Rolex vs High End Knives

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Peak_Oil

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Nov 6, 2005
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I've seen this comparison several times recently and wanted to share my thoughts on it. Watches and knives have several uses depending on your needs and where you are in life. Maybe you use a knife for work, it could be for carpet installation or construction. Maybe it's demolition or bushcraft. It could be for processing food in the kitchen. A watch might be used to tell time, take heart rates in medical applications, alarms for work or to help with time management, or as a status symbol.

IMO, a work knife is used to take care of tasks at work. Kitchen knives have specific applications for the appearance of the food, ease of processing, dishwasher hardiness, and many other things. I tried using a Ka-Bar as a kitchen knife and it was horrible. It's possible to get kitchen work done with it in a pinch but I would never choose that knife for that role if a better tool was available. This week I canned 14 quarts of vegetable soup, and I had to work my kitchen knife through portabello mushrooms. I didn't have time to stop and sharpen, so I had to deal with what I had. What a shame, a sharp kitchen knife would have been so much better to work with.

The Rolex is an entirely different animal. Rolexes are automatic watches that are wound by the movement of the owner's body. They +/- two minutes a month. They are not accurate. It is recommended that Rolexes are serviced at least every five years at a cost of $500, give or take. You will get a much more accurate time with a Walgreens digital, but it's bad as a status symbol. Any quartz watch will outperform a Rolex at telling time. GWB rolled with a Timex and a pocket hanky, if that tells you anything. Your cell phone is probably synched to the Atomic Clock and can tell you the time just as well as any watch can. Why would you buy a Rolex for anything other than to advertise your availability for poorly allocated financial resources? I suppose of you like Rolexes you can buy as many as you might care to, but that seems to be a giant red flag for people who would have their money allocated to things that are useful. Years ago that might have been different. Maybe it was the case years ago that a Rolex really was a functional expense for people who needed to tell the time accurately. Today... not so much. Today I think that anyone who flosses a Rolex is somebody who does not think about how their money is spent.

A custom blade that is designed as a cutting tool can do the job better than a mass-produced low-quality steel knife. A knife that has Mastodon bone scales recalls the majesty of time. Expensive custom knives that do the job better are more functional. Frankly, I regard the purchase of a box cutter with replaceable razor blades higher than the purchase of a Rolex. A box cutter does its job well and has a low cost of ownership, and a Rolex does a bad job of telling time with a high cost of ownership.
 
Though I hadn't used it myself, I had believed that the Rolex analogy to be an accurate one. As usual the devil is in the details. Thanks for shining a light on the Rolex Peak, I now can under stand it more clearly. I can now see that its use as a analogy with high end knives to be spurious.
 
Your Rolex rant had some reasonable points, but is overall, much too broad.
Rolex watches are expensive, being automatics are not as accurate as ,any digital watches and do occasionally require a fairly costly service.
They are also superbly made, extremely durable and, much like a very high end knife, provide a pride of ownership that many enjoy. I think it's unfair to make a blanket statement that anyone who wears a Rolex doesn't care about how their money is spent. I have two Rolex watches and two sons. I gave very careful thought to the fact that my investment in those two watches would result in something that would easily last the twenty odd years until they graduate college and then make beautiful hand me down gifts for them at graduation. I hardly think a Walgreens digital would last twenty years or be something my sons might be proud to wear long after dad is gone. Do some buy a Rolex because of what they think it says about them? Sure, but many also buy them for the same reason anyone buys a quality time piece, because they last and they appreciate nice things.
If find myself looking at my Seadweller the same way I look at my Hinderer, the quality and craftsmanship makes me happy. Yes a less expensive knife might do the same job and a less expensive watch might as well, but I made a careful examination of my wants, needs and abilities and happily wear a Rolex.
 
I've never put much thought into the oft-made comparison of watches and knives, nor have I ever really cared. Nevertheless, this was a genuinely interesting and enjoyable read. Thanks for sharing, Peak.
 
What's a thread without pics. Some people have an appreciation for finely crafted objects, whether knives, watches, or cars, and others base their decisions on low cost or mere function. Each to their own.

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I own several knives that cost much more than I need to spend on them to do the job I need. A $10 rough rider will deliver what my $100 GEC will. If I want a bit better quality, a $20 Swiss Army Knife will also do the job, and also outlast any GEC under abusive conditions.

I used to be a chef, and always wore, and still wear, a watch. The most I could get out of a watch was 2 years of abuse before it broke, usually ending up with a cracked screen or seal that caused it to fogg up and die. When I left the cooking world, I noticed I could go about 3 years in the "normal" world. I decided to splurge on a used Rolex. That was 8 years ago. I have had it cleaned once, but it has never stopped working, fogged, or even begun looking like it has aged a day since I got it. I never take it off, unless I am putting on another one of my Rolex watches I have since purchased, or when I shower, because I use the shower to wash it daily. I have dropped it, banged it into things, and generally treated it like nothing matters. Despite having owned many watches...including many high end watches, nothing has come close to taking the abuse a Rolex can and still keep working.

Additionally, my first Rolex, which is a 1980's era GMT Master, cost around $1500 new. I paid $3500 for it used. I recently turned down an offer of $5000 from a watch dealer! A new one costs around $7000 today. Every Rolex I own has risen in value since I purchased it. Try that with your cell phone or Walgreens watch.
 
This is why I like Seiko Kinetic. You get all the "cool-factor" of an automatic movement but with the added benefit of quartz accuracy. :D

I like watches but, as with my knives, I cap it at about the $400 mark. Anymore than that and I'm too afraid to carry it daily. I just don't like having that much value on my person.

Everyone has their own thing. I won't begrudge anyone for owning a Rolex. If that floats your boat then go for it. I can't always rationalize all my interests and expensive purchases.
And the financial responsibilities of other people is not something I really care about.
 
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Someone knows as much about Rolex watches, as he does about posting in the correct subforum....
Thread moved to the correct subforum for off topic gear related discussion.

Rolex watches are high end and high priced status symbols for sure, but for a reason. High quality materials and craftsmanship. No other watch holds or appreciates in value like a Rolex, although Omega is coming in at close second these days. A person can purchase a Rolex and sell it 5 years down the road for as much as he paid for it, as long as he's kept it serviced and in good condition. 20 years down the road and this same time piece may have doubled, tripled or quadrupled it's original sales price depending on model and rarity. The only other product readily available that does this, is the Corvette.
 
Rolex like many high end knives are unnecessarily expensive, but people will pay to get the name. There are just as equally robost watches and knives for better prices. Often much better.

In comparing Rolex to knives, I find it amusing that elsewhere on BF many are lamenting Benchmade's exercise of MAP. That no different than what Rolex did and does --- control of prices and the grey market to build brand cache and to keep prices elevated.
 
Rolex makes close to a million watches a year and watch enthusiasts know Rolex for what they really are, a company that through marketing, has convinced the world that they make the finest watches in the world. You just cannot make anything at that clip and have it be the finest in that class. I have owned a couple and still have a 5512 Submariner and I like their watches, but if you want to use a watch company as an analogy as the finest of a thing there is, Patek Philippe, A. Lange & Sohne and a handful of other manufacturers are much closer to that ideal. These are watches of a sublime finish and quality. And they make a Rolex look inexpensive by comparison. That's my off topic rant. Sorry.
 
Ahh, Rolex. I'm into watches, just like I'm into knives. The thing with a Rolex type brand is almost the same as something like Busse knives. There are plenty that will say "An Omega is just as good for less then half the price" and it's hard to argue with that. There are plenty of good hard use knives that will do anything you need them to do, far beyond any reasonable expectation, for MUCH less than a comparable Busse, but they won't say BUSSE on them.


Rolex makes more watches every year than the year before. Rolex raises their prices every year. Every year they sell every watch they make. How can you go wrong with that business model?

Even though the OP's opinion is that a Rolex is a sign of someone who likes to throw away money, basically you can wear a Rolex for free, if you consider that, like a house, you can have it for a few years and sell it for what you paid for it (or more). I've never had the pleasure of wearing a Rolex, but I've had plenty of FINE guns and knives, and I've yet to come out even, much less profit on one, when I come to a spot I have to sell some off.
 
Also, just like a knife rubbed on a whetstone once in a while isn't the same thing as one carefully sharpened then regularly honed/stropped, +/- 2 minutes a month isn't really a fair statement. Wearing a good auto, Rolex, Omega, even a Seiko, you can have it regulated to +/- a second or two a day without too much trouble. Never as accurate as a quartz movement or a cell phone for sure, but a lot better than 2 minutes a month.
 
An employee of mine bought a Rolex in 1977 for 1000 pounds in London. He has had it serviced 2 times since then and has worn it every day. This is a guy who has always done physical, hard jobs and he wears the watch all the time. I am sure that it is still worth more than he paid for it.
 
I'm a watch enthusiast and have about 6 watches in my "EDC" rotation, as well as a few others for special uses. All of the watches in my rotation are mechanical, because I like the thought of wearing a mechanical watch.

There can be good parallels drawn between watches and knives- for most people a $30 watch will provide the proper function, and a $30 knife will provide the proper function too. If we spend more for whatever reason, that is OK too. Everybody gets to set their own level for what they will spend and buy what they want.

I have worn a Rolex in the past but I don't wear one now. I do have an Omega so I'm willing to spend a good amount for a watch, more than I'm willing to spend for an EDC knife. There are 2 reasons I don't wear a Rolex- it is beyond what I'm willing to spend, and I don't consider myself to be a "Rolex person" anymore. It is not that I have changed or the watches have changed, but their image has and everybody who wants to be seen as a somebody has to have a Rolex now. I see the same thing in cars- everybody that wants to project an image has to have a BMW even if they don't know anything about cars. I think this is too bad because Rolex makes good watches and BMW makes good cars, both brands would be better appreciated by people that really know about them.
 
Karda said:
Someone knows as much about Rolex watches, as he does about posting in the correct subforum....
Thread moved to the correct subforum for off topic gear related discussion.

Rolex watches are high end and high priced status symbols for sure, but for a reason. High quality materials and craftsmanship. No other watch holds or appreciates in value like a Rolex, although Omega is coming in at close second these days. A person can purchase a Rolex and sell it 5 years down the road for as much as he paid for it, as long as he's kept it serviced and in good condition. 20 years down the road and this same time piece may have doubled, tripled or quadrupled it's original sales price depending on model and rarity. The only other product readily available that does this, is the Corvette.
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Karda, you really need to separate personal comments from your moderator related duties. I disagree about Rolex watches being status symbols only. They are amazingly complex works of art IMO that can be passed down through generations. If you buy them used they usually increase in value as well.
 
Karda said:
Someone knows as much about Rolex watches, as he does about posting in the correct subforum....
Thread moved to the correct subforum for off topic gear related discussion.

Rolex watches are high end and high priced status symbols for sure, but for a reason. High quality materials and craftsmanship. No other watch holds or appreciates in value like a Rolex, although Omega is coming in at close second these days. A person can purchase a Rolex and sell it 5 years down the road for as much as he paid for it, as long as he's kept it serviced and in good condition. 20 years down the road and this same time piece may have doubled, tripled or quadrupled it's original sales price depending on model and rarity. The only other product readily available that does this, is the Corvette.
Click to expand...

While I agree with you I sincerely hope that you reflect on this post and choose your words better in the future.
 
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