AKICILJ: Watches.

[rivka]

I am a Type A, time-focused person. I need to wear a watch and always know what time it is or I get very uncomfortable. Even when there's no place particular for me to go.

For the last fifteen years or so, I've always worn a basic Timex Indiglo watch. I like the extremely plain/classic aesthetic: black band, silver-colored bezel, plain white face with big clear black numbers. I like that it lights up. And, until recently, I've always liked that it is both cheap and reliable.

Until now.

When my last Timex died, I bought a nearly identical one at Target. A few weeks later the little loops you thread the band through fell off, so I returned it to Target and got a replacement. A few weeks after that the pin that holds the band to the bezel broke, and I returned that one to Target for a replacement. The next one had the entire "winding"/setting pin fall off.

At this point, I began to suspect that it wasn't so much that I was buying individual Timex watches that happened to suck, as that Timex had just gone completely to hell as a brand. But I gave it one more chance. All the pieces have stayed on my current watch for several months now, so that's definitely a plus. But instead of falling to pieces, it has a more insidious problem.

The little setting pin has a tendency to pull out during the course of normal everyday activities. When that happens, of course, the watch stops - waiting for me to set it. Typically I don't notice until something suddenly happens to demonstrate to me that it's half an hour later than I thought it was. I look at my watch frequently, but I'm usually immersed in other things and I don't stop to think about the fact that it couldn't possibly still be 11:40. I just glance down and think "oh good, I've still got time." And then suddenly I am late picking Alex up from something or the babysitter is here and I am nowhere near ready to go to work. It is the most unbelievably frustrating thing imaginable.

So I need a new watch, but I need more than that. I need an entirely new brand and style of watch. I need to go out and spend money on an unknown kind of watch at precisely the moment when I have the least possible amount of faith in watchmakers. Please advise me, LJ! What would be relatively inexpensive, not offensive to look at, and actually reliable?

Comments

[jhetley.livejournal.com]

I use cheap Casio watches, WalMart. I don't know if they have the style you need, but I've found them to be reliable.

[rivka.livejournal.com]

Must be analog. I am allergic to digital watches.

[jhetley.livejournal.com]

In the past, I owned a Casio analog watch. I do not know if they make them now.

[duane-kc.livejournal.com]

I second the Casio recommendation, and even found a possible match for you.

http://www.casio.com/products/Timepiece/Dress/LTP1191_Series/

[rivka.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I found that one too. I think it would bug me not to at least have slash marks for all the numbers, if not numbers themselves. I'm often timing something that's two or three minutes long.

I had no idea that I was so picky about watches! Sorry to be shooting down so many ideas.

[kate_nepveu]

Hey, the reason I got a watch for a present is *because* I'm so picky about them--the effort that goes into finding what fit my specifications was part of the gift.

[duane-kc.livejournal.com]

Are you totally opposed to digital displays? Here's an analog/digital combination: http://www.casio.com/products/Timepiece/Classic/LCF30_Series/product/LCF30-2B/ ?

[kate_nepveu]

I have a Seiko which is fine, though it was a gift so I don't know precisely how expensive: somewhere under $50, I would guess, since I wouldn't have wanted Chad to spend more.

[rivka.livejournal.com]

I'm not seeing Seiko watches for less than $200, at least not on the Seiko website. Alas, because they are cool.

[kate_nepveu]

?!?!

That's ridiculous. Wow.

[gerisullivan.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I wore self-winding Seiko watches for 25 years or so, buying the first for $60 from the PX, and never paying more than $120 for one. I loved never having to replace batteries. When it was time to replace the third one, the price on the model I wanted had jumped to $300 or $360 and I ran not-quite-screaming from the room.

I've been happy with the Citizen watch I bought 7-8 years ago. It wasn't super cheap -- $110 or $120 -- but it's been sturdy and reliable. The only annoyance is having to replace the battery. I never think to do it until the watch stops running.

Good luck!

[brooksmoses]

I've also got a Seiko, which I got when my Timex Indiglo wore out -- specifically, the crown on the winder wore through from the top and fell off. I took it to a watch shop to see if they could repair it, but they said they couldn't get parts for Timexes (and I didn't even think about the no-longer-working identical one I had in a box at home), so I started looking to see what they had for a replacement.

This turned out to really be an ideal place to do that; the store owner asked me some questions about what I wanted in a watch, and came up with two or three in the store that met the conditions. This one wasn't cheap -- slightly over the $100 I decided to budget for it -- but it's lasted extremely well since then. (And I'm assured that it's quite possible to get parts to repair it, if something does break.)

[vom-marlowe.livejournal.com]

I had the same problem! I replaced my Indiglo Timex and ran through several new ones, but they all broke. I am watching this space for ideas.

[elusis.livejournal.com]

My goodness, this is depressing. I have worn Indiglo watches since, like, 1992 or something, barring my recent little incident documented in another comment.

[lietya.livejournal.com]

I wish I had a suggestion, but I gave up wearing watches entirely rather than deal with the bullshit, so instead I have only a complementary story - I went through three [analog] Timexes, each of which had a battery that lasted less than six months (and the batteries can't be replaced for less than the cost of a new watch) before I quit.

All from Target, incidentally.

Good luck...

[moobabe.livejournal.com]

I honestly can't help you, as I have been using Timex watches with black bands, silver bezels, plain white faces, and clear black numbers for... well, at least 20 years. ;) I haven't had any issues with them.

[rivka.livejournal.com]

I don't suppose you'd be willing to send me your watch? ;-)

[moobabe.livejournal.com]

Hee! No. I got it within the past year, though, and haven't been having any problems with it. If you go on timex.com and search for t2h3319J, that's it, though. I think I got it at target? Though I'm particular enough that I may have ordered it from timex.com.

Not cheap, but inexpensive for a good watch -

[ziactrice.livejournal.com]

I bought a Longines duty-free in Jamaica more than 12 years ago, stainless steel band with a guaranteed "unscratchable" face because I had busted so many watches climbing superstructure in refineries and had so many watches get corroded by the environment and direct chemical exposures. I also tend to magnetize watch inner workings. Yes, I have stopped a Timex; it lasted two years instead of the usual one.

The Longines is still ticking, is analog, has a second hand and a date window - and I've had to replace the battery _once_. I think the Longines was in the mid 300 dollar range when I bought it, but all in all, I rather think I'll get my money's worth out of it.

ETA: EEEK!! Never mind. I just looked up the prices for current models. I did a very smart thing buying it so many years ago, it would seem. I wish my retirement fund had appreciated like that!

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

Swatches are a good choice, and they have about a gazillion styles.

B

[txanne.livejournal.com]

I get aesthetically pleasing no-names at Target, but I check to see how hard it is to pull the stem out.

[rockstarbob.livejournal.com]

Apparently, we share a proclivity for the easy reader. Here's my watch``no problems since 1995!

http://www.timex.com/Timex-Easy-Reader/dp/B001EYUVO6?ie=UTF8&refinementHistory=watch_movement_type%2Csize_code%2Cband_material_type%2Cdial_color%2Cprice&searchNodeID=2223483011&field_launch-date=-1y&searchRank=salesrank&searchPage=1&field_browse=2223483011&searchSize=12&id=Timex%20Easy%20Reader&field_availability=-1

[rivka.livejournal.com]

I didn't have any trouble with the Easy Reader watch I bought in 1995 either. (Replaced it when the leather band wore out.) It's the current version that keeps disappointing me.

Although the model that sucks so badly is the one that supposedly shows the date. (That feature doesn't work very well either.) I wonder if a model like yours would be more reliable.

[rockstarbob.livejournal.com]

My newest one was bought circa 2008 or so. I've never had much luck with the date feature, either. Luckily, it's not that important to me.

I just like sliding it on/off w/o having to buckle anything.

[platypus]

I've been using those for a long time, most recently replaced at Christmas (because I lost the previous one). But the first thing I do is replace the band, because I like a longer one, so quality control issues with the band wouldn't have affected me. The watch itself has worked fine, to my relief.

[naomikritzer]

How totally infuriating. It drives me crazy when a brand I find generally satisfactory suddenly goes all to hell.

I have a Timex indiglo that I bought a year or two ago that works fine. I hope they get a handle on their quality control before this one dies and I have to replace it. (I replace batteries and wristbands as needed because it seems ridiculous to throw away a whole watch just because the battery got used up.)

[roseydawn.livejournal.com]

I have had several Timex watches break up on me over the last few years too. You're right, their quality control has gone to bits. :(

I have major retinal damage in both eyes, so having an "easy reader" type watch is important for me. Due to budgetary concerns, I switched over to the Acqua line when my last Timex broke. From what I understand, Acqua is still Timex but it's their budget/value line of watches. It's held up surprisingly well so far - the paint hasn't even chipped like it did with Timex ones.

[ratphooey.livejournal.com]

I am also in Timex hell. My indiglo stopped working after a month, so I e-mailed them. They are sending me a new watch, but what I really want is my money back so I can buy something reliable.

I loved my old Skagen; no indiglo, but otherwise a great, reliable watch. They can often be found discounted (I bought my husband one for $40 at Ross or Marshall's or TJ Maxx), but aren't hella expensive at full retail.

[ckd]

I guess they can no longer take a licking and keep on ticking. *sigh*

My watch satisfies two of the three criteria you list, but "relatively inexpensive" is the one it misses horribly on; it's a Citizen Eco-Drive. (OTOH I've been wearing this thing like Sam Vimes's Boots and it hasn't given me a bit of trouble; my ex-wife's watch, also a Citizen Eco-Drive, just died after 9 years but it sounds like it's fairly easily repairable by replacing the capacitor.)

[carbonel]

I've had good luck with my Fossil watch, which cost around $60, IIRC.

And they let you build your own watch on their website, which is a feature I wasn't familiar with -- I bought mine in a stor.

[electricland.livejournal.com]

Good luck! I've been wearing the same $30 drugstore Lorus (white face, black Roman numerals, does not light up) for about 10 years now. Other than needing to replace the battery and the strap, it's served me pretty well. But I have no idea if this is a common finding.

[elusis.livejournal.com]

I wish I knew what to tell you. I, too, have relied on Timex Indiglo watches forever, until about 9 months ago the cats knocked my watch off the bathroom sink and the back popped off, so I took it to the watch repair to have it put back on, and a month or two after I absently got it wet and found that it was no longer water-resistant.

Since then I have been wearing a dressier watch my ex-husband's mother got me years ago, whose face was such a narrow oblong unmarred by any actual hash marks that I could never tell if it was 735 or 835 or what exactly.

About three weeks ago, I was getting in the shower. I took off my watch. Took off one earring, put the back on it, laid it down with the watch. Was abducted by aliens. Took off the other earring, put the back on it, wondered "where the hell is earring #1?" Eventually I realized the aliens had also taken my watch. Neither item has ever surfaced.

So I need to buy a new watch, and was meaning to go to Target for an Indiglo or price them on Amazon or something. But I guess not.

[ororo.livejournal.com]

I would recommend Overstock.com for a variety of brands and styles for a lot less than full price.

I have a Coach watch that is stable, reliable and fashionable. I paid $60 for in a thrift store, but not everyone gets that lucky.

[selki.livejournal.com]

I'd suggest looking for an older timex indiglo in a thrift store or on ebay.

Lorus by Seiko on Amazon -- $14.95

[suzilem.livejournal.com]

http://www.amazon.com/s/qid=1276041582/ref=sr_st?page=1&bbn=379282011&rh=n%3A377110011%2Cn%3A!378520011%2Cn%3A!386697011%2Cn%3A!379277011%2Cn%3A379282011%2Cp_4%3ASeiko%2Cp_n_target_audience_browse-bin%3A379282011&sort=price-new-bin

[tassie-gal.livejournal.com]

I am/was horrendeously attached to my Techno Marine Ladies Sports but they are not cheap. I say was as I have put it down somewhere and now cant find it, as has been the case for months.