Watches

[Stagger_Lee]

None of them even have calculators.

[BigPoppa]

An expensive watch is the one piece of really nice jewelry that it is acceptable for men to wear. I don't have any problem with that, but it's still expensive jewelry. That side, those are some really nice looking watches.


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you pay a premium for the prestige of paying a premium.

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This about sums it up.
An expensive watch, like expensive jewelry, is priced on a combination of what went into making it (both materials and skilled labor) and what the market will bear. It has only coincidental relation to the functionality/reliability of the piece.

In fact, many expensive timepieces are less reliable than a Timex or Casio (in much the same way that a Jaguar is less reliable than a Toyota).

[cambraceres]

The functionality of a time piece GREATLY affects value in the higher priced pieces. A tourbillon is a $40,000 addition to a wristwatch, and that is just to build to predesigned specs; after factoring in R&D the cost is stratospheric. A minute repeater adds at least $25,000 whereever it appears.

Patek just released a version of their new 10 day power reserve in a tounneau case, and after adding a tourbillon the cost at retail is $260,000. And the thing is that this watch is this price exclusively because patek found a way to incorporate two exceedingly hard complications into a wristwatch movement.

A combination of complication and asethetics rules the watch world at the highest levels; when a watch can take 2 years of continuous work to build, youn won't get it for a hug and some candy.
A very good fried of mine proffessionally trades fine watches, and has always said that if you want to buy a watch for less that 5, stick with vintage rolex or a very well kept but undesirable patek. They will produce monetary advantages later on that cannot be consistently had with even a fine watch like Girrard Perrigeaux or Jaeger le Coultre.

Cam

[rothko]

what he said ^

what he said v

[BigPoppa]

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The functionality of a time piece GREATLY affects value in the higher priced pieces

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No.
You are confusing input and output.

The functionality is what the consumer gets from it, not what goes into it. The design, craftmanship, and complication of an expensive timepiece make it cost a lot of money to produce. However, the consumer won't be able to tell it "functionally" from a quartz Timex. It may look much nicer and be more satisfying to own, but the "function" will be close enough to the Timex that the user is unlikely to notice a difference.

[StrictlyStrategy]

[ QUOTE ]
The functionality of a time piece GREATLY affects value in the higher priced pieces. A tourbillon is a $40,000 addition to a wristwatch, and that is just to build to predesigned specs; after factoring in R&D the cost is stratospheric. A minute repeater adds at least $25,000 whereever it appears.

Patek just released a version of their new 10 day power reserve in a tounneau case, and after adding a tourbillon the cost at retail is $260,000. And the thing is that this watch is this price exclusively because patek found a way to incorporate two exceedingly hard complications into a wristwatch movement.

A combination of complication and asethetics rules the watch world at the highest levels; when a watch can take 2 years of continuous work to build, youn won't get it for a hug and some candy.
A very good fried of mine proffessionally trades fine watches, and has always said that if you want to buy a watch for less that 5, stick with vintage rolex or a very well kept but undesirable patek. They will produce monetary advantages later on that cannot be consistently had with even a fine watch like Girrard Perrigeaux or Jaeger le Coultre.

Cam

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Ok I understand how a great G-P can cost a quarter million +.

It's a grande complication, 18k gold, croc-snap clasp band,

Most of that 250k goes in to the fact that it's a grande complication, for those that don't totally understand that means that the watch will do stuff like lunar phases, minute repeater(push a button, the watch chimes the time for you) tourbillon(keeps accurate time even when the watch is upside down, rotated, etc) and so on and so forth.

The first watch, which I like as an example because G-P makes my favorite watches, costs $4,900 at first glance online. I wouldn't be surprised if it was a little more in a store. Whatever.

http://www.jomashop.com/girard-perre...-0-11-114.html

What does this watch offer me?

Date.

Steel case.

Leather strap.

wtf kind of premium am I paying for here? If this is simply a "watch" thing then so be it. But I spend way more money on things than I should, mostly because society tells me it's cool. That's fine, I don't mind. When it comes to watches like this one though, I just DO NOT get it.

It is a good looking watch but can you really tell me this watch cost more than a hundred dollars to make? Including labor?

[BigPoppa]

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It is a good looking watch but can you really tell me this watch cost more than a hundred dollars to make? Including labor?


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Quite a bit more, and it's almost all labor (both for making the individual parts and assembling them).

[StrictlyStrategy]

All right. I guess I just don't understand how a hand-machined gear is going to be better than a factory-produced one.

[Dominic]

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also 3.0, is your $400 hamilton that much better than revots $45 timex?

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LOL...no, not really. A standard Seiko looks just like a Rolex to me...

It's odd...I'll spend a premium on certain items like clothes and a car...but not a watch!

[Manque]

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This is the same watch I think, only in gold. Could I have read the price correctly, $13,000? Is that possible? I've never heard of anyone paying that kind of money for a watch!






I like this one too,



IWC Portuguese Automatic steel black men's watch. ($10,000!)


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Gold is trading at over $700 an ounce and platinum is over $1,200 an ounce. So precious metals add considerably to the cost.

I like your choice as well. Unfortunately I would need you to spot me a few grand. [img]/images/graemlins/blush.gif[/img]