The Best Men's Watches review of Treehut Watches

I am taking a different approach on this post for the best men's watches blog.  I have basically always done lists, but today I am going to do a personal review on a watch I received for father's day.  It is Treehut.co watch, and so far, I have really enjoyed the watch.

Treehut.co is a San Fransico based watch making company.  They are 20 people who work to make some truly unique watches.  The nature of wooden watches nearly guarentee that every single watch they make will be unique.

They start with the movements.  The movements are Japanese quartz.  (most likely it is a Miyota) but I have no actual confirmation on that.

So, it starts with quality movements, that are NOT made in China, and it moves out from there.  Before each watch case is made, the wood to be used is inspected for quality.  The watches are then cut, and hand assembled.  After which, they are polished and boxed for sale.

If I would have thought about it, I would have included this in my best men's watched for dad's birthday list, but, here we are, two weeks later, talking about it anyway.

The watch case is 1.7 inches in diameter, and is made from wood, of course, it has a steel crown located at the 3 o'clock position, and it has a smooth, raised bezel.  It has a smooth acrylic lens, and the dial face is wood as well.  The hours are marked with carved large ticks, and minutes are marked with smaller carved ticks.  The hands of the watch are black, with a green second hand.  The band is a brown distressed leather type, with a buckle style clasp.

My personal opinion of the watch is positive.  It is extremely light, it almost goes unnoticed while wearing it, it is large and easy to read.  the band is very comfortable, and, being quartz, it keeps perfect time.

The first day I wore, I received several complements about it from strangers.  It wears very easy, and feels like a good day to day watch.  The only concern I have is how well it will hold up to humidity and sweat, so I will probably not be wearing it outside to work in.  But as a office watch, I think it is a fine choice.

Overall, I am very happy with the watch.  I have found it for a variety of prices, but it seems to fall anywhere from 60 dollars on Amazon, to 80 dollars on the Treehut.co website.  At 60 or 80 dollars, it believe it to be a good buy.  I really like the watch and expect that I will wear it tomorrow again.

I have to thank my oldest daughter for the Father's day gift, it is really nice.

See, just like I have said, it is fine if anyone wants to purchase me watches, I would really appreciate it.

Treehut is making some nice products, and I have to say that they have a nice, and unique thing going on over there and I wish them the best of luck.

Read More

The 5 Best Men's Watches for Dad's Birthday

I am surprised I am just now getting around to this blog post.  I mean, I am a dad, and I do like watches.  It seems to me, it would have been a no-brainer...

Alas, I have been so busy with my other thoughts and ideas, I just haven't been able to find the time, and, quite honestly, I am in a continual state of forgetfulness.  I missed Father's Day this year.  And in all actuality, I am too late for my birthday this year, but hopefully I can help some lucky watch lover out there, get something he really likes for his birthday.

I am going to talk about a few watches I have talked about in the past.  And I am going to try and talk about a few different price points.  Because I know that every single person has a different perspective on how much to spend on dad.  But for any who are unsure, it is always my suggestion to spend more on dad.  He might complain about it, but down deep, he really likes his bobbles and thingies as much as anyone.

The 5 Best Men's Watches for Dad's Birthday

HMT

Pilot

Model:N/A

Case: 35 mm, Stainless steel

Band: 18mm Leather

Movement: HMT 0231 Mechanical

Functions: HH, MM, SS

Battery: N/A

Water resistance:

HMT Pilot in its standard looks

I have written about the HMT Pilot several times now.  It is not some amazing watch, but it is kinda cool, and it is something that your average person will not have.  It will give dad something to talk about, and most dads like to do that.

HMT is an Indian company that is now out of business.  The government decided that the company would be shut down, and as of 2016, the doors have closed.  But these watches are still available on Ebay.  They are general refurbished versions, but you can find them for under 15 dollars all day long on Ebay.  I own two Pilots and would not be sad if I had one or two more of them.  They are great every day knock around watches.

I like them because they are super cheap, look retro, and are mechanical watches (means you have to wind them daily)  I always like a mechanical watch, they are just cool.  Most guys will think this, because they are little tiny machines.

The basic statistics for this watch are pretty common place.  It is made of stainless steel, it has a 35mm diameter body on it.  It has a crown located at the 3 oclock position and has a 18mm band.  Much after that, they do have a few variations.  And with them being refurbished, they have nearly unlimited variations.

The standard HMT Pilot will have greenish markings on a black dial face.  The green is luminance and there is also luminance on the watch hands.  But I have seen different cases, and a ton of different colors.  It will be whatever tickles your fancy really.

Timex

Weekender Collection

Model:  TW2P714009J

Case: 40 mm, Stainless Steel

Band: 20 mm, Nylon

Movement: Quartz

Functions: HH, MM, SS, Day, Chronograph, Light

Battery: Lithium metal battery

Water resistance: 30M/99ft.

I really love this Timex.  I have several old Timex's, but I have not purchased a current Timex.  But I think this could very well be the Timex for me.  It is stylish and functional, and has a bit of a retro look about it.  All features that I like.  And for under 50 bucks, I think this is right in the ballpark for a great gift for your dad.  It is what I would consider a daily wear watch, and one that should be more durable than the HMT above.

The watch comes in two colors.  The white and the blue.  Both are pretty cool, I think I like the white more, but that is a personal preference of course.

They have a nylon band with a buckle style clasp and are in a case that measures 40mm in diameter.  The cases are mad of brass and are plated and polished.  The dials have Arabic numerals for the hour markers, and has 3 sub dials for the cronograph functions.  There is a crown located at the 3 o'clock position and the watches have the chronograph function buttons located at the 2 & 4 o'clock positions.

I am a big fan of these watches.  Like I said, I have old Timex's but have stayed away from the newer ones, mostly because I don't like the looks of them, that doesn't apply with the Weekender chronographs, these are stylish and extremely functional, along with being durable daily wear watches.  I would recommend them to anyone looking for something under 50 bucks and can take a bit of a beating.

Seiko
Series 5
Model:SNK809K2
Case: 37mm, stainless steel
Band: 18mm, black canvas
Movement: Seiko Automatic 7S26A

Functions: HH, MM, SS, Date, Day
Battery: N/A
Water resistance: 30M/100ft

I feel like a bit of a letch, in regards to this watch.  I LOVE this watch!  Seriously, you can get this for your dad for just over 50 bucks and it may be his favorite watch ever.  And if he doesn't like it, send it to me, I will take it.

I am not sure how long Seiko has been producing this watch, but I know they have been making Series 5 watches for some time now.

What you get here is a field watch, with a automatic movement, with a Nato nylon band, with and a stainless steel case, that measures about 37mm.  You get a choice of colors, althouch I am going to suggest the black, because, again, if he doesn't like it, I would like you to send it to me.

The watch has Arabic numerals in the inner circle for the hours, and on the outer ring for the minutes.  There is a triangle at the 12 o'clock position, which is kinda normal for a military style watch.  It has a day/date window at the 3 o'clock position and a crown that is located at the 3:30 position.  This watch, along with every Series 5, uses the 7S26 automatic movement.  It is one of the movements that Seiko has used since the mid 90's. It is tried and true, and a seriously durable mechanical movement.  I think that this watch really has no weakness, and it is one of my favorite watches, not just my favorite for around 50 dollars, but one of my all time favorites.

Smith and Bradley
Springfield

Model:

Case: 44 mm, PVD coated

Band Width: 20mm, Nylon

Movement: Ronda quartz

Functions: HH, MM, SS, Date

Battery: N/A

Water resistance: 100 M/333 FT

Smith and Bradley is American, and it has a great looking field watch, those two things alone would have put it on this list.  But not only is is a great looking field watch, but it is my second favorite field watch right after the Seiko I just finished talking about.

Smith and Bradley have several really nice watches, I like ALL of them, and I love that they are made in America, but, since we are talking about gifts for dad, I wanted to keep most of the options under 200 dollars, because really, any more than that and there is a good chance that dad is going to kick your ass for spending too much money.

The Springfield is a wonderful place to start with Smith and Bradley.  It is under 200 dollars, and it is one of the nicest looking under 200 dollar watches I have seen.  This is not because I like field watches (I like Field Watches)  But is because this is a well built watch.

This is a PVD coated, stainless steel case watch, with a 44mm diameter.  It has a nato band with a buckle style clasp, and it has a crown located at the 3 o'clock position.

I would recommend this watch to any dad that loves owning American.  I think Smith and Bradley are moving in the right direction, and I think that we should support their business.  I think I would have a hard time deciding between a Springfield and a Series 5.  I love them both, but the price of the Seiko is really hard to beat.

Speedmaster Moon watch limited edition

Model: 311.32.40.30.01.001

Case: 39.7mm, Stainless steel

Band: 22.9mm Leather

Movement: Omega 1861 Manual Wind

Functions: HH, MM, SS, Chronograph

Battery: N/A

Water resistance: 50M/167ft

Maybe one of my all time favorite watches ever, by my all time favorite watch maker.  The Omega Moonwatch is seriously one of my very favorite watches.  I love this watch and I would love to own this watch (Wink Wink) and if any of my kids would like to spend 5000 dollars on me for this watch, well I would put up a fight, but it really wouldn't last that long.

The Watch is modeled after the original Sigma 7 watch, it has chronograph function, and a stainless steel case that measures 39.7mm,  The watch has a crown at  the 3 o'clock position and the chronograph function buttons located at the 2 & 4 o'clock positions.

The watch has a 22.9mm leather band with a buckle style clasp.  It has a tachyometer bezel that is ceramic and black and it has the famous calibre 1861, it is a manual winding chronograph movement.  This is a serious classic, this is the movement that was on the moon.  I cannot say enough how this may very well be my favorite watch of all time, and I can only hope that some day I can own one of these.  It is available for around 5000 dollars, so, you will really need to love your dad if this is something you want to get for him.  But if you feel like it is too much to spend on your dad, again, I would be willing to take it as a gift!

Wrap Up

I really liked this blog post, I mean, I am a dad, and I do believe that maybe I should have any of these watches.  I love these watches, and would intend to own all of them at some point.  They are serious beauties.

Thank you for reading the best men's watches under, and please come back soon!

Read More

The Best Men's Watches for Under 200 Dollars in 2017

I once thought that the idea of spending 200 dollars on a watch was utterly ridiculous.  And I, of course, assumed that 99.9% of the worlds' population would agree with me.  And then I started learning about watches, and I started learning about the history and all the intricacies and time involved with making some of these timepieces, and I realized that 200 really is not a lot for a good watch from a good, reputable company.  In fact, its chump change.

In my first list, the 5 best men's watches for under 200 dollars, I hit the usual suspects.  Seiko, Citizen, Orient, Timex, and Bulova.  And all these are good brands, and they all offer great choices at this price point.  But I think this time around I want to change it up just a little and see what we can find that may be unusual, or from companies that you may not heard of before, but deserve to be mentioned, but are just often overlooked because the staple brands do have so much to offer.

The Best Men's Watches for Under 200 Dollars

Smith and Bradley
Springfield

Model:

Case: 44 mm, PVD coated

Band Width: 20mm, Nylon

Movement: Ronda quartz

Functions: HH, MM, SS, Date

Battery: N/A

Water resistance: 100 M/333 FT

Smith and Bradley are cool looking watches, especially if you dig the military look.  This is a company that is putting together a nice library of watches.

The Springfield is what I would call their entry level watch, and I would personally love to get my hands on one.  It is a nice looking, very durable watch.

The Springfield I am particular to is the black PVD coated one, but it is also available in bare stainless.  both are nice looking, but the black on black on black is a tried and true color scheme.  The case is 44mm, it has a crown that is located at the 3 o'clock position, it has a smooth bezel and is also equipped with a sapphire lens.  The dial face of the watch is black and the hours are marked with Arabic numerals, in white with C3 superluminova for night time veiwing.  The hands are also black with a imbued line of C3 superluminova as well.  And on top of all that, it also has a date window located at the 3 o'clock position.  There are a few options for the bands, you can get the nylon band in either Black, Green or Tan, and there is also a Black Nato band available.

I like this watch a lot, I think it is a great watch to kick off with on this new Best Men's Watches for Under 200 dollar list.  And it just barely makes it, at $199.




AVI-8
Lancaster Bomber

Model: AV-4050-03

Case: 44 mm, Stainless Steel

Band Width: 22mm, Leather

Movement: Japanese Quartz

Functions: HH, MM, SS, Date

Battery: N/A

Water resistance: 50 M/165 FT

AVI-8 is another up and comer, they are a British company, and I am really liking the looks of their product as well.  They have really made a good showing so far.  I can't seem to track down when the business started, but they are doing wonderful work.  And just so we are on the same page, when I say a new company, I mean some time within the last 10 years, would be my guess.  But at this point they have at least two online stores.  One for the UK and one for the US.  They have several other online distributors.  You can find them on Amazon.  They are in Nordtroms as well.

The Lancaster Bomber is an Pilot styled multi-sub dialed watch.  It has a 44mm stainless steel case, with the crown located at the 1:30 position.  The bezel is smooth and fairly thin, really accentuating the size of the dial.  The face of the watch is black and multi-layered.  It has Arabic numerals at the 3, 9 and 12 o'clock positions and tick marks denoting the remaining hours.  The band of the watch is 22mm leather, and it has a buckle style clasp.

I like the looks of the AVI-8 watches, this Lancaster Bomber is a good place to start with them if you are looking for a watch for under 200 dollars.  The Bomber is for sale on their website for 195 dollars.  It looks like a good buy to me.  Very similar in quality and materials as the Smith and Bradley.



Seiko
Prospex Solar

Model: SNE423

Case: 46 mm, Stainless Steel

Band Width: 22mm, Silocon

Movement: Japanese Quartz Solar Powered

Functions: HH, MM, SS, Date

Battery:

Water resistance: 100 M/333 FT

I am not ashamed of myself!  I freely admit that every single time I make a watch list, I check out my friends over at Seiko. I cant help myself.  And almost every single time I find a nice little tidbit that I can't help but add to one of my lists.  I think this Solar Prospex is no exception to this.  I think this watch is pretty cool.

The watch is pretty big, especially for a Seiko.  The case is a 46mm stainless steel number, with a large crown located at the 3 o'clock position.  The bezel is black and rotates bidirectionally, and is in a compass styll.  The face of the watch is black and has large white index markers for the hours and smaller, grayish ones marking the minutes between the hours.  The hands of the watch are large and tipped with a luminous coating, and there is a date window located at the 3 o'clock position.  The band for the watch is 22mm and is made of silicon, it has a buckle style clasp.  It's not actually a dive watch, but has a lot of the looks you would expect from a dive watch, as well as being water resistant down to 100m.

I am really happy with the price of this watch.  You can find it for around 165 dollars at several online stores, it seems to me to be a really good buy at that price.

Orient
Starfish Classic

Model: FEM7J00AW9

Case: 42 mm, Stainless Steel

Band Width: 22mm, Leather

Movement: Orient Automatic Calibre 46943

Functions: HH, MM, SS, Date, Day

Battery:

Water resistance: 50 M/165 FT

I am a bit of an Orient watch fan as well as a Seiko fan.  I guess I like the Japanese products.  The Orient Watch company is really what I like about their product the most.  They make their own in-house manual/automatic movements.  It isn't something done as often by companies that sell watches for under 200 dollars.  Seiko is one of the exceptions to this rule, but generally, a lot of companies outsource the movements of their watches, to ETA, or Miyota (owned by Citizen) or Ronda.

The Starfish is what I would call a common Orient style watch, it is classic looking watch.  42mm stinless steel case with a crown located at the 3 o'clock position, with a guard built into the case.  It also has a small button at the 2 o'clock position.  The bezel is smooth, with a brushed finish that matches the rest of the case.  The dial face is white with Arabic numerals at the 12 and 6 o'clock positions.  Tick marks are utilized to indicated the remaining hours.  There is also a day window located at the 9 o'clock position, and a date window located at the 3 o'clock position.

The band of the starfish is black leather and measures 22mm wide.  It has a buckle style, stainless steel band and has matching black stitching on the band.

I really like the Orient brand.  They are not Seiko for me though.  I believe they offer a lot of value for the watch you get, and I do believe you will not be dissapointed with a Orient watch.  And at 165 dollars, I think this watch looks like a steal to me.  (shh, Orient is actually owned by Seiko)



Triwa
Snow Lansen

Model: LAST122-CL010213

Case: 38mm, Stainless steel

Band Width: 20mm, Leather

Movement: Miyota 2035 Quartz

Functions: HH, MM, SS

Battery:

Water resistance: 50 M/165 FT

Triwa is another new company.  They were established in 2007, by 4 friends.  They are located in Stockholm, Sweden.  They are not a huge company, but are already in about 1200 retailers.  And the watches they are producing fall nicely in the style I tend to prefer.

The Triwa Snow Lansen is a classic looking watch. It has a sort of mid century modern look to it, to me.  With the glossy stainless steel case, and a flat, tapered bezel, and a gold heavy knurled crown, the the watch definitely has the looks.  The dial face is white and there are Arabic numerals marking the 3, 6 & 9 o'clock hours. The remaining hours are marked with small dots.  There are also small black tick marks marking the minutes.  There are some gold accents with the watch hands and crown, and the band of the watch is brown leather, with a buckle style clasp.

This is a cool looking watch, and it is from a company that seems to take pride in its product. It can be purchased from the Triwa website for 199 USD.  You may also be able to find it other places as well.  I think if you are looking for something a little off the beaten path, I would take a look a the Triwa line up.

Wrap up

The best 5 men's watches for under 200 dollars in 2017 is a bit different than it was when I wrote the original Best Men's watches for under 200 dollars.  But that doesn't make either list better than the other.  Originally, I wanted to find quality watches from established companies for under 200 dollars.  This time, I wanted to show you some of the watches you may have never heard of under normal circumstanes.  I really enjoyed this list.  I love the look of the Smith and Bradley.  I hope to own one at some point.  And the Triwa is also something I find very good looking.  The Orient gives you a automatic.  I believe the AVI-8's offer a very unique look, and Seiko is Seiko, nuf said!

Thank you for reading The Best Men's Watches blog

Read More

The Best Men's Watches for under 100 Dollars in 2017

Some of the original brands that made the first 5 best men's watches for under 100 dollars were Seiko, Bulova, Citizen, Orient and Momentum.  I have a funny feeling that some of the same companies will be appearing today on the 2017 version of the five best men's watches for under 100 dollars.

For this list I want companies that have a track record of making quality watches for a long time.  Generally if you are going to spend 100 dollars for a watch, you expect to get a watch that will stand up to the rigors of life and still look good as well.

Here is the link for the original 5 best men's watches under 100 dollars.  And if you feel like 100 dollars is a little above your price point, you may want to take a look at the last 5 best men's watches for under 50 dollars.  

The 5 Best Men's Watches for under 100 Dollars

Bulova

Classic
Model: 96B104
Case: 37 mm, Stainless steel
Band: 20 mm
Movement: Japanese Quartz (Miyota)
Functions: HH, MM, SS, Date
Battery: Nonstandard
Water resistance: 30 M/99 ft.

I have said this before, but I have a bit of a soft spot for Bulova.  I was given my grandfathers' Bulova 23, and I love that watch, I wear it all the time.  And since I recently lost my grandfather, it has a little more importance to me.

That being said, I had a Bulova on the original Best men's watches under 100, so I thought it would be a good idea to see if I could have another one on the list for 2017.  And low-and-behold, I was able to find another one, with really no problem what so ever.

The Bulova chose for this list is a Classic model, and I would consider it a real classic in appearance.  It is a 37mm diameter watch, which is closer to something I would consider classic.  It is not some huge monstrosity attached to your wrist.  It has a clean, smooth bezel.  The case is made of stainless steel. It has a small crown located at the 3 o'clock position.  The face of the watch is silver, and the hour markers are tick marks made from raised stainless, and there is a date window located at the 3 o'clock position.

The band is a 20mm leather band with a buckle style clasp, which is also made of stainless steel.

I like the looks of this watch a lot, but I am partial to this style.  I think it is clean and easy to read, and watches like this look great on the wrist.  And on top of all of that, you can find this watch on Amazon for about 75 dollars, yup, 75 dollars.

Seiko

Recraft Series
Model: SNKN01
Case: 43.5mm, Stainless Steel
Band: 24 mm
Movement: Seiko Automatic Calibre 7S26
Functions: HH, MM, SS, Date
Water resistance: 50 M/150 ft.

I make no appologies for being a Seiko fan.  I have a watch that looks very very similar to this
recraft, but it is from the 70's, I love the thing, it is a tad bit funky, but if you like a little funk in your life, I would recommend you check out their Recraft line of watches.  They are pretty cool.

Previously I had the Series 5 in the 100 dollar slot, but seriously, this is a much better fit.  It is sometimes a hard one to track down, but you should be able to snag it for right around 95 dollars, if your lucky.  If you are not, you are either not going to find it or it will cost you something more along the lines of 140 dollars, it will all depend on where you find it.

It has a larger square case, measuring in at 43.5mm, it it made out of stainless steel, with a crown located at the 3 o'clock position.  It has a Hardlex crystal lens and a see through back.  It also has a fairly wide band, measuring 24mm, and being made from leather, with a buckle style clasp.

The dial is gray in the center, fading to black along the outer edges, it has Arabic numbers at the 5 minute markers along the outer rim, and it uses large tick inner markings to designate the hours.  The watch also has a day/date window located at the 3 o'clock position.

This is a pretty cool Seiko for under 100 dollars.  It may be one of the only Seikos for under 100 beisdes the series 5 watches.  It is a pretty good looker, in my book.

Citizen
Drive

Model: BM6980-08E
Case: 42 mm, Stainless steel
Band: Black leather
Movement: Japanese Quartz (Eco-Drive J165)
Functions: HH, MM, SS, Day
Battery:
Water resistance: 100 M/333 ft.

Originally I talked about the company in these little blurbs, but again, Citizen is a watch brand I have covered here, on the best men's watches under, so I will not be doing that today.  Instead I will talk about the watch I am choosing today.  The Citizen Men's Drive is the entry level watch for Citizen, you may be hard pressed to find it for under 100 dollars, but it is available, if you look, for around 90.  It features Citizens' patented Eco-Drive system.  Which is basically a form of solar power.  They used the watch dial face as the solar panel, which makes it virtually impossible to tell it is a solar powered watch.

This Citizen Drive sports a 42mm stainless steel case, with the crown at the 3 o'clock position.  It has a thin, smooth bezel and a scratch resistant mineral crystal lens.  The face of the watch is black, with raised stainless steel tick marks at the odd hours and small black tick marks for the even hours.  It has a date window located at the 3 o'clock position and the hands and crown have a green inlaid luminescence.  The band is black leather with a buckle style clasp.

I was never a Citizen fan, until last year, I actually got to handle one of the Atomic Time Citizens, and I found it really nice.  Citizen is a brand that I will try to own at some point in my life.

Orient

Capitol Quartz

Model: FUG1R003W/UG1R003W
Case: 40.5 mm, Stainless steel
Band: 22mm, Leather
Movement: HS911 Quartz
Functions: HH, MM, SS, Day, Date
Battery:
Water resistance: 30M

Orient is another long lived Japanese watchmaker.  Founded, in Japan in 1950.  They have been producing time pieces ever since.  In 2001, it has been a subsidiary of Seiko since 2001, and became a wholly owned subsidiary of Seiko since 2009.  Their main product is mechanical hand wind or self wound watches.

This watch, unfortunatly does not fall into the mechanical movement catigory, but for under 100 dollars, it is a little tricky to find a mechanical watch worth talking about.

This watch is nice though, the 40.0mm stainless steel case has clean, sharp lines, giving it a bit of a vintage feel to it, the crown is located at the traditional 3 o'clock position and the white face is also simple and clean, with thin, stainless steel dash lines at the hour markers, and polished stainless steel hour, minute and second hands.  The face also has a Day and date window which is also located at the 3 o'clock position.

Orient makes quality watches, they have been making watches for some time.  And with them being owned by Seiko, I am very confident you will not be disappointed with your purchase of an Orient watch.



Momentum by St. Moritz Watch Corp.
Steelix Field Watch
Model: 1M-SP74B7G
Case: 44 mm, Stainless steel
Band: 22 mm, Canvas
Movement: Japanese Quartz
Functions: HH, MM, SS, Date
Battery: Silver Oxide cell (3-5 years)
Water resistance: 200 M/600 ft

This Momentum Steelix was on the original best men's watches under 100 dollars.  And in that list, I explained about companies like Momentum.  I think I will explain it again, because it is an important point.  They basically assemble the watches.  They source quality components and put the watches together from outside pieces.  It's something to consider when choosing watches.

But I like the products.  They have been in business for about 30 years and i have talked to quite a few people that have watches that are nearly that old and still working with no issues.

The Steelix is the entry level watch offered by Momentum.  It has a 44mm stainless steel case, it has a smooth bezel, and the crown is located at the 4 o'clock position.  The dial is black and the markings on the dial are white with a indiglo.  They use Arabic numerals in the 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 & 12 o'clock positions.  The watch hands also are tipped in indiglo.  There is a date window located at the 3 o'clock position.  The movement is a Japanese quartz (I believe it to be a Miyota).  It is finished off with at 22mm canvas band,

The watch is rated up to 200m depth and is one of my favorite looking dive watches...  Ok, so it isn't a true dive watch but I still think it's good looking.



MVMT
Classic White/Tan
Model:
Case: 45mm, Stainless Steel
Band: 24 mm, Leather
Movement: Miyota Quartz
Functions: HH, MM, SS, Date
Battery:
Water resistance: 30 M/100 ft

If I have a chance to promote American companies, I have to take it.  I love seeing that there are American watchmakers sprouting up again, and I love seeing that you can get an American built watch for under 100 dollars.

MVMT has been in business since 2013, started by two fellows who dropped out of college and used crowd funding to start the company, they amassed a social media following of over 1 million people and have taken off in a very short time.  Much props to Jake Kassan and Kramer LaPlante.

The White and Tan Classic is what I would call the entry level watch offered by MVMT.  It has a 45mm stainless steel case, with a smallish crown located at the 3 o'clock position.  The bezel is smooth and fairly small, really emphasizing the dial face, which is large and white.  It has tick marks, of raised stainless to indicate the hours, and has a date window located at the 3 o'clock position as well.  The lens is hardened mineral crystal, and the band is 24mm wide and made of leather.  It has a buckle style clasp, and overall, is an extremely clean looking watch.  I really like it.  It reminds me of some Bulovas, and we all know my feelings about Bulova.

If you have a hundred dollars burning a hole in your pocket, I would recommend you check out MVMT if you are having a hard time deciding.  I think you will be extremely satisfied if you like the looks of this watch.

Wrap up

I really enjoyed making the 5 best men's watches for under 100 dollars.  I liked it the first time, and I am really liking it this time.  It is probably because I am a lot more familiar with watches in general this time around.  I think the MVMT brand watches are something I will try to cover in the future, I like reveiwing the American companiess.  I hope you have enjoy this best mens watches under list, and I hope you come back soon.

Read More

The Best Men's Watches for Under 50 Dollars in 2017

I have done a best under 50 list before, but it does feel like it is about time to refresh my lists, and since my very first list ever was The Best Men's Watches for under 50 Dollars, I figure that is a great place to start.

Previously, the best men's watches for under 50 dollars included a Momentum Torpedo, a Canadian based watch maker, who specializes in diving watches, it included a Vostok Komandirskie, a Russian watch maker who has been making the Komandirskie for a very long time.  It also had the Timex Weekender, Timex is not the company it used to be, but they still make decent budget watches that are readily available, and stylish looking.  It included a Casio G-shock, which, just about everyone has heard of the G-Shock watches, they are some of the most durable and multi functional watches around, and for the price they are hard to beat.  And it included a HMT pilot.  HMT was a Indian company, they made the Pilot watches for around 60 years, before recently going out of business.  I have to warn you, I am biased to the the HMT's, I own two and I love them as everyday knock around watches.  You can still find them on Ebay, although they are refurbished and usually have repainted faces, they are still decent watches.

So, I am here again to give you the best men's watches for 2017.  I hope you get some use out of these posts.  They take a bit of research, but are a lot of fun!

The 5 Best Men's Watches for under 50 Dollars

Invicta

Pro Diver

Model: 10917

Case: 44mm, Stainless Steel

Band: 22mm, Polyurethane

Movement: Japanese Quartz (Hattori PC23)

Functions: HH, MM, SS, Date

Water resistance: 100M/330ft

Invicta is, technically, a fairly old company.  They began as a Swiss company in 1837 by Raphael Picard, and stayed in the family until the 1970's.  The company was later purchased by an American investment group in 1991 and have been an American company since.  I generally don't spend a whole lot of time looking at Invicta watches, but I like this watch at this price point.  I think it is a decent value for what you are getting, and it looks pretty good too!

The Invicta Pro Diver shown here is a 44mm stainless steel dive watch with a stainless steel bezel.  The crown is located at the 3 o'clock position, the case has a built in crown guard.  It has a flame infusion crystal with a fish eye lens over the date window, located at the 3 o'clock position.  The hours are marked with white tick marks.  The bezel is a dive bezel, and has Arabic numerals in intervals of 10, and it has a polyurethane band.

I could not get a Momentum on this list this year, the price has increased substantially.  But I do believe this Pro Diver, by Invicta is a good alternative.  In a lot of ways they are very similar to the Momentum watches.

I currently do not own a Invicta.  I have so many other watches I feel the need to purchase before I get around to this brand, I will most likely never own one, but I like this one, and at about 45 dollars, I think it is a pretty good buy.

Seiko

Series 5 Sports

Model: SNK809

Case: 37mm, stainless steel

Band: 18mm, black leather

Movement: Seiko Calibre 7S26 Automatic

Functions: HH, MM, SS, Day, Date

Battery: N/A

Water resistance: 30M/100ft

I am cheating a little bit on this watch.  Amazon sells it for 55 dollars, and that is really the cheapest I can find it, but it is a really nice watch for around 50 dollars.  I expect this to be the next watch that I purchase, and maybe it would be a really nice Fathers Day gift (wink, wink)  I didn't include it on the first list of best under 50, mostly because I did not think it was a great idea to break my limit on my very first blog post.  But now, I am gonna get a little reckless maybe.

Seiko is a big dog in the watch world. They are one of Japan's premier watch makers and have been making watches for well over 100 years, and continue to make some of the best looking Japanese watches I have ever seen.  I lean toward Seiko more than Citizen or Orient watches, I think they are far the best bang for you buck.

The Seiko 5 is a automatic watch  It is housed in a 37mm stainless steel case, and this particular model comes with a black face and band, but other colors are available.  The movement is a Seiko automatic calibre 7S26.  It has 21 jewels and runs at 21,600 bph, and has a 40 hour power reserve.  

The watch has a black dial face with white Arabic numerals marking the 5 minute markers.  It has a triangle located at the 12 o'clock position, and a inner ring of Arabic numerals to mark the hours.  The watch has a day/date window located at the 3 o'clock position and a crown located at the 4 o'clock position.

The band for the watch is black nylon, giving it a very utilitarian look.

I said at the beginning of this description, this will be the next watch I own.  I have wanted one for years and will get around to finally owning one, I believe.

Timex

Weekender Collection

Model: TW2P714009J

Case: 40 mm, Stainless Steel

Band: 20 mm, Nylon

Movement: Quartz

Functions: HH, MM, SS, Day, Chronograph, Light

Battery: Lithium metal battery

Water resistance: 30M/99ft.

The Timex Weekender Chrono made the list last time as well, only with a slight model change, otherwise this post is a copy from the previous best men's watches for under 50 dollars...

Timex Group USA is the current rendition of the long lived company, which began as the Waterbury Clock company, in 1854.  The Waterbury Clock Co. was located in Connecticut, USA.  The company was one of the largest producers for both U.S sales and Europe. 

Down on their luck, the Waterbury Clock Co had a very tough time, after the great depression, until a license agreement was reached with Walt Disney, resulting in the production of the Famous Mickey Mouse watch.

In 1943 the company was renamed, the United States Time Corp., and by 1950, with some very exciting innovations, the company released the first Timex brand watches, marketed as inexpensive, yet durable watches.  The Timex history is long and always in a state of flux, but they continue to make quality time pieces, and the Weekender series is a perfect example of what they are capable of.  Giving us a stylish, yet well priced men's watch for under 50 dollars.

This Timex Weekender is a Chronograph with a gun metal black 40mm round case. The crown is located at the 3 o’clock position and the two chronograph buttons are located at the 2 & 4 o’clock positions.  The dial face is black with white numerals and chronograph sub dials.  The hands are black.  It has a screw on stainless back and a 20mm black nylon band, with buckle clasp.

The watch features Indiglo Arabic numerals and Indiglo piping on the arms, along with chronograph, and a crystal mineral dial window.  It is water resistant up to 30M.  The case is stainless steel finished with a gun metal style.

The Movement for the Timex Weekender is quartz.  It’s all I can seem to find out about it.  That, and that it is probably manufactured in the Philippines.

The Timex Weekender is a good looking watch, with a list of nice features for a watch for under 50 dollars.  It looks great, and is produced by a well know company.

Casio

G-Shock Multi-Function

Model: DW9052-1BCG

Case: Hardside/ABS Plastic

Band: 

Movement: 

Functions: HH, MM, SS, Day, Date, Stopwatch, Alarm

Battery: Lithium metal battery

Water resistance: 200M/600 ft.

I am going to go ahead and keep this watch on this list as well.  The G-Shock is going to last you a long time, no matter how hard you are on your watches, I think it is an excellent buy at about 43 dollars.  I may have to own one at some time...

Casio has been around since 1946 in Japan.  But they did not get their start as a watch company.  Originally, they produced something called a yubiwa pipe, a ring that would hold a cigarette.  But this was just their beginnings.  Shortly after the success of the yubiwa pipe, they set to develop their own electric calculators, and by 1954 and was Japan’s first electro-mechanical calculator.

It was during the 1980’s when they became one of the first manufacturers of quartz watches, both digital and analog.  And by 1983 they released their first G-shock.

The G-Shock looks like most G-Shocks.  It is not to my personal liking, but I will not judge a book by its cover.  The watch has multiple digital displays and 4 buttons, set at the 2, 4 8 and 10 o’clock positions, it is made of black ABS, and the band is a black resin with a buckle clasp.  It looks like it could be run over and still keep working.  Toughness is an important feature for a watch that will cost less than 50 dollars.

The G-Shock has a ton of features on it.  It is shock resistant of course, it is water resistant up to 200M. It has a backlight with afterglow.  It has a daily alarm and a countdown timer that can be set for up to 24 hours.  It has an auto repeat function and a 1/100 second stopwatch.  It has an hourly time signal and a calendar that is pre-programed until the year 2039.  Like I said, a lot of available features.

The watch has a quartz movement, as to be expected from Casio, and despite my qualms with the looks of the G-shocks, and digital watches, in general.  I have to say, I am rather impressed that you get all this for less than 50 dollars.

HMT

Pilot

Model:N/A

Case: 35 mm, Stainless steel

Band: 18mm Leather

Movement: HMT 0231 Mechanical

Functions: HH, MM, SS

Battery: N/A

Water resistance:

This is another that I am just copying from my previous post.  I love the HMT watches, and I will probably buy more when I get bored... 

HMT has been making watches in India since 1961 in a collaborative effort with the Citizen watch company.  Producing watches for the Indian military.  They had a scare in 2014, when they intended on closing their doors, but they received a flood of orders when the word got out, and instead, minimized production.  This is not to say it will be easy to get one of these.  It will take some searching, and it is possible to get a fake or frankenwatch, meaning one built from pieces.  You will need to do your research before purchasing.

The HMT Pilot is fairly small, the stainless steel case measures 35mm.  It has a screw on back that has the model and other information etched on it.  It has a black dial face with the numeral 12 only.  It has the tick marks for the other hour markings.  Its crown is located in the standar 3 o’clock position.  And it comes with a black leather band, with a buckle clasp.

Features-wise, well, you don’t really get any features.  This is a old fashioned timepiece.  You have your hour, minute and second hand.  I am not even convinced it has any luminous feature.  I have had a hard time verifying that.

The movement is a HMT 0231 hand wind mechanical.  17 jewels and a 38 hour power reserve.  It supposedly keeps adequate time, but it’s not a precision time piece.

The main purpose of owning this watch is that you are getting a watch that has been almost the same for over 50 years.  It is a piece of history and a conversation starter.  It is a nice looking watch in my mind as well.  And it’s usually found for under 40 dollars.  Sometimes, lately I have seen them for as much as 70.  I believe that is a supply and demand issue though.  This is a watch I intend on owning in the very near future.  I love it.  From the 5 best men's watches for under 50 dollars list, this is by far my favorite.

Wrap up

I hope you have enjoyed my first post on The Best Men's Watches for Under... blog.  I intend on writing a lot more posts over the next few  months to get this blog populated well with all kinds of men's watches.  I hope you find the blog helpful in your personal search for the perfect watch for you or a loved one.

Thank you for reading The Best Men's Watches for Under...  

Read More