Solar Seiko SCC913 'Speedtimer' is Such a Beaut; I wonder About The Old Chrono Movements

 

 

  Seiko has left me feeling discouraged recently, due to their QC problems and poor service issues which I have personally experienced. However, despite this, I can't help but admire the stunning SCC913 Solar Chrono, which Seiko has designed to perfection. At 41mm, it is larger than the first batch of 39mm Speedtimer lineup, and its design appears to draw inspiration from the early speedtimer mechanical chronograph models.

  However, the main issue I have with the SCC913 Solar Chrono is its high price, as a Solar Quartz. The prices for them now are more than doubled what the older Solar Quartz movments used to go for retail. While I understand that the production of automatic chronograph movements is a complex process, I can't help but wonder why Seiko cannot reissue the original 60s automatic chronograph movements for production. While Seiko does have newer automatic chronographs which are pretty trick but thick, and they are expensive. The old vintage chronographs are thin and svelt by comparison.

Unlike car companies, who cannot bring back older engines due to environmental or emissions regulations, I wonder why Seiko couldn't bring back those 60s automatic chronograph movements, even if it is in the form of a limited production for a higher price, though a high production number version would be neat. (And with QC up to scratch, of course).

An Elegant Smart Band for Ladies

The Mrs. bought this for her friend's birthday:

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It's actually not a bad 'fitness smart band' wrist watch, plus it actually looks elegant for women.  I didn't try all the functions and all, but there seems to be a "Cycling Mode", "Table Tennis Mode" and a "Badminton Mode" in addition to the usual heart rate monitors. Even has a weather forecast thing. Not sure how that works.

Get yours here

or

Bad 2017

So it's been a while.

Where to start... well, in 2017 I only had 3 posts, and the reason is, well it's an awful, awful year. Now in Jan 2018, Fingers crossed things things will look better (but doesn't seem like it.)

So what's been happening? Well in terms of watches..... nothing.  Because things were pretty bad right now (and to some extent, still is).  So in the watch-blogosphere... there will probably be no new watch purchases from me, though I might post some other watches from friends if they get new ones and I got a look, but otherwise.. the reality hits hard that when it comes to priority spending, watches are pretty far down the list as much as I would like to say that it's at the top but like everyone else I have bills to pay and keep a roof over my head... those take priority.

The watch shops got the worse end of the deal, I see some closing or simply disappearing. The younger people are into smartwatches, plus they purchase their swag online, while those us mechanical fans find themselves in a situation unlike mine. My fav shop is still around though, but in all seriousness I worry for the guy. I still have my job, but that's his way of living.

Reflections on Mechanicals and Automatics

Orient Mechanical Automatic movement (pic from OrientWatchsite.com)

Following up on my reflections on Quartz watches, now I move on to my reflections on automatics and mechanicals.

For whatever reason, and like a lot of people, my interest in watches was kickstarted by a quartz watch - and like many people out there. it is a Casio. That particular Casio, an Edifice EF-125, is still ticking on its original battery today, and aside from having to skip every 31st every once in a while, is a pretty solid and reliable watch. That watch got me thinking about other watches - namely, other even MORE reliable watches that require almost zero maintenance. Which was why I got the Edifice Solar EQS-500DB. And that watch alone should be enough, as it is virtually maintenance free - never needing battery changes for *AT LEAST* 10 years, never needing to set the time for at least the same amount of period, etc. The fact that it has a world time and chronograph is a bonus. But there was something unsatisfying about it. Yes, it was a good watch - and one of my first post I compared Casio Edifices to the Nissan GTR watches. But it was lacking some 'soul' for the lack of description - in automatics, and especially winding automatics - it having to have some attention to it made it so much more likeable.

So that in essence kicked off my search for automatics - one of my first, is the Ray Raven. I wore that watch and toyed with the bezel so often that the bezel had loosen up and was unidirectional by now.. and it developed a hunger for moar. Moar, like my Orient Wingman. Maoar, like my Orient Flight. Moar, like my Seiko 5s. Moar, leading up to my soon to be (budget allowing) choice for a new Bambino v4.

For another reason, its the thought of a micro-precision mechanical engine on your wrist ticking away. Or the sweep movement of an automatic/mechanical. On a quartz, the seconds hand always almost never aligns itself with the markers except for higher end watches. The EQS-500 does this well, but I could spot one or two places where it has gone off the slightest bits. Perhaps the ultimate for this is a SpringDrive by Seiko, but I probably won't be able to afford that comfortably.

And why Orient? Well I find that Orient sits very well in my budget bracket and fulfills 90% of my wants at the price I am able to afford. Like many, I like Seiko as well, but there something about Orient that ticks my checklists. So I foresee myself owning Japanese watches (and cars, for that matter) for the foreseeable future. Plus, I like that Orient logo.

So why do I like automatics and mechnicals so much now when its actually more practical (financially, and functionally) to have a cheap quartz? It's irrational.

Reflecting on Quartz Watches

I've had some time on my hands recently and reflected on my Quartz watches - Both Casios and both Edifices.

See, even if the mechanical watches have 'soul', or a heart beat, and needs attention to wind it up, set time, etc.. the quartz just ticks on and on and on. In the case of both of my Edifices, they last almost a lifetime of the watch themselves. (There was one instance where my EF-125 stopped which I thought was the battery running out, but a bit of tapping and adjusting the hands it has gone on working since.)

This is because the EF-125 has a 10-year battery, on which it is still ticking on, and the EQS-500DB is solar.

It's easy to see why quartz watches are so popular with the general populace - especially with long life batteries or solar watches - they are basically set once and forget. In the case of my EQS-500DB, it is also perpetual.

So, with the EQS-500DB, you get:

- Water resistance up to 100m
- Reliable and toughness to abuse
- world time, 1/100 chronograph, alarm, 24 hour indicator
- solar, never needing a battery change so often
- being a quartz, the time is always spot on
- perpetual calendar so you never need to set for months that skip the 31st or leap years
- essentially almost needing no service

...and all for about the same price as my Orient automatics that only just tell the time.

In essence, these two are essential to my time keeping for all my other watches - I set all my automatics to the Quartz watches (and sometimes my phone, if I could even be bothered to turn its screen on).

So if you're rational, all you need is just this one watch.


But, and this is irrational, because I like my automatics. It's like a little engine ticking away on my wrist. It's like jewellery and fine machinery combined into one. It's precision engineering. And it's a joy to watch the movement do its thing in a transparent caseback. Quartz itself is an engineering marvel in its own right when it first came out.. it's too good for its own good.

Oh well. Quartz is important - but don't let the mechanicals become obsolete (or become high-end curiosities only for the rich). I hope the likes of Seiko and Orient keep producing affordable, reliable, mechanical little spring driven engines for our wrists and I hope people keep buying them.

Bitten by the watch bug

So here's how it happens. First you buy a watch, without knowing too much about watches.. your first watch. It's  quartz. You think, well that is gonna be my last watch, after all, humans only have two wrists, and you really only need one watch to tell the time. In fact these days it's not really a need as a smart phone could do that... but you accept it as a form of jewelry,for men. (Or woman, if you're a woman.)

Some time passed.. and then you look online at other watches.. some of them have nicer features.. then you buy one that you liked... like solar ability for example, or chronograph complications.. and you know, as an alternate watch, for other occasions. You justify it by saying, it's to save the tear and wear on your other watch..

Then even more time passed. By now of course, you're learning a great deal about watches.. watches to avoid, and watches that are highly recommended. You buy an automatic. Or two. And then a manual winder. And maybe a vintage, or two. You get the popular models and understand fully why they are highly acclaimed. You obsess over watches worn by characters in movies, shows and even documentaries. You begin to initiate watch talk to people. There are at least 5 watch-telated items on your bookmark or eBay watch list. You even try taking things apart and putting them together again.

And then, lo and behold, you are actually thinking of spending over $1000 on a watch soon. Your start looking for your "grail watch".

Congratulations, the final stage of the infection is complete....

Evaporating Currencies

Recall my post last month when I mentioned dwinlding currencies affecting my purchasing power, when it was MYR 3.86 to a USD? Well, scratch that... nowadays it is approaching MYR 4.26 to a USD. Every thing is evaporating. At least water evaporates into clouds which rains. Where does the MYR evaporate to? :(

Dwindling Currencies..

The state of the MYR currency is appalling. At something like MYR 3.86 to a USD, it's not looking good for everyone of us. Every savings is continuously 'evaporating' into thin air. Any investment too. I have some outside currency investment but it's too little to be of any use to offset this.

At this rate, any sort of luxury is gone. Watch collecting and stuff will have to stop too.


I Has A Sad.

What do you do with watches you don't wear?

So apparently the human mind is a weird and predictable thing; we come to prefer a few things more than others. In this case, my point is about watches (of course).

What does one  normally do with extra watches one doesn't wear often? Sell them? Store them? Give them away?

In this case I discovered that I am finding some of my watches are simply not on my wrist at all and thought it would be a waste to just leave them as it is collecting dust. Then the other part of me still love them, and want to keep them, and just for in case they can become family heirlooms that I could pass down to my son, when watches are all smart solar electronic devices that could even operate the kitchen sink by then, so a mechanical or even a normal Quartz would be an item of curiousity. (What, dad, your watches only has one or two functions?? How do you even get by the day back then?)

I wanna slap myself for thinking that way, that having too many watches and getting rid of them, but then I'm partially right. We only have 2 wrists after all.

Decisions, decisions. 

My Thoughts on the Apple Watch

So Apple finally debut a smartwatch... and I am blown away by the simplicity design, which is classic Apple.

Take the straps and bracelet for example, they are so simply designed and yet easy to change out or resize....  I was adjusting the bracelet on the watches a while back and it was a pain in the fingers, literally, to do so. And that you required tools and a hammer.... while Apple made something that you just a press and clip, with no tools. Bravo!

The computer for the Apple Watch is also amazing, being "computer on a chip" and I am wondering if that module can be upgraded for the future.. honestly speaking, I haven't even look into the software part of the Apple Watch I'm sure it can do so much more, but I am amazed by the straps alone here, and the health monitoring parts are really interesting too, something my doctor probably telling me I need.

Casio and other smartwatch companies should take notice..

Will I buy it? Nah... not now at least... take a look at the title of this blog... poor man's watch blog.... it's a bit expensive enough alone and considering I don't have iPhone to pair it with, so the short answer is no. But it is sometime I would like to own.

Also: the battery life is what make or break this... I wonder if they are solar, just not announced?

My favorite combo is this one, look how the deployment buckle fit seamlessly! :

Superstitions Around Clocks and Watches

Here is something I have never heard of, but apparently from a friend some people still have superstitious beliefs that if you gift a clock (or watch), then that would mean you're giving death (e.g. your time is up.)

Wow if everyone will believe that then clock and watch sellers won't ever get any business and will go bankrupt!

Which is a stupid thing, because if you give a person time, then don't you extend his time?? And it's almost 2014, some people are still living in 1914.

Reverse Psychology

 

Here's an interesting thought.

 I have a friend you see, who is quite well off. How well off? Well, he has quite a few property, drive an expensive car and has a big house. Generally, he is amonge top score ranking in the game of life. He's rich, basically.

 He can afford expensive watches, but doesn't buy them. Instead, he goes out to scout night markets, usually on business trips, and buys most of the stuff we watch collectors would call crap..

 So, he's not really a watch guy.

 Here's the funny thing; on a recent trip to Indonesia, he bought a watch from some street peddler that he liked; it is a skeleton watch. The fact that it has the name "Rolex" on it doesn't matter, he's not interested. It's the general shape and that it's a skeleton that led him to buy it.

 Now, when I'm with him a couple of times with friends, they would look at his hand and say, "wow nice watch".

 And then he would say, "Thanks, I found from a street peddler for RM90".

 And then friends would say, "Nah, you're pulling our legs. It must be expensive."

 Haha. They don't believe it's a fake. I don't think they ever do believe it. Even though Rolex doesn't make skeleton watches (as I understand it).