Guide to buying an Inexpensive Watch

Image result for pictures of expensive wristwatches

Branding is everything, before you open your lips to speak there are a lot of things that have already pre formed an opinion about you. Ask the Corporate Salesman about one of the most effective tools to his trade and he will tell you a nice well tailored suit.

These days depending on what segment of the society you cater to, it’s not just about your suits, your accessories are also very important, ” entrer” the wristwatch.


Fun Fact Did you know that wristwatches were first worn by women, Before the 20th century, wristwatches  were worn only by women .
Men have entered into the fray with a vengeance and cultivate a habit of wearing the most expensive wristwatches , most men brag about their wristwatch collections as proudly as they brag about their gadgets, but not everybody can afford a $10,000 Rolex , So how do you buy quality wrist watches without breaking the Bank?



Here are a few rules to guide the trendy worker on how to buy quality wristwatches on a budget.
The first rule  is that if you can’t afford the $10,000 Rolex, don’t try and imitate it. One of the biggest mistakes men make is buying a watch that just makes them look cheap. I’m talking about the oversized, fake gold, plastic stone encrusted watches. There is no humanely possible way to look good wearing these. They are a mistake – in other words – avoid them like the plague.

The second mistake men with expensive taste but low budgets make is buying knockoffs. While you may be able to trick the average consumer into believing you’ve got a real Rolex on your wrist, anyone who knows a thing or two is never going to take you seriously. Wearing a knockoff is like trying to pay your check with Monopoly money. The second someone notices it, you’ve lost all credibility. If you want to be taken seriously, avoid the fraudulent watches, because in the end, you’re going to look like a joke.

The first step when buying a watch in this price range is to understand that it’s perfectly acceptable to play it safe and stick with the basics. Focus on watches with fabric straps or metal bracelets and go in expecting to buy a quartz movement. Anything with a mechanical movement will be inferior, although occasionally you can luck out.
There are three places you want to look when buying the watch:

1. Online.

While this may be a dangerous marketplace for fine timepieces, there’s no risk when you’re only looking for a basic watch. By searching eBay, Craigslist, Amazon and various discount sites, you’ll probably be able to find the watch you’d buy in the store, but at a fraction of the price. This is an excellent source for low budget watches.
Nice Nautica watch for under $100
Nice Nautica watch for under $100

2. Thrift, Goodwill & Pawn Shops

Often, these are some of the best places to look for a great deal. You can generally find watches at these places for a small fraction of what they’d sell for brand new in the store, and in the majority of cases, the staff doesn’t know much about horology, so you can actually find some pretty amazing deals. These opportunities may be hard to find, but they do occur frequently. Recently a man found a 1959 LeCoultre Deep Sea Alarm at a goodwill store in Phoenix. He bought it for $5.99 and turned around and sold it for $35,000 to a collector who also threw in an Omega. This same buyer who frequents Goodwill stores has also seen a variety of other luxury watches in the past at stores like these.

3. Department Stores

If you don’t have much time to spend and are just desperate to get a watch on your wrist, the final recommendation is to buy at a local department store. Typically, department stores sell higher quality watches than the bargain bin stores like Walmart and Target, but offer competitive pricing. This is the place to locate fashion watches and other watches that are of better quality. Of course, that’s not to say that Walmart and Target can’t be a viable source – I believe they also carry brands like Casio and Timex, which can be very good watches for the money.

What To Look & What Not To Look For

There are a few things you want to look for when buying a watch in this price range. The first thing is making sure it doesn’t contain any fake or plated precious metals like gold. If you plan on keeping the watch for any considerable amount of time, both plated and fake gold (often called ‘gold colored’) have the tendency to strip off or change color. A perfect example of this is with plated gold, as after some use you’ll notice that it turns a greenish color, usually starting at the lugs.

By focusing on buying an “authentic” watch, you’ll end up getting the best bang for your buck. Try looking for watches that are made of a standard metal, plastic or composite.
Next you want to look at the strap. Avoiding leather is usually a good idea since inexpensive watches tend to have cheap leather or imitation leather straps which will show wear very quickly. Unless you plan to use an after-market strap (which is a good idea), focus on finding watches that have fabric straps, metal bracelets or rubber straps. They’ll last longer and maintain their appearance, provided of course the metal isn’t plated or poorly made.
Fake gold Nixon is something to avoid
Fake gold Nixon is something to avoid

The final thing you want to look for is to make sure that it works. This isn’t such a big deal when buying new, but it’s still a good idea to make sure it keeps accurate time. Quartz watches are going to be your best bet. They may not have the appeal of mechanical or automatic, but they do keep better time and are usually what you’ll find in this price range. Ideally, you want to find a watch that has Japanese movement. You can often determine this by looking at the back of the watch or the six o’clock position on the dial. Finding something that’s Swiss Made is almost out of the question, although you may find ones labelled Swiss Movement or Swiss Quartz – they are not the same. While some watches with Chinese movements aren’t bad, for the most part they tend to be the least reliable when it comes to watch production. It’s not the end of the world if you find a watch you like with it, but it shouldn’t be your first pick.

Contributions from https://www.gentlemansgazette.com
Culled from Sister Site www.dakkyworkdiaries.com

Comments