View single post by Watchstuff
 Posted: Wed Jun 4th, 2008 06:01 pm
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Watchstuff



Joined: Mon May 12th, 2008
Location: Bay Area, California USA
Posts: 426
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 Agreed Ken - $200-300 is plenty for a decent watch, that is not the problem; most things rose gold in that range will probably not last well with everyday wear.  Too bad about the Seiko Citizen ban; those are some of the best values you will find, the Citizen eco-drive line, for example, has tons of styles, well made, with solar power so no battery changes or mechanical services.  I won't go so far as others when they say NO Invictas (I agree 90% though!) as they are one of the larger suppliers of decent (again, at least some of them!) watches in this price range that are readily available.

So here are a few, with no preference for mechanical or quartz, staying away from Citizen and Seiko...

Invicta 8926 and family (9937 and family if you don't mind used, they are a definite step up).  Sandoz is another brand that offers reputable mechanicals in that range.

Luminox offers nice bright tritium tubes but some can be a bit colorful for an office.  Wenger and Swiss Army and Victorinox are usually good bets as far as decent quality and reliability.  Consider Casio, either some of their analog types or if you can go digital the more understated Gschocks...heck, if you are going digitial, look at the mid range Suuntos for a cool change of pace!

Orient and Pulsar are Seiko subs, but both offer quartz and mechanical in your range with good quality and reliability. 

Hamilton usually offers some in this range, particularly their quartz models, and their quality is generally quite good.  And I will add a couple personal favorites to the mix - both Sector and St. Moritz offer mostly quartz at that price point, very well done.  I will add Zodiac to that group; their quartz offerings are very reasonable and while some are a bit over the top, many are office suitable.  You can sometimes find quartz Tissots in that range that are always a good bet.

And I do have to get a plug in for my favorite, the Debaufre Magnum... toon1.gif


There are tons more but I will let better minds unearth them!  For that kind of money I would personally stay away from Sturhling and the like...