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Old 19 December 2008, 03:48 AM   #1
nylawbiz
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Rolex Tough

I was hoping to find out if anyone knows of other watch brands that equal or surpass rolex in ruggedness. Can any other make match Rolex in the dependability of their product? Your comments and opinions would be appreciated.

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Old 19 December 2008, 03:50 AM   #2
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Ruggedness? Casio G-Shock Mudman
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Old 19 December 2008, 03:51 AM   #3
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There are quite a few brands that can compete with Rolex in terms of build quality and depth rating for the diver models. Blancpain comes to mind. The Fifty Fathom and the Sub have been competitors for a long time now. Omega has really stepped up their game in the past few years as well.
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Old 19 December 2008, 03:53 AM   #4
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Originally Posted by nylawbiz View Post
I was hoping to find out if anyone knows of other watch brands that equal or surpass rolex in ruggedness. Can any other make match Rolex in the dependability of their product? Your comments and opinions would be appreciated.

Brian
Brian,
I think this is a poorly asked question in its current state. So before this digresses into a mess, what are you really asking?
Rolex makes many types of watches as do most other brands, all have different purposes and in many respects different types and levels of "ruggedness." So what model are you trying to compare and why?

To use the example above, Blancpain makes some very complex and only slightly shock and water resistant models along with the FF that's a Sub rival in nearly all respects in my view -- impossible to just note a brand.

Of course, since you never asked about staying with mech. models, the obvious toughness of quartz movement watches will populate the answer pool and I'm sensing that you already knew that piece of the answer.
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Old 19 December 2008, 04:07 AM   #5
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G Shock is by far the rugged watch. I had once slammed a g shock face front , threw it , kicked it , dropped it from a 20th floor. It survived all. This test was conducted 10 yrs back while still in college and yes was a watch of a friend who I was not really fond of. Bastid.
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Old 19 December 2008, 04:11 AM   #6
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G Shock is by far the rugged watch. I had once slammed a g shock face front , threw it , kicked it , dropped it from a 20th floor. It survived all. This test was conducted 10 yrs back while still in college and yes was a watch of a friend who I was not really fond of. Bastid.

not if your paying for a $5000 watch...i dont think you would do the same test?? are you??
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Old 19 December 2008, 04:20 AM   #7
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Nope!! Would kill the sob who would lay a finger on my rolies!!!

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Old 19 December 2008, 04:38 AM   #8
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Brian,
I think this is a poorly asked question in its current state. So before this digresses into a mess, what are you really asking?
Rolex makes many types of watches as do most other brands, all have different purposes and in many respects different types and levels of "ruggedness." So what model are you trying to compare and why?

To use the example above, Blancpain makes some very complex and only slightly shock and water resistant models along with the FF that's a Sub rival in nearly all respects in my view -- impossible to just note a brand.

Of course, since you never asked about staying with mech. models, the obvious toughness of quartz movement watches will populate the answer pool and I'm sensing that you already knew that piece of the answer.

I'm sorry but this answer just comes across as "talking down to" the OP. We don't have to over complicate the question....just throw out some watches that YOU think are "rugged". That's all the question asked for, whether it was "poorly" asked or not. So..........I think that the FF is very rugged and so are many Breitlings. I was way harder on my Breitling than I have ever been on my Sub and it never batted an eye.
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Old 19 December 2008, 04:50 AM   #9
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I'm sorry but this answer just comes across as "talking down to" the OP. We don't have to over complicate the question....just throw out some watches that YOU think are "rugged". That's all the question asked for, whether it was "poorly" asked or not. So..........I think that the FF is very rugged and so are many Breitlings. I was way harder on my Breitling than I have ever been on my Sub and it never batted an eye.
Sorry that you feel that way. Not my intention at all to talk down to him, but rather to answer what he needs to know rather than what was stated.

I do cringe at imprecise questions, because of what they lead to around here. As you can already see we're mixing Blancpains with G-Shocks, If you find that useful, good on ya.

Hopefully he'll swing by and tell us if this is about mechanical watches only and if he means Cellini rugged or SDDS rugged.
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Old 19 December 2008, 05:06 AM   #10
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Sorry that you feel that way. Not my intention at all to talk down to him, but rather to answer what he needs to know rather than what was stated.

I do cringe at imprecise questions, because of what they lead to around here. As you can already see we're mixing Blancpains with G-Shocks, If you find that useful, good on ya.

Hopefully he'll swing by and tell us if this is about mechanical watches only and if he means Cellini rugged or SDDS rugged.
You have a valid point....2 opposite ends of the watch spectrum there
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Old 19 December 2008, 05:27 AM   #11
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Ruggedness? Casio G-Shock Mudman
Dependability? Atomic Casio G-Shock Mudman
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Old 19 December 2008, 06:56 AM   #12
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Invicta, Omega, Seiko, Nixon, Bulova, Citizen, Timex, Casio, Blancpain, Doxa pretty much every watch brand makes a model or a series of models as tough as a rolex. At the time Rolex's selling point was durability it really WAS the most durable watch. Now you can get a solid SS watch, unidirectional bezel, screw down crown, scratch resistant crystal and a 21J automatic movement for $100 from Invicta. A GMT's 3 time zones are surpassed by Casio's Seven. Rolex has a deep-sea that can go down to 12K feet MTM has a watch that is capable of going down 40K feet.

Look rolex makes some great mechanical watches, the limits of their Inca bloc balance staff will always be their weak point. A quartz does not have this weakness so it is virtually bombproof. The weakness of mechanical watches is their shock and impact resistance. Rolex has operated in a bubble for decades their watches are virtually unchanged from decades ago, that is their main marketing point. During the last 20 years the rest of the watch industry has been making huge leaps and bounds, and the advances in CNC machines have cut production costs to where SS screw down crown, screw back cases are the norm. The days of the chrome plated brass snap back cases are nearly behind us.
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Old 19 December 2008, 06:58 AM   #13
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By accident I gently bumped my brand new Breitling SeaWolf against a corian kitchen countertop and the watch stopped. I took it back to the AD as it was only two days old and they wanted to send it to CH for repair.

No way, this is supposed to be a rugged watch I said and demanded a new unit, they could repair the other unit at their leisure. They gave me a new unit.

I found out that Breitlings are not as rugged as claimed, especially their 'diver' models.

My Sub has been through hell and back and never has missed a beat.
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Old 19 December 2008, 08:14 AM   #14
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By accident I gently bumped my brand new Breitling SeaWolf against a corian kitchen countertop and the watch stopped. I took it back to the AD as it was only two days old and they wanted to send it to CH for repair.

No way, this is supposed to be a rugged watch I said and demanded a new unit, they could repair the other unit at their leisure. They gave me a new unit.

I found out that Britlings are not as rugged as claimed, especially their 'diver' models.

My Sub has been through hell and back and never has missed a beat.

I thought you were going to say that the Breitling chipped the countertop! That sounds odd that a little "bump" would stop it. It can happen to any watch no matter the brand or model I guess.
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Old 19 December 2008, 08:14 PM   #15
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If depth rating is a measurement of ruggedness, then the Sinn UX is possibly the most rugged watch of all - it is rated to 40,000 feet compared to Rolex's new Sea Dweller Deep Sea's rating of 12,800 feet.

Then again, this particular Sinn has a quartz movement, so as far as mechanical timepieces go, the Deep Sea may go the deepest and therefore be the most "rugged'' as per our earlier definition - though I daresay there are Bell & Ross models that might beg to differ.

If you're interested in diving chronographs, then I think the Sinn U1000 is the ultimate - it is one of only a few mechanical chronos whose buttons can be activated underwater up to 1,000 feet.

As someone before me said, it all depends on how to define ruggedness and dependability - and also what your budget is.
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Old 19 December 2008, 09:23 PM   #16
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MTM Xtreme Ops goes down 40K feet, and retails for $1,800
Technomarine Abyss goes down to 40K feet and does it for $600

But Sinn, Technomarine, MTM, Bell/Ross are all quartz and are oil filled (silicone)
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Old 19 December 2008, 09:30 PM   #17
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I profusely apologize for the inprecision of my question: I shuold have been more precise, especially when addressing watch enthusiasts! I know, horology is all about precision. I meant to ask the question, with the answers limited to mechanical, automatic watches. Watches which are at Rolex's price points, and above. That was the intent of my question. Again, sorry for my poorly worded question.
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Old 20 December 2008, 01:08 AM   #18
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I profusely apologize for the inprecision of my question: I shuold have been more precise, especially when addressing watch enthusiasts! I know, horology is all about precision. I meant to ask the question, with the answers limited to mechanical, automatic watches. Watches which are at Rolex's price points, and above. That was the intent of my question. Again, sorry for my poorly worded question.
I have put a couple of Planet Oceans through the test. They have excellent shockproofing. I will attest to this as my left (watch) hand slammed a mislaigned fence rail with the better part of 250 pounds of force behind it. (J-s I need to loose weight...)

The watch did not miss a beat however, the clasp went flying open..... Omega needs to incorporate some sort of flip lock into their otherwise excellent bracelets. I have had seamaster clasps fail on me before in a similar fashion.
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Old 20 December 2008, 02:08 AM   #19
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There are quite a few brands that can compete with Rolex in terms of build quality and depth rating for the diver models. Blancpain comes to mind. The Fifty Fathom and the Sub have been competitors for a long time now. Omega has really stepped up their game in the past few years as well.

The Fifty Fathoms has only been reintroduced after a long 'retirement' of over 20 years.
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Old 20 December 2008, 02:17 AM   #20
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The Fifty Fathoms has only been reintroduced after a long 'retirement' of over 20 years.
The FF is my favorite dive watch. The IWC Aquatimer (especially the Vintage) is also a very solid watch. These straddle the Sub in terms of price.
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Old 20 December 2008, 02:21 AM   #21
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Hmmmm... straddling a Sub... ouch!!... especially if it's a Polaris-class boat
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Old 20 December 2008, 02:26 AM   #22
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Hmmmm... straddling a Sub... ouch!!... especially if it's a Polaris-class boat
Keep those camera batts charged.
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Old 21 December 2008, 10:22 AM   #23
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Years ago I was a bicycle racer and trained and raced in a $20 Casio digital watch. The watch lasted years, saw me through a dozen concussions, several broken bones, the crystal was practically ground off, and the plastic lugs were completely deformed. The function buttons weren't very functional after all the scraping, and the plastic strap stretched but never broke. I'd say it was the toughest watch I ever owned. After 10 or so years I put it in a drawer, never to be seen again. I don't think it had a very good resale value, but it was a heck of a watch just the same.

Cheers,

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Old 21 December 2008, 10:33 AM   #24
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My DJ from 1986 has been through hell and back. Skiing in Aspen, diving in the Virgin Islands, and just laying at the beach. Hot and cold, no problems. Just reliable service form a great old friend. Best watch ever.
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