MauriceLacroix, Tag Heuer,Oris, Ball, Mido. pls give advice to a beginner !!

[ivankokky]

Dear all,

Recently i'm planning to get myself a new watch, and willing to spend around $5k & below, for upgrading the watch.

i just realise that i have been wearing the seiko premier kinetick for 11 years old , worth every cents !!

For your information, i will be wearing the watch everyday, so it will easily get scratches. and i still don't how come my manager can keep his rolex & omega in very good conditions, no scratches at all !!! damn it....

1. Omega Aqua Terra -- too expensive.
2. Tag Heuer Carrera -- around 7k, out of budget again
3. Maurice Lacroix Pontos date -- my favour design watch, cost around 4k plus, within my budget at high side, heartbreaking. But the salesman say this brand is not popular brand, dont waste money on it, people search for masterpiece only, not pontos.
4. Ball engineering -- the design quite similar to my seiko, so, not so attractive to me, except the gas light !! salesman strongly promote as available in shop.
5. Mido bellunar -- cheaper price and quite similar to pontos design ( salesman said this brand is same class like seiko & tissot, no upgrade at all )
6. Oris aerteris -- 3k plus at my favor range, but dont like the design very much if compare to above watches, salesman strongly recommend for a watch beginner, and it also available in shop. my manager also recomend me to get this brand as he also a watch fans.

i need some help , is it worth to buy mauric lacroix pontos?
how about ball? is ball a popular brand with having a second hand price like tag heuer & omega ?
is Mido same class as seiko ? if i get it, like no any upgrading?
is oris aerteris worth to buy, this also a popular brand???

[maximillian]

hey there
1)its worth it buying maurice lacroix because its beautiful emotionally and its very well made regardless of what line it is.i personally love their pontos series as well!dont buy a watch because u are thinking of selling it later/resale value.buy a watch that emotionally touches you.get my drift?
2)ball is a good brand as well..more focused on tritium tubing.and very well made..but not a lot of their watches have display backs though.second hand price i dont think its very good because its quite a not well known brand among the general public
3)mido is not the same class as normal seiko's in my opinion.its more of in the middle range of items..at par with tissot and oris
4)oris is a very popular independant brand.their watches are well made but their movements have a lot to be desired for.u can check out frederique constant and epos as well..theyre have good watches with nice movements at affordable prices

all the best!

[Gigi]

Hi, first of all welcome to this phorum. I will try to keep my ans as simple as possible

To answer your Questions:

-Why your bos lolex keep his watch in gd condition:
It may be he is VERY VERY VERY careful with his watch (as WIS like me does at times) or he keep his watch in safe and wear it occasionally.

-i need some help , is it worth to buy mauric lacroix pontos?
It is up to you, I not really into ML range but some of its pontos watches are quite nice for me as some look quite sport. Do note that their discount (We not allowed to discuss this) are quite generous dependin on the AD

-how about ball? is ball a popular brand with having a second hand price like tag heuer & omega ?
Ball, I suggest you look at the "Engineer Hydrocarbon" series. It have the features that other brand like Tag/omega/rolex cannot beat at it price point. Seriously damn solid as i handle it before at AD. I do personally like the Madcow & Triste Chornogprah (do google to find out more). As far i know some of our member mention that the ball do retain their value better than rolex or tag (apart from lower price point) & usually balls watches in 2nd hand watches got sold as soon they go into the shop.

-is Mido same class as seiko ? if i get it, like no any upgrading?
What do you mean by same class??? By price point or by design standpoint. Just in my opinion you pay abit more compared to seiko to get a good ETA powered watch. It is selling abit higher than Tissot mechanical watches.

-is oris aerteris worth to buy, this also a popular brand???
Oris really common thanks to constant advertisment in our local paper/tv. I not really like oris watches as most of it are too big for me. But some model like the GMT diver are really nice. One of our member is selling it if i not wrong.


Hope this does help from my point of view.

[G.MAC]

From your post, you clearly state you like the Maurice Lacroix Pontos so you should go for it. Rule numero uno in buying watches; dont look at it as an investment. Buy the one you love. Hence when you are not able to sell it at your targeted price, it is not that painful. If you want to buy watches as investment then rolex is the way to go. Other than that if it were up to me, I would go for the Ball. But that is just because i prefer it over the rest. So follow your instinct when you buy a watch. Buy it for yourself, not for the world.

[Gigi]

From your post, you clearly state you like the Maurice Lacroix Pontos so you should go for it. Rule numero uno in buying watches; dont look at it as an investment. Buy the one you love. Hence when you are not able to sell it at your targeted price, it is not that painful. If you want to buy watches as investment then rolex is the way to go. Other than that if it were up to me, I would go for the Ball. But that is just because i prefer it over the rest. So follow your instinct when you buy a watch. Buy it for yourself, not for the world.

Totally agree with this statement 

[Cloud7]

Have you considered a pre-owned Omega Seamaster 2551.80 Automatic? 

Can get for under RM4k...

[kltime]

Rule numero uno in buying watches; dont look at it as an investment. Buy the one you love. Hence when you are not able to sell it at your targeted price, it is not that painful. If you want to buy watches as investment then rolex is the way to go. Other than that if it were up to me, I would go for the Ball. But that is just because i prefer it over the rest. So follow your instinct when you buy a watch. Buy it for yourself, not for the world.

Well said bro. For Ivan's budget of abt 3k , my personal choice would be a Ball.

[hanz079]

Juz something to share with you, I bought my ML Pontos Rectangulaire for around 8k+...
Plenty of ppl say pricey, can get an Omega, Ball, B&R (insert your favourite brand here) but what to do, I love the watch... juz exactly what I was looking for at that time so I dove in... i still love the watch until now...
Dun need to care who say what... most important is how you feel.
AD will say anything coz some brands offer higher profit margin than others. They will tend to push for certain brands.
Just my humble opinion, I dunno how your AD classify Mido = Seiko... frm which standpoint? I wonder 
If I am not mistaken, Seiko is one the the most complete Manufacturer of wristwatches. Frm low end to high end all covered, all manufactured in-house with in-house movements... I would most prolly classify Mido as a wee bit higher than Tissot and Oris. Just my opinion yah?

[kltime]

For ur info as well quite a few of the brands u see belong to the Swatch group including Tissot,Mido,Longines,Rado up to Omega and further to Breguet. Most share a base movement made by ETA tho it could be of 3/4 different grades. A higher grade would generally mean better finishing and accuracy with COSC certification. But all in all, ETA movements from the lowest to highest ( I think there's 4 diff grades) are robust and time proven and are also the base movements in some other swiss brands - even so-called independents like Ball, B&R and ML.

IMHO,the price diffrence or price points of the various brands are due to packaging,branding,finishing,case material,complications,etc,etc...rather than just 'quality'. I am not sure whether (all other things remaining equal)say an Tissot or even a Seiko would break down first/outlast an Omega/Breguet...

At the end of the day, it still goes down to wat u like. Taste is very individualistic.

[chrisyen]

Ball watch
fetch higher resale value = not all model but yes, sell better in pre owned shop tells
built = solid through out = the chief technical director work for rolek twenty over yrs, so he improve thing that rolek won't due to it's certain limitation
higher price value = yes. The spec tells, wr, am, shock resistant... Etc

oris
like u all know, well associated with f1, a high burning $uel sport

mido
another swatch group brand
tissot aim at younger n sportier generation
mido aim at more mature generation
design n ambassador tells

ML
famous brand in Asia
well finish n good qc
pontos resale value = lower than masterpiece = yes!

Which one?

U r buying something to wear everday, then buy something u like to see

[GlennTanChiaChiah]

Just giving you my 2 cents. If you plan to make this watch an investment you already should be looking at the true luxury brands right from the start eg. Vacheron Constantin, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Audemars-Piguet, Patek-Philippe or the ever invincible Rolex. If it's something for your own personal use get something you like. On a side note, there IS a small but sizable market for quality and well preserved/restored vintage watches for a bargain; so be sure to keep your eyes and ears peeled or simply just ask around the forum. Personally, I'm in love with the Junghans Max Bill Chronoscope (if that's your thing la, just a suggestion). Again this is just my 2 cents and my most personal and humblest opinion. At the end of the day it all comes down to the choice you make. Whatever watch you plan to procure, I only hope that you wear it in good health.

[dennis.T]

just follow your heart...btw if a salesman told me Mido = Seiko...than i will tell him to show me which Mido's model packed with column wheel, high beat, spring drive etc...no offence to Mido fans...

[hanz079]

Another thing I seldom understand is why ppl wanna buy watch as an investment?
How much in percentage points can watches appreciate over time?
Does it appreciate in VALUE or juz appreciate by INFLATION?
If wanna invest, the only thing I can think of is gold...
Bought a necklace back in the 90s... price was rm30 per gram.
Bought another one 4 years ago, price at rm80 per gram...
Now? Gold is at rm160 per gram...

[jacky8888]

i think VC, JLC, AP & PP resell value not so high.... if you r thinking of pure investment then u hav to go for Rolex..... (more liquid)..
Back to the brands above.... personally i would go for Ball Hydrocarbon (any models).....
Have u ever consider Damasko or Sinn??... Also value for money... (just suggestions)
Good luck 

[skccks]

Just giving you my 2 cents. If you plan to make this watch an investment you already should be looking at the true luxury brands right from the start eg. Vacheron Constantin, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Audemars-Piguet, Patek-Philippe or the ever invincible Rolex. If it's something for your own personal use get something you like. On a side note, there IS a small but sizable market for quality and well preserved/restored vintage watches for a bargain; so be sure to keep your eyes and ears peeled or simply just ask around the forum. Personally, I'm in love with the Junghans Max Bill Chronoscope (if that's your thing la, just a suggestion). Again this is just my 2 cents and my most personal and humblest opinion. At the end of the day it all comes down to the choice you make. Whatever watch you plan to procure, I only hope that you wear it in good health.

Junghans Max Bill Chronoscope

[ivankokky]

thanks to all the sifus comments !!! really appreciate ur opinions & all of u are so helpfull....

i will study & do more research before getting my first swiss swatch !!!


the omega 2551.80.00 Seamaster, too sporty for me....not my taste....i prefer something simple & a bit classic....anyway, thanks a lot

[wslee]

http://www.malaysiawatchforum.com/index.php/topic,2027.0.html

Perhaps you can refer to this topic
Hopefully you can have clearer option

[terrenceterrence]

IMHO, save enough and get a preowned 39mm railmaster or preowned newer Rolex Airking or 36mm Explorer 1.

Can get those at a very great bargain in the preowned market especially the Railmaster and AirKing. Those watches would last you for a lifetime and you would not need to buy any watches for the next 5 to 10 years or until u get promoted.

Buy less but buy better. Also not to mention , hose watches would make great heirlooms for ur children next time.

[ivankokky]

IMHO, save enough and get a preowned 39mm railmaster or preowned newer Rolex Airking or 36mm Explorer 1.

Can get those at a very great bargain in the preowned market especially the Railmaster and AirKing. Those watches would last you for a lifetime and you would not need to buy any watches for the next 5 to 10 years or until u get promoted.

Buy less but buy better. Also not to mention , hose watches would make great heirlooms for ur children next time.

by the way, where can i find those preowned watches in jb with variety preowned watches available ??

[hanz079]

I heard in Singapore there's alot... Malaysia I'm not too sure...

[dennis.T]

IMHO, save enough and get a preowned 39mm railmaster or preowned newer Rolex Airking or 36mm Explorer 1.

Can get those at a very great bargain in the preowned market especially the Railmaster and AirKing. Those watches would last you for a lifetime and you would not need to buy any watches for the next 5 to 10 years or until u get promoted.

Buy less but buy better. Also not to mention , hose watches would make great heirlooms for ur children next time.

so pams is not a great heirlooms to my children?
ya i am strongly agreed on this... but preferred a robust datejust, air king or exp 1

[sshark]

I like the ML Pontos Probably will check it out this weekend here.

Btw, how is the ML Masterpiece difference in quality from the usual collection?

[dennis.T]

i guess Masterpiece series is better workmanship and thicker "heritage" compare to usual collection...wait for the expert to comment

[Scuderianer0]

I've been wanting to buy a ML pontos moon phase or gmt for about 3 years now,
Still can't make up my mind ...

[ivanpei]

thanks to all the sifus comments !!! really appreciate ur opinions & all of u are so helpfull....

i will study & do more research before getting my first swiss swatch !!!


the omega 2551.80.00 Seamaster, too sporty for me....not my taste....i prefer something simple & a bit classic....anyway, thanks a lot

If you can find one, a 2nd hand Omega Aquaterra is probably a better dress watch. If you are going for something brand new, I think after discount a Tag Carrera Calibre 5 is about 6++ k. If under 5k, Oris, Tissot and Ball make good value watches.

My fav is still this:

http://www.oris.ch/collections/collections_detail.aspx?ln=en&modelid=182
Oris Artelier Skeleton, unique watch for the money. Swiss Skeleton watches are usually much much more expensive.