Men's Watches 101: How to Choose a Wristwatch

I've always had an interest in watches but up until recently I never really thought about how they worked or what separates a good watch from a bad watch so after a little bit of research now I'm here to share some findings with you when you're exploring the world of men's watches things can get pretty complicated and pretty overwhelming so in this video I'm just gonna stick to the basics and let you know the fundamental things you need to think about when buying a watch hey guys I'm Kyle from The Distilled Man before we get started I want to give a big thanks to DAEM Watches for sponsoring this video and supporting the channel so what do you need to know about watches types of watch movements so you can't really talk about watches without talking about movements no not not those kind of movements you can think of a watch movement it's basically like the engine inside the watch that keeps it running so it powers the hands and any other features on your watch there are really just three types of watch movements that you need to know about quartz mechanical and automatic quartz movements so quartz movement is what you typically find in an everyday watch quartz watches come in a wide variety of quality from less expensive versions that you might find at mass retailer end brands quartz watches are battery-powered and that their movement causes that signature ticking of the second hand and they're called quartz timepieces because they actually have a tiny piece of quartz crystal inside and the energy from the battery vibrates that crystal at exactly 32,768 times per second these vibrations get measured and converted into 1 pulse per second so the pros of quartz watches are that number one they're more accurate they're less likely to lose seconds or gain seconds throughout the day quartz watches have fewer moving parts so there's fewer things that can go wrong inside them so besides just swapping out your your watch battery every few years they don't really require that much maintenance they're the least expensive as a general rule quartz watches are almost always less expensive than mechanical or automatic watches they're also more durable the fewer moving parts in a quartz watch also benefit them in this area if your job involves getting dirty and dusty all day then a quartz watch might be right for you now for some of the downside of quartz watches first they don't have if you're looking for that sweeping smooth movement of a mechanical watch then you're not going to find that with quartz that sort of exaggerated second hand tick-tick-tick action is it's just kind of a signature of the way that the the mechanism operates in quartz watch quartz watches are more likely to be mass-produced so there often isn't that same level of craftsmanship or care that goes into making a quartz watch as there is into going into a watch with a mechanical movement mechanical movements a mechanical movement doesn't require a battery instead it needs to be manually wound periodically to keep on running mechanical movement uses a spring driven mechanism called the mainspring which once it's wound up transfers energy to smaller springs and gears that power the hands and other functions of the watch here are some pros and cons of mechanical watches first they last longer a quality mechanical watch if it's properly maintained and properly cared for it will last your entire life you might even be able to pass it on to another generation with a mechanical movement you never need to worry about batteries dying or needing to be replaced and rewinding your watch each day can become an enjoyable ritual mechanical watches just tend to look and feel better and be of a slightly higher quality than most quartz watches many many of them might also have gears exposed so you can see the inner workings and oscillations of the watch they tend to feature higher quality materials overall like sapphire crystal instead of glass mechanical watches are also generally more tactile and have more character to them smooth hand movement a lot of people really like that sweeping movement of a mechanical watch and even find it a little hypnotizing so that's important to you you should definitely consider a mechanical watch here are some of the downsides to mechanical watches first they require regular winding with a quartz watch you can put it in a drawer and it's just gonna keep on ticking and stay on time for several weeks even months maybe but with a mechanical watch you really can't go more than about two days without winding some people enjoy winding up their watch at the end of each day and look forward to it while others find it a nuisance and if you fall into that latter category then maybe mechanical watch isn't the best choice for you they aren't as accurate even the best mechanical watches are only about 99.99% accurate and that may sound amazing but even a difference of point zero one percent can result in you losing a second or two each day over the course of the years your watch will get less and less accurate every five to ten years or so you'll need to take your watch to the jeweler to get tuned up a bit quartz watches don't tend to fall out of sync like that they're environmentally sensitive mechanical watches are full of tiny gears and springs so exposure to dust shock moisture even magnets can really wreak havoc on them and most mechanic modern mechanical watches are designed to counteract those things but if you're constantly working with dirty parts all day or hammering then it might be easier to wear your quartz watch at work and then just reserve your mechanical watch for when you get dressed up and finally they're more expensive a lot more work and craftsmanship goes into making a mechanical watch so naturally that is reflected in the price it's hard to find a quality mechanical watch for under $200 and most of them are going to be well over $500 and with luxury brands like Rolex or Cartier you could be looking at tens of thousands of dollars automatic movements an automatic watch movement uses the kinetic energy from the motion of your wrist to drive the mechanism of the watch instead of relying on being manually wound or relying on a battery automatic watches are often also called self-winding watches so if you think the idea of having to wind your mechanical watch every day it might sound annoying then an automatic watch might be worth looking into these movements use a metal weight called a rotor which spins when you move your wrist and the spinning transfers energy to wind a mainspring inside your watch so here's some of the pros of automatic watches first no winding or batteries required an automatic watch almost works like magic as long as you wear it regularly then it will continue to function normally an automatic movement it comes with the same sophisticated look and smooth hand movement you'd expect from a mechanical watch but without the added hassle of having to wind it every day automatic watches tend to be a little bit thicker than other mechanical watches even because they need to accommodate the extra space for the rotor an automatic watch feels more weighty and significant on your wrist and a lot of people like that heaviness but if you're looking for something a little more minimalist that actually may be a downside for you the cons of an automatic watch are similar to those of a mechanical watch so they're less accurate than quartz and they'll need some tune ups to keep going and they're more sensitive to environmental factors like other mechanical watches automatic watches similarly have a pretty high price point because the extra craftsmanship and engineering involved in making them work biggest downside to an automatic watch is that it needs to be stored in a watch winder when you're not wearing it a watch winder is a machine that slowly spins and keeps your automatic watch wound while you're not wearing it it doesn't cost that much money but it is gonna take up extra room on your shelf and it's one more thing to think about of course the alternative is just to make sure that you wear your automatic watch every single day the 5 c's of watch terminology now the world of watches hasn't it's its own entire vocabulary but here are just five terms that you might hear when shopping for the perfect watch that don't have immediately obvious meanings first there's calibre and don't be confuse this is just another fancy word for movement chronograph a watch that has a stopwatch function in addition to being able to tell time chronometer so this is a watch that has been independently tested by the COSC which is the official Swiss chronometer Testing Institute and a watch that meets this threshold has to be verified as as accurate for a certain number of days complication I know it sounds so negative right but it really is just any extra feature beyond telling the time so a watch might have a calendar built into it or a moon phase indicator or something like that crown the crown of your watch is the little knob that sticks out on the end that allows you to change time that little wheel bonus term bezel okay I know this one does not start with a C so it totally messes up that whole cute little alliteration thing but but bezel is also good for you to know a bezel is an outer ring on the outside of the case of your watch and often it's made out of the same metal as the case of your watch or it can be a different metal for contrast also one other term you might hear when thinking about watches is horology which believe it or not actually means the study of time because kind of sounds like some well nevermind I'm not going to touch that one how to buy a men's watch when it comes to buying a watch for yourself or finding a gift for someone else here are a few things to keep in mind first what kind of movement does it happen we've already talked about quartz mechanical and automatic movements the main thing to keep in mind is the mechanical or automatic watches generally are more expensive to buy and more expensive to maintain quartz watches are going to be better if you're on a budget and they can still look great what is the case size or diameter now this one really did on your proportions so I'd recommend going out to a jewelry store and trying on several watches to see what size watch works for you if you're a bigger guy you might want a really large and hefty watch or if you're smaller you you might also want something that matches your proportions for most guys a watch diameter of around 40 millimeters tends to be ideal though in addition to matching the watch face to your proportions you should also pay attention to the the thickness of the watch especially if you have wear tightly fitted sleeves what materials and colors is it watches come in all different types of case and face combinations and different materials and different colors some people love all black watches because they're easy to match to anything while silver and gold are a little bit more traditional I'd recommend looking at what other jewelry you usually wear so trying to find something that matches your wedding ring for instance rather than clashing with it might be a good idea what kind of bands do you want a leather band or metal links can be great for a business or professional setting fabric or canvas is great in terms of comfort and durability but style wise it generally is on the more casual end of things suede bands are a little more modern and urban and plastic or rubber bands are often used for inexpensive or sports watches with leather and other fabrics one thing to look for is whether the materials have been glued together or stitched together because often stitch materials are gonna hold together a little bit longer than they're glued counterparts what about water resistance so watches say that they're water resistant but without quantifying it it usually just means that they have some basic guards against humidity so they can handle a little bit of splashing when you're say washing your hands but you wouldn't really want to shower bathe or you know submerge the watch in a pool for instance you're gonna be around water a lot if your water your watch is actually gonna be submerged you want to get a watch that specifies the depth to which it could be submerged so something that's at least like 50 meters and then the real question how much money do you want to spend there's almost no limit to the amount of money that you can spend on a quality men's watch now literally there are mechanical watches out there that are upwards of a million bucks it's possible to find quality mechanical watch for under 300 bucks but most are going to be in the $300 to $700 range and more well you know luxury brands can be as many as thousands of dollars before we wrap up I just wanted to give another big thanks to DAEM Watches for sponsoring this video and making it possible for us to share this information with you the name DAEM is an anagram for the word MADE they create watches for ambitious men who run the journey to becoming self-made it's a watch for people who create opportunities for themselves and for others DAEM's watches are designed from scratch in Brooklyn New York they have a wide variety of designs whether you're looking for something casual or a bit more formal and they're timeless designs go really well with almost any outfit their watches use swiss-made Ronda 505 movements for precise and accurate timekeeping and their face is protected by an ultra scratch resistant sapphire crystal glass and the straps that they use on their watch feature a genuine stitched italian leather for added longevity and comfort DAEM watches have a diameter of about 40 millimeters which I think it looks good on almost any wrist their watch isn't too thick either I like the slim profile of their watch it measures just about 9 millimeters from case bottom-to-top despite all their finer touches dame watches are still really affordable for the everyday guy which I really appreciate and if you're interested in checking out dame watches you can use offer code DM 20 a check out to save 20% off and I'll go ahead and link to their website in the description below alright that's it guys if you like this video do me a favor and hit that like button now if you want to subscribe to the channel you can do that by clicking right about here if you want to just watch another Distilled Man video then you can do that by clicking right about here thanks again for watching and I'll see you soon

Channel: The Distilled Man

Views: 43,963

Keywords: DAEM watches, men's watches, how to buy a watch, choosing a men's watch, mechanical vs quartz watches, watch movements explained, watch primer, The Distilled Man

Id: yjXAYP519cs

Length: 12min 37sec (757 seconds)

Published: Tue Jun 11 2019