Pardon me, but do you have the time?

I've pretty much been out of the watch buying business, but my workhorse Seiko diver quit on me. It's this one
1577046111589.webp

The screw-down crown has a rubber seal inside, and the whole thing is shot. I can't move the crown anymore. For quite some time, screwing the crown would cause the date to change, as it was getting all gummed-up. Now it just won't move. It's not worth the cost to have it fixed.

So my options are:
1) Do nothing - just wear my other watches. That would give me 2 options for the beach; the TAG Aquaracer on a bracelet, and the Hamilton Khaki Navy on black rubber. The TAG is too dressy for a t-shirt and swim trunks, and I wouldn't want it to get into sand and rocks. The Hamilton is black anodized; it just not a summer beach watch.
2) Get the same watch. Well that Seiko is about $300. And I don't feel like spending that much to be where I was at a short time ago.
3) Get a cheaper Seiko. They kinda suck: push-pull crowns, lower water resistance etc.
4) Get something else. I came across Deep Blue, and the watch guys go nuts over them. A million subtle variations of the basic dive watch, 300 meters, screw-down crown & back, sapphire glass, case like a tank, nice Seiko movement. They come in every dial and bezel combo, bracelet or rubber or Nato. Even within the category of black dial/black rubber, they have options:
1577047144033.webp

All for $175 at Jomashop. What do you think?
 
scotchandcigar said:
4) Get something else. I came across Deep Blue, and the watch guys go nuts over them. A million subtle variations of the basic dive watch, 300 meters, screw-down crown & back, sapphire glass, case like a tank, nice Seiko movement. They come in every dial and bezel combo, bracelet or rubber or Nato. Even within the category of black dial/black rubber, they have options:
Click to expand...

Option 4!

I really like the middle pic with the orange minute hand. It gives it a nice pop of color. It also looks like it has a better strap than the Seiko. I get why those diver straps have that accordian by the lugs so actual divers can have room for the strap to expand and contract depending on depth, but come on now, at least 99% of us wearing these things are desk divers with no need for it to look aesthetically unpleasing.

From those pics the only thing I don't like is the 3 lines of text at the 6 o'clock. But the price is certainly right. There are plenty of other Seiko models like the Tuna, Turtle and Samurai but you won't get them for those prices. I hate how they discontinued the SKX models to revamp their Seiko 5 line.

Is it a 60 or 120 click bezel? And does the bezel properly line up with 12 o'clock? Like have there been many reports of misalignment? Seiko has crappy quality control in that department and they're not the only ones. A misaligned bezel makes me bonkers.

I say take the plunge on the middle model.

If your willing to check out other brands look at Orient. They have some really nice models at very good prices. The Ray and Mako lines are pretty sweet and cover the bases...hack, hand-wind, sapphire (depending on the model), applied indices and framed day/date windows. It's their own in-house movement but they are owned by Seiko...separate factories but quality movements.

 
Last edited:
I think I like the black Orient a bit more than the Seiko.

I picked up one of these Shinola's a few weeks ago.
s0120089889_f2_3840h.png

We were in Detroit for a family brunch thing and decided to stop by the Shinola store.
I decided to treat myself for quitting my old job and to celebrate my new one.
I got a tan strap to go with it.
 
JHDK said:
Option 4!

I really like the middle pic with the orange minute hand. It gives it a nice pop of color. It also looks like it has a better strap than the Seiko. I get why those diver straps have that accordian by the lugs so actual divers can have room for the strap to expand and contract depending on depth, but come on now, at least 99% of us wearing these things are desk divers with no need for it to look aesthetically unpleasing.

From those pics the only thing I don't like is the 3 lines of text at the 6 o'clock. But the price is certainly right. There are plenty of other Seiko models like the Tuna, Turtle and Samurai but you won't get them for those prices. I hate how they discontinued the SKX models to revamp their Seiko 5 line.

Is it a 60 or 120 click bezel? And does the bezel properly line up with 12 o'clock? Like have there been many reports of misalignment? Seiko has crappy quality control in that department and they're not the only ones. A misaligned bezel makes me bonkers.

I say take the plunge on the middle model.

If your willing to check out other brands look at Orient. They have some really nice models at very good prices. The Ray and Mako lines are pretty sweet and cover the bases...hack, hand-wind, sapphire (depending on the model), applied indices and framed day/date windows. It's their own in-house movement but they are owned by Seiko...separate factories but quality movements.

Click to expand...

The version with the orange minute hand is for emphasizing the minutes on a dive (in theory). I came across a whole thread about this watch on Watchuseek, and members reported nice things when they actually received the watches. And these are very detail oriented people.

I was looking at a Citizen Promaster, with that wavy strap, and reviewers said it was hard plastic crap. They rave about the strap on these Deep Blue watches. The 3 lines of text gives it the Rolex look (for better or worse).

I looked at some Orients, and agree the Mako's are nice. They're definitely in consideration. But I'd prefer getting a watch that has exactly the rubber strap I want, instead of doing the replacement thing.

HecticArt said:
I think I like the black Orient a bit more than the Seiko.

I picked up one of these Shinola's a few weeks ago.
s0120089889_f2_3840h.png

We were in Detroit for a family brunch thing and decided to stop by the Shinola store.
I decided to treat myself for quitting my old job and to celebrate my new one.
I got a tan strap to go with it.
Click to expand...
That's a really nice looking watch, and unique enough to add to a collection. I've looked at the Shinolas, the Detroit thing is nice. I think if they were around back when I got some of my earlier watches, I might have gone with them.
 
Unexpectedly, I have to report an interesting twist to this story. That Deep Blue diver is a fantastic watch and a great value: 120 click bezel, sapphire crystal, 316l stainless, quality strap, superior japan movement, 300m rated.

The only issue I had is that the face is nearly identical to my Tag aquaracer; same dial, bezel, markers. It's only differentiated by the rubber strap (vs a bracelet). And I prefer to have a different look to each watch I own.

So I was just surfing around, and came across one of my holy grail watches, used but in very good condition. It's not specifically a dive watch, but it has all the components I want - black dial, stainless case, rubber strap. And it's selling for $370: that's $200 more than the Deep Blue, but about what my Seiko would go for new. It's a $1,200 watch (originally).

Back in the early 2000s, BMW rejoined Formula 1, partnering with Williams. Oris made the official Williams F1 team watch. There's an episode of the Sopranos where Tony's entire crew got Oris swiss watches.

This is what I just ordered from Ebay
20191227_115057.webp
20191227_115137.webp
20191227_115225.webp
20191227_115320.webp

Any thoughts?
 
Forgot to mention; my Tag Heuer is good to 300m (1000ft), so if I'm snorkeling and feel I want to have a watch on, I'll use that. For sitting at the beach, the Oris is fine.
 
I'll take Koops gorilla arm any day over this guy's blotchy sausage-casing wrist. Came across this in an Amazon review of a Glycine watch. This guy actually thought that people would want to see this.
20191229_180439.webp
 
scotchandcigar said:
an Amazon review of a Glycine watch.
Click to expand...

You got me looking at Glycine. I think that one you posted is the best Amazon has to offer.

In general I like watches with thicker hands and this brand seems to like thin hands.

Now none of my watches have all of these, but this is my checklist of watch wants:

-Applied indices
-Lots of lume
-Framed day/date window
-Signed crown
-Clean dial (not too much text on the dial, which I clearly make an exception for with Casio)
-Drilled lugs
-At least 10 bar water resist
-Second hand that reaches the ticks
-Ceramic, lumed bezel that properly aligns
-Thick hour/minute hands

I'm sure I will think of more but that's off the top.
 
Last edited:
I came across Glycine because they're historically a well-respected Swiss brand, known for the Airman pilot watch. But it showed up in my search of alternatives to spending $400 on the Oris, which surprised me. Turns out they were purchased by Invicta a few years ago. Judging by the soda-dispenser variety of colors/styles, and what looks like Chinese componentry (the movements don't mention Swiss anywhere), they're not what they used to be.

I just like a well made watch. The Oris is a tank, it appears to be made from a single block of steel. The movement is the largest, most robust, and nicest finished of all the watches I have. The entire dial is carbon fiber. The rubber strap is substantial.

Of course, it's being delivered; I don't have it yet.
 
scotchandcigar said:
It's here
View attachment 5905
Click to expand...

I love it man, it looks good on you. Huge congrats on getting your hands (and wrist) on your grail watch!

What is the daily +/-? Lots of times they say it's around 15-25 secs/day but in reality it's more like 7 or 8. The best automatic I have, the SARB, is around +4.

I like how the day/date windows are black to match the face. Is it a carbon fiber face? I have 2 G-Shocks with carbon fiber straps and love them for their look and durability.

Is the strap proprietary? Looks like it is but can't tell for sure with that underside pic you posted earlier. If it is it's like a lot of Casios where the actual lug width is way smaller than the band itself.

EDIT: ooooohhh...ok, the more I look at your pic and the others you posted, the more I notice and like about this thing. The blue tip on the second hand is a very nice touch. I love having the 5, 10, 15 etc markers on edge of the dial for quick reference. The double pipped 12 lume dots are nice. The clean dial is nice. The brushing/polishing looks really good. You know I dig a signed crown. 30 bar with a screw in and exhibition caseback?!? That's amazing! Last but not least (until I spot more stuff I like) THE LUMED NUMERALS!!! That 12, 3 & 9 really look beautiful at night. Are they applied or raised from a heavy application of lume? Do you know what kind of lume Oris uses? Also, you said it's a Japanese movement, do you know which one specifically?

Once again congrats man. Wear it in good health!
 
Last edited:
scotchandcigar said:
So I was just surfing around, and came across one of my holy grail watches
Click to expand...

You trust Ebay? I never want to pull the trigger on that site...I'm always a bit worried if I will actually get the product. I know the watchuseek forum also has a pretty good for sale section.
 
Last edited:
Koop, I'll try to answer all your questions. Oris - Swiss made watch, custom Swiss movement (shown a few posts above). Owners manual says -5/+30 sec/day or better, before adjusting.

The whole pivoting lug wristband attachment design is custom. As you can see in the pictures, the rubber strap is shaped to blend with the lug attachment.

This is not their dive watch model, it's got a regular (signed) crown and 5 atm WR. The dial is CF, applied markers, the numbers are thick lume material. Instead of a bezel, there's an inset minute ring around the dial. The whole watch has a racing theme. The face resembles a tachometer, the lugs are the suspension, and the strap is grooved like racecar tires.

Ebay's been around a few years, they've sold a bunch of items by now. Seriously, it's mostly retailers and resellers, no different than Amazon or Jomashop. The seller I got this watch from, was around over 10 years ago, when I got other watches and straps from them. You can see their rating, location, number of items sold, and all buyer comments.
 
I'm very tempted to buy the Casio Royale.

It's very cheap, like $26 and I've had it on my shopping list for awhile now. The watch Youtube reviewer I like the most, Random Rob, just did a video on them and he is modding the cheaper version, the $19 resin strap one. I may buy one of those too and try my hand at my first watch mod but not right now. First off it would be cool to have the Royale.

The one on the right is from Octopussy. The Casio has a similar layout, that's why it has the name Casio Royale.

1578817291664.png
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom