The Watch Appreciation Thread (Reviews and Photos of Men's Timepieces by Rolex, Patek Philippe, Brei

[PartagasIV]



people buy diving watches watches with helium escape valves...most owners never do prolonged deep see diving where they are living in an environment with a mixture of helium and oxygen, hence the helium escape valve is unnecessary.

I did purchase my Omega SMP 36mm shortly after a summer job and getting my SCUBA license at 14, but you're entirely correct--maybe one of every five thousand dive watches is used in its intended manner?

 

[johanm]



Its a real thing, but rather limited.  You made an honest mistake and it probably won't happen again.  Also thats a mild effect on your watch.  My wife works in a hospital and her automatic Cartier Tank Francaise became magnitized twice. When her watch became magnetized it was off by hours.  We realized it was because her department was directly across from the MRI department.  We did start looking at antimagnetic watches, but once her department moved to a different part of the building she stopped having problems with her watch becoming magnetized. 

The real need for an antimagnetic watch is probably limited to a few work enviroments.  I think most people buying antimagnetic watches do it as a novelety.  Much in the way that someone has pointed out that people buy diving watches watches with helium escape valves...most owners never do prolonged deep see diving where they are living in an environment with a mixture of helium and oxygen, hence the helium escape valve is unnecessary.  I imagine most current Milgauss owners work at a desk with a computer and a very limited exposure to magnetism...hell Rolex could barely give the originals away when they were around in the 1960s and 1970s and eventually just made them a special order item.  Rolex revived the name and function when they saw how expensive vintage Milgausses had become. 

That's a fair point, going forward I'm definitely not going to store my watches near speakers. The fact that it jumped to 20 seconds a day and not minutes per hour as I've seen reported online was actually why I was so spooked - I ruled out the magnetism diagnosis and thought the mechanicals broke.

 

[kentyman]

Sorry, but in conditions like these maybe quartz makes more sense.

 

[dopey]

As I have mentioned beofre, I have had real problems with my old bumper-wind automatic Omega becoming magnetized. It was off by several minutes a day. My watchmaker blamed it on the fact that I kept my cellphone in the left hip pocket of my suitcoat, so it was frequently near my watch (he says cell-phones and metal detectors are the most common culprits). Once my watch was demagneitzed it worked fine (though not as perfectly as when first serviced) and changing my cellphone habits has eliminate the problem for now. I suspect the vintage of the watch makes it more vulnerable than modern movements.

 

[Cantabrigian]



I did purchase my Omega SMP 36mm shortly after a summer job and getting my SCUBA license at 14, but you're entirely correct--maybe one of every five thousand dive watches is used in its intended manner?

You think even that many?

A lot of the entry-level watches from the major (or best advertised brands) have dive bezels so they sell a ton of them.

I've worn a Planet Ocean or Colt GMT maybe twice - more just to say I did. Worrying about a watch sliding off is the last thing I want to be thinking about on the rare occasions that I get in the water.

 

[Dino944]

My watchmaker ... says cell-phones and metal detectors are the most common culprits.
I suspect the vintage of the watch makes it more vulnerable than modern movements.

I've worn modern Rolex watches (Sub, Explorer 2, and Daytona) through lots of metal detectors and had them near cell phones and never hand any issues with magnetization...so I suspect as you have mentioned your vintage watch is more vulnerable.

 

[Kaplan]



I don't know, is magnetism really a problem with modern mechanical watches? The cynical side of me (ie all of me) can't help but feel it's a bit of a marketing ploy in the vein of the helium escape valve.

I get what you mean, but I don't mind watches being created to some very specific needs, like a Seadweller or Milgauss, even though I'll never have a need for their specific capabilities.

What I'm not a fan of, is when they take a watch like the Ingenieur and craps all over it's raison d'être and slaps on a display back. That's just sad. Then they might as well just make dive watches with bezels that doesn't turn and chronos with nonfunctioning sub dials.

For the same reason I'm not a fan of display backs on Speedy 'moonwatches' or on my own Luminor, though those aren't as 'y as the Inges. IMHO.

 

[Keith T]

I had a pretty good Nautilus stiffy going until you all brought me down with the magnetism talk.

 

[Zeppelin]

Someone was asking about antimagnetic watches before.

Looks like they just came out with an Omilgauss

Which is apparently super duper antimagnetic.
http://www.hodinkee.com/blog/omega-introduces-worlds-first-anti-magnetic-movement

Is this for real? Even w/o the lightning second hand you clearly see where this is (would be) coming from. Sorry Omega, your goal seems to be to rival Rolex, but with these blunt moves (Vesper's speech anyone?) you rather help your rival than anything else...

 

[papa kot]

Someone was asking about antimagnetic watches before.

Looks like they just came out with an Omilgauss

Which is apparently super duper antimagnetic.
http://www.hodinkee.com/blog/omega-introduces-worlds-first-anti-magnetic-movement

This has to be one of the ugliest watches I have seen. Good luck, Omega.

 

[Cantabrigian]



This has to be one of the ugliest watches I have seen.  Good luck, Omega.

Then you haven't seen many watches

 

[Cant kill da Rooster]



This has to be one of the ugliest watches I have seen.  Good luck, Omega.

I think if both hands were arrows and the second a solid yellow it would look pretty good. Perhaps a little to close to the AT but still, not ugly. Does the internal bezel rotate? I hope so.

 

[Newcomer]



I think if both hands were arrows and the second a solid yellow it would look pretty good. Perhaps a little to close to the AT but still, not ugly. Does the internal bezel rotate? I hope so.

Negative on the rotating bezel.

 

[FredericChopin]

Two of my watches: a Tudor that I bought when I was ten years old (I mowed some serious lawns, no kidding) and my great grandfathers gold Elgin from the 1910's.

 

[Dino944]

Is this for real? Even w/o the lightning second hand you clearly see where this is (would be) coming from. Sorry Omega, your goal seems to be to rival Rolex, but with these blunt moves (Vesper's speech anyone?) you rather help your rival than anything else...

They certainly seem to be following some of Rolex's moves. Rolex comes out with the Sub LV with green bezel, they came out with the Planet Ocean with orange bezel. The famous "Paul Newman" Daytonas have become highly sought after and valuable, so Omega releases Speedmasters with dials similar to that of the old PN Daytonas (even a red dial schumacher edition that looks like the ultra rare red PN dial Daytonas). Rolex releases a revised antimagnetic Milguass with orange lightning bolt hand a few years ago, now Omega releases a new antimagnetic AT with dotted yellow second hand and with a bracelet that looks like it was taken right off of a Milgauss.

Omega makes some very good watches. I think they should make watches that show their own DNA and heritage rather than mimicking Rolex on occasion.