earth tones, drab, etc - I like that look

-Need a divers bezel; I use it all the time

-I greatly prefer something that can be backlit so that my sucky old-ass eyes can see the time in the dark (e.g. Indiglo or Illuminator)

-Prefer to avoid shiny metal bezel, case, strap

-Water resistance a must for rain and slight immersion - I'm not diving with it.

I've perused Timex and Casio websites.  There's a lot of love for G-Shock in this space, but those don't seem to employ divers bezels.  I feel like I'm missing other brands, and perhaps y'all can point me in the right direction.  

TIA.

Recommend the Luminox Navy Seal. Analog quartz, black with durable Carbonox bezel and case, Tritium hands and markers so it's always illuminated, 100m of water resistance (200m on the pricier models), and unidirectional rotating diver's bezel. Comes in different variants and prices (the one below is $230 and change on Amazon). Only thing is they're usually black.

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Edited by satyanash
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On 10/28/2023 at 10:26 AM, Dignan said:


Update: LOVE this watch. It’s become my regular wear. I put it on a black Barton rubber strap. LUM is great. Movement too. The second hand has an orangish red tint that really pops. Love it.

Does it bother you that the bezel isn’t lined up with the 12 marker?

I have a Seiko SBDC051 watch where the 12 marker isn’t EXACTLY top dead center - off by just a hair. The bezel just also a hair and it bugs the shit out of me.

Not as much as the 6R15 movement taking a shit on me. It’s losing a minute everyday, and lasts about 24 hours even if it’s fully wound. It’s supposed to last closer to 50 hours. I took it to get it serviced and it cost me $350!

But it’s still a beautiful watch and my daily wearer so I a $350 service is still worth it for me. 

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On 12/9/2023 at 2:09 PM, FirstTimeCaller said:

Gulp. Starting to look through this thread and getting the bug. I'm a big fan of this Stowa watch... but it's going to end up being about $1,400. Anyone know of anything similar that's an easier to handle price?

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On 12/10/2023 at 6:09 AM, HoustonHorn said:
On 12/9/2023 at 2:09 PM, FirstTimeCaller said:
Gulp. Starting to look through this thread and getting the bug. I'm a big fan of this Stowa watch... but it's going to end up being about $1,400. Anyone know of anything similar that's an easier to handle price?

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Laco

There is a ~ $1,000 between the Laco Flieger Basic and the range. You can get the basic from $400 up to $1,200 for the “original”. They look the same and it’s all in the movement. I got the basic which has a Miyota movement which is pretty terrible - the watch keeps shaking after you shake to wind. Not the end of the world, but not something that happens with my other autos.

Be careful the watch wears BIG. I have a 7” wrist and the 42mm looks massive. I would go with the 39mm if I bought another Flieger.

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  • 5 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...
2 hours ago, Dignan said:

Just got this Citizen for $170. Couldnt pass it up. Changed out the brown leather strap for black rubber. For now anyway. 4cfa2c6690e91bbffa0a95b064944bdd.jpg.

Love it. I've been wearing a very similar Citizen almost every day for the last 2 1/2 years. I probably only wear my "fancy" dress watch probably 20-30 times a year when the outfit calls for it. 

Edited by Storm the Field
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Not a watch guy myself but saw this article and thought some who post on this thread would find it interesting.

I had no idea that championship watches were a thing but at least in college they are, thanks to a former Penn lacrosse goalie.

It’s About Time: How Former Penn Goalie John Kanaras Is Making AXIA Time His Focus

Quote

Three decades after John Kanaras helped take Penn Lacrosse to the Final Four in 1988, he founded AXIA Time in 2018. So you could say, AXIA Time was 30 years in the making.

You’ve seen a photo or video of John Kanaras — you just might not realize it.

Don’t take John’s word for it; don’t take my word for it. Take Kyle Harrison’s.

“Kyle says I'm the most famous person in lacrosse that nobody knows,” Kanaras says. “Everybody knows the Air Gait goal where Gary Gait jumped from behind the net and scored a goal. I was the goalie on which Gary scored that goal.”

Probably the most famous goal (actually, goals — he did it twice in that game) in lacrosse history was scored in the 1988 NCAA Semifinal in which Syracuse beat Penn 11-10 in the Carrier Dome. Kanaras was between the pipes, backstopping a zone defense devised by coach Tony Seaman to slow down Gary and his brother Paul. And Seaman’s zone defense nearly worked — it took Paul hitting Kanaras’ leg on a shot and the ball trickling in with three seconds left for Syracuse to advance to the title game, where they beat Cornell 13-8.

Kanaras isn’t necessarily proud of being the goalie in net when the Air Gait was scored, but he’s proud of being part of a team that pushed the Gait brothers and coach Roy Simmons, Jr., to their creative limits (which is a high bar).

“That year, Syracuse and the Gait twins dominated the college lacrosse season. Their average margin of victory was about 10 goals a game,” Kanaras says. “And we played them in the last game of the regular season at Franklin Field, and we were tied going into the fourth quarter. No one played them that closely. And in the fourth quarter, we made a few mistakes, and we lost by four or five goals.

“So [as the legend goes], driving back to Syracuse after that game, Gary and Paul were sitting with Coach Simmons in the back of the bus talking about, ‘Well, what if we play these guys in the playoffs? Like, how are we going to score against them?’ The Air Gait goal was really a testament to Tony Seaman and his zone defense. We played this zone defense where we kind of collapsed in front of the goal, and we didn't cover anyone behind the goal. The outside shots were relatively easy for me to save, they were shooting from a good 12 to 14 yards out. So they had trouble scoring on us because of that zone defense. And so on the bus ride back to Syracuse, Gary and Paul were brainstorming, ‘Well, they don't cover us from behind the goal. Is there a way for us to score from behind the goal’? And so through that brainstorm, the idea for the Air Gait came to be. But if you think about it, the foundation of that idea came from their frustration not being able to score on Tony Seaman's zone defense.”

 

It was a bitter end to a glorious season that included an Ivy League regular season championship. To commemorate that, he and his teammates received a watch — a cool twist on the customary championship ring that most athletes get and stick in a drawer, only to be pulled out and worn on the rarest of occasions. While the watch was eminently more wearable, Kanaras still didn’t find himself putting it on as often as he’d have liked.

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“It was an amazing season with my brothers, a real special time in my life,” Kanaras says. “The watch was not the greatest quality, not the greatest design, but incredible sentimental value.  I'm a bit of a watch guy, and I never really wore that watch, mainly because the styling and quality just didn't fit with what I was looking for. And every time I would look at that watch, I would think, ‘Man, it just doesn't match the memories.’ The memories of that season were incredible, and the style and quality of the watch I had to commemorate it just didn't match up. And so, for 30 years, I was looking for a nice watch with a Penn logo, something subtle, elegant, good quality. And after 30 years of looking and not finding what I was looking for, I turned 50, and this basically became my midlife crisis. I'm like, you know what? I'm just going to do it myself. And so that's when I started AXIA Time.”

And just in time — after founding the company in 2018, Penn won the Ivy League regular season championship in 2019, the first one since ’88. Kanaras made timepieces for the team watches in a quality befitting his standards and significance of the memories created by the likes of Simon Mathias, Adam Goldner and Sam Handley’s offensive production or Reed Junkin’s saves.

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But it didn’t end there. After Virginia won the 2019 NCAA Championship, Kanaras designed AXIA watches for Lars Tiffany’s Wahoos. Then came a partnership with the Tewaaraton. Then the College Football Playoff. Then the 2023 Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Then this year’s Michigan football and UConn men’s basketball teams. And in between, many, many more high school and college teams.

So now’s the time. After juggling his watch microbrand and a day job in vaccines for nearly five years, Kanaras is finally following his dream, making AXIA Time his sole focus.

“In Greek, axia means worth or value. I am the product of Greek immigrant parents, and my Hellenic background means a lot to me. It's a part of my identity, it's part of who I am,” Kanaras says. “When I thought about naming this company, I wanted to name it something that would deliver what we're trying to achieve, which is value. We try and deliver a lot of watch for the money, something that's heirloom-quality but at a fair price. For watch enthusiasts, when they see the specifications of our watches in terms of the case, the movement, all the components that make up the watch, and they look at the price, they can quickly and easily say, ‘That's a really good price for the watch I'm buying.’”

Kanaras sees opportunity all throughout the world of sports, but his passion is lacrosse, and he wants to ensure that every lacrosse player — man or woman, college or high school — with a championship moment or memorable season can have a proper piece of jewelry to commemorate it.

“I created AXIA Time for myself, basically. I wanted to design a watch I would wear, at the kind of quality I would want, at a fair price, and treat people the way I'd want to be treated,” Kanaras says. “All watches tell time. These watches tell the time of your life.”

 

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