How to buy a watch for a newcomer?- First step
July 19, 2022Every man should have a good watch! Since it is a good watch, we must be careful when buying it. Our senior watch lover may already know how to buy a watch, today we will introduce it to newcomers!
Case material
The common materials of watch case are K gold, gold-plated, titanium, stainless steel, semi-steel chrome-plated, alloy case, etc. The K gold case is only used in high-end watches of famous brands, and its price is generally more than tens of thousands of yuan; while the semi-steel (only the back cover of the watch is stainless steel) and chrome-plated watches are all low-end watches, and the case is easily corroded. Gold-plated cases are more beautiful, but without a certain thickness of gold-plated (including the strap), they can be easily worn off. If you want to choose a gold-plated watch, the thickness of the coating is preferably more than 10 microns. The titanium-plated watch is more durable and wear-resistant, but the color is not very good-looking. Two-tone case straps (gold or gold-plated and stainless steel) are more popular these days, they are more beautiful and durable. Gold-plated watches are more expensive than all-steel watches, and watches with leather straps are much cheaper than watches with the same steel strap.
People who like to sweat or exercise, outdoor workers, and people who have long-term exposure to chemical acid-base substances (such as medical workers) should wear watches with stainless steel shells. Mercury-containing chemicals are extremely damaging to karat gold and gold plating, and can discolor gold. The copper plated crown head, case and inner side of the strap are easily corroded by sweat, causing the coating to fall off. The steel watch has a hollow core and a solid core. The hollow watch strap is lighter in weight and belongs to the low-end watch.
The studs between the strap sections and the strap buckle are the most prone to problems when wearing a watch. Be sure to check carefully when buying a watch. Some buckles are open and closed for a long time, and the places that are prone to problems, such as the "butterfly" buckle, etc., and the ceramic strap are easily broken, these should also be considered before buying a watch.
Listen to the voice player list
As the saying goes, "listen to the watch, listen to the sound, and listen to the sound of gongs and drums". In the early years, experienced watch repairers always put the watch on their ears, change their posture with shaking their heads, listen to the changes in the sound of the watch when it moves, and infer whether the watch is good or bad. This is all experience and effort. A well-trained watchmaker can hear the oscillation frequency of the balance wheel of a watch, and even whether it is a "fake watch".
The easiest way to understand the essence of listening to a watch is to listen to the change in the sound of the watch when it changes its position. For watches with faults or damaged parts, the sound of the time will also change significantly with the change of position. Some will change periodically, and the sound will be louder and quieter. Because of this, listening to the watch can only detect whether the watch is faulty, but it does not fully represent the quality of the watch.
But for the average person, listening to a watch requires experience, and it is best to compare it, that is, listen more and practice more. Watches of different sizes have different running sounds. Generally speaking, the male watch is louder and the female watch is much smaller. As for the position of the listening watch, you need to choose the common position when wearing it - that is the plane, and the plane includes "on the dial surface and under the dial surface". In addition, there are three façade positions: below the crown, to the left of the crown, and above the crown, for a total of five positions.