I’m looking to purchase a nicer watch in the $300 or so range. I have a Seiko Diver SKX031 auto that I bought about 10 years ago as well as a Citizen I received from my parents when I graduated. I haven’t been wearing watches much in the last few years during the day but there are times at work that I want a quality watch to wear. The Seiko is the classic Diver style watch that I bought after spending time on the old watch forums & receives compliments every time I wear it. I’m looking for something that’s along those same lines, classic style, quality & value, a watch every man should own type of deal if that makes sense.
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Recommendation? Looking for a quality watch for $300
- Thread starter Fishwater
- Start date
I would say spend some time first thinking. Do you want quartz or mechanical. Do you wear it all day in harsh conditions (harsh re a watch) or do you take it off. Do you want to see in the dark, do you want lume or tritium. Do you want a leather band or rubber strap or metal, or a nylon NATO strap? Do you need a chronograph, GMT, hand, or day/date? Metal case or resin? Rotating bezel?
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Are you looking for something smaller, larger, or the same size as the Seiko (42mm) ? What model is the Citizen?
Orient Mako 2 or Ray 2
Citizen Promaster
Seiko SKX 781 series
Watches can get refresh with a Zulu band too. Cheap way to get a different splash of color on your wrist.
Orient Mako 2 or Ray 2
Citizen Promaster
Seiko SKX 781 series
Watches can get refresh with a Zulu band too. Cheap way to get a different splash of color on your wrist.
All great suggestions so far. My Citizen is a Promaster C330, the battery has been dead for a long time but eventually I should have it replaced & cleaned. I've been looking online at watches for a couple of days & seem to gravitate towards the auto diver's. My current Seiko is a little small, actually a 39mm I believe so maybe a larger diver would work for me. I usually don't like a busy face but the Nighthawk is pretty nice as well. I looked at the Deep Blue's with tubes & those look really nice as well.
The above suggestions for straps is interesting, I like the NATO's but don't know other than a field watch what would look good in them. I'm sure I could go way down the rabbit hole with straps too so maybe I should look into them once I settle on my next purchase.
I sell auto parts for a living so typically during the day I'm in shops calling on technician's but there are other days when I'm doing sales presentations for large & small groups. There are other times when I'm at a business dinner which tend to be less casual as well as other times (like next week) where I'll be at awards banquets in the evening which are formal with a suit. Generally when I'm wearing a suit I'm always wearing a watch, during the day depending on what I'm doing I may not wear a watch. Perhaps swapping watch bands will allow me to adapt to the various situations I'm in for work.
The above suggestions for straps is interesting, I like the NATO's but don't know other than a field watch what would look good in them. I'm sure I could go way down the rabbit hole with straps too so maybe I should look into them once I settle on my next purchase.
I sell auto parts for a living so typically during the day I'm in shops calling on technician's but there are other days when I'm doing sales presentations for large & small groups. There are other times when I'm at a business dinner which tend to be less casual as well as other times (like next week) where I'll be at awards banquets in the evening which are formal with a suit. Generally when I'm wearing a suit I'm always wearing a watch, during the day depending on what I'm doing I may not wear a watch. Perhaps swapping watch bands will allow me to adapt to the various situations I'm in for work.
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Citizen, Orient and Seiko all make good dive watches with mechanical movements, not that much different from the SKX031 which is still a good watch by today's standards. Seiko SKX007 and SKX009 are the top dogs within the stated price range. I'm not that familiar with options with quartz movements, most of my quartz watches are Luminox.
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I replaced that same Seiko with this
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- Jan 28, 2016
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I'd recommend a Citizen Eco Drive!
100s of different ones to chose from and a great many of them under $300 if looked/searched for online.
I've had mine since 1996 and it still runs perfectly (never a battery of course)! Titanium band as well as the watch face have held up great as well. I think at the time it was $525 but found it for 40 percent off. Felt like $315 for a watch was ludicrous at the time but pulled the trigger anyway. So glad I did...has been my favorite watch ever!
If I ever spend that much on a watch again it will be an Eco Drive.
TripleB
100s of different ones to chose from and a great many of them under $300 if looked/searched for online.
I've had mine since 1996 and it still runs perfectly (never a battery of course)! Titanium band as well as the watch face have held up great as well. I think at the time it was $525 but found it for 40 percent off. Felt like $315 for a watch was ludicrous at the time but pulled the trigger anyway. So glad I did...has been my favorite watch ever!
If I ever spend that much on a watch again it will be an Eco Drive.
TripleB
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I had one of these for a few years. Great watch and a great value, IMHO:
Be careful with the ecodrive- let it get plenty of constant light. In other words don't put it in a drawer for a month, this will kill the battery. I've owned 3 of them that I bought used, and all of them had problems with their batteries. I discovered that this is a common problem, there are a number of companies on the net that have a business changing the batteries. I sent my latest ecodrive to the factory for repairs and now I store it near a window where it gets light every day.
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I've done this (left it in the closet for a long time) many times over the last 21 years. I pull it out of the closet and it is completely dead. I've been lucky though.
I take it out of the closet, pull the stem out, leave it in direct sunlight for a couple hours, set the time and date, push the stem back in, and it's worked every time.
Got a smart watch for 2016 Christmas, left Citizen in closet at least 7 months, performed procedure above, and it still works great. Very lucky I guess!!!
TripleB
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Since you're a knife guy, why not check out Victorinox? Not sure if your'e looking for a field watch, but I was able to score this automatic Victorinox Infantry for just $200 on Amazon a few months back. At that price for a Swiss auto I just couldn't resist. They don't seem to be available there anymore, but deals like that are out there if you search. Also, if you don't mind quartz, the Victorinox INOX is a great robust watch that falls within your price range.
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I’ve been looking at those...
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000EQS0WK/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_25?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER
Item weight 2.56 Ounces !
It says black face, but it's Midnight Blue. I can hardly tell I'm wearing a watch it's so light.
Yes, there is a youtube video you have to watch to learn to set it, but it's good till 2100 after that.
Never used the alarm, but chrono is full 360, first sec, then normal tic w/ button push to show 1/20 sec on the secondary dial. Duel Time zones.
Looks good on metal, nato, leather, cloth, etc......