The Watch Appreciation Thread - Part two (Rolex, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Jaeger LeCoultre,

[Phileas Fogg]

Agreed completely. Everytime I see one I am reminded of the watch we got for my grandfather when he was 95 and had macular degeneration. It looked like a Flava Flav clock on his wirst...

There was a time when I really wanted one. Then I had a chance to try it on and felt the same way. Just too big and the pushers were pressing into me when I would extend my wrist.

Funny how actually putting something on completely changes ones perspective.

 

[Dino944]

Hey gang, wanted to ask for some advice. Gonna have a baby in September, looking to celebrate.

I'm looking for an everyday dress watch, maybe <$10k. Would love a complication in addition to time and date, with GMT being my favorite. 38-40mm. Steel case with a leather strap are also heavily preferred. Open to used as well.


So far, I'm interested in the following... Please lmk if there's something I'm overlooking, especially used in my price range.

JLC ultra thin moon
View attachment 1597737

JLC master geo
View attachment 1597739


IWC portofino chrono or portuguese
View attachment 1597748


JLC Polaris
View attachment 1597751


VC fifty six (would have to be used, but these might be too new?)
View attachment 1597753

Of these watches, the two I like the most are the JLC Master Geographic (super easy to use and practical, if you need to keep track of another time zone, and I also think the Polaris is a good do everything type of watch.

The JLC MUT...has always seemed too sterile and just falls flat for me.

IWC just isn't the company they once were. Their designs are sort played out (at one point every wealthy college kid in Boston was sporting a Big Pilot or a Portugieser chrono), and they no longer support their vintage pieces they way other older established brands do.

I really like VC and I have 2 of their dress watches. However, the VC Fifty Six, is a bit of a let down to me. It just didn't feel like a VC when I tried it on. I felt like I was trying on a vintage Rolex Bubbleback or vintage Datejust. but produced by VC.

 

[gmathio]

Hey gang, wanted to ask for some advice. Gonna have a baby in September, looking to celebrate.

I'm looking for an everyday dress watch, maybe <$10k. Would love a complication in addition to time and date, with GMT being my favorite. 38-40mm. Steel case with a leather strap are also heavily preferred. Open to used as well.


So far, I'm interested in the following... Please lmk if there's something I'm overlooking, especially used in my price range.

JLC ultra thin moon
View attachment 1597737

JLC master geo
View attachment 1597739


IWC portofino chrono or portuguese
View attachment 1597748


JLC Polaris
View attachment 1597751


VC fifty six (would have to be used, but these might be too new?)
View attachment 1597753

Personally, I'd go with the Ultra thin JLC, or the IWC Portugieser Chrono. The one with the white dial and gold hands.

 

[ronscuba]

I have owned my JLC for nearly a decade, and have only had one person ever comment on it. JLC makes a serious watch for a reasonable sum of money and has designs that are about as close to perfect as you can get. But they can come off a little cold, and you have to be OK with that.

I guess it depends how much style or flash people want in their watch. Boring and generic to 1 can be classic and clean to another. Similarly, stylish and interesting might be called gaudy and flashy, depending on the person.

Getting comments on your watch ? If it is boring/generic, sorry, classic and clean, will people comment on it if they do not recognize the brand ?

 

[Ranjeev]

Personally, I'd go with the Ultra thin JLC, or the IWC Portugieser Chrono. The one with the white dial and gold hands.

I have both of these watches. I wear the JLC as a dress watch and the IWC in dressy and casual situations. Agree that the IWC wears very big. Its fine for me because I'm a big guy but it should be tried on before purchasing.

 

[DavidLane]

Hey gang, wanted to ask for some advice. Gonna have a baby in September, looking to celebrate.

I'm looking for an everyday dress watch, maybe <$10k. Would love a complication in addition to time and date, with GMT being my favorite. 38-40mm. Steel case with a leather strap are also heavily preferred. Open to used as well.


So far, I'm interested in the following... Please lmk if there's something I'm overlooking, especially used in my price range.

JLC ultra thin moon
View attachment 1597737

JLC master geo
View attachment 1597739


IWC portofino chrono or portuguese
View attachment 1597748


JLC Polaris
View attachment 1597751


VC fifty six (would have to be used, but these might be too new?)
View attachment 1597753

@troika I really like the Grand Seiko GMT. I think this is their best case design, its 38mm if memory serves me, and the cream dial is beautiful. It's also a strap monster. They did make some special editions in this case with different color/textured dials as well. It falls well below your price point. Otherwise, I would recommend getting on a list for a Rolex GMT or Explorer II.

Good Luck and Congratulations!

-DL

 

[RJman]

Are there any other top makers of bespoke watch straps other than Camille Fournet, Jean Rousseau, and ABP Paris?

Many other frog independents will - Duret, etc. ABP is the one that seemed most open to customization (scale size, amount of padding, etc.), since watch straps are their specialty, although I don't think they're the best out there. They are pretty good though.

 

[Kaplan]

Some good advice to @troika above, to go with a GMT if that's your favourite complication. I'll follow it up with a bad suggestion of my own, which not only isn't a GMT, it may also be too sporty. But it's pretty.

 

[usctrojans31]

Hey gang, wanted to ask for some advice. Gonna have a baby in September, looking to celebrate.

I'm looking for an everyday dress watch, maybe <$10k. Would love a complication in addition to time and date, with GMT being my favorite. 38-40mm. Steel case with a leather strap are also heavily preferred. Open to used as well.


So far, I'm interested in the following... Please lmk if there's something I'm overlooking, especially used in my price range.

JLC ultra thin moon
View attachment 1597737

JLC master geo
View attachment 1597739


IWC portofino chrono or portuguese
View attachment 1597748


JLC Polaris
View attachment 1597751


VC fifty six (would have to be used, but these might be too new?)
View attachment 1597753

Congrats!

Admittedly biased, but my vote is for the Geographic. It wears small. I'm 6'4" with a 6.25" wrist and it fits brilliantly. MUT would be my second choice.

If you're into independents, you can get a Parmigiani Tonda in that range. One of my favorite dollar for dollar watch brands on the planet.

 

[venessian]

Hey gang, wanted to ask for some advice. Gonna have a baby in September, looking to celebrate.

I'm looking for an everyday dress watch, maybe <$10k. Would love a complication in addition to time and date, with GMT being my favorite. 38-40mm. Steel case with a leather strap are also heavily preferred. Open to used as well.


So far, I'm interested in the following... Please lmk if there's something I'm overlooking, especially used in my price range.

JLC ultra thin moon
View attachment 1597737

JLC master geo
View attachment 1597739


IWC portofino chrono or portuguese
View attachment 1597748


JLC Polaris
View attachment 1597751


VC fifty six (would have to be used, but these might be too new?)
View attachment 1597753

It seems to me that for such an "important occasion" watch, you should set the criteria more precisely, meaning: if you prefer GMT as the primary additional complication, then select from watches which have GMT, as GMT is a pretty specific complication, and cull from there.

That selection you posted is a bit all over the place in that and other regards, which is then confusing and makes giving rational comparative advice pretty difficult. You're likely to receive as many different opinions as replies, with the JLC MUT (not a GMT watch) certainly leading the pack by default.

Even if they satisfy the > STEEL + > 38-40mm (some of those are 41 min I think) + > ~$10K criteria, not all of those you posted above read, to me, as also satisfying:
> EVERYDAY
+
> DRESS (very subjective of course, but I don't see chronographs as dress watches, and the Polaris is really pushing the sport/dress boundary imo)
+
> TIME + DATE
+
> ETC (additional complication)

EDIT:
N.B.: Definitely willing to make suggestions with a bit more specific criteria. It always interesting to see what options come from questions like yours, good learning for all I think.

 

[dan'l]

I really love Blancpain dive watches but love them a bit less less since Vlad P. started wearing them.

View attachment 1597630

Is this a recent pic? I recall a story many years ago where Putin visited a power plant (or some other industrial place) and one of the workers commented on his watch. Vladimir looked down at his wrist, took off his watch and gave it to the guy. I thought it was a Blancpain Aqualung.

 

[9thsymph]

							Is this a recent pic? I recall a story many years ago where Putin visited a power plant (or some other industrial place) and one of the workers commented on his watch. Vladimir looked down at his wrist, took off his watch and gave it to the guy. I thought it was a Blancpain Aqualung.

On perhaps a related note, I think there is a video of Sarkozy walking along a barrier of sorts, shaking hands with the public. He very slyly removes his watch and puts it in his pocket (so that the watch won’t be taken/seen?).

 

[smittycl]

Is this a recent pic? I recall a story many years ago where Putin visited a power plant (or some other industrial place) and one of the workers commented on his watch. Vladimir looked down at his wrist, took off his watch and gave it to the guy. I thought it was a Blancpain Aqualung.

I remember that anecdote. No idea on the pic date. I’m sure he has an extensive watch collection.

 

[TheFoo]

Many other frog independents will - Duret, etc. ABP is the one that seemed most open to customization (scale size, amount of padding, etc.), since watch straps are their specialty, although I don't think they're the best out there. They are pretty good though.

ABP quality is the worst of all the three I mentioned, but they also have the most hide and configuration options.

Camille Fournet has also become frustratingly corporate. They want to be a luxury brand.

 

[RJman]

ABP quality is the worst of all the three I mentioned, but they also have the most hide and configuration options.

Camille Fournet has also become frustratingly corporate. They want to be a luxury brand.

I can't disagree.