Watcha wearing?

I got this Citizen Avion last month. It's my first Big Boy watch. Recently discontinued so I got it on big discount. Strap is kind of thick. I'll probably replace it so it sits better on my wrist.

 

Got this for V'day. No idea who/what/make watch this is???

 

Does anyone have any thoughts on regulation?

One of my coworkers convinced me to start tracking the accuracy on my Seiko with an app and I take a daily reading at 9am:

• It was all over the place the first 22 days (-14 /+9 and everything in between).

• It got knocked off the coffee table last week and has been a very consistent -8 since.

• Seiko claims +45/-35 in the manual, so I probably won’t have any luck sending it in for service. Plus it’s pretty consistent, so I doubt the fall did any damage.

Do I dare take it somewhere and see if they regulate it better, or just live with it and say “its close enough for a $350 automatic” ?

 

I had to have my Turdor regulated because it was consistently -5 to -7 seconds per day. It met Tudor specs and they wouldn't warranty it, so I bought it to a local watchmaker certified to repair Rolex and Omega...$150 and two days later it was +2/-1 seconds per day. My only regret was waiting a year to do it. There is no sense having a watch you can't count on.

 

This is gonna bump you guys out.

Bought a real $5500 Bremont Supermarine, it turned up fake with those Chinese Seagull ETA 2681 movement. Checked all the signs, Yep, it's def fake. I've got my money back, the watch was free.

I didn't wear it at all. Me a watch snob. Only Swiss for my wrist...right.

Last year, I figured it sat around long enough in my watch box, let's give it a test drive. I started off right away by tracking the time to see what this POS do.

-4/+5.

This can't be real. It only lost a few minutes after December. So I kept on wearing it and tracking it into 2020.

Wore it the entire month of January. @ 60 days mark, it was less than 6 minutes out altogether.

My real COSC certified Swiss Bremont gained 12s a day. That's just embarrassing.

Anyway, Fake Supermarine S500 kicks the real Supermarine in the ass.

 

The new everyday watch. Classy and not bold enough that people will notice it. Just my style.

 

Those are AWESOME watches. I have a much older version of the same model, it's beat to shit, on it's 3rd or 4th band and I haven't worn it in 25 years (bought it somewhere around 1975). It's been sitting in my cufflink/tie tack box for years. Thing about it is, it's still on the original goddam battery and keeps perfect time. Swear to God. It used to illuminate the face when you pushed one of the buttons, but doesn't any more, but all the other functions (dual time, stopwatch) still work. It's hard to say which will last longer, your Toyota or your watch.

 

I'm not surprised, a good Seagull movement can be very accurate. It's all a matter of finding a maker who checks their movements before installing them. I know several who actually send a pic of the timing test with each watch. So why don't expensive watch dealers do this? Well, unless you are buying from an actual watchmaker, there is a low chance that the dealer will test the watch at point of sale and crack it open if it needs adjusting. They just don't have the skill. It's not that hard, but what dealer would open a $10K watch over a 2 second a month timing alignment?
Also, there is the issue of oiling. Every watch needs oil to maintain it's lifespan. Too little and parts grind, things go out of alignment and the movement is a goner. But, too much and the movement drags causing timing errors. Oiling is more of an art than anything. The saying is "if you can see the oil, you've used way too much". The only way to remove too much oil is to pull the dial and put the whole movement in a cleaning bath. Now a quick oiling just turned into a big project.
So how to the Chinese makers deal with this dilemma? Well, from what I've heard is that some just don't oil the movements. There is some residual lubrication from the manufacturing process, so they just install the parts dry. This means the movement will be more accurate but have a shorter lifespan. Seagull may not do this, but this is what I've noticed about Chinese movements. How much shorter lifespan? Well that depends on usage, and not may people wear automatics all the time these days. I have an old Seiko 6309-7040 that was made in 1984. The thing runs strong and is fairly accurate for a 46 year old watch. I have no idea of it's service history, but can guess it may have been a long time between oiling. Seagulls are well made, so I'd say a dry one could survive 20 years before sustaining damage.

 

Thanks for the enlightening post. That makes sense.

 

Don’t have a picture of it on my wrist, but this is what I’m sporting. Hamilton X Patrol

 

Very nice! Curious, do you know what year yours is? The date font is different as well as the "Swiss -T < 2S" beneath the 6 o'clock index. Looks like you have an older model, which makes it more collectible.

Neat story behind the Sea Dweller, Rolex stopped making them in 1981 because there was little interest at the time since the Submariner was very similar, and was also the "Bond" watch. As soon as Rolex stopped making them, the price for a Sea Dweller absolutely skyrocketed overnight. They eventually brought them back, now the new cerachrome models are almost untouchable for under $12K... They cost more than the Submariners now!

Had I known, I wouldn't have trashed mine like I have! Mine is in terrible shape.

 

I bought mine new in 1984 for $1,100. Similar vintage models are now selling in the range of $8k to $12k.

 

Yours looks pretty clean from the picture you posted. I took mine in late last year for a full tune-up. I paid $975 for the overhaul but it's like a brand new watch.

 

I must be wrong on the date.. 1981 stuck in my mind for some reason. That is a great return on investment!

The picture I took of mine is pretty flattering to it. It has been waay over polished, to the point of damage, by lousy jewelers. Has some gouges too.

 

Hey, question for the Rolex guys. I have a friend who owns several that he purchased new in box through his dealer. Just recently, he showed me his DSSD, which is worlds above the one I assembled. Anyway, he told me that according to his dealer Rolex is really trying to discourage the transfer of ownership for their watches. While previously, they wanted to keep up-to-date records for whoever owned their products; they now only record the first and sometimes the second owners. Unless you are passing the watch father to son, they really have no interest in the "linage" of the watch. This is an effort to encourage new sales rather than support the resale of older Rolex's. While I can understand this, it makes it harder to get older models serviced by Rolex unless you are a certified owner. If you purchased a classic oyster second hand recently, you can't send it back for service because you are not an "authorized owner". Has anyone heard about this?
While you can still get some authorized watchmakers to service the watches, many owners want the factory to service their watches.
I'm really curious to know. Thanks!

 

I am by no means an expert on them. To be honest, I am not sure. I suppose it would make sense from a business standpoint though. People don't generally use Rolex watches for their intended purposes anymore... diving, auto racing, piloting, working in power plants etc, so I imagine there is a surplus of vintage watches that are in like-new condition. As much as some of the older Rolex watches have appreciated, I would think people would be drawn to newer models anyway, but I am just guessing.

 

Never heard of that. I've been at the Rolex watch forum for years and can't recall hearing anything like what your friend is claiming. As far as I know, Rolex will only refuse to service a watch if they open it up and find non-rolex parts inside.

I own a Rolex- a Sub that I bought new from the dealer 30+ years ago. It's only ever been in for service once. My wife has a rolex that we bought used privately. There's no 'official' Rolex records on her ownership. Hers has been in for a service (recently) and the experience was exactly the same as mine: ship it to Rolex through an authorized dealer, pay the fee, get it back.

 

Thanks gents, good to know. Maybe my friend's dealer is giving him a "story" so he keeps buying new watches from the dealer. I know some vintage models are worth much more than new ones, but honestly if I purchased one, it would probabaly be a new model.

https://youtu.be/b9Y4bmbh1KY

 

Another of my favorite automatics today. A Seiko SKX781, known as the Orange Monster due its asymmetric design. A great watch powered by the same 7s26 as my SKX007. The lume on these watches is legendary.