New Watch Help

Wiggles88

Hey all,

I'm trying to decide on a new watch and wanted to get some thoughts from those more knowledgeable than I on the subject :P I've narrowed it down to four I like, all almost exactly the same price (not by design though, my upper limit was 500e and it just happened that the ones I liked were all in or around 340e)

The watches are:
The Orient Constellation
The Seiko Open Heart
The Bulova Mechanical
The Citizen Eco Drive

At the moment I'm leaning towards the Orient from an all round point of view, but one thing I'm concerned about is its size, I'm used to larger dials so perhaps the Citizen or the Bulova would be better in that regard. Also I've never owned an automatic before so I know very little about the movements (are the above as accurate, shock resistant, durable etc. as an average quartz?)

Any thoughts on the above or similar would be appreciated.

blindsider

I'm not an expert, but hey...! :-)

A few points:

If you buy online from the USA you may get hit for Customs charges - buy in the EU if possible, unless you're planning a trip yourself.

Personally, I prefer the Citizen - clearer dial, sapphire crystal, I like the bezel, it's solar powered and radio controlled - best of both worlds!

5 yr warranty - nice!

The others are nice watches, but the Citizen does it for me!

More experienced horolophiles will be along shortly! :-)) *Whistles loudly*

Nonoperational

Those auto movements won't be as accurate as a quartz more than liekly, but they are very reliable. Usually around +10/15s per day in my experience.

Just to put the cat amongst the pigeons, at that price you are opening up some very nice watches from the likes of Steinhart with Swiss ETA movements.

There is also an awesome Seiko 5 in the show your watches/look what I'm wearing today thread that I think is very nice.

Wiggles88

Hey thanks for the replies. I've done a bit more research on the watches and I think I'm going to go for a Citizen. I really like the idea of an automatic but at the moment I need a good everyday watch and the Citizens just seem like a better option, plus the more I look at them the more I like Citizens look :P Think I'll go for one of their fancier models, the perpetural chrono, just love the look of this one.

peasant

Just one thing to consider.

From my experience, the less dials, hands and other gimmicks on the watch face, the easier to read and the more useful it becomes for every day.

(also "holy" mechanical watches are nice to look at at first ...but after while the novelty may wear off and you might wish for an "unholy" dial instead)

From that point of view, I'd go with the first Citizen in your thread.

Another consideration are the hands. I've learned to prefer hands that actually meet the indices for precise time telling ...the ones on the (first) Citizen are still a bit short.

Here's an example of what I mean



http://www.ebay.ie/itm/Junghans-Voyager-030-2900-00-Watch-RRP-499-00-/321105790028?pt=UK_Jewelery_Watches_Watches_MensWatches_GL&hash=item4ac365844c

just an example mind you ...tastes are different and that particular watch aint exactly a bargain either.

But you get the idea ...

hi5

On the Bulova specifications it says the following;


Water Resistance Depth:30 metres


Water Resistance: Splashproof

which is it?

Wiggles88

That is a stunning watch Peasant, shame the only website I found that sells it in my price range is out of stock

peasant

Wiggles88 wrote: »

That is a stunning watch Peasant, shame the only website I found that sells it in my price range is out of stock

You did see the e-bay link I posted under the watch?
They accept offers and God loves a trier



Here's a review (you might want to read that first)
http://forums.watchuseek.com/f8/junghans-voyager-606768.html

Zagato

hi5 wrote: »

On the Bulova specifications it says the following;


Water Resistance Depth:30 metres


Water Resistance: Splashproof

which is it?

30m is splashproof, I wouldn't put it under a tap, but if rain gets on it it should be fine. You shouldn't be putting anything with a rating of less than 200m underwater, and even then it should be pressure tested annually.

Good advice from Peasant there, I like to look at pictures of dials and see how quickly you can tell the time from looking at it, if I have to think about it at all then I am a bit put off, it's important to me to be able to tell the time by just glancing at my watch.

Cyrus

peasant wrote: »

You did see the e-bay link I posted under the watch?
They accept offers and God loves a trier



Here's a review (you might want to read that first)
http://forums.watchuseek.com/f8/junghans-voyager-606768.html

That Junghans is loverly

Tigger

http://www.creationwatches.com/products/citizen-radio-controlled-204/citizen-eco-drive-global-radio-controlled-cb0027-51e-cb0020-50e-3090.html?currency=EUR

http://www.creationwatches.com/products/citizen-perpetual-calendar-55/

fishguy

Wiggles88 wrote: »

Hey all,

I'm trying to decide on a new watch and wanted to get some thoughts from those more knowledgeable than I on the subject :P I've narrowed it down to four I like, all almost exactly the same price (not by design though, my upper limit was 500e and it just happened that the ones I liked were all in or around 340e)

The watches are:
The Orient Constellation
The Seiko Open Heart
The Bulova Mechanical
The Citizen Eco Drive

At the moment I'm leaning towards the Orient from an all round point of view, but one thing I'm concerned about is its size, I'm used to larger dials so perhaps the Citizen or the Bulova would be better in that regard. Also I've never owned an automatic before so I know very little about the movements (are the above as accurate, shock resistant, durable etc. as an average quartz?)

Any thoughts on the above or similar would be appreciated.

Anything BUT THE BULOVA!!!

fg.