I would also say if you have to go to great lengths to save up the money, its probably too expensive for you. It should be easily within your budget. Maybe saving for a month or two is ok. Preferrably be able to buy it outside your regular cash flow with something like a bonus, commission payment or an investment payout.

But if you cant easily afford it, you should probably focus this money on other things, such as investing. Exactly so that you get to the point where you can actually easily afford a rolex at some point.

I havent handled the swatch FF, but if its anything like the moonswatch, it’s ridiculously flimsy. Nothing compared to the quality of an Orient kamasu (or many other orients), that are made of solid steel and a good 100 bucks or 25% cheaper.

H. Moser endeavour perpetual calendar. Also the only one i can think of to be honest.

Automatics are very expensive and don’t worth in utility that much.

I dont think anybody will argue with you on this point. There is really no discussion, pretty much any quartz watch is better than pretty much any mechanical watch in pretty much any objective measure.

Any 15 bucks no name quartz or solar watch from your nearest supermarket will be way more accurate and with exponentially more power reserve than a patek philippe for 150k. And for 30 bucks you can get a digital watch with way more features than any automatics.

Its just that most of us dont wear watches for utilitarian reasons. Also your phone almost certainly has all of the same features and equal or better accuracy as any digital watch, at zero extra cost, because you need one anyway. So unless you work in a high security environment that doesnt allow phones you probably also dont “need” a solar watch for actual utility.

Automatic watches are “better” at being one of the few non-digital, lifetime lasting items in our modern world. So they are really just a romantic throwback to a simpler time and/or fashion accessory and/or status symbol.

Those are 4 very different watches with not much in common. One diver (omega), one unique looking do it all watch (cartier), one classic looking chronograph (breitling) and one very unique looking chronograph (tag heuer).

It seems you are quite far from knowing what you want then and maybe should first try figuring out your use case and/or style more.

Personally i am not a big fan of chronographs. So i would probably go with either the omega or the cartier.

The omega is more sporty looking and more resistant. You can truly wear that for any activity, except maybe super fancy clothes stuff. But i would recommend getting it on the steel bracelet instead. Because a bracelet is always the hardest kind of strap option to source after purchase.

The cartier also can be worn to about any occasion, except the most sporty ones. Plus to me it has the downside of not having a transparent caseback that allows you to see the movement. To me the mechanical nature of it is a big part of buying a mechanical watch in the first place. So covering it up with a flat steel plate thag might as well house a battery, kind of defeats part of the purpose. Thats honestly the main thing keeping me from buying a cartier santos.

Between those two it essentially comes down to the following question: are you more likely to jump off a cliff into the ocean or to get fancy box seats at the opera? Because both are suitable for everything inbetween. If you’re a cliff diving guy, get the omega. If you’re an opera kind of guy, get the cartier.

Other cool options around 8k include: various omegas (seamaster 300, moonwatch, globemaster, aquaterra), various grand seikos (SBGJ249, SBGA413), various IWC (pilot chrono, Portugieser), various carl f. Bucherer (manero chrono or manero flyback).

Personally i went with the omega aquaterra 41mm green dial. Altho its “only” about 6k. I can highly recommend. Its exactly also a GADA watch like the cartier or the Omega SMP you proposed. But kind of covering all the usecases on both ends, a bit more affordable and with the added seethru caseback compared to the cartier.

I dont think this is something that could be planned ahead of time. Also it seems it would kind of loose its charm if you could just buy anyone you want all the time.

Like i am currently considering my next watch (arent we all). But i am kind of in the early stage, so there are still multiple ways it could go and multiple candidates for each.

Either the kinda dressy but still capable way (tudor 1926, longines spirit, nomos club campus…) or maybe the yet-another-sporty-one way (longines spirit zulu time, certina titanium diver, tudor black bay GMT, tudor ranger…) or the now-i-really-want-something-weird-and-unique way (longines legend diver, Oris big crown pointer date bronze, rado true square skeleton, something from cuerbos y sobrino…).

But with this kind of budget i could just literally buy all of them, plus all the grails in the 10-20k range i have been dreaming of but wouldnt otherwise get anytime soon.

And that would pretty much kill the joy of figuring out this choice. So you are almost forced to escalate to crazy expensive stuff. However i would like to not just go the most hyped way with it. But the only watch i know that i would want and is expensive enough to not just be able to buy 20 is the H. Moser Endeaviur perpetual calendar. But even that is just like 80k i think.

Omega aquaterra

At 30% off, definetly the railmaster. I was comparing aqua terra vs conquest 2023 and went with the aquaterra. The conquest didnt feel very nice, like too light and flimsy in comparison somehow.

If it werent 30% off, i would say to save 1k more for an aquaterra. The open caseback and more threedimensional dial are really quite something. But that deal on the railmaster is so great i would just get that.

Surprised nobody mentioned JLC yet. The master ultra thin moon is pretty damn awesome and similar. I think if you get it in gold youre looking at about 12k preowned. Steel more 9k preowned or 12k new. That one left me pretty stunned. Altho i have to admit its also the only dress watch in that price range that i went to look at in real life.

Btw also so many reverso variants that there must be one at this price point. As well as some master control options (i like the master calendar).

Whats your budget?

Now my collection is finally complete! After over a year of trying out all sorts of heirlooms and expensive purchases, i finally have a watch that is true perfection! It was an anniversary gift from my girlfriend yesterday. I barely dropped a million hints to get it, just like with the orient kamasu which i got for my birthday.

And just like with the kamasu, she actually surprised me by doing it slightly wrong. Getting me this dark colour instead of the silver one i wanted (and the vintage kamasu instead of the standard one). And in both cases i actually ended up liking it more. Maybe because of the personal touch from her or maybe she just has better taste than me. Who knows.

1970s certina chronolympic ds-2. Inherited from grandpa and currently at the certina factory for restoration. Wasnt working anymore and the acrylic crystal was crazy scratched up, so i havent worn it yet. But will once it comes back.

Not philip stein. Never heard of them so i googled them. They have essentially no information at all about their watches, just photos. I cant see water resistance or any info on movements or even sizes for that matter.

The only way to even know which watches are quartz or automatic is by filtering in the shop page. But zero info on who makes those movements, how accurate they are, what the power reserve is or anything else like that.

So definetly not that. Thats most likely just a cheap chinese fashion watch with a german/swiss sounding name.

Oris and FC on the other hand are both very proper and popular swiss brands. So both of those are fine. Personally i’m leaning towards Oris, because thats what i got (Oris Aquis) but there is absolutely nothing wrong with Frederique Constant.

Maybe give some info about which models you are considering, then people can give you more specific info.

Orient kamasu

I think this is the one aspect where omegas are kind of behind. They are leading on magnetic and water resistance and accuracy.

I believe they were the first to introduce the METAS certification. Also the only brand that officially means their water resistance (officially stating 30m water resistance means you can swim and dive with it).

I have the blue non-gold oris aquis cal 400 and love it. Highly recommended. But i personally find the gold and green combo a bit weird. I’d go with the blue if you want the gold (not your point i know). Or the green no-gold. That one is really nice.

Otherwise omega aqua terra has a nice green one. That isnt as bright tho. Or of course the omega seamaster diver 300m has one too (the seaweed i think its called).

Also some more suggestions here: https://teddybaldassarre.com/blogs/watches/green-dial-watches

Pelagos does sound like a good choice. Or a Oris Aquis for something a bit more affordable (altho that one is mostly polished steel, so might be too shiny/flashy). Or a little above prise wise you could already be looking at Omegas.

Yes agreed! I am also considering the big crown pointer date, specificaly the all bronze with red dial, for my next piece. But i would probably recommend the more versatile steel one for your use case.

Depending on where you are, jomashop might be an option. They usually sell stuff significantly cheaper and new. Maybe they have a big crown in your budget.

I would go with an Oris big crown pointer date or a longines master collection. The divers and chronos seem a bit too sporty for the occasion.

This is assuming you can find them in budget and you’re also going to have some use for them afterwards. Like if you live on a beach in hawaii and go surfing every day, then maybe prioritise the long term use of a diver.

Personally i have an oris aquis and am very happy with it, as well as with the brand as a whole. Its very customer friendly in my experience and has a cool vibe.

I tried opening their page. But it doesnt even let me look at their watches unless i fiirst leave my email to get my 50% discount code… i think that says about everything about their quality and desirability.

That being said, if you really really want a watch “iced out” with “emeralds” (i.e. broken glass from beer bottles), this is most likely your cheapest bet. And at that price, it doesnt matter if the “emeralds” start falling out after a month or it stops working.

If you want a good watch in that price range look at casio or maybe swatch. Or if you are willing to spend like 200-300 bucks for an actually great automatic watch, look at orient (for example the kamasu). That being said, none of those come with the benefit of being covered in “emeralds”.