Reasonably priced dress watches

[obiter dictum]

Having drooled my way through the Watch p0rn thread, I've come to the realization that just about anything in that thread would blow my student budget out of orbit. I do however want a reasonably classy looking watch to wear when I'm dressing up. By dressing up I mean wearing a suit/tie or shirt/sports jacket.

My budget would be something around $300 with an absolute maximum of $400. I'm looking for something simplistic, so no really big watches, chronographs or overly stylish doodads. I'd really like to get my hands on a decent mechanic, but a quartz is fine if the watch looks alright. Vintage would be great, but it seems like all the really good condition ones are also really expensive. Any suggestions would be helpful!

This caught my eye while browsing: http://www.skagen.com/item/755XLSGL.fx - 40mm/11.5mm seems a bit big? It's about the same size as my day-to-day cronograph, which fits my wrist quite well though. Thoughts?

 

[embowafa]

This website is right up your alley....I bought my Seiko from there. The Panerai will have to wait a few years

Poor Man's Watch Forum

 

[huy]

Stowa Antea Date
Hamilton Jazzmaster
Tissot Le Locle
Seiko Spirit

 

[Grayland]

This is a cool website with a limited selection of watches, mostly vintage. You can get on his mailing list and be notified when he gets new ones in. Keep in mind most vintage watches are much smaller than many of the watches made today. www.watchcat.com

 

[modmica]

Originally Posted by huy

Stowa Antea Date
Hamilton Jazzmaster
Tissot Le Locle
Seiko Spirit

I second this list.

 

[whiteslashasian]

Originally Posted by Grayland

This is a cool website with a limited selection of watches, mostly vintage. You can get on his mailing list and be notified when he gets new ones in. Keep in mind most vintage watches are much smaller than many of the watches made today.

www.watchcat.com

That's a cool website. A lot of interesting vintage pieces in there.

 

[strategos]

I was in almost the exact same situation last month, and I ended up settling on the Christopher Ward Malvern Automatic.

This watch gets a fair bit of love at timezone and pmwf. Here's a review

It's a little more expensive than when that review was written, but I picked up the watch and a brown 'gator strap they've got on clearance for around $330. Part of the price increase reflects the fact that the watches are now entirely Swiss made (before they assembled Swiss movements in China). I've been extremely happy with the purchase, and the customer service was absolutely excellent.

Good luck with your search.

 

[obiter dictum]

Great suggestions so far dudes, thanks a lot. Almost getting too many good options, going to take me ages to decide.

 

[0b5cur1ty]

There are some excellent suggestions in this thread, particularly the list from huy. If you want to go mechanical, personally I can't imagine a better choice than a Seiko Spirit - several models to choose from, all carrying the in-house 6R15 movement.

However: If you're also prepared to look at quartz (as suggested in the opening post), you should consider a Seiko SBQK079 - a bit cheaper than a mechanical Spirit, classic dressy looks (particularly if you put it on a strap) and it's fitted with the very special 8F32 high-frequency quartz movement: +/- 20 sec per year rated accuracy, perpetual calendar, 10 year battery life and low battery indicator. Seiya-san carries them.

 

[NOLA1]

i'd go w/ this one. Stowas are suite.

http://www.german-watches.com/cgi-bi...gesamt_zeilen=

 

[vf55]

Originally Posted by strategos

I was in almost the exact same situation last month, and I ended up settling on the Christopher Ward Malvern Automatic.

This watch gets a fair bit of love at timezone and pmwf. Here's a review

It's a little more expensive than when that review was written, but I picked up the watch and a brown 'gator strap they've got on clearance for around $330. Part of the price increase reflects the fact that the watches are now entirely Swiss made (before they assembled Swiss movements in China). I've been extremely happy with the purchase, and the customer service was absolutely excellent.

Good luck with your search.

+1

The Christopher Ward watches are an even better deal right now because the British Pound is around $1.60 ($1.85 in Sept). They have a very large selection on their website. Remember to check the Non-EC price if you don't live in Europe.

 

[Pelikan2]

Another vote for the Seiko Spirit - great watch for the money. You can choose between white and black dials, and both are attractive in my opinion.

 

[Grayland]

I like everything about the Seiko Spirit except it's so damn thick. I'd prefer my dress watch to be a little thinner.

 

[unicornwarrior]

personally most of the watches mentioned are rather good. I like the Skagen you picked just fine, I have one myself and for the money I enjoy it.

Mind you, it is possible to get many Skagens for a discounted price on Amazon.com. I bought a new Skagen that was selling in stores for 160 for roughly 93 dollars. Go take a look!

 

[Tarmac]

I think Skagens and Movados are pretty cheesy. I would probably not wear one even for free. Seiko is 10x better in that price range.