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Because some people buy the luxury dumb watches because they're amazing mechanical engineering. I don't WANT a 'smart watch' at all, but I love my TAG that has

by count 12y ago

Because some people buy the luxury dumb watches because they're amazing mechanical engineering. I don't WANT a 'smart watch' at all, but I love my TAG that has no battery or other electrical components as a piece of engineering jewelry.

jjoonathan 12y ago
Out of curiosity (not hostility or snark, I swear) what is it about mechanical engineering of watches that draws such admiration? Is it because the components are large enough to see but small enough to look complicated? Is it a symbol of an idealized past? It seems quite difficult to make the case that the mechanical watch is superior in terms of human ingenuity, manufacturing / supply chain sophistication, or sheer number of "clever tricks," but I'm not entirely comfortable with the explanation that it's just a status symbol that gains its value from exclusivity or brand.
- ericd 12y ago
  Have you ever seen a naked mechanical watch? It's wonderful to watch it work, with continuously moving/oscillating pieces driving discrete mechanics, all of it tightly packed, all of it delicate, with some pieces apparently the width of a hair, flexing this way and that. Watching a nice mechanical watch is like watching a tiny ballet of parts. Your microprocessor is obviously much more complex, but there's no observable operation to marvel at. There's no visceral awe component.
  - lmm 12y ago
    You might like http://techno-logic-art.com/tower.htm http://techno-logic-art.com/tower.htm .
    - ericd 12y ago
      That's pretty amazing looking :-) I wish he had a video of it in motion, though!
- 2muchcoffeeman 12y ago
  I always saw mechanical watch collecting more like art collecting.
- kaolinite 12y ago
  I too am a watch enthusiast and thought I'd give my take in case count doesn't respond with his. There are a few reasons for me. First, check out this video. Personally I think the watch is ugly as hell, but if anything shows you some of the craftsmanship that goes into a watch, this would be it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIXPplShtg0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIXPplShtg0 Another reason is that I'm a programmer and clockwork is a form of programming. I don't know much about watchmaking (I'm hoping to eventually go to watchmaking school - not for many years though I imagine) but I read quite a bit about it and it fascinates me. It's similar to how the idea of programming on an incredibly old computer with practically no resources fascinates me. Complaining about only having 2K of memory? At least you've got electricity! There's a hell of a lot of invention and, well, hacking that goes into watchmaking too. Take the perpetual calendar, for example - a type of watch that only needs to be adjusted once every 100 years because it tracks leap years. Moon phases that are accurate for 5400 years[1]. Planetariums on your wrist, all powered by clockwork[2]. Dials that take a century to complete a rotation. I also love the human aspect of watchmaking. The level of craftsmanship in a high end watch, such as the Patek Philippe you saw in the video, is incredible. I love the attention to detail and the care that goes into every single component: even components that are buried deep inside the watch are still polished and decorated by hand. Pointless? Yes! But I can't help but love it. You mention supply chain sophistication and you might be right - but don't think that the supply chains for watches aren't sophisticated. If you're interested, Hodinkee.com recently published an article about their tour around the Rolex manufacture. You might be interested in the level of complexity: http://www.hodinkee.com/blog/inside-rolex http://www.hodinkee.com/blog/inside-rolex It's a long article but if you search for "Parachrom Hairspring", that section will give you a bit of insight into the kind of invention that goes into modern watchmaking. However, after all of that justification, I'll fully admit that it's pointless. A $100 quartz watch is typically more accurate than a $10,000 mechanical. It's pretty much all about emotion, similar to how some people can become attached to paintings where all others see is paint on canvas. [1] http://monochrome-watches.com/a-worlds-first-christiaan-van-der-klaauw-real-moon-tides-indicates-the-sea-level-tides/ http://monochrome-watches.com/a-worlds-first-christiaan-van-... [2] http://www.vancleefarpels.com/us/en/article/10935/midnight-planetarium-timepiece http://www.vancleefarpels.com/us/en/article/10935/midnight-p... (Hm, I wrote quite a bit more than I intended to and must have given you at least an hours worth of reading/watching material! Perhaps I should write this up as a blog post sometime.)
- flinty 12y ago
  https://vimeo.com/66671255 https://vimeo.com/66671255 - The Road To Basel Episode 2: Inside The Atelier With The Legendary Philippe Dufour
- marincounty 12y ago
  I would never use Tag as the benchmark of mechanical watches--in terms of aesthetics, nor machining(they use ETA movements). That said, after getting into repairing watches, a well made mechanical watch is something to admire. Plus, it's the ultimate recyclable. It is something you can pass down to your kid. A rose gold Rolex bubbleback from the 50's looks and feels great on the wrist--even if bought second hand off ebay. My only concern when wearing a nice watch is theft these days. I guess it's like driving a Olds 442 convertable vs. a Tesla? I can't compare the two. (I have never driven a Tesla though, but I have been in expensive cars) That said I don't see much difference between the quality of older watch movements. I can honestly state that I can't see any difference on quality of a Rolex vs. Benrus from the 40-70's.(comparing just movements, not the case or straps)

by count 12y ago

jjoonathan 12y ago

Out of curiosity (not hostility or snark, I swear) what is it about mechanical engineering of watches that draws such admiration? Is it because the components are large enough to see but small enough to look complicated? Is it a symbol of an idealized past? It seems quite difficult to make the case that the mechanical watch is superior in terms of human ingenuity, manufacturing / supply chain sophistication, or sheer number of "clever tricks," but I'm not entirely comfortable with the explanation that it's just a status symbol that gains its value from exclusivity or brand.

ericd 12y ago
Have you ever seen a naked mechanical watch? It's wonderful to watch it work, with continuously moving/oscillating pieces driving discrete mechanics, all of it tightly packed, all of it delicate, with some pieces apparently the width of a hair, flexing this way and that. Watching a nice mechanical watch is like watching a tiny ballet of parts. Your microprocessor is obviously much more complex, but there's no observable operation to marvel at. There's no visceral awe component.
- lmm 12y ago
  You might like http://techno-logic-art.com/tower.htm http://techno-logic-art.com/tower.htm .
  - ericd 12y ago
    That's pretty amazing looking :-) I wish he had a video of it in motion, though!
2muchcoffeeman 12y ago
I always saw mechanical watch collecting more like art collecting.
kaolinite 12y ago
I too am a watch enthusiast and thought I'd give my take in case count doesn't respond with his. There are a few reasons for me. First, check out this video. Personally I think the watch is ugly as hell, but if anything shows you some of the craftsmanship that goes into a watch, this would be it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIXPplShtg0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIXPplShtg0 Another reason is that I'm a programmer and clockwork is a form of programming. I don't know much about watchmaking (I'm hoping to eventually go to watchmaking school - not for many years though I imagine) but I read quite a bit about it and it fascinates me. It's similar to how the idea of programming on an incredibly old computer with practically no resources fascinates me. Complaining about only having 2K of memory? At least you've got electricity! There's a hell of a lot of invention and, well, hacking that goes into watchmaking too. Take the perpetual calendar, for example - a type of watch that only needs to be adjusted once every 100 years because it tracks leap years. Moon phases that are accurate for 5400 years[1]. Planetariums on your wrist, all powered by clockwork[2]. Dials that take a century to complete a rotation. I also love the human aspect of watchmaking. The level of craftsmanship in a high end watch, such as the Patek Philippe you saw in the video, is incredible. I love the attention to detail and the care that goes into every single component: even components that are buried deep inside the watch are still polished and decorated by hand. Pointless? Yes! But I can't help but love it. You mention supply chain sophistication and you might be right - but don't think that the supply chains for watches aren't sophisticated. If you're interested, Hodinkee.com recently published an article about their tour around the Rolex manufacture. You might be interested in the level of complexity: http://www.hodinkee.com/blog/inside-rolex http://www.hodinkee.com/blog/inside-rolex It's a long article but if you search for "Parachrom Hairspring", that section will give you a bit of insight into the kind of invention that goes into modern watchmaking. However, after all of that justification, I'll fully admit that it's pointless. A $100 quartz watch is typically more accurate than a $10,000 mechanical. It's pretty much all about emotion, similar to how some people can become attached to paintings where all others see is paint on canvas. [1] http://monochrome-watches.com/a-worlds-first-christiaan-van-der-klaauw-real-moon-tides-indicates-the-sea-level-tides/ http://monochrome-watches.com/a-worlds-first-christiaan-van-... [2] http://www.vancleefarpels.com/us/en/article/10935/midnight-planetarium-timepiece http://www.vancleefarpels.com/us/en/article/10935/midnight-p... (Hm, I wrote quite a bit more than I intended to and must have given you at least an hours worth of reading/watching material! Perhaps I should write this up as a blog post sometime.)
flinty 12y ago
https://vimeo.com/66671255 https://vimeo.com/66671255 - The Road To Basel Episode 2: Inside The Atelier With The Legendary Philippe Dufour
marincounty 12y ago
I would never use Tag as the benchmark of mechanical watches--in terms of aesthetics, nor machining(they use ETA movements). That said, after getting into repairing watches, a well made mechanical watch is something to admire. Plus, it's the ultimate recyclable. It is something you can pass down to your kid. A rose gold Rolex bubbleback from the 50's looks and feels great on the wrist--even if bought second hand off ebay. My only concern when wearing a nice watch is theft these days. I guess it's like driving a Olds 442 convertable vs. a Tesla? I can't compare the two. (I have never driven a Tesla though, but I have been in expensive cars) That said I don't see much difference between the quality of older watch movements. I can honestly state that I can't see any difference on quality of a Rolex vs. Benrus from the 40-70's.(comparing just movements, not the case or straps)