recommend me a watch

mr. b_98GT

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Apr 23, 2013
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Houston, Texas
I've had a drawer full of old watches that needed batteries for years, (mostly Guess Steel, Fossil, GShock, and Seikos) and last year I decided to start wearing a watch again. Thus began my journey into joining Watchuseek.com. I bought some batteries and a nice watch repair kit, and I revived most of my old watches. My brother had a Skagen that I liked, so I picked up a Skagen for dirt cheap new off a website in the early part of 2013, and I then started looking at watches on-line and joined WUS. Once I started reading about watches, I got hooked and wound up purchasing ~5-6 more along with various leather bands, metal bracelets for a few watches, and butterfly enclosures. I now have a case on my dresser that holds 10 watches, along with a drawer of some old watches that most are working, and some I want to repair just to see if I can do it. I also picked up my first Automatic last year, a 2nd Generation Seiko Black Monster SRP307. I'm up to having two autos in my collection, along with 2 Citizen Nighthawks that are Eco-Drive (solar powered), and a GShock Aviator GW3000BB (solar, atomic timekeeping, modified with a Stainless Steel middle bezel and Stainless Steel Bracelet). There are SEVERAL watches I'd like to own, some are grails such as a Breitling Navitimer, and some are simply on my radar to buy sometime later this year, such as a Marathon JDD or JSAR, Seiko LE Blue Monster SRP455, GShock MTG S1000D.

What kind of watch are you looking for besides it being black? Does it matter if it is on a bracelet, resin strap (GShock rubber strap), leather strap? Do you want one that comes with a bracelet but looks good with a leather strap? Does this need to be a watch that can be dressed up or down, i.e. will this be a watch that needs to pull off a formal occassion if need be? Do you want one that can take a beating? How accurate do you need it to be? As in, if you need it to be dead on accurate all the time, then your best bet is to look for a watch with atomic time keeping (GShock and Citizen come to mind, but there are countless others). If you are okay with it being off by a few seconds every few months, then a Quartz watch will work (Fossil, Guess, non-atomic GShocks, Seiko, Casio, etc, etc). Do you want a watch that never needs a battery and winds when you wear it, then an automatic might be something to consider. You can pay huge chunks of change for a nice auto, but there are some quality watches out there that have in-house movements that are well respected among watch afficianados. That is how I found out about Seiko and their diver watches. If you like watches, WUS is a great resource, but be warned, you might say you just want one nice looking black watch, but in time, you will find yourself owning a watchcase and drawer full of them.

I don't know if I could have an all black watch as my only one, they will inevitably get scratches and show wear faster than SS. That being said, if I was going to have just one all black watch, and I was looking at $200-$500, I'd consider a Citizen Nighthawk or some variant of a Nighthawk. There are some newer models of the Nighthawk, but I like the older versions, such as the BJ7019-62E (aka BJ7005-59E). The US version of this watch has been discontinued, but the Euro version can still be purchased on-line. I have the SS US version on a bracelet, and I also have a Euro version with a white chapter ring on leather. The dial looks busy, but it really isn't once you start to wear it and get used to it. You can still get an all black Euro Nighthawk from dutyfreeisland.com (http://www.dutyfreeislandshop.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=BJ7019-62E). They have several other Nighthawks in black which are more expensive (sapphire glass and european atomic timekeeping, or worldwide atomic timekeeping). I regularly swap leather straps and bracelets on my Nighthawks to change up the look, and I wouldn't mind getting my hands on a few more, especially a duratect titanium version with sapphire and world atomic timekeeping.

If you need something that is beefier, then look at the GShock Aviator line of watches. They are solar powered, atomic timekeeping, tough movement, and have several features that you will probably never really bother to use. Most come with a rubber strap, but there are some models with a metal bracelet, and a few of the newer ones have resin link type bracelet. The metal bracelet can also be sourced if you wind up going with a rubber strap first. If you feel like spending $1K on a GShock, there is a black all metal MTG that has come out recently that looks wicked. Another option would be a 2nd Generation Monster, the SRP311 someone linked to above. It is an automatic dive watch with Seiko's new 4R36 movement, rated to 200M, and the Monster bracelet is very comfortable. The Seiko Monster is not as simple as the watch you originally posted, but if you get a chance, try one on.

Okay, NOW I'm done. Sorry for the long read. Like I said, I got hooked on watches last year thanks to WUS.
 
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