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£400-£600 what you buying ?

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391 views 45 replies 33 participants last post by  Roger the Dodger  
#1 ·
So I’ve been talking to the misses and after selling a few cheap watches online for me and keeping the money (I’m such a good chess player) for her holiday and to get her Xmas present I seemingly gave her about a year and a half time frame for me to save up some money for a nice watch , so I said what’s the most you would be comfortable with me spending on a watch and she said £1k , i said no thats a bit too much

long story short as long as certain milestones are met for the kids the misses and the house I have been given leeway to save up £600 for a watch (i will add that I’ve never spent more than £150 on myself in 1 go , everything I have is built up over time , i always will buy the kids what they need so £400-£600 is a lot of money for me anyways I want this watch to be special

what are you guys buying for £400-£600 ? Second hand is recommended

I need some ideas as it’s quite important for me to get some ideas from some of my best mates on here

may I add yes it’s my choice what I buy and I will not be influenced by you guys to make a mistake so please don’t hold back , I want to know what everybody on this forum would do with that money and circumstance
 
#2 ·
Just to add , on my radar at the moment , mid range seikos ( Willard, alpinist in black or blue , mini turtle , the gmt field watch jdm white dial ) Oceanus , radio control jdm seiko and citizen , longines , oris , venezianico , wise , junghans RW all second hand I may add
 
#18 ·
Just to add , on my radar at the moment , mid range seikos ( Willard, alpinist in black or blue , mini turtle
I might be wrong, but I think I mostly see you posting pics of more comfy watches on your wrist. The Willard and alike can be tiresome to wear with their top-heavy tall cases and rolly-polly sticky-out bulbous casebacks that they seesaw on. Maybe try a homage watch for size, fit, and weight first if you haven't already. Otherwise you might spend a packet of a watch that stays in a drawer.
 
#3 ·
Personally i'd buy brand new, mid range seiko obviously springs to mind but tons more to choose from, it will depend on what kind of watch you'd like too, dressy, divers, mechanical, quartz etc etc, you might already have a rough idea what you want but one day you might see something and instantly fall in love with it, and everything else just gets forgotten about.
 
#5 ·
It’s a hard choice and I’ve been at a brick wall a long time , I don’t even know what I would buy , field watches I like but I have to think realistic that it’s going to be one of my main pieces that I probably wouldn’t wear a lot so maybe some sort of dressier / sports watch , like a presage or longines conquest , king seiko sort of think , orient star maybe
 
#6 · (Edited)
I forgot to add the CW C63 with a white dial looks beautiful (sorry mods I think I’ve made too many comments now I will let others dictate the flow of the conversation)

@WRENCH thanks that’s a very good idea as I’m pretty sure punching above your weight is key
 
#8 ·
I agree with @sabailand and @WRENCH , I would be looking to buy a new watch with a warranty at that price. Anything used and mechanical carries with it questions over servicing and even if the watch doesn't break down a service for a basic Sellita will be £200 or 1/3 the price of the watch. If you're going to get a really nice watch to keep long term, I would play it safe and buy one with a new movement and a warranty you can rely on.

Now, I feel I shouldn't give suggestions, but here are a couple of ideas:

Seiko Cocktail time Irish coffee ~£400 (Mojito is rather nice too)
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Orient Star Standard currently £492 on TUS watches also available in light and dark blue 😎, black, green and a horrible orangey colour:

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I hope this is helpful. Of course the big advantage of Seiko is that they are easy to try on 👍
 
#9 ·
I know where you're coming from.

I've just spent £300 on a new Oceanus from Japan and it seemed like a lot of money. I've been trying to talk myself into deserving an even more expensive one but it's tough.

I'd love an automatic watch but the ongoing servicing has held me back a bit. I understand it's like a car in that respect etc etc but still.

Having said that - the Oceanus with a white dial is a thing of beauty. The radio (or Bluetooth) control means it always shows the right time and date. Plus it's solar so no batteries to worry about. Despite the fact that it's new the warranty is Japan only. I'll trust it not to go wrong too soon.

I also had my eye on a used Longines Conquest from Japan. Some good prices for beautiful watches.

It'll be interesting to see what you finally end up with!

PS - I keep looking at aliexpress to scratch my automatic itch but have help back. Maybe when it's 11/11.
 
#10 ·
Thanks everyone , it’s actually really difficult , most of the watches I want are well under £200 , I’m sure I could push it to a few hundred but there’s so many watches from micro brands to high street and it’s like I love a lot of watches but out of the many thousands I’ve seen I’m not sure what I should actually buy so at this point it’s research research research , I’ve got a few seikos I like around £189-£250 brand new so they maybe where I start to try things on

also @Deejaydee Look at watches with the pt5000 movement on Ali express they are really nice like proxima and cronos , I am tempted to go down that route but I won’t be
 
#11 ·
If there is a style of Christopher Ward that you like, for £600 you would get a lot of watch in my opinion. Maybe a Trident Pro or a Sealander.

A Longines Conquest 39m could be had in that price range.

A second hand RW Freelancer is possible.

Squale and Steinhart worth a good look.

A Max Bill auto if you wanted something more dressy.

Masses of choices in the Microbrand market too. Halios, RZE, Wise, Baltic, Borealis, Elliot Brown, Farer, Venezianico, all have some lovely watches, and all should be easily accessible under £600.

However, the best quality watch I think you can get for that money will probably be something from Ball.
 
#15 ·
Some excellent suggestions above, in looking at options on which watch, I'd look at what appeals new in the £800-£1,100 range. some great brands include Longines, Certina, Squale, Baltic, Borealis and of course Christopher Ward, plus of course Seiko.

Having narrowed down the options, I'd then keep my eye open for sales etc where it is possible to get some watches around £1k for around the £600 mark. As an example, I signed up to Watcho and bought a blue Willard listed at £1,150 for £625.

I think the first step is to narrow down the options on what you want.....
 
#20 ·
A couple of suggestions that have not been made yet -

Two Bauhaus ish style - Marloe Coniston £429 on bracelet and Sternglas Naos Pro with the Miyota 9015 movement at £625 on a braclet.

Something a bit more sporty - Stewart’s have a new old stock Circula Aquasport (STP1-11 movement) in at £420 which is half price. AquaSport | Circula | Stewarts The Watch Company

There is also the Boldr Expedition 1 which comes in a number of colours, has the very good Sellita SW200 movement and are typically limited to 300 units per colour but they are a bit hard to find and it looks like a Expedition II is about to hit the streets. Jura used to stock them and usually have good Black Friday deals (or the usual 10-20% off by signing up to a news letter) and Watchgecko also stock them.

Finally, if you dig into the Laco website there are a couple of watches that come in on budget, the Pilot Basic and one of the automatic Naval watches. These can be customised to some extent as well.

just a couple more options to confuse you even more. Happy hunting.
 
#21 · (Edited)
Oh, also a solid choice would be the Baltic Aquascaphe which is available in a couple of colours.

James Porter have these in at £675 on a bracelet and I got a 10% pop up.


The double crown version is a bit thinner and in my opinion a nicer watch for another £50 if you can stretch, or keep an eye open in the Black Friday sales.


Edit - The Echoneutra 1956 black dial is a good looking watch to me and has the SW200 movement, currently a bit over budget but worth keeping an eye out for deals. Not something you would see everyday in the wild.
 
#25 ·
If you want something classic, Swiss and automatic from a great company, you could almost certainly get a Certina at the top end of that price range, something like this. I would definitely go new too, it's a big investment for you and will be an important watch going forward. Whatever you go for, don't rush, enjoy the experience and get something you'll treasure. (y)

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#26 ·
I am surprised no one has said vintage yet - £600 would get a choice of Omega, vintage Longines or even IWC watches.

But if you wanted more up to date (bigger) watches, then the Longines Conquest would be my choice. Top brand that justifies the money spent.

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#29 ·
It all depends what you are looking for automatic or quartz?
If you're not an enthusiast then a quartz is possible your best bet. The following have quartz and auto versions usually.
Presumably you're after something you can wear with jeans or a suit?

I would consider the following:
Hamilton, there are a plethora of Hamilton watches at this price point. The only thing I would recommend is buying a quartz as you will have to get the ETA Automatic serviced every 4 or 5 years and Swatch Group have started making Hamiltons proprietary servicing.. i.e. you need a specialist tool which is expensive and unavailable to independent watch makers so you're going to have to send it back to them. But Hamilton has many excellent designs at this price point.

Seiko: there are classic and renowned Seiko divers at this price like various Turtles and the Willard. At the upper end of your price range the relaunched Seiko 1962 MAS is often avaliable for around 800 quid. It's a superb watch. I own one. 40mm classic diver so it's not huge, works with a suit, has drilled lugs for strap changes there is a wide range of after market bracelets avaliable. Very comfortable and whilst an automatic.. it is a low beat 6 series Seiko movement which you can usually get away with serving every 10 years or so. It also has Seikos anti scratch coating which is the best in the business.

The Alpinist is possibly the best one watch collection. Get a black.or white dialed one and you can wear it with anything. The SBP 117J1 is currently at Watches for Switzerland for £690. It's a cracking watch looks great on bracelet, leather or rubber or a nato. You get a high spec including the aforementioned 6 series low beat movement which gives you a 70 hour power reserve. It has a display back.sapphire Crystal screw down crown and a whopping 200m water resistance. It's a tool watch that you can wear to the office.

If you want a more formal watch then a Seiko cocktail is worth considering.

Another to consider is the Casio Oceanus range. The T200 is possibly the best value watch at its price point, is beautiful especially the silver dialed version, incredibly well made and finished and has a solar powered movement which syncs with your phone. You can find them for about £300 from Japanese dealers.. they are Japanese Domestic Market so you need to ship one in..happy to recommend a seller who turned my one round in 5 days delivery. You will pay customs duty. Simply brilliant watch.

An outsider could be an Elliot Brown. They make watches for the Special Boat Service but their Bloxworth range are smart enough for the boardroom whilst super.. and I mean super tough. A Quartz Chronograph will set you back about 500. Bracelets are superb but come in at 180 ish and their strap system which is screw bars and range of straps which are incredibly comfortable are excellent. It's a big watch but can be used as a knuckle duster in a pinch!.

Good luck. Great fun trying to choose.. my recommendation would be the Alpinist, the 62MAS or the Oceanus T200. gives you 3 different price points as well
Here's a picture of my 62 MAS these are about £800
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Here's my Alpinist .. it's the dark brown Forest Sunbeam. But I would recommend the white or the black one mentioned above
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#31 ·
Thanks everyone you have given me a lot to think about and @scottswatches can I really get an IWC with £600 , because I think I would end this thread and buy one of those 😆 , in all fairness it’s probably a difficult decision for anybody who doesn’t have a specific watch in mind already , longines , CW , seiko , wise , ball , and a few more is where I’m going to look first and try and try some watches on

@Dxnnis and @Sulie I’ve been very tempted by both of those citizens also , I really like those kuoe kuyota watches that keep popping up everywhere I think some of them have good finishing