Snazy

Forgive the possibly dumb question, just I'm on a bus and get bored and curious.

Can anyone tell me if there is any advantage, as far as function goes, to a 10k Rolex to a 400 quid Tissot or Accurist etc.

Was looking at watches the other day, and decided I could not bring myself to part with more than a few grand, then got thinking.

Is there actually any advantage, or after a certain price/build quality is it just form over function?

Not knocking those who invest more, I realise there are gains to be had and they can be a genuine investment. But the question is more about time keeping than investment, or expensive materials.

hodgy0_2

i would have thought that a £15 digital watch keeps better time that any non digital movement

my brother in laws Automatic Seamaster (lovely watch) keeps shocking time

I have quite an expensive Quartz movement Tag Chrono -- I am under no illusions about its ultimate time Keeping -- I just love the look of it (and I will get a Rolly when I have some spare cash)

in fact, and i,m sure I will be corrected, a friend told me that when you buy a Rolex (he has one)-- it has a desclaimer in the paperwork saying words to the effect that this is not a guaranteed accuarate time piece.

yoza

All Rolex watches are COSC certified. (see below for full COSC explaination).

Most high end Swiss watches are COSC certified.

The bench mark for time accuracy on a mechanical movement is -4/+6 seconds per day.......you are right to think thats ****, but thats how it is.

Read about what else is tested other than time accuracy, quite amazing I think.


COSC - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Snazy

Friggin hell is that right ! -4/+6 thats shocking! I know for a fact most of my watches keep better time that that. lol

I shall have a read up all the same.

I am assuming from the replies that my assumption was correct, and that the prestige in these watches is more about the build quality, materials and exclusivity etc rather than a more accurate movement

Question answered I guess then lol.

Cheers guys.

PS I still love some of the mid range watches out there.

j4ckos mate

aaarrrggghh another bloody watch thread

Ant

So if there **** at keeping time why spend thousands on them??

Or is it just for bragging rights to say you have a £4k watch but its **** at keeping time

*wooden spoon away*

bigsinky

my watches keep good time, they are right twice a day.

Snazy

Yeah but one asking a sensible question this time, and not measuring anything else but time

yoza

Please note... -4/+6 daily rate is the COSC pass tolerance under extreme conditions.

This doesnt mean that you cant get a mechanical watch bang on for normal daily use, because you can.

+ or - 3 seconds per week is what I aim for, anything that falls out of this range is re-callibrated, by myself.

TelBoy

To answer the original question, yes absolutely it's form over function. At anything above about £150 i'd say.

The thing that really amuses me, is that 99.9% of people wouldn't know a decent watch movement if it slapped them in the face with a frying pan, yet this is an attribute which is often cited as justification for spending £000s on a "hand crafted timepiece". Money for old rope. The expensive watch industry must wonder how it keeps getting away with it.

That said, i've got two decent watches myself, but it took those to make me appreciate why it isn't really worth spending beyond a certain point on a watch.

Leslie

I went over the top and spent £110 on a Casio which looks good enough and keeps time to the second since it is tied to the Rugby time signal. My Rolex Daytona replica looks nice but is not quite so accurate.

Les

Snazy

All taken onboard and appreciated

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

Its like any item there is, there is always, cheap, moderate, expensive and massively expensive, the actual timekeeping is incidental, all humans are affected by it in the same way, any timepiece will tell us what we want to know so the rest of any expensive item is,

Quality - more expensive watches feel more tactile like any expensive, well crafted item, heavier and more solid, though why heavier is a bonus I am not sure. That said, a watch is a small item, there is only so many raw materials you can put in to it, there is only so much development and good old Swiss knowhow, it can be done more accurately with solid state electronics as opposed to clockwork, so your ten quid watch actually functions better than your ten grand one.

Brand - very powerful marketing tool, we are taken in by it, feel like we are buying class, quality, a specific image of the kind of person that buys that brand. Ok, it can be made out of more exotic materials than black plastic, Titanium, Gold or whatever.

Badge of rank, its a status symbol, little clues to tell other blokes that you have done better, have more money and to leave all the birds alone as they are all yours, to demoralise the opposition so to speak. It is also a signal to women that you are wealthy and thus can provide well and may well be worth ********.

Sometimes its just down to "Want", you dont know why you want something, it just appeals to you, it might not be to show off, just you want on because its a nice item, if you can afford it why not.

Personally, my current situation(3 kids schooling food, biggish house, wife not earning) is that I cant afford to spend a lot of money on something trivial and there are many things I would like to buy before an expensive watch but I wont rule it out, but I really dont like the big, chunky and ostentatious varieties, I go for subtle but I dont worry what anyone else wears, in fact the more obnoxious the better as it makes mine look more tasteful (when I get one), I am not a showy prson, even if I had anything to show, I am not immune to it but tend to buy stuff for me to enjoy, not to make a point to anyone else, not an inverted snob but not far off.

I like Yoza's enthusiasm (I am not blowing him, honest, I reckon that would kill you) and he knows what he is like but like I said sometimes you have a passion for something irrational and dont know why, just enjoy it if it doesnt hurt anyone else.

ScoobyWon't

I think I would be gutted if I'd spent thousands of pounds on a watch and ended up rolling around on the floor with a crim and risking it being damaged. I'll stick to my £45 G-shock.

Unless the more expensive watches provide an advantage when it comes to scuffling with Snafs.

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

I would imagine that wearing one on duty wouldnt be a good idea, you pocket book entries would be way out for a start !

ScoobyWon't

Pocket book? I use my Blackberry instead.

*Awaits reasons why iPhones are better than a Blackberry*

yoza

Dont you dare turn this into a mobile phone thread...

Snazy

Dont need explaining, its clearly just a fact !

lol I love how this has turned out.
I can however see a connection between iPhones and Rolex though
JOKING !!