I have a Rolex Oyster Datejust and a Seagull 1963. The only advantage of the Rolex is that people will pay crazy prices for the Rolex. Otherwise, the Seagull is pretty much just as accurate and reliable.
I have a Lilienthal-berlin Zeitgeist Automatik, which I purchased second hand from someone who got it as a gift, and is not a watch person. I paid a fraction of the cost, I will put the accuracy of that watch against anything anybody makes, it is impressively accurate.
The ST1901 movement is not as nicely finished, but it's only a tiny fraction of the price of a Swiss movement and it keeps the time accurately. And it's really nice to look at, too, as long as you're not looking at it under a microscope. I'm quite happy with my Seagull 1963. It gets a lot of wrist time. And I do own a bunch of Omegas and other Swiss made watches.
I have more watches than is rational from Chinese to Swiss and, as long as you buy from better brands, the Chinese pieces will go Toe to Toe, with Swiss pieces at 10x the price. Now, the Chinese do need to up their movement game and then it's not even close. A San Martin with a St2130 would beat any Swiss watch under 5k.
As a UA-cam that deals a lot with those Chinese watches (my channel was formerly known as My Chinese Watch Collection) I agree with every word you said. The hate, the QC issues, all of it. But there is just so much value in some of the watches coming from China these days, it's a shame to miss out on that market. And my Seagull 1963 is my favorite watch in my collection, Chinese or not. And I got it new for under $150.
My Affordable Watch Collection - True Words. Where I grew up in the '70's , the term 'Jap Crap' was ubiquitous. It referred to all the cheap Japanese imports - from toys to cars. Now 'Made in Japan ' carries some caché. Is China the new Jap Crap'? I think so...
Awesome knowing that your birthday is in June because mine is also (June 30). I have a Seagull watch as well, it's not the model you have though. I love your channel, it's very informative and I get to see a lot of watches with a different perspective. When it comes to watch conversations, I advise people to wear what you love and love what you wear!
Anthony Smith it’s not only in the watch world, either. The budget knife market has exploded in just the past couple of years with tons of high quality stuff coming out of China. It’s really pretty similar to, say, how people are starting to take notice of all the materials and features these Chinese brands can offer at the price and wondering why Seiko still acts as if sapphire is an luxury feature, for example.
The 1963 is actually a swiss-made movement by Venus (Venus 175). They bought the rights and added two more jewels and that's about it. It's a Chinese case with a swiss movement.
I bought an Addiesdive Tuna homage. It has a Seiko Nh35a movement. The loom is outstanding. It gains about 5 seconds a day. Not too shabby and really well made watch
I own the same Seagull 1963 watch. What a watch for $375.00! Yeah I realize the screws are painted blue and not cured, yeah the decoration is not what you would get in a GENUINE Swiss for WAY more money, but look at the movement! Column wheel! works as smooth as butter. And it keeps better time than most of my "Swiss" watches! I own Rolexes, Breitlings, Ulysse Nardin, etc. But this watch is just amazing for the price! Good job Time Teller sticking up for watches that are made well no matter WHERE they come from! If you love watches, you love watches. Not just name brands but watches that are designed and made well with thought behind them no matter where they come from.
If the screws not being heat blued bothers anyone ......remove em one at a time .. after replacing the one u just took out...n heat the screw up with a propane torch until near glowing then.pick it up with pliers n drop it in oil of any kind...you'll have naturally hardened n blued screws... And they will be done the ol fashioned way....lmao...I'm kidding ..don't ever take screws out of your movement...though u can ask your watch maker too do it when servicing the watch...peace
im temped to buy something like this www.wish.com/product/5d77884e08b8bc412ef5ed4e?hide_login_modal=true&from_ad=goog_shopping&_display_country_code=NL&_force_currency_code=EUR&pid=googleadwords_int&c=%7BcampaignId%7D&ad_cid=5d77884e08b8bc412ef5ed4e&ad_cc=NL&ad_lang=NL&ad_curr=EUR&ad_price=57.00&campaign_id=8704015860&retargeting=true&gclid=CjwKCAjw_-D3BRBIEiwAjVMy7Ipf17pCKTg1pVU2L-aq8IIKaXOMJ-9dFkz0nLXuwTxfEKsd3ft6-BoC2YcQAvD_BwE&share=web but it looks to good for the money important thing is i want the buttons to actually work.
I've had a Seagull 1963 for over 6 months and it's great. My friend who's a watch guy, likes it after seeing it and trying it. It's not all about the cost as real watch nut like me knows. I wear the 1963 and then the next day wear the Day-Date. It's fine they're both top notch.
The Seagull ST1901 Movement is an absolute monster when it comes to quality. my 1963 runs with less than 3 sec/day on average. This was the pilot chronograph for the chinese military, and still people think the military would have giveen their pilots garbage watches...
@@vertugallery7099 The movement is still made by the same company Sea-Gull. However, my understanding is that the QC they are applying can vary greatly depending on who they are selling to. Anyway, I believe Blackout's point is that it is a good design.
@@vertugallery7099 Well, the Sea-Gull company (or its legal predecessor) bought the movement from Venus, including the machines which made it. As I understand it, the original 1963 movements were made in China (not Switzerland), with these machines.
Nicely said Jory . I dont see many people complain about their Chinese made iPhones. Ignorant people . Thank you for the vids informative and good fun . Congratulations on the gains in viewers. :)
I worry when I see the Seagull 1963 recommended. Nothing wrong with the watch mind you but in a few years the cost of repair/servicing is going to be over twice what was paid for the watch. Be warned.
I love my Cadisen with Seiko movement inside. Looses just a few seconds a day and works perfectly fine. Craftsmanship is also on a high level, no flaws or badly placed indexes whatsoever
60% of the components for the swiss watch industry are made in china. The same factory that produced that Chinese chrono watch most likely makes parts for your favorite swiss brand. But they don;t tell you that. They show you the picture of the old swiss watchmaker and most of you are happy :)
Swiss watches are better because they use Swiss engineered movements rather than Chinese knockoff movements. You are using the no true Scottsman fallacy. Here is what I mean. Lets say Tesla uses a steering column made in China. Does that make a China made EV equivalent to a Tesla? Of course not. By the way, China mftrs are not interested in making heirloom quality watches that last a lifetime, so if durability is important to you, buy Swiss or Japanese.
I bought the Seagull 1963 a few weeks ago and payed 215€ for it on Amazon and i love it, Chinese watches have a bad rep yes but Seagull and Fossiel produce pretty good watches and i don't care what other ppl think about it, i love it :P
Mines a bit shitty . Gains 8 seconds a day, the chrono minutes hand is bent. And the lumed one has a communist hammer and sickle on the chrono seconds hand. A star is one thing but hammer and sickle is about 80 million dead too far. I won't wear it, its going back.
I have Swiss, Japanese and Chinese watches. I just got a Chinese bronze watch that is outstanding. There are some good Chinese Microbrands ;). San Martin, Cronos, Heimdallr and others.
The additional improvement to tighten regulation is called the swan neck and was introduced in some of the Seagull ST21 and other Seagull movements, that improved more precise regulation of the balance staff.
Just as the AliExpress sale was ending, I was deciding between a Seagull 1963 Reissue or a CIGA Design Z. I went with the CIGA Design Z watch. Gotta love that RM style skeleton watch for under 150 USD!
I literally just bought the Seagull 1963 fifteen minutes before this video came out! I saw the title and got scared that T3 changed his mind on it, but I'm glad he still likes it!
I wasn't looking for validation, I was worried that his ended up having mechanical or quality control issues that caused it to not hold up. I can also value other people's opinions who have more experience than me without blindly following them.
I love the irony of people commenting on the "crapness" of Chinese-manufactured watches, whilst using their (probably) Chinese-manufactured phone/tablet/computer to do so. Whilst also ignoring the fact that premium, "serious" watch manufacturers like Rolex or Tudor have not been without their own quality control issues. Hell, even my Seamaster 300 isn't that consistent at time keeping, but I know that's a symptom of owning a mechanical watch. Sure, ignorance and perception plays a huge part in some people's comments, but...like, reading and some basic research is a pretty good cure for this, and we're all capable of that, right? Love the video Jory. Thanks.
I must say, I own two Japanese watches an Orient Kamasu & The Seiko 5 Sport SNZH60K1. I just bought a chinese watch, The Jinshidun 8718 all Gold champagne dial Automatic 24 hr sun dial watch for under $100 and I absolutely love it. It keeps better time than my Seiko SNZH60. And I must say it's beautiful. Not only that, it's no longer available. So I have a rare watch.
Two months ago I bought a Mido Multifort that fell apart the same day I received it. The entire internal mechanism was broken. Similar experiences have occurred to me with Tissot and Alpina.
Firstly, congratulations on almost reaching the 100k mark! I've never owned a Seagull 1963, but it definitely opened me up a whole new genre of wristwatches. I subsequently did buy an Atelier Wen Odyssey Hao (which is absolutely gorgeous), and hopefully will be able to acquire a Ming 17.01 sometime in the future. For those of you that have been conflicted by stigmatized opinions, you may just be missing out on enjoying some really good timepieces.
Time teller does the narrative of describing the qualities that these Chinese watches offers, its good to try and experience Chinese timepieces, tried plenty of those, and they still work, their quality is good, and they are repairable as well, when you know to repair them. Replica watches are not fake, since they have permits to make the versions of the originals. As for parnis and some of the "Chinese brands" they are genuine Chinese brands, that makes them special, same thing with qualities when you bought swiss made or Japanese timepieces. Learn to appreciate versions of creativity in many parts of the world, sharing their best products produced. They are not cheap, they are for the "ables" regardless of their economic strata's they are at. Ciao, enjoy quality and quantity in many parts of the world. :)
I have a Guanqin homage of a Longine and it's ticking no problem, keeping time accurately and it was like U$48. There's this other from Pagani Design that has a VK67 movement and it's damn good. It was $51. Both Chinese, and both way better than more expensive counterparts.
Up to the 1970s, Japanese products were considered cheap and nasty. Most were just knock-offs of Western products. I can still remember the Datsun 120Y (old name of Nissan), its body panels were so thin, you could dent it by just pushing it with your finger! And it was so light, it drove like it was floating on the road. However, the Japanese went on a quality drive when they realised quality mattered. Nowadays, most people equate Japanese products as of high quality and reliable (especially for Japanese cars). In fact, I still remember the Japanese bashing that was prevalent in the USA during the 1980s, similar to the Chinese bashing now. China products are at the same stage Japanese products were during the 1970s. They have started to improve their products and still able to sell it cheaper than many Western counterparts. Give them another decade or so, and they will be able to produce high quality products which are reliable and probably still cheaper than their counterparts. In fact, you only have to look at mobile phones and see that the majority are now designed and built in China. Huawei being a prime example. Oh, and Apple products are all made in China.
I'm on my 3rd Chinese watch. The Pagani dropped the ball in the lume department. I have no complaints re: the Sharkey (Heimdallr), and now the Gustav Becker (Sea-Gull). Search the forums, do you research, and buy with confidence.
Dude , all your videos are great & I really appreciate. All you've said have been well said & I totally agree with you. Nobody will want to grab your hand while you are walking on the street & see what watch you are wearing. We can only wear whatever pleases us & not others. People out there need to make some good research on Chinese Seagull watches history before making bad critics as honestly aside from owning some Swiss watches, I do also own some very & very good Chinese watches. Needless to say, most of the times, I find myself wearing many of my Chinese watches on a day to day basis & this has been going on for nearly 5 years now. They are damn good watches. After 5 years, till date, all my best Chinese watches are still working fine without any problem. Whatever my hard earned money can buy me is what pleases me & not what others think.
The quality of products out of China vary widely. There are some world-class manufacturers there. Experts like you can help us a lot by sorting out the wheat from the chaff
I bought the cheapest Chinese watch I could find for about $1.20 (including shipping). It's an extremely basic looking watch and the strap as you can imagine is horrible. But you know what, the damn thing keeps the time. It's an accurate quartz movement inside and the second hand is properly aligned with the second markers. Yes, there's an audible tick with each passing second, but it's no louder than any of the more expensive quartz watches on the market and I love the simplicity and non existent branding on the dial. It's also extremely light from being so cheap, so easy to forget that it's even on the wrist. For $1.20 lol
I have a boutique watch I bought off eBay for $100. There are maybe a few dozen in circulation. It was an amazing value. It has a sapphire crystal, stainless steel case with a PVC coating, screw down case and crown, and a military style dial. The Seiko NH38 movement is accurate to about 6 seconds per day.
Jori, I enjoy all of your videos for several reasons - most of all because of your authenticity! In this particular video, as I'm sure you know, the 1963 Seagul movement is steeped in Swiss heritage! And the Swiss seem to know how to build a movement. Just sayennnnnnn.... Thanks for all your great work!
It's quite a coincidence that today I'm wearing my Seagull 1963 chrono!! 😂 It's the 38mm, acrylic dome version. Just like the original from the 60's. This watch has such a rich history... It may be chinese, but has a lot of pedigree.
Christian Rodriguez - I chose the acrylic domed crystal over sapphire even though the cost was the same - for that exact reason; its heritage and to ensure that my watch was as close to the original issue as possible. I'm a bit of a fan of acrylic crystals.
I have no issue with "Chinese" watches, and really love the 1963, but you seem to have some of your info wrong. Boldr is a Singapore company, but they, like almost all microbrands, actually make their watches in China. Seiko also makes many of their parts in China, and make almost no watches in Japan anymore (short of GS and higher end Seikos). Casio also makes a lot of their parts, and watches, too, I believe, in China. But this is really what the entire industry is doing. Chris Vail of Nth Watches (another microbrand) uses the same Chinese factory to build his Nth Subs that Omega uses to build their casebacks, at least (he posted a picture of the Seamaster casebacks he took while touring the factory reviewing his own watches. So the point is, many, if not most, watch manufactures (including most "Swiss") have at least some parts of their watches, including the movements, made in China. So it is ignorance when "watch snobs" hate on "Chinese" watches, because almost certainly they are wearing a watch made at least partly in China.
You really got me into vintage seiko and other brands I never considered. I just bought a Brew watch, and I hope to buy an Autodromo before the end of the year.
In the fountain pen community the Chinese manufactures, with the exception of Majohn/Moonman and to a lesser extent, Jinhao, have been managing to surpass the reputation of fakes and copies. Wing Sung, Hongdian, Hero, are all very respected manufaturers, Jinhao is getting a better reputation thanks to making more original pens, while Majohn repeatedly makes steps forward and then fall backwards especially with their blatant copies of various versions of the Pilot Vanishing Point. To your point on the quality control, everything you said is absolutely correct, however, when the Chinese manufacturers move up to a higher price bracket their quality control improves. You'll start to find that a $30-$80 fountain pen from them is better quality than some manufacturers from Europe that are charging $1000+ for a pen.
As a Chinese viewer of yours, I think you made a very fair comment on Chinese watches, people should know what they're getting into, do their research, judge watches based on the watch themselves, don't expect to get $20,000 quality out of a $200 Chinese watch or anywhere else in the world, also if you only have $20, Chinese watch is the only option you could even possibly buy a watch for $20, don't take it for granted. Sea-gull is a very honorable and wellpriced Chinese watch brand, good to know there's people appreciating it from overseas, good work as always
I bought the Seagull 1963 and it confirmed everything I thought I knew about Chinese quality control. It arrived broken. What DID surprise me was the relatively fast customer service, and the ease of the return process. Once this issue was sorted out, I've become a very pleased owner of a watch which is FAR more accurate than I expected, reliable, and looks great. Very pleased with the purchase, but it's not altered my opinion of Chinese quality control * or lack of it.
Indeed. My late 90s Casio MTD-1003 says Japan Mov't. My '70s Seiko SQ 4004 says Japan on the dial ... Japanese watches. But if it says Made in China on the back, as my modern Casios do, it's a Chinese watch.
my dad has 2 parts to his watch collection: nice watches, and beater watches. he likes to wear a watch no matter what, can't blame him. the only issue is that his job is manual labor, and he basically destroys everything he wears. he used to wear a lot of those huge heavy duty invictas, but once he destroys them they're not worth repairing. so now he buys chinese skagen clones on amazon for as little money as possible, and they pretty much last just as long (maybe a year). so maybe someone like I cannot appreciate high-level chinese watchmaking, but there's always a place for garbage. His other watches pretty much consist of citizen promasters, a tag, some seikos, and some other misc nicer brands, and that's pretty much mirrored in my case since i had to learn about watches from somewhere before youtube.
self-reply: 2 of them are WWOOR if any of you wanted a specific brand. They keep OK time and look alright. They might be korean or something, but who cares, a $16 watch is chinese made shit no matter who physically assembles it.
Recently got a 1963 with the swan neck regulator. Out of the box, I am amazed how accurate this watch has kept time being fast only by 4 secs over 24 hours. Honestly had couple of Omegas that were 4 to 5 secs faster in a day. Seems like I got lucky or Seagull really does a good QC job.
Seiko is assembled in other countries though right? On most of their watches it says Japan movement. They simply say made in Japan unless it’s the higher end ones. There are a couple I was/am interested in that even list, Malaysian movement. Citizen is typically less made in Japan.
Nice video & info. I appreciate your honesty & straight-forwardness. If people don't like what you shared in this episode, then they can swing on the sack, bro! Continued success, my friend!!
Not that it matters where but, I’ve read that most of the G-shock watches are in fact made in Chinese and Thai factories but for premium lines like G-Shock MRG, MTG, there is a Yamagata factory in Japan.
I just read a artical about Swiss people just end Chronometer comptition they used to hold every year just beacuse Seiko almost winning all the top ten( the first three are swiss made quartz to save some face which means Sekio are the true winner. The Swiss cannot handle this and just stop the comptition ever since. So, swiss made had fallen long time ago.
I’ve recently started my own micro or better yet nano watch brand and I primarily use the Seagull movements. Some miyota and seiko too but the Chinese movements have been great and I can keep my watch price reasonable. And the beauty of some of the Chinese movements I use is they’re direct copies of ETA’s. So if a customer wants genuine Swiss I can easily use my dials and cases. I especially like the st19xx chronograph movements like in your review watch here. Love the channel.
I bought a Forsining for 100 AUD. Fabulous dial, reminding me of the Breitling I couldn't afford. Auto, self wind, day and date dials, moon phase. It's not a fake replica and it gives me so much satisfaction, I don't care that it's chinese.
Not true that Swiss watches have better quality control. Years ago, like more than 10 years ago, I bought an Omega Seamaster. Happy with the purchase, I wore it the next day to work. Colleagues at work asked to see the watch and one spotted that the second hand in the watch has a dent. I thought it was maybe a reflection of light to make it looked like a dent. But on closer inspection, it really was a dent. I brought the watch back to the authorized retailer of Omega watches and after 3 days they returned the watch back to me with a new 'seconds' needle. I thought how did this pass quality check?
My San Martin marinemaster is legit. I love it and it's made to a high standard. I love my pagani watch as well. China does make some good quality stuff you just need to do some extra research to find the good Chinese brands.
if you love watches, you love watches, period. watch snobs makes me laugh. been studying and collecting watches for over 20+ years. I take the time to learn and appreciate watches from everywhere. they are wonderful things... and fun!
The Swiss watch industry has been sourcing parts from Hong Kong and mainland China for 60 years. Any 'Swiss Made' watch under $1000 is pretty much entirely Chinese. It's all 100% legal under Swiss law.
Here some great brand name for Chinese Special 1. Seagull 2. Cadisen 3. San Martin 4. Starking 5. Pagani Design 6. Reef Tiger Always enjoy your channel...keep it up
I’ve had one for years. It looks fantastic on a quality NATO strap. Brilliant movement, open back. Beautiful watch. True story, I went in two expensive watch shops at the weekend, security on the door and you have to be buzzed in expensive. Both remarked on my £300 watch, in one shop they took a photo of it. I didn’t buy anything, just looking. But man did I see a nice Omega Aqua Terra, small seconds. But £6300.00, I can’t bring myself to spend that, and you get 0% finance. I’ll buckle one day though. I crave a nice Omega.
There's not much coverage of Vintage Chinese mechanicals Jorie, and there's a fuck ton of deals there. Tons of great watches from the olden Chinese brands with history like Seagull, Beijing and Shanghai.
Great summary, well done for not being prejudice....I've bought a few good watches like that by buying without looking at where they are from. Some chineese parts in them like Thomas Earnshaw. Thanks for this video cliff
Some really good points here. I remember when electronics and audio equipment from Taiwan are considered to be cheap rubbish. But this was untrue in most cases and perceptions changed over time. One thing I will say is that decent Chinese manufacturers have exposed the huge profit margins on named brands. Also a lot of people will criticise Chinese watches when their Designer "Fashion" watches are made in the same place to a lower standard.
I love your channel it’s very helpful in my constant vigil for another watch on my wrist. I do have a suggestion. You have a really nice full beard I wish I could have one as full. But why don’t you keep it in trim it would look so much better. When someone first meets you a neat trimmed beard is their first impression of how you feel about yourself. You wouldn’t go out in public with an inside out shirt it’s the same with an untrimmed beard.
I have a Disney watch. It’s a seagull. In my eyes it’s a really nice watch, I love being able to see the internals working, the subtle little Mickey Mouse thrown in is not easily noticed so it doesn’t scream Disney. It keeps time, really that’s all that matters.
Screw what other people think. I have the Seagull 1963 Chrono, I love it, it is not garbage and well made. Yeah there's a lot of bad stuff out there. But some are good, It keeps good time the chrono works find and very easy to read, it's just hand wind. Nor do I think it's the best watch made, but well worth the money I paid. I wanted this watch, bought it at for a few bucks more from Long Island Watch, and it came in two or three days not months, and having Marc the owner standing behind it helps. Not looking for Ali Express Specials.
I totally agree. I have mostly Swiss watches but my favorites are my skx007 and a Vostok. I was in the military stationed 6 a few miles from a Soviet union country but so what? My Vostok is super interesting and I am going tomorrow a seagull. Thanks for the great writeup...
I have an Amazfit GTR by Zepp Health in Hegel, China. It is a smartwatch with a Li ion battery which stays charged for as long as 20 days. I really like the way it works, looks, and stands up to abuse. I like it much better than my over-complicated Apple Watch Ultra.
Interesting. I recently found a SeaGull 1963 for under $90 on Aliexpress. I bought it fully expecting it to be a counterfeit. It's my second 1963, I took them both to my watchmaker. It's not! When I heard this I ordered a good strap from Germany, because the leather that came with it wasn't great. The German watch strap arrived and split within 6hrs!! The Chinese strap and watch - still going strong! ...sorta proves Jory's point about quality control & not judging a product by its country of manufacture.
DanNacht - Thanks for the concern. I use a dedicated Debt card for online transactions - transfer the $ in, hit 'Pay Now' and leave a $2 or $3 balance or PayPal if possible. Re. the ID? Hopefully my VPN helps with that? ...
Japanese watches used to be looked down on. Before that Swiss watches were inferior to English and French watches. Luckily. There are those of us who don't care where it was made but the quality of it.
Great video, thanks again! I own a Red Star Mechanical Chrono and love it. For under $300 you can't go wrong. BTW the worst part of your video was having to watch a Vencero Watch commercial part way through. Congrats on 95K!!
ive been eyeing sea gull dual time gmt..but theres no available review...san martin is pretty good.they get good reviews..i just wish they have a better logo
Bought a parnis power reserve early on and it was junk, crystal literally popped out and watch repairman said it was to large for the watch. However I love my 1963 Seagull Chrono with sapphire crystal. I wear it often.
Jory I've heard a lot of people saying that the official Seagull 1963 has mineral glass and all the others are fake or Frankensteins. Do you know if that's true?
The (modern) history of the Seagull 1963s is pretty long and confusing. There are a lot of different models. There are 38mm cases and 42mm cases. There are also some differences with the bezel heights in some models. There are some with display case backs and some with solids. To the best of my knowledge, seagull does not officially make the 1963 reissues anymore (www.sea-gullmall.com/). Although some middlemen who sell other legit seagulls are still selling them. For example, I have even seen a new 2020 edition (www.seagullcanada.com/products/seagull-1963-hand-wind-mechanical-chronograph-38mm-watch-re-issued-edition-d304b-with-series-number-on-case-back-total-650pcs?_pos=1&_sid=76aa5f549&_ss=r). Long story short, get what you like.
TwentySixAnd - That Limited Edition version is VERY interesting. Lume'd hands. Textured ring around the outer dial. Different text above the 6. Different font. It looks beautiful. My understanding is that the 1963 design has been made by a substantial Chinese watchmaker under license (using the SeaGull ST1901 movement ). This is how they ended up on Aliexpress for under $100USD recently. To your knowledge, is this correct?
@@anthonysmith2982 to be completely honest it has been some time since I did a deep dive. If I was to tell you details I couldn't give them with certainty. All I can say for sure is that their are so many out their with so many small variants that nobody, short of a handful of people in the whole world, could tell you how 'authentic' it is. I would probably spend more than 100$ if it was me though. Seems a little too good!
TwentySixAnd - Yeah! That's what I thought! In fact it was $90! ...with a khaki nato & (a pretty crappy) leather strap & a 2nd stainless steel embossed and printed case back (although they emailed me after I'd paid to tell me the 2nd case back would not be included). I bought it out of...morbid curiosity perhaps ? I was fully expecting it to be a 'fake' of dubious quality - & I could always give it to one of my daughters... It arrived much quicker than Aliexpress orders usually do. I buy straps from Aliex. They have some genuinely good leather for around $20-$25 BTW! Anyway. I compared it to my "genuine" 1963 - well at least one I've owned from new for maybe 8 years. They looked identical to me and I decided to take it to my watchmaker. He laughed at the price and said 'as far as I can tell it's genuine!' So I don't know what to make of it. It's obviously not made by SeaGull but it is definitely a genuine ST1901 movement. So...I don't really care who made it! It's extremely well made. They were all over Aliexpress - all for around $110 - $120 and then I got an email telling me that I had 24hrs to buy it at $88, so I did. Immediately. I'm honestly not sure whether to pinch myself or wait for it to explode! Either way. It spent a week on my wrist, ran like a champ and went back into the watch box. I think I might give it to the first person in the family who compliments me on it! So make of that what you will. I'm still a little bewildered . Cheers and stay well. Anthony.
I have a Rolex Oyster Datejust and a Seagull 1963. The only advantage of the Rolex is that people will pay crazy prices for the Rolex. Otherwise, the Seagull is pretty much just as accurate and reliable.
I have a Lilienthal-berlin Zeitgeist Automatik, which I purchased second hand from someone who got it as a gift, and is not a watch person. I paid a fraction of the cost, I will put the accuracy of that watch against anything anybody makes, it is impressively accurate.
The ST1901 movement is not as nicely finished, but it's only a tiny fraction of the price of a Swiss movement and it keeps the time accurately. And it's really nice to look at, too, as long as you're not looking at it under a microscope. I'm quite happy with my Seagull 1963. It gets a lot of wrist time. And I do own a bunch of Omegas and other Swiss made watches.
I have more watches than is rational from Chinese to Swiss and, as long as you buy from better brands, the Chinese pieces will go Toe to Toe, with Swiss pieces at 10x the price. Now, the Chinese do need to up their movement game and then it's not even close. A San Martin with a St2130 would beat any Swiss watch under 5k.
As a UA-cam that deals a lot with those Chinese watches (my channel was formerly known as My Chinese Watch Collection) I agree with every word you said. The hate, the QC issues, all of it. But there is just so much value in some of the watches coming from China these days, it's a shame to miss out on that market.
And my Seagull 1963 is my favorite watch in my collection, Chinese or not. And I got it new for under $150.
My Affordable Watch Collection 100%!
A tongji automatic that sells for $12 shipped is not a bad watch for the money, because what did you expect for $12?
My Affordable Watch Collection - True Words. Where I grew up in the '70's , the term 'Jap Crap' was ubiquitous. It referred to all the cheap Japanese imports - from toys to cars. Now 'Made in Japan ' carries some caché.
Is China the new Jap Crap'?
I think so...
Awesome knowing that your birthday is in June because mine is also (June 30). I have a Seagull watch as well, it's not the model you have though. I love your channel, it's very informative and I get to see a lot of watches with a different perspective. When it comes to watch conversations, I advise people to wear what you love and love what you wear!
Anthony Smith it’s not only in the watch world, either. The budget knife market has exploded in just the past couple of years with tons of high quality stuff coming out of China. It’s really pretty similar to, say, how people are starting to take notice of all the materials and features these Chinese brands can offer at the price and wondering why Seiko still acts as if sapphire is an luxury feature, for example.
The 1963 is actually a swiss-made movement by Venus (Venus 175). They bought the rights and added two more jewels and that's about it. It's a Chinese case with a swiss movement.
I think you mean Swiss designed. The movement is made in China.
I bought an Addiesdive Tuna homage. It has a Seiko Nh35a movement. The loom is outstanding. It gains about 5 seconds a day. Not too shabby and really well made watch
I own the same Seagull 1963 watch. What a watch for $375.00! Yeah I realize the screws are painted blue and not cured, yeah the decoration is not what you would get in a GENUINE Swiss for WAY more money, but look at the movement! Column wheel! works as smooth as butter. And it keeps better time than most of my "Swiss" watches! I own Rolexes, Breitlings, Ulysse Nardin, etc. But this watch is just amazing for the price! Good job Time Teller sticking up for watches that are made well no matter WHERE they come from! If you love watches, you love watches. Not just name brands but watches that are designed and made well with thought behind them no matter where they come from.
If the screws not being heat blued bothers anyone ......remove em one at a time .. after replacing the one u just took out...n heat the screw up with a propane torch until near glowing then.pick it up with pliers n drop it in oil of any kind...you'll have naturally hardened n blued screws... And they will be done the ol fashioned way....lmao...I'm kidding ..don't ever take screws out of your movement...though u can ask your watch maker too do it when servicing the watch...peace
I'm happy and satisfied with my $60 Guanqin dress watch. The longer I have it, the more I'm convinced I didn't waste my money.
John Christian De Guzman where did you buy it? Thanks
Online
@@cuestion-de-tiempo Gearbest.com has hundreds of this any many other brands of Chinese watches. They start a $2.00 a watch and go up.
im temped to buy something like this www.wish.com/product/5d77884e08b8bc412ef5ed4e?hide_login_modal=true&from_ad=goog_shopping&_display_country_code=NL&_force_currency_code=EUR&pid=googleadwords_int&c=%7BcampaignId%7D&ad_cid=5d77884e08b8bc412ef5ed4e&ad_cc=NL&ad_lang=NL&ad_curr=EUR&ad_price=57.00&campaign_id=8704015860&retargeting=true&gclid=CjwKCAjw_-D3BRBIEiwAjVMy7Ipf17pCKTg1pVU2L-aq8IIKaXOMJ-9dFkz0nLXuwTxfEKsd3ft6-BoC2YcQAvD_BwE&share=web but it looks to good for the money important thing is i want the buttons to actually work.
@@cliffordbunin3278 Stay away from wish!
I've had a Seagull 1963 for over 6 months and it's great. My friend who's a watch guy, likes it after seeing it and trying it. It's not all about the cost as real watch nut like me knows. I wear the 1963 and then the next day wear the Day-Date. It's fine they're both top notch.
The Seagull ST1901 Movement is an absolute monster when it comes to quality. my 1963 runs with less than 3 sec/day on average. This was the pilot chronograph for the chinese military, and still people think the military would have giveen their pilots garbage watches...
It is not the same watch or the same movement. It is a replica of the watch that was used by the Chinese military. Learn.
@@vertugallery7099 The movement is still made by the same company Sea-Gull. However, my understanding is that the QC they are applying can vary greatly depending on who they are selling to. Anyway, I believe Blackout's point is that it is a good design.
@@luke-alex My friend, the movement in the original of this watch was a Swiss Venus movement, used by Breitling etc.
@@vertugallery7099 Well, the Sea-Gull company (or its legal predecessor) bought the movement from Venus, including the machines which made it. As I understand it, the original 1963 movements were made in China (not Switzerland), with these machines.
@@luke-alex The modern movement is not the same quality; it is a totally different movement. Go do some more homework.
Loving my Sea-Gull watches, one genuine, one Parnis, and a Timex diver with a power reserve ..
Timex is an american company(made in China).
I got a seiko tuna for my 14th birthday last November and my dad gave me a Submariner when I was 10 and had no watch knowledge
@@elduderino1329 made in the philippines
Nicely said Jory . I dont see many people complain about their Chinese made iPhones. Ignorant people . Thank you for the vids informative and good fun . Congratulations on the gains in viewers. :)
Big difference between making a phone that will need changing within a few years and a mechanical watch built to last a hundred years.
Agree to some extent. But they are backed up by IPhone quality and warranty. 10$ chinese quartz watch isn't.
So true. Most of the stuff they own is also made in China.
I worry when I see the Seagull 1963 recommended. Nothing wrong with the watch mind you but in a few years the cost of repair/servicing is going to be over twice what was paid for the watch. Be warned.
@Garnet Newton-Wade I keep seeing Warnings about that movement . I guess it's luck of the draw with that .
I love my Cadisen with Seiko movement inside. Looses just a few seconds a day and works perfectly fine. Craftsmanship is also on a high level, no flaws or badly placed indexes whatsoever
A "few" seconds a day is 24 min. a year. My old Eterna Matic lost 2 min. a year.🕧
@@bafattvahetere really tho?
60% of the components for the swiss watch industry are made in china. The same factory that produced that Chinese chrono watch most likely makes parts for your favorite swiss brand. But they don;t tell you that. They show you the picture of the old swiss watchmaker and most of you are happy :)
Swiss watches are better because they use Swiss engineered movements rather than Chinese knockoff movements. You are using the no true Scottsman fallacy. Here is what I mean. Lets say Tesla uses a steering column made in China. Does that make a China made EV equivalent to a Tesla? Of course not.
By the way, China mftrs are not interested in making heirloom quality watches that last a lifetime, so if durability is important to you, buy Swiss or Japanese.
I bought the Seagull 1963 a few weeks ago and payed 215€ for it on Amazon and i love it, Chinese watches have a bad rep yes but Seagull and Fossiel produce pretty good watches and i don't care what other ppl think about it, i love it :P
Impressed with my Seagull 1963..decent quality, pretty accurate & ridiculously cheap. 👍🏻👍🏻
I got a Orient Maestro greenish blue dial for really cheap and it's the best automatic watch that I wear daily
The accuracy of this was a huge surprise to me. Have the Sugess version under $200
Mines a bit shitty . Gains 8 seconds a day, the chrono minutes hand is bent.
And the lumed one has a communist hammer and sickle on the chrono seconds hand.
A star is one thing but hammer and sickle is about 80 million dead too far.
I won't wear it, its going back.
I'm watching this with a Seagull 1963 on my wrist. Super happy with it.
Ordered my Seagull 1963 two days ago from Aliexpress for $165. It is the 38mm sapphire glass model. Sorry folks, that sale ended at midnight!
You got taste👍
MY GOD my seagull 1963 is 12 months old today and as i watch this it is on my wrist and going perfectly 👍♥️👍
Watch & Unwind Happy birthday to your watch!
I have Swiss, Japanese and Chinese watches. I just got a Chinese bronze watch that is outstanding. There are some good Chinese Microbrands ;). San Martin, Cronos, Heimdallr and others.
The additional improvement to tighten regulation is called the swan neck and was introduced in some of the Seagull ST21 and other Seagull movements, that improved more precise regulation of the balance staff.
*Sees the video.*
*Sees the date.*
*Hears reasonable arguments.*
I'm so confused right now.
Just as the AliExpress sale was ending, I was deciding between a Seagull 1963 Reissue or a CIGA Design Z. I went with the CIGA Design Z watch. Gotta love that RM style skeleton watch for under 150 USD!
I literally just bought the Seagull 1963 fifteen minutes before this video came out! I saw the title and got scared that T3 changed his mind on it, but I'm glad he still likes it!
You don't need validation from anyone to like anything
lmao you got scared? insecure much?
Did you go with the sapphire crystal variant?
I wasn't looking for validation, I was worried that his ended up having mechanical or quality control issues that caused it to not hold up. I can also value other people's opinions who have more experience than me without blindly following them.
@@discingaround yeah I decided to get the sapphire variant because I tend to accidentally slam my watches on door ways 😅
I have Cadisen, also a Chinese Watch but has Seiko NH36a movement. Runs perfectly fine. ❤️
I’ve been eyeing the sea-gull 1963 for a while! Thanks for the vid!
Honestly I always visually liked this chrono dial!
I love the irony of people commenting on the "crapness" of Chinese-manufactured watches, whilst using their (probably) Chinese-manufactured phone/tablet/computer to do so. Whilst also ignoring the fact that premium, "serious" watch manufacturers like Rolex or Tudor have not been without their own quality control issues. Hell, even my Seamaster 300 isn't that consistent at time keeping, but I know that's a symptom of owning a mechanical watch. Sure, ignorance and perception plays a huge part in some people's comments, but...like, reading and some basic research is a pretty good cure for this, and we're all capable of that, right?
Love the video Jory. Thanks.
I must say, I own two Japanese watches an Orient Kamasu & The Seiko 5 Sport SNZH60K1.
I just bought a chinese watch, The Jinshidun 8718 all Gold champagne dial Automatic 24 hr sun dial watch for under $100 and I absolutely love it.
It keeps better time than my Seiko SNZH60. And I must say it's beautiful. Not only that, it's no longer available. So I have a rare watch.
Two months ago I bought a Mido Multifort that fell apart the same day I received it. The entire internal mechanism was broken. Similar experiences have occurred to me with Tissot and Alpina.
If a watch is bad or broken, it's bad or broken regardless of country. G-Shocks are made in China and are tougher than 99% of other watches.
Firstly, congratulations on almost reaching the 100k mark!
I've never owned a Seagull 1963, but it definitely opened me up a whole new genre of wristwatches. I subsequently did buy an Atelier Wen Odyssey Hao (which is absolutely gorgeous), and hopefully will be able to acquire a Ming 17.01 sometime in the future. For those of you that have been conflicted by stigmatized opinions, you may just be missing out on enjoying some really good timepieces.
Very nice video! And I’m glad to see something great from my home town 天津. I bought one myself recently, can’t wait till I go back and pick that up.
Time teller does the narrative of describing the qualities that these Chinese watches offers, its good to try and experience Chinese timepieces, tried plenty of those, and they still work, their quality is good, and they are repairable as well, when you know to repair them. Replica watches are not fake, since they have permits to make the versions of the originals. As for parnis and some of the "Chinese brands" they are genuine Chinese brands, that makes them special, same thing with qualities when you bought swiss made or Japanese timepieces. Learn to appreciate versions of creativity in many parts of the world, sharing their best products produced. They are not cheap, they are for the "ables" regardless of their economic strata's they are at. Ciao, enjoy quality and quantity in many parts of the world. :)
I have a Guanqin homage of a Longine and it's ticking no problem, keeping time accurately and it was like U$48. There's this other from Pagani Design that has a VK67 movement and it's damn good. It was $51. Both Chinese, and both way better than more expensive counterparts.
Haters will be haters dude. Thx for this video. Just as you said.....I love watches......and I don't care where they come from
You can get a nice Seagull 1963 with a swanneck regulator for $200. They are very nice, reliable and accurate.
Up to the 1970s, Japanese products were considered cheap and nasty. Most were just knock-offs of Western products. I can still remember the Datsun 120Y (old name of Nissan), its body panels were so thin, you could dent it by just pushing it with your finger! And it was so light, it drove like it was floating on the road. However, the Japanese went on a quality drive when they realised quality mattered. Nowadays, most people equate Japanese products as of high quality and reliable (especially for Japanese cars). In fact, I still remember the Japanese bashing that was prevalent in the USA during the 1980s, similar to the Chinese bashing now.
China products are at the same stage Japanese products were during the 1970s. They have started to improve their products and still able to sell it cheaper than many Western counterparts. Give them another decade or so, and they will be able to produce high quality products which are reliable and probably still cheaper than their counterparts. In fact, you only have to look at mobile phones and see that the majority are now designed and built in China. Huawei being a prime example. Oh, and Apple products are all made in China.
Jory, well said. Do your research and choose wisely.
I'm on my 3rd Chinese watch. The Pagani dropped the ball in the lume department. I have no complaints re: the Sharkey (Heimdallr), and now the Gustav Becker (Sea-Gull). Search the forums, do you research, and buy with confidence.
Oh yeah, I also have the 1963 Chinese Air Force Chrono (in sapphire) that is cool as hell (on a nice semi distressed blonde leather strap).
China deserves more credit, Starking changed my opinion about them. They do have some decent products from their region.
Do you support Chinese concentration camps too?
Dude , all your videos are great & I really appreciate. All you've said have been well said & I totally agree with you. Nobody will want to grab your hand while you are walking on the street & see what watch you are wearing. We can only wear whatever pleases us & not others. People out there need to make some good research on Chinese Seagull watches history before making bad critics as honestly aside from owning some Swiss watches, I do also own some very & very good Chinese watches. Needless to say, most of the times, I find myself wearing many of my Chinese watches on a day to day basis & this has been going on for nearly 5 years now. They are damn good watches. After 5 years, till date, all my best Chinese watches are still working fine without any problem. Whatever my hard earned money can buy me is what pleases me & not what others think.
The quality of products out of China vary widely. There are some world-class manufacturers there.
Experts like you can help us a lot by sorting out the wheat from the chaff
Just ordered a Seagull 1963 for 90 bucks on Amazon. Been wanting a Seagull for years.
Love my Alpha daytona, it's a gorgeous watch with great quality throughout. 100% Chinese and simply excellent.
I bought the cheapest Chinese watch I could find for about $1.20 (including shipping). It's an extremely basic looking watch and the strap as you can imagine is horrible.
But you know what, the damn thing keeps the time. It's an accurate quartz movement inside and the second hand is properly aligned with the second markers. Yes, there's an audible tick with each passing second, but it's no louder than any of the more expensive quartz watches on the market and I love the simplicity and non existent branding on the dial. It's also extremely light from being so cheap, so easy to forget that it's even on the wrist.
For $1.20 lol
I have a boutique watch I bought off eBay for $100. There are maybe a few dozen in circulation. It was an amazing value. It has a sapphire crystal, stainless steel case with a PVC coating, screw down case and crown, and a military style dial. The Seiko NH38 movement is accurate to about 6 seconds per day.
Jori, I enjoy all of your videos for several reasons - most of all because of your authenticity!
In this particular video, as I'm sure you know, the 1963 Seagul movement is steeped in Swiss heritage! And the Swiss seem to know how to build a movement. Just sayennnnnnn....
Thanks for all your great work!
Great info! My Starking was $35 and still works fine after over a year. :-D
It's quite a coincidence that today I'm wearing my Seagull 1963 chrono!! 😂 It's the 38mm, acrylic dome version. Just like the original from the 60's. This watch has such a rich history... It may be chinese, but has a lot of pedigree.
Christian Rodriguez - I chose the acrylic domed crystal over sapphire even though the cost was the same - for that exact reason; its heritage and to ensure that my watch was as close to the original issue as possible.
I'm a bit of a fan of acrylic crystals.
Love my Seagull Ocean Star, 200 m diver with high beat mvmt. My Swiss Glycine & Squale have nothing on it for 200 or 300 $ more!
I just ordered one.
I have no issue with "Chinese" watches, and really love the 1963, but you seem to have some of your info wrong. Boldr is a Singapore company, but they, like almost all microbrands, actually make their watches in China. Seiko also makes many of their parts in China, and make almost no watches in Japan anymore (short of GS and higher end Seikos). Casio also makes a lot of their parts, and watches, too, I believe, in China.
But this is really what the entire industry is doing. Chris Vail of Nth Watches (another microbrand) uses the same Chinese factory to build his Nth Subs that Omega uses to build their casebacks, at least (he posted a picture of the Seamaster casebacks he took while touring the factory reviewing his own watches. So the point is, many, if not most, watch manufactures (including most "Swiss") have at least some parts of their watches, including the movements, made in China. So it is ignorance when "watch snobs" hate on "Chinese" watches, because almost certainly they are wearing a watch made at least partly in China.
You really got me into vintage seiko and other brands I never considered. I just bought a Brew watch, and I hope to buy an Autodromo before the end of the year.
Such a nice video as always. This year I bought three chinese watches, two Pagani Design and one Parnis, and I really enjoy them!!!
In the fountain pen community the Chinese manufactures, with the exception of Majohn/Moonman and to a lesser extent, Jinhao, have been managing to surpass the reputation of fakes and copies. Wing Sung, Hongdian, Hero, are all very respected manufaturers, Jinhao is getting a better reputation thanks to making more original pens, while Majohn repeatedly makes steps forward and then fall backwards especially with their blatant copies of various versions of the Pilot Vanishing Point.
To your point on the quality control, everything you said is absolutely correct, however, when the Chinese manufacturers move up to a higher price bracket their quality control improves. You'll start to find that a $30-$80 fountain pen from them is better quality than some manufacturers from Europe that are charging $1000+ for a pen.
As a Chinese viewer of yours, I think you made a very fair comment on Chinese watches, people should know what they're getting into, do their research, judge watches based on the watch themselves, don't expect to get $20,000 quality out of a $200 Chinese watch or anywhere else in the world, also if you only have $20, Chinese watch is the only option you could even possibly buy a watch for $20, don't take it for granted. Sea-gull is a very honorable and wellpriced Chinese watch brand, good to know there's people appreciating it from overseas, good work as always
There's also HMT watches from India that sell in that same sub-20 USD price bracket, which I would definitely prefer over an equivalent Chinese watch.
I bought the Seagull 1963 and it confirmed everything I thought I knew about Chinese quality control. It arrived broken. What DID surprise me was the relatively fast customer service, and the ease of the return process. Once this issue was sorted out, I've become a very pleased owner of a watch which is FAR more accurate than I expected, reliable, and looks great. Very pleased with the purchase, but it's not altered my opinion of Chinese quality control * or lack of it.
I was looking at the video wearing one of my Chinese watches, the Guanqin. My favorite Chinese watch is for sure the Seagull 1963.
Most seikos and casios are made In China just for clarification, only the high end pieces and older models are japan made
Indeed. My late 90s Casio MTD-1003 says Japan Mov't. My '70s Seiko SQ 4004 says Japan on the dial ... Japanese watches. But if it says Made in China on the back, as my modern Casios do, it's a Chinese watch.
Got my 1963 Seagull for under $200. It draws positive attention.
Is it still holding up?
@@csordaserik1016 runs perfectly
@@rickgreen7393what about now? im indecise if i want to buy the acrylic or the shapphire one..
my dad has 2 parts to his watch collection: nice watches, and beater watches. he likes to wear a watch no matter what, can't blame him. the only issue is that his job is manual labor, and he basically destroys everything he wears. he used to wear a lot of those huge heavy duty invictas, but once he destroys them they're not worth repairing. so now he buys chinese skagen clones on amazon for as little money as possible, and they pretty much last just as long (maybe a year). so maybe someone like I cannot appreciate high-level chinese watchmaking, but there's always a place for garbage.
His other watches pretty much consist of citizen promasters, a tag, some seikos, and some other misc nicer brands, and that's pretty much mirrored in my case since i had to learn about watches from somewhere before youtube.
self-reply: 2 of them are WWOOR if any of you wanted a specific brand. They keep OK time and look alright. They might be korean or something, but who cares, a $16 watch is chinese made shit no matter who physically assembles it.
Recently got a 1963 with the swan neck regulator. Out of the box, I am amazed how accurate this watch has kept time being fast only by 4 secs over 24 hours. Honestly had couple of Omegas that were 4 to 5 secs faster in a day. Seems like I got lucky or Seagull really does a good QC job.
Seiko is assembled in other countries though right? On most of their watches it says Japan movement. They simply say made in Japan unless it’s the higher end ones. There are a couple I was/am interested in that even list, Malaysian movement. Citizen is typically less made in Japan.
Nice video & info. I appreciate your honesty & straight-forwardness. If people don't like what you shared in this episode, then they can swing on the sack, bro! Continued success, my friend!!
Not that it matters where but, I’ve read that most of the G-shock watches are in fact made in Chinese and Thai factories but for premium lines like G-Shock MRG, MTG, there is a Yamagata factory in Japan.
I just read a artical about Swiss people just end Chronometer comptition they used to hold every year just beacuse Seiko almost winning all the top ten( the first three are swiss made quartz to save some face which means Sekio are the true winner. The Swiss cannot handle this and just stop the comptition ever since. So, swiss made had fallen long time ago.
They brought it back but the watches had to be made in Europe.
@@RestrictedHades Aisa Watch Matter， lol
If I wanted to buy your first Shanghai watch, where to start? Which chronograph/aviator/racing should I choose first?
I’ve recently started my own micro or better yet nano watch brand and I primarily use the Seagull movements. Some miyota and seiko too but the Chinese movements have been great and I can keep my watch price reasonable. And the beauty of some of the Chinese movements I use is they’re direct copies of ETA’s. So if a customer wants genuine Swiss I can easily use my dials and cases. I especially like the st19xx chronograph movements like in your review watch here.
Love the channel.
Stuck in the US now and missing my Seagull 1963 left in my apartment in Shanghai. Great vid as always!
Thank you for cranking out so many videos lately and also such good content! Keeping me going in this “shelter in place” time!
I bought a Forsining for 100 AUD. Fabulous dial, reminding me of the Breitling I couldn't afford. Auto, self wind, day and date dials, moon phase. It's not a fake replica and it gives me so much satisfaction, I don't care that it's chinese.
👏👏👏👍 if it’s a good watch it’s a good watch regardless of where it’s made. I’m hoping to add the seagull to my collection one day.
Not true that Swiss watches have better quality control. Years ago, like more than 10 years ago, I bought an Omega Seamaster. Happy with the purchase, I wore it the next day to work. Colleagues at work asked to see the watch and one spotted that the second hand in the watch has a dent. I thought it was maybe a reflection of light to make it looked like a dent. But on closer inspection, it really was a dent. I brought the watch back to the authorized retailer of Omega watches and after 3 days they returned the watch back to me with a new 'seconds' needle. I thought how did this pass quality check?
My best watch is made in Elgin, Illinois USA 101 years ago. Railroad grade pocket watch. It's a lot of fun.
My San Martin marinemaster is legit. I love it and it's made to a high standard. I love my pagani watch as well. China does make some good quality stuff you just need to do some extra research to find the good Chinese brands.
I have a San Martin 62 MAS as a daily Watch and I can recommend this 100 %. Amazing Qualty for the price.
if you love watches, you love watches, period. watch snobs makes me laugh. been studying and collecting watches for over 20+ years. I take the time to learn and appreciate watches from everywhere. they are wonderful things... and fun!
The Swiss watch industry has been sourcing parts from Hong Kong and mainland China for 60 years. Any 'Swiss Made' watch under $1000 is pretty much entirely Chinese. It's all 100% legal under Swiss law.
Another great vid Jory. Currently waiting for my Kickstarter Traska summiteer to arrive - conceived in the USA, made in....China.
Here some great brand name for Chinese Special
1. Seagull
2. Cadisen
3. San Martin
4. Starking
5. Pagani Design
6. Reef Tiger
Always enjoy your channel...keep it up
After seagull....lol and lol and LOL and LOOOOL
I’ve had one for years. It looks fantastic on a quality NATO strap. Brilliant movement, open back. Beautiful watch. True story, I went in two expensive watch shops at the weekend, security on the door and you have to be buzzed in expensive. Both remarked on my £300 watch, in one shop they took a photo of it.
I didn’t buy anything, just looking. But man did I see a nice Omega Aqua Terra, small seconds. But £6300.00, I can’t bring myself to spend that, and you get 0% finance. I’ll buckle one day though. I crave a nice Omega.
There's not much coverage of Vintage Chinese mechanicals Jorie, and there's a fuck ton of deals there.
Tons of great watches from the olden Chinese brands with history like Seagull, Beijing and Shanghai.
Great summary, well done for not being prejudice....I've bought a few good watches like that by buying without looking at where they are from. Some chineese parts in them like Thomas Earnshaw. Thanks for this video cliff
Some really good points here. I remember when electronics and audio equipment from Taiwan are considered to be cheap rubbish. But this was untrue in most cases and perceptions changed over time.
One thing I will say is that decent Chinese manufacturers have exposed the huge profit margins on named brands.
Also a lot of people will criticise Chinese watches when their Designer "Fashion" watches are made in the same place to a lower standard.
I love your channel it’s very helpful in my constant vigil for another watch on my wrist. I do have a suggestion. You have a really nice full beard I wish I could have one as full. But why don’t you keep it in trim it would look so much better. When someone first meets you a neat trimmed beard is their first impression of how you feel about yourself. You wouldn’t go out in public with an inside out shirt it’s the same with an untrimmed beard.
I have a Disney watch. It’s a seagull. In my eyes it’s a really nice watch, I love being able to see the internals working, the subtle little Mickey Mouse thrown in is not easily noticed so it doesn’t scream Disney.
It keeps time, really that’s all that matters.
Screw what other people think. I have the Seagull 1963 Chrono, I love it, it is not garbage and well made. Yeah there's a lot of bad stuff out there. But some are good, It keeps good time the chrono works find and very easy to read, it's just hand wind. Nor do I think it's the best watch made, but well worth the money I paid. I wanted this watch, bought it at for a few bucks more from Long Island Watch, and it came in two or three days not months, and having Marc the owner standing behind it helps. Not looking for Ali Express Specials.
I totally agree. I have mostly Swiss watches but my favorites are my skx007 and a Vostok. I was in the military stationed 6 a few miles from a Soviet union country but so what? My Vostok is super interesting and I am going tomorrow a seagull. Thanks for the great writeup...
Jory turning and burning the content!! Keeping me sane and from buying my grail watch out of boredom during this quarantine
Congrats and I am now a new subscriber. You are a lovable character - I shall be tuning in regularly.
I have an Amazfit GTR by Zepp Health in Hegel, China. It is a smartwatch with a Li ion battery which stays charged for as long as 20 days. I really like the way it works, looks, and stands up to abuse. I like it much better than my over-complicated Apple Watch Ultra.
Interesting.
I recently found a SeaGull 1963 for under $90 on Aliexpress. I bought it fully expecting it to be a counterfeit. It's my second 1963, I took them both to my watchmaker. It's not!
When I heard this I ordered a good strap from Germany, because the leather that came with it wasn't great.
The German watch strap arrived and split within 6hrs!!
The Chinese strap and watch - still going strong!
...sorta proves Jory's point about quality control & not judging a product by its country of manufacture.
Be careful using those sites. They will steal your credit card information and also your personal also info.
DanNacht - Thanks for the concern.
I use a dedicated Debt card for online transactions - transfer the $ in, hit 'Pay Now' and leave a $2 or $3 balance or PayPal if possible.
Re. the ID? Hopefully my VPN helps with that? ...
I love all watches. My favorite is my Omega reduced speedmaster. I love all my watches with ETA 2824 movements
Japanese watches used to be looked down on. Before that Swiss watches were inferior to English and French watches.
Luckily. There are those of us who don't care where it was made but the quality of it.
My Red star 1963 is one of the prides of my collection along with the discontinued seiko sarbs.
Great video, thanks again! I own a Red Star Mechanical Chrono and love it. For under $300 you can't go wrong. BTW the worst part of your video was having to watch a Vencero Watch commercial part way through. Congrats on 95K!!
ive been eyeing sea gull dual time gmt..but theres no available review...san martin is pretty good.they get good reviews..i just wish they have a better logo
What watch band are you wearing here? I’ve just bought this watch and I’d like to try this band
Casio is a Japanese Company, but their products tend to almost exclusively be made in China. Similar to most other Japanese companies.
Bought a parnis power reserve early on and it was junk, crystal literally popped out and watch repairman said it was to large for the watch. However I love my 1963 Seagull Chrono with sapphire crystal. I wear it often.
I got a octo that my grandpa bought in hongkong in 1987. Still works but needs some maintenance. Pretty cool cuz it has the week in chinese.
Jory I've heard a lot of people saying that the official Seagull 1963 has mineral glass and all the others are fake or Frankensteins. Do you know if that's true?
The (modern) history of the Seagull 1963s is pretty long and confusing. There are a lot of different models. There are 38mm cases and 42mm cases. There are also some differences with the bezel heights in some models. There are some with display case backs and some with solids. To the best of my knowledge, seagull does not officially make the 1963 reissues anymore (www.sea-gullmall.com/). Although some middlemen who sell other legit seagulls are still selling them. For example, I have even seen a new 2020 edition (www.seagullcanada.com/products/seagull-1963-hand-wind-mechanical-chronograph-38mm-watch-re-issued-edition-d304b-with-series-number-on-case-back-total-650pcs?_pos=1&_sid=76aa5f549&_ss=r). Long story short, get what you like.
TwentySixAnd - That Limited Edition version is VERY interesting.
Lume'd hands. Textured ring around the outer dial. Different text above the 6. Different font. It looks beautiful.
My understanding is that the 1963 design has been made by a substantial Chinese watchmaker under license (using the SeaGull ST1901 movement ).
This is how they ended up on Aliexpress for under $100USD recently.
To your knowledge, is this correct?
@@anthonysmith2982 to be completely honest it has been some time since I did a deep dive. If I was to tell you details I couldn't give them with certainty. All I can say for sure is that their are so many out their with so many small variants that nobody, short of a handful of people in the whole world, could tell you how 'authentic' it is. I would probably spend more than 100$ if it was me though. Seems a little too good!
TwentySixAnd - Yeah! That's what I thought! In fact it was $90! ...with a khaki nato & (a pretty crappy) leather strap & a 2nd stainless steel embossed and printed case back (although they emailed me after I'd paid to tell me the 2nd case back would not be included).
I bought it out of...morbid curiosity perhaps ? I was fully expecting it to be a 'fake' of dubious quality - & I could always give it to one of my daughters...
It arrived much quicker than Aliexpress orders usually do. I buy straps from Aliex. They have some genuinely good leather for around $20-$25 BTW!
Anyway. I compared it to my "genuine" 1963 - well at least one I've owned from new for maybe 8 years. They looked identical to me and I decided to take it to my watchmaker. He laughed at the price and said 'as far as I can tell it's genuine!'
So I don't know what to make of it.
It's obviously not made by SeaGull but it is definitely a genuine ST1901 movement. So...I don't really care who made it! It's extremely well made. They were all over Aliexpress - all for around $110 - $120 and then I got an email telling me that I had 24hrs to buy it at $88, so I did. Immediately.
I'm honestly not sure whether to pinch myself or wait for it to explode!
Either way. It spent a week on my wrist, ran like a champ and went back into the watch box. I think I might give it to the first person in the family who compliments me on it! So make of that what you will. I'm still a little bewildered .
Cheers and stay well.
Anthony.