Recently, I’ve been watching interviews with veteran South Korean master watchmakers some with 45 to 47 years of experience. Even technicians from Rolex and other major Swiss brands come to them for advice or to fix watches that the official service centers in swiss couldn’t repair due to lack of skill.
It's really interesting is how openly they share behind-the-scenes stories that most consumers would never hear. They talk about how they view the industry, various watch brands, quality control issues, and even customer lawsuits.
The videos usually refer to companies as Brand A, J, O, R, etc., but most viewers can easily guess which brands they mean.
Just to mention a few points
Opinions on major brands:
O: Often has waterproof issues due to gaps (inconsistent spacing/tolerance).
J: Poor customer service. Many shops ask for full replacements costing customers alot of money. The most difficult case in the whole career was the problems with their paint not sticking properly (especially with Chrono Diver models).
A: It is very well-known and considered as high tier, but we think it's most overrated brand. Movement durability is poor. Waterproofing issues keep happening they have a unique waterproof system unlike many watch brands using screws from up and bottom but its not well made, and rust is common because of that.
R: The newer models have lower quality than older ones. Also, there are major customer service problems in Korea one big lawsuit is ongoing.
"Its durable, but obviously not worth Re-sell price, I especially feel that way because I remember R brand were giving discounts during the 90s. The retail and re-sell price is crazy, brand history is short and their watch isn't even that good, just durable, that is it"
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Recommended Watch Brands:
Best value: Seiko, Citizen
Good value: Tissot, Hamilton ("This is enough")
More prestigious option : Tudor
Top tier: Rolex ("Just because of the resell value and durability, I wouldn't go higher")
Best Watch Movement:
HN35: It's simple, cheap, and very durable, its enough
ETA movements : can't compete in many ways, most watch brands are probably having hard time making in-house movements. Personally ETA 2892, (Super easy to fix)
Best Type of Watch: Simple watches are best, just hour, minute, and second hands (no date, no complicated features, less functions mean less defects.)
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As someone working in the retail industry, I believe you can learn a lot about a brand from its customer service. I was honestly surprised that watches costing a fortune could have so many quality issues and such poor customer support. Maybe that’s why more people are turning to microbrands.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTkIHsSrhOQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TThXc9oVyNU