Does Anybody Really Care What Time It Is? Leica Sells Watches

I've had a few 'high-end' watches over the years (Omega, Patek) and I get just as much enjoyment out of my $100 deals (Waltham, Elgin, Bulova) as I do from the more expensive offerings. My days of spending untold $$$$ on a watch are long gone, gladly so.

The Leica watch certainly looks nice (though I'm not a fan of the date window), but seems way overpriced to me. Wonder who makes the movement -- ETA perhaps?

As an aside, I once asked a very well-known and respected watch dealer and longtime member of the NAWCC what the best deal in watches was (quality/price). His answer? Longines.
 
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Ko.Fe. said:
I recently learned about this group. It does smell bad. Not something I want my money going to.
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They and Vanguard are the top institutional holders of thousands of American companies (State Street is usually a close 3rd or 4th). Go to Yahoo Finance and pick any favorite stock and run the analysis: most likely, Blackrock and Vanguard hold the most percentage of shares combined. Not sure what this means in the big picture, but I am happy with the performance of my Vanguard holdings. :)

Kodak and Adobe for example:
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Eastman Kodak Company (KODK) Stock Major Holders - Yahoo Finance

Find out the direct holders, institutional holders and mutual fund holders for Eastman Kodak Company (KODK).
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Adobe Inc. (ADBE) Stock Major Holders - Yahoo Finance

Find out the direct holders, institutional holders and mutual fund holders for Adobe Inc. (ADBE).
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And in turn, who holds Blackrock and its top mutual fund holders. Vanguard is private.
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BlackRock, Inc. (BLK) Stock Major Holders - Yahoo Finance

Find out the direct holders, institutional holders and mutual fund holders for BlackRock, Inc. (BLK).
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Vince Lupo said:
The Leica watch certainly looks nice (though I'm not a fan of the date window), but seems way overpriced to me. Wonder who makes the movement -- ETA perhaps?
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Not ETA. It's German made but not by Leica. See this post from earlier today:

Does Anybody Really Care What Time It Is? Leica Sells Watches

Leica already made some coffee mugs, so I guess they're on their way: I’m sure my children thought about buying me a Canon 70-200 coffee mug once - obviously a commoner
www.rangefinderforum.com www.rangefinderforum.com
 
zuiko85:
"For style, if I were to design my own watch face it would be bright white numbers on a flat black face, bright white hour and minute hands and a sweep second hand and nothing else, no day or date windows."

My preference in watch faces is the exact opposite: I much prefer black numerals on a white face. The A11 replica I bought recently is exactly what you state there, with my black on white preference. They make it with the white on black that you prefer as well, and they're not terribly expensive (mid $200 range).

Everyone with any sense knows a mechanical watch is outmoded by any quartz watch in terms of ultimate accuracy. But there is a joy in the craftsmanship and beauty of the good miniature mechanisms that no electronic circuitry can aspire to.

On the scale of high end watches, the Leica timepieces come in at the bottom of the range. Yeah, you can get a couple of Omega and Rolex watches for prices in the same range or less, but it's hard to find a new Piaget or IWC, or many others, for less than double to triple the Leica price. And even that is in the lower end of the scale in this marketplace. It has nothing to do with the camera market at all.

Personally, I have a couple of lovely Longines watches, a mid-1960s Omega, and a new Praesido A11 replica. They're all expensive albeit all under $2000. I would love to enjoy one of the Omega Moonwatch chronometers ... basically the same watch that was used on the Apollo missions in the 1960s ... and they're not hellish expensive (around $6500). And a Leica "Monochrom" watch would be fitting as well, if I felt flush enough to spend that amount of money on a piece of jewelry. (But I don't...)

I don't see anything wrong with spending discretionary money on things that bring one pleasure, whether it be supporting the World Children's Relief Fund, or enjoying a quality camera, or wearing a nice watch. I do all of these things.

G
 
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Godfrey said:
I don't see anything wrong with spending discretionary money on things that bring one pleasure
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Nor I. It's just that my scale of discretionary money is smaller than many! :eek:

Hence a used Leica, a Seiko watch, and, though tempting, no Pentax K-3 III Monochrome for me :cool:
 
I understand completely. Most of what I now enjoy in these things was way out of my range entirely until quite late in my career, and even today I have to be very choosy about what I can afford. It is both the amount of money and the priorities that we have which determine what we can afford.

I'm an old retired guy now ... Obviously, my priorities are different from what they were 20 years ago, or even 10. ;)

G
 
It's an Orient Kanno on my wrist -- in-house design and manufacture, automatic movement, looks great with a variety of NATO straps. Around $150.

If you're looking at quartz watches, it's hard to beat the latest Timex reissues (they're also the pioneer of quartz movements if I recall rightly). Some terrific styles and nice build quality (though they feel a lot more mass-manufactured even than Orient, let alone high-end brands). I liked the Timex Todd Snyder military watch I had for a while, it looked great. Quartz mechanism was loud though. Audible ticking.

These Leica watches are designed with such understated style that they just don't grab me, at all. Leica cameras display a lot more design than these watches.
 
I've been wearing a completely mechanical Omega Seamaster for 23 years. Over that period it's needed a CLA three times, but I've been very happy with it.
 
But surely they tell the time 'better' just like Leica cameras take 'better' photographs ... and that must be true because I read it here at RFF. 😂
 
agentlossing said:
... If you're looking at quartz watches, it's hard to beat the latest Timex reissues (they're also the pioneer of quartz movements if I recall rightly). ...
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Not really. Excerpted from
en.wikipedia.org

Quartz crisis - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org

...
In the early 1950s a joint venture between the Elgin Watch Company in the United States and Lip of France to produce an electromechanical watch – one powered by a small battery rather than an unwinding spring – laid the groundwork for the quartz watch. Although the Lip-Elgin enterprise produced only prototypes, in 1957 the first battery-driven watch was in production, the American-made Hamilton 500.

In 1954, Swiss engineer Max Hetzel developed an electronic wristwatch that used an electrically charged tuning fork powered by a 1.35 volt battery. The tuning fork resonated at precisely 360 Hz and it powered the hands of the watch through an electromechanical gear train. This watch was called the Accutron and was marketed by Bulova, starting in 1960. Although Bulova did not have the first battery-powered wristwatch, the Accutron was a powerful catalyst, as by that time the Swiss watch-manufacturing industry was a mature industry with a centuries-old global market and deeply entrenched patterns of manufacturing, marketing, and sales.
...
In the late 1950s and early 1960s, both Seiko and a consortium of Switzerland's top watch firms, including Patek Philippe, Piaget, and Omega, fiercely competed to develop the first quartz wristwatch. In 1962, the Centre Electronique Horloger (CEH), consisting of around 20 Swiss watch manufacturers, was established in Neuchâtel to develop a Swiss-made quartz wristwatch, while simultaneously in Japan, Seiko was also working on an electric watch and developing quartz technology.

One of the first successes was a portable quartz clock called the Seiko Crystal Chronometer QC-951. This portable clock was used as a backup timer for marathon events in the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. In 1966, prototypes of the world's first quartz pocket watch were unveiled by Seiko and Longines in the Neuchâtel Observatory's 1966 competition. In 1967, both the CEH and Seiko presented prototypes of quartz wristwatches to the Neuchâtel Observatory competition.

On 25 December 1969, Seiko unveiled the Astron, the world's first quartz watch, which marked the beginning of the quartz revolution. The first Swiss quartz analog watch – the Ebauches SA Beta 21 – arrived at the 1970 Basel Fair. The Beta 21 was released by numerous manufacturers including the Omega Electroquartz. On 6 May 1970, Hamilton introduced the Pulsar – the world's first electronic digital watch.
...
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G
 
Keith said:
But surely they tell the time 'better' just like Leica cameras take 'better' photographs ... and that must be true because I read it here at RFF. 😂
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LOL!

I think the Leica Monochrom watch is attractive, which is one of the few reasons to buy a mechanical watch in the modern era. You buy a watch for yourself, not for other people, so all that matters is whether it appeals to you.

G
 
Vince Lupo said:
I've had a few 'high-end' watches over the years (Omega, Patek) and I get just as much enjoyment out of my $100 deals (Waltham, Elgin, Bulova) as I do from the more expensive offerings. My days of spending untold $$$$ on a watch are long gone, gladly so.

The Leica watch certainly looks nice (though I'm not a fan of the date window), but seems way overpriced to me. Wonder who makes the movement -- ETA perhaps?

As an aside, I once asked a very well-known and respected watch dealer and longtime member of the NAWCC what the best deal in watches was (quality/price). His answer? Longines.
Click to expand...
Longines ... He is correct. Something like a Longines Master Collection Chronometer @ ~$3200 is one of the best deals in a quality mechanical watch. Longines has a long and revered history, including being the official timekeepers on the New York to Paris flight of Charles Lindbergh in 1929.

As long as you like a watch, it doesn't really matter what it costs. I really like my Praesido A11 replica watch, was wearing it today. It's only about a $250 timepiece, but keeps excellent time and looks great. My 1960s era Omega Seamaster DeVille is equally wonderful and cost me about $650.

Yeah, I'd really like an Omega Moonwatch chronometer, but so far spending the $6500 required isn't appealing to me. ;)

G
 
Godfrey said:
Longines ... He is correct. Something like a Longines Master Collection Chronometer @ ~$3200 is one of the best deals in a quality mechanical watch. Longines has a long and revered history, including being the official timekeepers on the New York to Paris flight of Charles Lindbergh in 1929.

As long as you like a watch, it doesn't really matter what it costs. I really like my Praesido A11 replica watch, was wearing it today. It's only about a $250 timepiece, but keeps excellent time and looks great. My 1960s era Omega Seamaster DeVille is equally wonderful and cost me about $650.

Yeah, I'd really like an Omega Moonwatch chronometer, but so far spending the $6500 required isn't appealing to me. ;)

G
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I only have one Longines, a Mainliner from 1940, and it’s a thing of beauty. I also have a Waltham A-11 from WWII and it keeps great time. Something about these older, small face watches appeal to me. However, I‘m always paying a visit to the Timex website to see what new offerings they have. A handwind Marlin is still calling to me.
 
raydm6 said:
They and Vanguard are the top institutional holders of thousands of American companies (State Street is usually a close 3rd or 4th). Go to Yahoo Finance and pick any favorite stock and run the analysis: most likely, Blackrock and Vanguard hold the most percentage of shares combined. Not sure what this means in the big picture, but I am happy with the performance of my Vanguard holdings. :)

Kodak and Adobe for example:
finance.yahoo.com

Eastman Kodak Company (KODK) Stock Major Holders - Yahoo Finance

Find out the direct holders, institutional holders and mutual fund holders for Eastman Kodak Company (KODK).
finance.yahoo.com finance.yahoo.com
View attachment 4820997

finance.yahoo.com

Adobe Inc. (ADBE) Stock Major Holders - Yahoo Finance

Find out the direct holders, institutional holders and mutual fund holders for Adobe Inc. (ADBE).
finance.yahoo.com finance.yahoo.com
View attachment 4820998


And in turn, who holds Blackrock and its top mutual fund holders. Vanguard is private.
finance.yahoo.com

BlackRock, Inc. (BLK) Stock Major Holders - Yahoo Finance

Find out the direct holders, institutional holders and mutual fund holders for BlackRock, Inc. (BLK).
finance.yahoo.com finance.yahoo.com
View attachment 4820999
Click to expand...
Yahoo? It smells like Naphthalene.
 
I gifted my IWC to my son for his gradation. He took it to an authorised dealer for a genuine leather strap to replace the worn Chinese one. The IWC strap was something like 400 bucks but the watch itself has more than doubled in value since I bought it 25 years ago so it’s ok. I didn’t wear it regularly so had to get CLA’s periodically. I just got my dad’s ancient Rolex Oyster Perpetual he gave me for my graduation running in top shape again. When the battery in my Apple Watch dies I’ll just wear my mechanical watches. The Grand Seiko limited edition I bought in Tokyo 20 years ago is a beautiful watch.
 
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