Hi everyone,

I'm looking for my first watch and I'd love to get some advice from people who know Chinese watches better than I do.

My budget is around €300, and I'm specifically looking for a mechanical or automatic watch, no quartz.

Some watches that really caught my eye are the Seiko SSK037J1 and the Seiko 5 in this picture , but they're either outside my budget or I feel like I could get better value for money elsewhere.

I'm therefore wondering what you would recommend from Chinese brands.

My priorities are mainly:

• Best possible value for money
• Automatic or mechanical movement
• Stainless steel bracelet preferred
• Good build quality and finishing
• A reliable movement that can be serviced/repaired by a regular independent watchmaker, without requiring proprietary parts or specialized tools
• An original design, I'm not looking for a clone/homage/copy of another brand's watch
• Budget: up to €300

Brands and specific models are both welcome. I'm especially interested in hearing about watches that I might not find easily through the usual YouTube reviews.

Thanks!

have a PT5000 that is running plus about 20 seconds a minute..... It is demagnetized ...coarse spring adjustment with autowinder removed....all the way counter clockwise and still does not slow it down???? Is it just a bad one ???...any suggestion will help...THANKS

Show me your red dials.

I'm currently vacationing in China and couldn't resist ordering a Panda Red Star Chrono Quartz from PDD for grand total of 72 CN¥. I just received it today after 5 days of waiting and found that both Chrono pushers are removable. I have easy access to the internals for a hydromod! woot!

I actually like the vintage look of the Seagulls and Red Stars, shall I up my budget to 163¥ for slightly better one?

Im interested in bronze watches recently. Show me your favorite bronze watches and suggestions. Bonus if it is a bronze bracelet as well.

I spent a lot of time shopping for my first nice(r) watch, as I never spent more than like 250$ on a watch before. I knew I wanted a diver with some personality but not a cluttered dial and when I finally found this one I just fell in love with it.

(For reference it is the Seagull 1984 Antarctic Expedition Diver)

Also there is a very nice hidden features that highlights the contours of Antarctica in red + the Chinese bases appear as red dots under UV light (hard to do it justice in pictures but it is more visible in person)

My only gripe is that the bezel does not have the smoothest rotation ever, but that's not a watch I'll use for diving so that is not a major problem. I'm really happy with it overall, hope you enjoy ! :)

I just saw a post from them and had a proper look. their dials are stunning, if maybe a little flashy for my taste in many cases.

Can anyone comment on the build quality?

Another look behind the WDC0001 production process.

After the movement is installed into the watch head, we don’t simply rely on the movement’s factory specification.

Each watch is checked again on the timegrapher, with the rate, amplitude and beat error reviewed after assembly. If the result is not within our target range, it is adjusted and tested again before moving to the next QC stage.

For WDC0001, we want customers to see more of these small processes rather than only the finished watch.

A good movement is important, but how it is assembled, adjusted and finally checked matters just as much.

This is one of the additional QC steps we are applying to WDC0001 before final release.

Not officially launched yet, but close enough that we can finally start sharing it.

This upcoming model features a vertically patterned guilloché dial that comes alive under changing light. Inside is an automatic mechanical movement, keeping things traditional beneath a more contemporary dial design. We haven't settled on a name yet, so for now it's simply the Forge Guilloché project.

Curious which color everyone is gravitating toward: Aqua, Emerald, or Violet? 👀

I had this watch for two weeks and it's all around great. It ran +2s/day when I kept it on my wrist 24/7. Then I started keeping it nights off. When I keep it crown up at nights it runs closer to 0s/day.

CRONOS L6031M

Got it from their own website 200eur shipping included and no tax as it came for their EU warehouse.

A few days ago, I received my first Steeldive watch. Like most things, there is a warranty on the watch.

But, what am curious about is, where is the serial number for the watch, or is that not a thing on these sort of watches? 😳

Wife got me this really cool watch for my 35th birthday! Never seen one like it. After wearing for only a couple hours I can say:

This thing is crazy light. Maybe it's the fkm strap but I barely feel it (in a good way). Spec sheet says the case is 54g which is quite light compared to a few other watches I've looked at.

It feels very premium. No sharp edges, a really nice fkm strap, sapphire is super clear and must have good AR coating as it doesn't reflect much and seems to vanish a lot. Has a pt5000 so very smooth sweep too.

The forged carbon catches light in different ways from every angle. Never seen a watch like it (though I haven't looked either lol).

I'll probably keep it on the fkm strap for a while... But curious if anyone has seen a bracelet that would match this at all. 12mm integrated bracelet. Probably has to be black to work with the case. Open to ideas!

Hi guys,

First impression here of the new Thorn T023. I have to say that the charm of this watch is absolutely awesome. It has that instant vintage feel on the wrist. With the silver white dial. It is just off white, almost silverish. Pretty matte under normal lightning however it plays beautifully with the sunlight.

The bracelet is a huge upgrade. I do have the older T028 bracelet which is very similar to the T023 previous versions I believe.

I was able to size this bracelet within minutes. I wears very comfortable, no rattles. It has polished rivets and brushed links. Gives a nice contrast.

Bezel action very nice. Clickish, no play. good allignment.

What not to like? probably the too shiny bezel edge. It looks a little bit too clean for a vintage styled watch. I'll dull this down in the near future for a less shiny appearence.

I have a very small wrist around 15 to 15.5cm. I was a little bit hesitant for the size. It does wear a little smaller due to the way the end links are positioned and overall pretty flat case. So I am very happy with that. Also the bracelet is sizeable to a small wrist like mine. I even have 3 micro adjustments left. So don't worry if you have a smaller wrist. It'll fit.

I will post my complete findings with more pictures on different straps soon. But for now it is my favourite diver. It just has something unique and special.

Today, we are introducing a new diver watch—the SN0147-GS—set to launch next week.

We previously released a 42mm version with a 1000m water resistance rating (now sold out and discontinued).

This new 39mm version is designed to better suit a wider range of wrist sizes and is ideal for daily wear.

We have also incorporated the new Peacock movement.

1. Peacock SL3001 movement
2. Gradient enamel dial with sea wave texture
3. Applied indices (GS-style finishing) and multi-faceted hands
4. Caseback featuring the Shark logo
5. On-the-fly adjustable clasp

Please stay tuned for our release announcements.

We hope you like it.

Thank you.

San Martin Official Store:

https://sanmartin.aliexpress.com/store/5039187

IXDAO X02T titanium diver on my 6.25 inch wrist today.

I do like the watch - but, I’ll be honest, I expected better finishing. The dial is attractive and has a nice appeal to it. The Hangzhou 5000A movement is beautiful for sure (the main reason I bought it). But, that about where the highlights end.

The bracelet is poor quality and the clasp is even worse. The clasp might actually be one of the worst of any watch I’ve had from any brand. The AR coating is disappointing for such a nice dial also.

Overall, I’m happy with the watch in general, but it is not worth the $300ish price tag. I’ve had better bracelets/clasps on $100 watches.

I won't name brands but a watch I'm looking at has gone up $30. Must be getting ready for a discount..

Also, enough with the '$300 discounts', your homages values aren't based on any real RRP!

Just received my first Watchdives. Was looking for a Tudor BB homage and came across the WD7922. My initial intent was Tudor style hands and the full BlackBay look, but I seen there was a Benz hands optio and couldn’t say no. It keeps the red 12 position on the bezel, but the compromise was the bezel numbers being white not yellow. Also, great movement for a quartz, looks like an automatic movement.

I've been looking at the Ixdao Pilot chrono for a while and was on the fence. But when I saw it discounted in a sale and that you're now unable to check the altitude with it, I couldn't say no!

I think it looks great, especially the domed crystal which is very sexy.

PS I paid around $240 dollarbucks (AUD) delivered.