Need watch info

[Tali]

Hi, all. Can someone point me in the direction of a good tutorial on watches, specifically the mechanics? I''m just starting to look for a low-ish end watch, but want to get as good a quality as I can and keep it under $500. I know that''s small potatoes for a watch, but I don''t want to spend too much as we''re potentially looking at buying a new house. Heck, anything will be a step up from my Timex Rush!

Open to suggestions, as well, if anyone has any for specific watches. I want SS band, sapphire crystal (my old watch crystals look like I used sand paper on them), and prefer rectangular face and simple markings. It absolutely must have a sweep second hand. Date would be nice, but by no means a must. Another option to SS would be a black leather band. It would be my second choice b/c I wash my hands a lot at work.

Thanks!

(And Thanks to AGBF for pointing me to the watches, watches, watches thread! What drool worthy items!

)

 

[belle]

that''s a tight set of parameters! i guess you know what you want

i can''t think of anything offhand that fits the bill. how close to $500 do you need to be? maybe a better question would be, what is the order of your priorities? oh, and do you want new or used? let''s find a watch!

 

[Cath]

I did a search on Amazon since they consolidate a lot of products on their site.

I found one that seems to fit your criteria:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0002TK3LU/sr=1-16/qid=1112708900/ref=sr_1_16/102-0471254-1264148?%5Fencoding=UTF8&n=3890151&s=jewelry&v=glance

Since you have specific parameters in mind, it''s probably easier to hit the mall and browse to see what watch brands have the features and are in the price range you''re looking for. Then you can search online and see what people have to say about that brand''s quality, etc.

 

[belle]

yay cath!! well done!

in my experience, the only downside to wittnauer is if it needs *authorized* repair, it has to be sent to puerto rico.

 

[Cath]

Aww, thanks Belle!

I hadn''t heard of Wittnauer before. In the $500 price range, the first brand that came to my mind was Raymond Weil -- they offer some models around that price, but I couldn''t find anything that was both rectangular and had a second hand. Doesn''t mean it doesn''t exist, though.

 

[lmurden]

Try www.worldofwatches.com

 

[clammer]

Take a look at overstock.com. I buy all of my watches there. My current watch is a Seiko. Origanlly around $450, Marked down to $49.99. I''ve never had a problem with any of them that I''ve bought. (I bought 14 of them for our wedding party.) And when I do scratch the crystal up I don''t feel bad about buying a new one.

 

[Tali]

Thanks, all. That''s great. I like the watch you posted, Cath, but I don''t know about the Wittenauer brand either. I am hoping to find a board like PS for watches to learn more about the different brands, clock guts, etc. I know the budget is tight, but I want to spend the money wisely, and not have to upgrade too soon. I''m a bit of a tightwad.

Google hasn''t seemed to get me to a very usable forum yet, but I''ll keep searching.

LMurden, yeah, I spent about 3hrs of insomnia time the other night looking at probably every watch on worldofwatches, and another night on Overstock. WOW has great selection,a nd I wish I could go higher on the budget. (Man for $3k, I could have a really lovely number.) I have no problem buying from either, but just want to have a better idea of what I''m buying. To me, buying glibly and saying "a watch is a watch" is as uninformed as saying "a diamond is a diamond.''''

I''m thinking about going with a Tissot, but I''ll have to sacrifice the rectangular face, and look around for the second hand. If only I didn''t take pulses on a daily basis, it''d be much easier.....But heck, I like my job, so what the heck.

 

[MissAva]

What about a Coach watch? Coach Watches They have some really cute ones! Also you can occasionally find them at your local TJ Maxx...ours even has a few Mavodo and other brands that a pretty cute. If you have a store like that near you that woudl be a great place to check out some styles.