Little brother, best friend, and all around cool dude is graduating after selling his soul to 8 years in school in order to shoot stuff into space. Kid needs a graduation present from his big bro who is incredibly proud of him.

I love watches but am fairly new to the game. I need help.

Requirements

  1. Can’t break the bank. Getting him something expensive will make him resent the watch and feel guilty. The guys been making min wage to put food and cheep beer on the table for the last decade

  2. Versitle. The kid is going on dates now that he’s a free man, he loves the outdoors, and loves chilling with friends watching college football. The watch has to be appropriate for a hot date at a nice restaurant and a Saturday with the boys.

  3. No electricronics or quartz (idk if that makes sense I’m new to this). He’s an engineer. The idea of gears perfectly aligned, clicking and clocking on his wrist is the exciting part.

  4. Engineery. Vague and a made up word I know. But something to tie into that idea of him building and creating rockets and solid state fuels and things that go boom is a plus but not as necessary as 1-3.

What do you guys think? Do I go field watch for versatility? Slick dive watch for the extra clicks and clacks? Maybe a dressy watch that still looks ok while hanging with his friends? Sport watch for that clean finish all around?

I’m lost. Please advise

  • Uwumeshu@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Lorier Astra, it captures the style of the space age and it’s in the name. If you can stomach ~2.4k CW just released an aventurine dial moonphase

  • turri96@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    The Bulova Lunar pilot, is a quartz watch but high precison, it is a watch that has been in space, and if you like it more there is the blue white version that to me is even more beautiful and it wont break the bank

  • throw_this_away1238@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    I was in your brothers position a decade ago. Get the speed master if even remotely near price range. The number of conversations I have had start due to that watch, including with the former NASA director who I met at dinner, are incredible.

  • bjanas@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Ok, I’m a speedmaster acolyte so it’s REALLY hard to not insist that you go that way, but it seems like it’s a bigger ticket purchase than you want to go for. Ok.

    Have you looked at Stowa pilot’s watches? Super legible, no-nonsense-all-business fliegers. Personally I have a soft spot for the no-logo models.

    There’s a whole range, the Klassik 40 might be a good place to start checking them out. Laco is another brand that makes some cool ones.

  • Efflinger@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Look at fortis cosmonaut chronograph! Mechanical spacerelated historical and Swiss. Models from the 90s can be found around that price and every watchmaker on the planet can repair that 7700.

  • rightoldgeezer@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    I’m an Aero Engineer and a Speedmaster is the one for me (I have one). But, if it’s a gift and you can’t spend more than a couple hundred, the Moonswatch would be a good choice.

    Another luxury but slightly cheaper one that my friend got is a Breitling Aerospace EVO

  • mrbkkt1@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago
    1. Breitling Aerospace Evo- I know you said no electronics or quartz, but honestly, this is one of the few exceptions IMHO, especially with his career.
    2. Breitling Navitimer- Slide rule, nuff said.
    3. Rolex Milgauss- A little hard, since they stopped production this year.
    4. Omega Speedmaster- Cool, but personally, I don’t like manual wind watches for everyday wear.
    5. Grand Seiko SBGA 413/415 Shunbun. It’s titanium, lightweight, and an amazing daily driver. I have a lot of watches, and this gets the most wrist time by far.
    6. Tudor Pelagos- Titanium as well, and has a little more wrist presence, color, and lume.

    These are all in the 5-10k range, but the aerospace can be found way cheaper used. Here is my list for the 1-2k range.

    1. CW 12 in titanium.
    2. Farer Portobello- Yes, a manual wind chrono, but I like the brand. sue me.
    3. Upcoming Studio Underd0g series 2 watches (release date Nov 1). It’s cheap, if you can get one, and it’s cool IMHO. I want one, I’ll decide on that day.
    4. Longines Hydroconquest- I did like mine, I ended up giving it to my brother. Not my favorite watch, but value wise, it’s nice.
    5. Seiko Samurai SRPE33- Save the Mantas- This samurai, is a little big, but it has a ceramic bezel, sapphire glass, and a 3:00 crown and date with cyclops, vs a 4:30 crown and date. Amazing lume, a textured dial- Only downside to me is a 3 hz movement, but for that price… It’s a cool watch.

    One last one, IF the regular Pelagos is too pricey, then possibly the FXD. better make sure he’s a nato strap fan first before exploring this option.

  • sixfiend@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Longines Big Eye Chronograph or something from the Longines Heritage line, maybe the tribute to the Czech airforce watch.

  • Vandiemonian@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    a vostok amphibia would be perfect in my opinion.

    they’re incredibly cheap

    you can get models that look dressier, but they’re still tough

    they’re automatic / mechanical

    they’re very durable

    the movement is in house and the design is unique among dive watches, the soviets who invented it had to work with what they had, they couldn’t use swiss designs because the soviets didn’t want to pay royalties and so they had to engineer it well. the acrylic instead of glass is cheap, but it’s also necessary to make it as waterproof as it is; it flattens as it experiences pressure, pushing it in and getting more waterproof. even the case back is different, instead of a standard screw back, it has a ring that screws in while the case back itself just sits under the ring, so that it doesn’t ruin the gasket when returning from extreme pressure.