Herculodge

Most Likely the Next Watch Will be the Seiko Velatura Quartz Chrono SNDA59

Probably stick with quartz and stay with in my Seiko comfort zone. The realities of auto service for me are a turn off. 

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My Watch Dealer Told Me Basic Service for a Swiss ETA Movement Would Cost Me $200

That's every 5 years. Could I afford it? Yes. Do I want to do so on principle? No. I'm sticking with quartz for now. My 4 Seiko automatics keep me busy enough. 

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The Benarus Megalodon 500 is on hold but still not purged from my system. I prefer Seiko because I assume, wrongly or not, that I don't have to service the watch for 20 years or so if at all. 

I am drawn to the following:

Swiss Army Black Ice Dive Master 241424, which starts around the low $700 range. 

Seiko Velatura SNDA59, which is around $450. 

Seiko SRH001, which is around $600. 

Orient Revolver, which is around $650. 

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Manly Watch Sighting: Swiss Army Black Ice Dive Master 241424

 

 

 

 

Looking to shrink your size calibration from hefty 52mm bezels to something more like 43mm? Then look no further than the Swiss Army Black Ice Dive Master. This is worthy of being a Watch Chimera. 

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The Cost of Maintaining a Benarus Megalodon

As I contemplate and wrestle with the notion of getting a Watch Uber Alles, a Chimera to Elevate and Destroy the Soul, I calculate that the watch in question with its ETA movement would require a $150 service every 5 years. That's $30 a year, not bad. That's $900 for me if I get one at my current age, 51, and service the watch till I'm 81. 

Add the cost of the watch and the total cost is about $1,800. If I wear the watch one day a week over the next 30 years, that's about 1,560 "wears." Price per wear on the wrist is $1.15. So every time I slap it on the wrist, I'm paying the watch gods over a dollar. If I wear it twice a week, I can get the "wear" price to under sixty cents. 

Number crunching takes all the fun out of it. 

 

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Mark Roberts Says FM Listeners Should Stay Away from Sangean Pocket Radios

If you are an FM listener, then I would actually steer away from the Sangeans. They are not selective and not particularly sensitive. A Tecsun DSP model or the CC Pocket would be far better choices for FM listeners.

Longer versions: 
http://markrobt.posterous.com/tag/sangeandt400w
http://markrobt.posterous.com/tag/sangeandt200vx

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When Manly Watch Tastes Change, So Does Size Calibration

Addressing a previous post, Jonny writes:

Size preference is a matter of perception and what you're "calibrated" to. When I was deep into my Invictaddiction this past summer and was buying 52mm watches, anything much smaller seemed...puny. My first Seiko, the SNAD61 which is 45mm across the bezel, seemed tiny - I remember loving the look of it but being disappointed with its size.

But gradually my tastes changed, as did my "size calibration." Now the SNAD61 seems perfect in its size and the 52mm Invictas seem massive and silly (I'm selling all but one or two). My preferred range is 44-48mm, with anything over 50mm or so too big. But I've got relatively average wrists at 7.25."

That said, you sound like a pretty big guy. What is your wrist size and height? You might want to start with a larger Seiko - either the SNZ267, which is a very Invicta-esque watch and a nice size (great recommendation, Jeff), or a Velatura, which is also pretty big for a Seiko. Also, check out some other brands: Festina, Stuhrling Original, and Android, all of which make largish watches (although none are as good quality as Seiko, as far as I can tell).

But again, you'll find that it will take some time to re-calibrate your size preference but it will happen. I'd start with a watch in the 46-50mm range and get used to that. Your White Samurai is 45mm and I'm pretty sure you'd be disappointed with its size if you got it now. But if you get it in a few months after "re-calibrating" with a couple slightly larger watches, you'll enjoy the White Samurai more - plus you'll have something to look forward to!

For another really nice white watch with "manly" Invicta feel, you might also want to check out the Seiko SKA421. The only place I've seen it on the internet is NY Watch Store:

http://www.nywatchstore.com/ska421.html

The SKA421 (and the all-black SKA425, which I own and love) wears big for a Seiko - like the SNZ267.

By the way, do you own any Invicta Ocean Reefs or Ocean Speedways? Those are similar in size to the watches recommended above.

Good luck and let us know what you come up with.

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I received this email recently: 

I've been following your blog ( specifically the watch section ) for quite some time now. I'm writing to you because I have run into a sort of crisis myself in regards to watches. A coworker of mine originally introduced to me the Invicta brand after showing me his collection, and after I began my pursuit of obtaining timepieces I stumbled upon your blog and always found it insightful to read. 

 I am writing to you because I seem to be going through a similar transition as you have gone/ are going through yourself. I am, and have been for quite some time, unable to decide on where to take my collection next, and have been "stuck in limbo" when it comes to watches. I was very happy purchasing large Invictas ( although I have not come close to purchasing as many as you have ) up until a few weeks ago.

 

I am a college student working part-time construction until I graduate. I used to attend the gym on a daily basis, and at my biggest was steadily hovering at about 250-260 lbs. I was fairly muscular, thick, and was able to wear my large Invictas well, meaning that the large watch suited the large guy. When hurricane Sandy hit the Northeast area, I stopped attending the gym due to being directly affected by the storm - and haven't gone back since. I have not been eating properly, not working out, and have suffered the consequences of losing almost 40 lbs, and losing mass that I've worked tirelessly to gain. It is around this time after the storm I started having a crisis of  self, that extends to many areas besides my watch collecting. However, I view my watch collecting as a direct expression of myself, so naturally I am suffering psychologically from being unsure of what I want.

 I am unsure of whether or not I want to continue buying Invicta watches because they no longer bring me the joy that they once used to, even with the notion that one day I would own them. I have instead turned to other brands and am trying to find something that would once more bring me the joy of watch buying, that would once more allow me to express myself with confidence that this is the real me. I believe I have found this with the Seiko "White Samurai," as this watch is extremely appealing to me for some reason I don't quite understand. What I fear however is how I can go from giant oversized watches to these smaller form factors without feeling an emptiness that would be there due to the different size. I was wondering whether you would be able to recommend me a specific watch that you believe would solidify my transition to another brand or brands, of finer watches, that would help me get my mojo back.

I was wondering whether you could recommend a watch that would really make me stop and go "Wow, this watch... This watch is what I've been searching for, missing from my life." 

 

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High Praise for the Meloson M7 Tiny AM/FM/MP3 Player

Pablo writes:

About the Meloson M7 tiny AM FM MP3 player, it has been receiving high praises from Amazon buyers:

http://www.amazon.com/Meloson-M7-Rechargeable-Processing-Portable/product-reviews/B009XUBVMY/ref=sr_1_1_cm_cr_acr_img?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1

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Is There Such Thing As a Sustainable Watch Addiction?

Jonny writes:

I smoked cigarettes for about ten years (plus a few lingering years of occasional relapses) and I figured that the appeal of that sort of addiction is that it gives you a controlled self-gratification mechanism: You have rising desire (for a cigarette) which becomes quite intense, and then you can fulfill it and you feel immense pleasure and satisfication...until it grows again, but then you can satisfy it again.

Watch addiction is the same, but the problem is the cost. Now I can imagine an income twice what it is now and being able to buy more expensive watches, but then it would equalize and I'd simply be dealing with a different sphere of watches. So yeah, it doesn't matter how much you make - there's always going to be more.

(Actually, the latest studies show that middle income people tend to be happier than those of extreme wealth or poverty).

So as I said in one of my too-long responses last night, I see three options: 1) Either we over-indulge and eventually get ourselves into trouble (debt); 2) We avoid the cycle altogether and become hermits; or 3) We learn to moderate.

#3 is the ideal, in my opinion, but it requires a psychological shift - "killing the chimera," if you will. Learning to appreciate what we have, seeing it with new eyes, etc. Practically speaking this means buying a moderate amount of watches. I don't think there is an absolute rule at work, but one a month seems healthy, at least for me.

The more you buy, the more you want. That's what our society runs on, which is pathological, in my opinion. A more sustainable, balanced future is not one in which we continue to over-indulge, nor is it one where we need to completely abstain from material pleasures, but finding that nebulous middle way. It seems like walking on a razor's edge but the more you do it, the easier it is. It is sort of like doing a yogic headstand - at first it seems impossible to balance between falling backward and forward, and then you find that magical place and you're floating.

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