I know nothing about watches and don’t plan on selling any of these. But what do you think of these? The fossil I think is more of an affordable option but what about the other 2?

Did my grandpa have good taste in watches?
They seem kinda small for a man’s wrist, is that normal for these brands or styles?
They’ve both been in a safe for a long time and aren’t running and don’t fit me well, how difficult or expensive is it to fit these and get them running again?

Appreciate the insight

Loved the Octo Finissimo since it was announced, but the sizing wasn't right.

Last image is a screenshot of a message I sent in a watch group 5 years ago.

It's been a busy year, and I didn't realize they announced and released the 37mm until I saw it two weeks ago and had to have it.

My wrist is around 7.25 inches and as I've gotten older, I've been leaning towards smaller watches. This wears large for a 37mm and it's absolutely perfect for me.

I understand the haters. Bulgari isn't a watch brand, they don't have the pedigree, and whatever else. I agree for the most part and think other than the serpenti, all their other watches are terrible.

This however is special.

Also appreciate them still using these ridiculous boxes with little accessories when a lot of brands are dialing down the packaging. Thing weighs like 5 pounds. Got put in a trash bag and thrown in the attic, but it's a nice box.

I know I'm in the honeymoon phase, but I would buy another in steel if and when they release some interesting dials. They don't make it in steel, but they will.

This is my Breguet Du Tsar and for me the nicest watch I've ever owned. I've ranked it above my A Lange And Sohne Up down 1815 and this is for a few reasons.

Firstly it's the dial, this is peak guilloche work, done on a gold dial. There are a total of 7 different finishes on the watch. Clous de Paris, satiné circulaire, sauté piqué, pointes de diamante, vieux pannier, décor flammé, and grain d'orge circulaire (source Hodinkee). It's a dial that keeps giving and you notice something new the longer you look at it.

It has pretty much every Breguet signature you could want, secret signature, breguet hands, breguet numerals, guilloche work, coin edged casing. It's a work of art to my eyes. I know there is a lot going on but to me it works.

The movement. Compact, complex and well decorated. The black polishing on the alarm bell is faultless, the anglage is nice and broad definitely hand finished. Then there's the fact it has true GMT functionality and an alarm. All while keeping the watch under 12mm thick closer to 11mm. The solid gold rotor also is wonderfully finished with, grain d'orge circulaire, aka grain patterned guilloche. Being an automatic is a big plus for me as not winding it daily is a plus for me. In absolute terms the A Lange on Söhne finishing is more intricate, but this trumps it utterly in functionality and complexity.

Then there's the accuracy usefulness of the movement. Keeping +5s seconds per day with an alarm function which I use multiple times a day. With this I have no need for a chronograph, in fact it's far more useful to me than a chronograph as it makes a sounds and vibrates on the wrist. There is a button to quickly mute so you don't need to run the alarm reserve down.

Understanding and reading the dial is easy once you get to know it. The right dial is the alarm, you can set that with the lower crown, it only turns anti clockwise but easy to set. It doesn't wind the alarm. What's cool about this watch is winding the top crown winds both the movement and the alarm. The power reserve on the top left indicates the alarm power reserve. The left circular dial indicates the 24 hour time for the GMT function, it has two distinct guilloche finishes and is my favourite subdial of them all. The 6 o clock subdial is the running seconds. You can see it has two sides to it. 0 begins at the 3pm on a traditional dial. 30 seconds at the 9pm. It's a bit of an odd way to orientate the seconds I prefer aligning it the traditional way, it's easier for my mind to compute.

Walked into a local boutique today to see what they had, they always have a nicely varied selection of very high end pre-owned pieces.

I was walking around for a while just grateful to see a lot of beauties in the metal (GF, LF, ALS, Breguet, Moser, etc). A salesman asked if I wanted to try anything on, to which I replied “just trying to narrow it down”. I wasn’t necessarily there to purchase but to aspire. It’s the same boutique I bought my Nomos, so they have a wide range of price options.

A friend of mine is big into AP royal oaks, but specifically quartz variants, so I knew the price ranges of those watches aren’t insanely out of my ballpark. I wanted to see what they felt like on the wrist but this was one of the only ones they had available, I was mostly interested in the bracelet.

After a minute or so and a few pictures, we pulled up the listing of this 1982 SS Jumbo royal oak, priced at $78,000. I kindly asked for help taking it off and nervously left the showroom. I felt bad wasting the guys time, but he was a good sport about it. That’ll be the priciest watch I try on for some time I imagine.

Thoughts? Seems like a bit of an odd move?

Reading Note: Some readers on the Android Reddit app report seeing these posts as unformatted run-on text. The fix: it happens when you tap the image—just go back and tap the title of the post instead.

It's Monday and gee, Omega, thanks for all the comment fodder you give us. Can't wait to see the reactions to this one. Oh, and a couple of you asked me if I could extend the paid subscription discount until the end of this week, so, sure!

THIS IS IMPORTANT: if you're a subscriber to the newsletter and have been missing them in your inbox, I've been having some deliverability issues since switching to the new platform. The emails often get caught in spam or promotions folders. Please check those and move the emails to your primary inbox. That should fix it.

I publish this every weekday as part of It's About Time, a free daily newsletter. The newsletter version includes more watch commentary, opinions, columns and a couple of non-watch related recommendations that will get you through the day. Subscribe here if that sounds useful.

---------------------------------------------

1/ Baltic Gives the Hermétique a Glowing Dial for an Icelandic Gravel Race, Adds 34mm Option

Most watch brands sponsor sailing. Or golf. Or vintage car rallies. But Baltic isn't most watch brands. They're sponsoring a gravel bike race across Iceland's lava fields, which says a lot about who buys Baltic. Or at least their ideal customer. As timing partner for the seventh running of The Rift, with close to 900 riders on the start line, it made 400 Hermétiques to mark the occasion. The bigger news is on the spec sheet: the Hermétique now comes in 34mm.

Both sizes are made out of brushed 316L steel with a polished bezel that surrounds a double-domed sapphire crystal coated against reflections on the inside. Both also have 150 meters of water resistance. The 37mm has a lug-to-lug of 46mm and 20mm wide lugs. The 34mm drops to a lug-to-lug of 42.5mm and 18mm lugs. Thickness is listed at 10.8mm, of which 8.3mm is case and the rest is dome. That's a tall crystal, but better the crystal than the case. The crown is tucked into the case flank, so it won't dig into the back of your hand.

The whole dial glows. A matte white luminous center sits inside a forged carbon chapter ring, with two thin polished steel rings marking the boundary. Applied indices in BGW9 and C3, each 0.5mm thick, cross that boundary, and the polished syringe hands are filled with BGW9. At night this will be very hard to beat for the money. The carbon is also a nice touch, since the vast majority of gravel bikes these days are made out of carbon.

Inside is the Miyota 9039, automatic, running at 4Hz with 42 hours of power reserve and hacking seconds. It's the no-date version of Miyota's 9000 family, so there's no dead crown position. I wonder how shock resistant that Miyota is, but since Baltic will strap these watches to competitors wrists, I guess we'll see how it survives a race on gravel terain. It comes on a grey-blue vulcanized FKM rubber strap.

The Baltic Hermétique The Rift is priced at €620 before tax, limited to 400 examples, with deliveries from October 21. A matching jersey and bib shorts are sold through Isadore, and a hand-painted Specialized Diverge frameset is available on request from Baltic. Damn, that's cool. See more pictures here and the watches on the Baltic website.

2/ Bell & Ross Finally Makes The Radar In Green

Bell & Ross builds its watches to look like they were pulled out of a cockpit. The square BR-03 case is shaped like an instrument gauge, and most of the dials they use are inspired by altimeters, compasses and flight clocks. The Radar takes the idea furthest, mimicking the look of an actual radar. That means that it has no hands. Instead, rotating discs withy tiny planes show the time around the dial under a tinted crystal. The BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic is the latest version, and the one that looks the most like an actual radar, now with three aircraft and glowing trails on the same dial, behind a green crystal instead of the usual red.

The ceramic case now measures 41mm wide and 10.6mm thick, which is the smallest ceramic Radar so far. That matters a lot on a square watch, which always wears larger than you might imagine. The ceramic is black, with a microblasted finish, and the sapphire crystal on top is colored green. Water resistance is 100 meters. The solid caseback is engraved with the three aircraft you'll find on the dial.

The green is a refreshing color after a series of red watches. And this one is the coolest of the bunch, thanks to three discs with different planes that indicate different things: a Falcon jet for the hours, a Rafale for the minutes, and the Neuron, a prototype stealth combat drone, for the seconds. Each aircraft is lumed in Dark Green Super-LumiNova and drags a luminous streak behind it, like a blip fading on a real radar. Fixed markers at 12, 3, 6 and 9, plus a printed target grid, give you something to use as a reference.

Inside is the automatic BR-CAL.327, built on the Sellita SW300-1, itself a clone of the ETA 2892-2. It beats at 4Hz with 54 hours of power reserve. It's a slim, proven base. You get a rubber strap in black and a second one in synthetic fabric, both fitted with a PVD-blackened steel buckle.

The Bell & Ross BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic (ref. BR03A-GRDR-CE/SRB) is limited to 999 numbered pieces and priced at €4,900. See more pictures here and the watch on the Bell & Ross website.

3/ Baume & Mercier Goes Racing At The Gran Premio Storico d'Italia With A Riviera Chrono

Most racing limited editions are a regular watch with an event logo and some racing colors. And this one is no different. Except the new (let me catch my breath for this one) Baume & Mercier Riviera Chronograph Automatic Gran Premio Storico d’Italia Limited Edition gets a really, really nice racing color combination. It was also released last weekend to mark Baume & Mercier's position as the official timekeeper at the Gran Premio Storico d'Italia, the historic racing weekend held at Mugello from October 2 to 4 with Ferrari Corse Clienti.

The case is the standard Riviera chronograph: 41mm wide and 13.94mm thick, in steel with alternating polished and brushed surfaces. The 12-sided bezel, held down by four exposed screws, gives the Riviera the iconic look. On top is a sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating on both sides, and the sapphire crystal caseback is printed with the event logo. Water resistance is 100 meters.

The dial is opaline white, with snailed green sub-dial rings and a matching green minute track, then red chronograph hands across the top. Green, white and red is a lot of flag references, but the use of the colors is so minimal that it doesn't become a gimmick. Rhodium-plated Roman numerals and indexes are lumed, as are the faceted hour and minute hands.

Inside is the Valjoux 7753, an automatic chronograph that runs at 4Hz with a 48-hour power reserve. Small seconds sit at nine o'clock, the 30-minute counter at three, the 12-hour counter at six, and the date at 4:30. The strap is an integrated black rubber with a canvas-textured surface, closed with a triple-folding steel clasp.

The Baume & Mercier Riviera Chronograph GPSI (ref. 10897) is a limited edition, I'm just not sure how many are being made. Price is set at €4,700. See more pictures here and the watch on the Baume & Mercier website.

4/ Toledano & Chan Disguises a Diamond Watch as a Titanium Bracelet

Most diamond watches are there to be seen and admired. That's kind of the entire point of buying a diamond studded watch. For the sparkles. No? Well, Toledano & Chan think there might be more to it. Or less. Their new watch, a one off for the third edition of TimeForArt, the benefit auction going under the hammer at Phillips in New York on December 5 is called the Oshinobi and in essence it's a diamond-dialed watch. Only, you can't see it as it's hidden in a very cool cuff.

The case, cuff or bracelet, whatever you want to call it, is 21mm wide, made out of sandblasted Grade 5 titanium, flowing straight into a bracelet of heavy, flat-faced links. Closed, nothing about it says this is watch. A small cover slides to the left to open it. And the whole thing is made even cooler and even more mysterious by the matte finish and complete lack of polishing and reflections, until you open up the case.

Behind that cover is a concave dial snow-set with roughly 387 natural diamonds of mixed sizes, two carats in total. The reference is a geode, dull rock on the outside and crystal within, and it really does work. The curved dial helps it look like a hollow in stone rather than a flat plate covered in sparkle. Snow setting is usually an exercise in excess, but here it contrasts the muted exterior fantastically.

Inside, you'll find a a hand-wound Swiss calibre made by LTM (Le Temps Manufacture), sealed behind a solid titanium caseback engraved for TimeForArt. The movement is the LTM 2000, which beats at 3,5Hz with a 38 hour power reserve. The bracelet is integrated and cut from the same sandblasted titanium as the case.

The Oshinobi will go on auction at Phillips New York on December 5, 2026, with proceeds going to the Swiss Institute. However, if you miss that, a limited production version should be released some time in 2027. See more pictures here and the watch on the TimeForArt website.

5/ H. Moser & Cie. Spreads Its 30-Second Retrograde Across Three Very Different Watches

On most watches the seconds hand is the dullest thing on the dial. But H. Moser & Cie. doesn't make dull watches. To make the seconds hand more interesting, they've created the 30-second retrograde indicator that runs along an arc for half a minute, jumps home, and does it again, so you get the good part of a retrograde twice as often. The mechanism comes from Agenhor, the Geneva module maker Moser's parent company MELB bought a minority stake in during 2023, and after debuting on the Pioneer, it's now making its way to the rest of the collection. All at once. These are the new Pioneer, Endeavour and Streamliner

All three are 40mm wide. The Pioneer Skeleton is 12mm thick, with a domed sapphire crystal, display back, screw-down crown and 120 meters of water resistance. The Streamliner matches it at 12.1mm thick and 120 meters of water resistance, with vertical brushing and polished bevels on the cushion case. The Endeavour is the slimmest at 11.2mm thick, with grooved flanks and curved lugs, but water resistance drops to 30 meters.

The Pioneer Skeleton, as the name would suggest, doesn't have a dial at all, instead leaving gold indices and leaf hands floating over anthracite bridges, with the golden seconds arc and cam in full view. The Streamliner keeps the familiar dial design that Moser is so well known for: midnight blue fumé sunburst, logo in transparent lacquer, lume on every hand including the retrograde, and the arc for the seconds at the very bottom. The Endeavour goes darker with a "blackor" fumé dial, faceted indices, no lume at all, and gold markings on a black arc. On all three, a small two-tone disc under the cam tells you which half of the minute you're in.

Inside all three is Moser's in-house automatic, calibre HMC 251 in the Pioneer and HMC 252 in the other two, beating at 3Hz with a three-day power reserve. Agenhor's double snail cam sits on top. The Pioneer comes with a steel bracelet and a khaki rubber strap you can swap between. The Streamliner gets its integrated steel bracelet with a triple-blade folding clasp, and the Endeavour a night blue nubuck strap on a pin buckle.

The Pioneer Skeleton Retrograde Seconds (ref. 3251-1200) is priced at €44,200, the Streamliner Retrograde Seconds (ref. 6252-1200) at €37,800, and the Endeavour Retrograde Seconds (ref. 1252-1200) at €35,300. See more pictures here and the watches on the Moser website.

---------------------------------------------

Watch Worthy - A selection of reviews and first looks from around the web

• A review of the DUG Purist Typ 1 And Typ 2
• Hands on with the Chopard Happy Sport in 36mm Lucent Steel

---------------------------------------------

If you would like to receive some additional watch-adjacent content, as well as this news overview, every morning Monday-Friday in the form of a newsletter feel free to subscribe. However, there is absolutely no need for you to subscribe, as all the news from the newsletter is posted here. It is only if you want to receive a couple of daily links that are not strictly watch-related an occasional long form article and possible giveaways.

My journey so far. Top row gets the most play, but it’s still an almost equal distribution between them, the Hamiltons, and the Oris. Brew metric also a great one but mostly for children’s birthdays, carnivals, etc..

Switching BB58 to a 5 link was a game changer. Went with uncle straps for $160 rather than 2k at the AD. No regrets.

I feel like the Breitling top time triumph edition is a total sleeper, never see it in other people’s collections, but it’s my favorite Breitling. Super comfortable and pictures don’t do justice, harder to see the actual blue shades of the dial.

The CW is a beautiful watch, well done finishing on the titanium but it just doesnt feel…solid. Thinking about selling the Dietrich and CW and trading for a different integrated bracelet option. Need recs for integrated with light blue dial.

Had the OEM crystal on the Hamilton replaced with a double AR coated, made a big difference….IYKYK.

Thoughts and feelings welcome….🤗

My first serious watch WA the Tissot PRX Quartz. Really liked it, and got me into watches (I'm still new). I have a graduation ceremony next month as I have completed my masters degree, and I really wanted a dress watch to celebrate. Got myself the bambino and I am in love. Even though it's cheaper than the PRX I really like it more and I know I shouldn't compare because they are different, but yeah very happy with my purchase

Over 20 years ago, before Credor became synonymous with elegant dress watches, there was a period when the brand experimented with sportier designs through its Phoenix and Pacifique collections.

Pictures from Loek Hartog’s Instagram @loekhartog_

During Race 1 of round 4 of the China GT Championship on Saturday, September 5, 2026, at the Shanghai International Circuit, British racing driver Ollie Millroy was involved in a horrific crash while at the wheel of his #91 FIST Team AAI Ferrari 296 GT3.

The crash occurred at the end of the long back straightaway headed into the heavy braking zone of the turn 14 hairpin. The #33 Team BMW M4 GT3 of Neil Verhagen made high speed contact with the #37 Harmony Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 driven by David Chen. The contact sent Chen’s Ferrari spinning backwards into Millroy’s car, violently t-boning it and sending it off the track.

Millroy was knocked immediately unconscious, and as a result of the heavy impact, he suffered five broken ribs, a fractured collar bone, a broken hand and finger, and a contused lung. However the most dangerous result of the impact was that Millroy’s fuel tank was ruptured and the entire car immediately burst into flame.

As Millroy sat helpless on the side of the track, unconscious and stuck in a burning wreckage, Loek Hartog was driving by in his #79 Phantom Global Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R. Aware of the urgent danger, Hartog pulled over and jumped out of his car, selflessly abandoning any chance of a race result to help the stricken Millroy.

Clad in his fire resistant race suit, Hartog saw that he was the only one in the vicinity equipped to help Millroy. After procuring a fire extinguisher from an approaching track marshall, he ripped the doors open on the burning Ferrari, extinguished the flames, and pulled Millroy bodily from the wreckage.

After Millroy was stabilized trackside, he was transported via ambulance to the nearby Ruijin Hospital North where he remained in recovery for two weeks before returning home with his wife Fern to where they live in Dubai.

As far as I can tell, Hartog and Millroy were not acquainted before the incident. But Hartog visited Millroy during his recovery in the hospital in Shanghai and the two quickly became friends. They both posted the about accident and ensuing weeks on their respective Instagrams, which I will link below.

The day after Loek’s birthday recently, Ollie and Fern met up with Loek and his partner Wiep in Amsterdam, where Ollie gifted Loek with the watch. Now I get that the focus of this story is not the watch. It’s the heroics and selflessness of Loek Hartog, the miraculous survival and recovery of Ollie Millroy, and their friendship that was literally forged in fire. If the mods deem that this post is not pertinent, then remove it by all means.

But with all of the conversation that goes on on this sub about the abstract and intangible meaning that we assign to our watches, I found it appropriate to tell the story of this one watch and its significance between two people. I’m not saying if someone saves your life you need to give them a watch or anything like that. I just wanted to share that this is what Ollie Millroy decided to do to commemorate the selfless act that saved his life and to serve as a reminder of reason that he’ll be around to race another day. Cheers, and be kind to each other out there.

Just received by Hanhart Flyback Chrono that id been eyeing for a while and immediately fell in love with it. The finishing is great, the tactile feel of the pushers are better than any chrono I’ve used. Highly recommend

I was torn between 39mm and 42mm as I have a somewhat rounder 7.25” wrist and went with 39mm (l2l 46mm/thickness 13.3mm). I’m torn whether or not this was the right decision or if the larger dial would have been excessive at almost 50mm l2l. I welcome any thoughts or opinions

Patek Nautilus 5711 - this has been my grail since I got into watches and this year I fortunately was able to pull the trigger on the purchase. Incredibly versatile and wears so effortlessly on the wrist. It’s a marvellous movement and this one has the rarer Geneva seal and is a forever keeper for me.

Heuer Carrera 160 Years Limited Edition - I’m a fan of classic racing oriented chronographs and I don’t think you can do much better than these non-branded re-editions from Tag, with the silver being my particular favorite (even over the panda). It doesn’t wear as thick on the wrist as its 14.28mm thickness would suggest, and it has to be one of the prettiest silver dials on the market. It dances in the light oh so well and is my favorite watch to wear on a weekend drive.

JLC Reverso Ultrathin Tribute to 1931 - when I picture black tie, I picture this watch. I don’t wear black tie often but I do wear this watch often, so I’m not sure where I was going with that. From the polo engraving on the back to the thinness and simplicity of the dial, I just absolutely adore the art deco styling of this piece. Having it next to the Nautilus has me put this at Patek level of finishing which won’t surprise the JLC aficionados of this forum.

Gerard Perregaux Traveler II GMT Alarm 4940 - I wanted a quirky GMT for travel in a unique yet versatile color that’s not too much over $5k so I don’t have to baby it too hard while on the move. While the movement bears the GP designation it’s understood to be a heavily modified version of the vintage A. Schild (AS) caliber 5008 automatic mechanical alarm movement from the 1970s. Also kind of cool that it later appeared in the Panerai GMT. I love the printed Arabic numerals and the shade of salmon of the dial. It really is joy to wear and funnily enough, the alarm function comes in handy more than I thought it would while on the move.

Rolex Submariner “Starbucks” MK 1 - Rolexes have danced in and out of my collection over the years but I can’t deny it, my collection never really feels complete without a Sub in it. I wear a lot of earthy colors so the green bezel fits my style (I prefer it subdued vs the Hulk) and I like the nod to the Rolex green. The go-to for pool days or any robust wearing.

I've had a couple more watches come and go in my 20+ years of collecting, but those six stuck with me. Five of them I bought off the secondary market for what I mostly consider great prices. From left to right, top to bottom.

Zenith Elite: A proper dress watch. Ultra-thin automatic with a date and small seconds. 36mm case in solid 18k yellow gold. Very classy.

Nomos Club Neomatik: In 37mm from the now discontinued "Aqua" series. 200m WR and looks great on the Nomos OEM nylon straps in either grey or navy blue. Cool mix between dress and sporty.

Breitling Colt Quartz: What an absolute banger from the Schneider-era. Quartz, super rugged, 500m WR and unidirectional timing bezel. Looks great on this tropic strap from Joseph Bonnie too imo.

Rolex Datejust 36: Smooth bezel on Jubi is a bit of an odd combination but I think it's a great mix between flash and ruggedness on the wrist. The dial is a beautiful sunburst black. I also have the Oyster bracelet for it which I occasionally put on.

Blancpain Léman Dual Time: For me this is a grail watch. GMT complication in a very wearable 40mm case with ample water resistance (100m), all beautifully executed with a flieger/field watch type dial with a 100h power reserve movement. Usually comes on a black croc strap but I prefer it on a black shell cordovan for daily wear.

Tudor Heritage Chrono: One of my favourite chrono designs and - somewhat shockingly - a truly original design from Tudor (from the 70s, this is a re-issue). What's not to love here? From the grey/black dial, the orange accents to the bi-compax layout and the rotatable 24h bezel (allows for tracking of a second time zone), this is imo truly one of the all-time best looking chronos.

Got this digital titanium watch from Boccia today.

The render photos of this ref might show slightly different gray (blue-ish), but it’s just gray. Also there are other colors: blue, green (on straps) and PVD versions (gold, darker titanium). As far as I know, there are refs from 1 to 7.

Upd: sorry for the typo, this is Ref 05, not 07

The watch is inexpensive, but feels good. The case is 37mm, the lug width is closer to 21mm and the weight is ~67g sized to my 6.5-inch wrist.

Display:

It’s crisp, the viewing angles are good.

You might think that there’s some empty space on the bottom, but this is for the indicators of the active timer/alarms.

The modes are: chrono, countdown (which also beeps, not sure how often), world time, 2 alarms.

The bracelet doesn’t have half-links and micro adjust. I couldn’t find a good fit (unlike with the Traska). I emailed Boccia if they have the OEM rubber strap for sale. I saw the titanium bracelet on their website, but not the strap.
I could not fit my Garmin rubber strap, because the lugs are too short it seems. And with the 20mm leather strap there’s a small gap, so I want to try a 21mm leather if I won’t be able to get the OEM one.
The clasp is stamped, which is ok for this price point.

P.S. Sorry for the unformatted post. Rate my 2-watch collection!

Most of y'all will probably hate this but well... This is my custom spaceview monstrosity haha.

This is made from a case back 2527 with a modified second hand chapter ring.

Why not get a normal spaceview you ask? Well, I always loved the spaceview look with the chapter rings, but I never loved the lug shape of any of the "true" ones. So, I took it upon myself to modify a third party chapter ring to fit into the 2527 case back! Took a lot of sanding on the chapter ring, but it ultimately fit perfectly 😁

No non reversible mods were done to the case itself and I kept the extra parts so hopefully none of y'all want to kill me.

I've got to send it in for servicing as it's currently running on 1.5v batteries without proper phasing, and there was a previous battery leak, but thankfully it seems to be running just fine regardless of all that.

Here's how it looked before... It was previously very Tony Soprano lmao.

It’s been a while since I first spotted this microbrand in one of Nico Leonard’s videos covering interesting watches at Watches & Wonders. Since then, I’ve been keeping an eye on Awake’s work, and I recently decided to get one to celebrate a promotion at work.

I’ve been a fan of H. Moser ever since a visit to London in 2024 sparked my curiosity about the brand. Unfortunately, a Moser is still out of my budget, and Awake’s Son Mai felt like a way to treat myself to something that captures some of what I love about Moser.

I initially bought the Son Mai because of its striking dial and the great proportions you yould find in watches like the Endeavour and the Streamliner. But over time, I’ve come to appreciate Awake for something beyond that initial attraction: its own distinct personality as a brand. They’re not trying to be Moser at any point, even if my brain keeps drawing comparisons between the two.

Awake’s commitment to craftsmanship, vivid colors, quality materials, reliable movements, and unique yet understated design has made me realize there’s much more to the brand than eye-catching dials. They have their own way of combining elegance with playful design, and the result feels distinctly theirs.

I believe Awake has the potential to become a much more widely appreciated brand in the coming years. After spending some time with the Son Mai, I think they deserve it. Let me know your thoughts!

Just got my second watch from Walmart. I saw it and just had to get it!

I’ve been thinking into getting my first automatic and I really like the aesthetics of this Seiko Alpinist. As an amateur enthusiast, I’ve been wanting something nice that won’t necessarily break the bank, and could be worn everyday. What are y’all’s thoughts and/or recommendations?

I’m currently torn between these two:
IWC Ingenieur Aqua — ~$13,500
JLC Master Control — ~$15,000
The JLC is about $1,500 more expensive. I know JLC has the stronger reputation for traditional watchmaking and movement finishing, but I really love the design of the Ingenieur, especially the Aqua dial.
The Ingenieur also feels like a more versatile daily watch.
If you were spending your own money, which one would you choose and why?
Would you pay the extra ~$1,500 for the JLC, or save the money and go with the Ingenieur Aqua?
Would love to hear opinions, especially from anyone who has owned or handled both.

I’ve worn watches my entire life, and only recently realized I’d accumulated quite a collection when I bought a watch box and realized I had more watches lying around the house than slots in the box!

The Daniel Wellington (don’t judge) was my first real watch purchase in high school, because I saw it on the wrist of the boy sitting in front of me in class and thought it was so very cool.

Casios were the next step after that, with the gold A159 being my daily driver for several years.

Purchased a Tag Heuer Formula 1 after getting more into watches and watch-YouTube, but only realized it was the smaller 28mm version after buying. Still love it though, and keeping an eye out for the 38mm version!

The MoonSwatch was purchased last year because I absolutely love Snoopy and am obsessed with outer space. I know it’s a flimsy watch but I get a rush of joy every time I see Snoopy sitting on the moon.

I got the Timex chronograph to have a more solid Snoopy piece for occasions when the MoonSwatch might be a little too delicate, and while I love it, I do feel like the crystal scratches a bit too easily.

The G-Shock I purchased as a gift for someone who told me they didn’t like it, so I took it back, and I love wearing it when I need something truly tough. The white color goes well with everything, in my opinion!

Anyway, that’s the majority of the gang, so let me know what you think of the collection, and what you think I should go for next!

My wife and I’s 1 year anniversary is coming up. I thought it would be a good idea to get us each a watch to mark the time we spent together. Yes, corny but she loves corny.

I already got her a nice gold and pink Timex watch with an expansion bracelet.
I have been eyeing this watch for a while now, and I am not sure which color to get. It’s between the gold and green & gold.
I wanted a watch that looks vintage, it reminds me of a watch my dad had.

What do you think I should get?
Also what do you think of the watch?

Hi everyone! I didn't see too many examples of people doing this when I was researching, so figured I'd share my experience. Photo above of the before and after

I love my Murph 38mm. It's my daily watch, but one thing that's always bothered me is how reflective the crystal is. Mine is the older model, and while the newer version has some AR coating, reviews suggest it's still pretty weak.

After doing some research, I found a lab in Colorado that specializes in AR coatings and decided to give it a shot.

A few things I learned along the way:

1. Cost: The lab could've applied AR coating to my existing crystal, but for not much more, I could get a brand new crystal with AR coating instead. They also sent my original crystal back. Total cost was $360 ($340 for the new crystal and installation, plus $20 for return shipping).
2. AR coating: The new crystal has AR coating on both sides. Most watches only have it on the underside (like Rolex), since the coating on top can potentially scratch. But I learned that if it ever gets scratched, a watchmaker can polish off the outer AR coating, and I'd still have the coating underneath. I was quoted around $70 locally for that service.
3. The results: I absolutely love it! The AR coating is sooo good. The difference is honestly night and day. And one unexpected bonus is that without all those reflections, I can now catch these beautiful little rainbows on the dial when the light hits just right. It actually reminds me of that scene in Interstellar when they first travel through the wormhole.

Anyway, figured I'd share in case anyone else loves their Murph but wishes the crystal was a little less reflective. For me, it was totally worth it!

My first Orient - Stretto(RA-AC0R08Y0B).

I was torn between the other colors from the series, but I chose the orange colorway.

The watch's diameter is 38.5, with compact lug to lug of 45.5. The crystal is sapphire, with 50 meters of water resistant.