Podcast Episode #2 Quartz vs. Mechanical: Are women getting a raw deal?

Ranch Racer and Perpetual Girl kick off Episode #2 with PG talking about the fact that she feels the need to clean off the ranch manure, take a shower, and make herself “presentable” while recording a Podcast. Double R is TOTALLY cool with that! Remember, a shower a week whether you need it or not. 😉

Then the duo jump into the wrist checks. First up we have PG who started the day out with one of her Citizen solar powered watches, but then switched to her Omega Speedmaster 38 to, believe it or not, time her livestock! Double R is sporting his Seiko SRP779 Pepsi bezel “Turtle” that PG got him for his birthday. He loves the watch and its lume so much that it ended up being his go-to watch for bedtime.

On to the topic at hand. PG kicks things off by discussing how she feels that in many cases today, women get less value for their dollar in the watch market. The issue possibly stems from the fact that there are fewer women watch wearers who know, or frankly care, what’s inside the watch. Double R then gives a very high level overview of the difference between mechanical and quartz watches.

The pair hit on the “Quartz Crisis” of the 70s and 80s, and then the rebirth of the mechanical watch industry. Quartz movements tend to be cheaper plastic affairs, while even the most basic mechanical movement is a thing of beauty in comparison. Quartz has accuracy and minimal servicing needs going for it though.

The meat of the discussion focuses on the industry’s lack of affordable mechanical watches for women. A $4,000 stainless steel Cartier powered by a basic quartz movement seems a bit ridiculous. Where’s the value? Meanwhile brands like Oris, Tudor, and Breitling seem to be getting it and coming out with affordable, smaller mechanical offerings that most certainly will appeal to serious female collectors.

Episode Links

PG’s wrist check: www.omegawatches.com/en-us/watch-om…32430385055001

PG’s Citizen Solar: www.amazon.com/Citizen-Eco-Drive…veASIN=B01KVVW8GQ

Double R’s wrist check: www.amazon.com/Seiko-SRP779-Pros…veASIN=B01N42DVJR

Breitling Navitimer 1 Automatic 38: www.breitling.com/br-en/watches/na…8/A17325211C1P1/

Tudor Black Bay 32: www.tudorwatch.com/watches/new-bla…-32/m79580-0003

Oris Diver’s Sixty-Five 36mm: www.oris.ch/en/watch/oris-diver…747-4055-07-8-17-18

Cartier Panthere: www.cartier.com/en-us/collections…artier-watch.html

Follow the show on Instagram at @lovenwatches. Follow Double R at @ranchracer and PG at @perpetualgirl. Stock Media provided by GrantTregellasMusic / Pond5

ranchracer

Perpetualgirl and I are just your basic obsessed watch geeks who enjoy bringing our perspectives on watches and the watch industry to other like-minded geeks.

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3 thoughts on “Podcast Episode #2 Quartz vs. Mechanical: Are women getting a raw deal?

  1. It seems pretty dismissive to write off high accuracy quartz and better quality quartz watches that you openly admit to not knowing much about. My wife and I have a great collection of Citizen Eco-Drive, Campanola, Seiko, Grand Seiko, and Credor watches, and we’ve dumped nearly all of our vintage mechanicals, as it was just a pain to have to wind and set them when we’re getting ready for work. Time being a valuable commodity, it’s far easier to pick up a quartz that you know is going to accurate. Grab and go is of higher priority to us than a ‘heirloom’ for kids we don’t want or have..I was hoping to find a more balanced view in a podcast aimed at watch collectors like my wife and myself, but after only the 2nd episode, I’m just hearing more of the same ignorant mechanical movement bias that is so pervasive in the horological community. It’s a shame you don’t give credit to some of the wonderfully finished dials and cases in Campanola, Grand Seiko, and Credor quartz watches that will certainly last generations and could be an heirloom as much as any of the other watch brands you mentioned.

    1. Thanks for your comments, and we’re sorry that you’re not enjoying the show. We certainly hope you’ll continue to give us a chance. If you do, you’ll discover that we are in fact big proponents of all types of watches at all price points and in all styles, including quartz. We both actually have large quartz collections.

      What we don’t like, and will continue to speak out against, is when a high end “fashion” brand charges an insane amount of money for a watch with a very cheap off-the-shelf quartz movement inside and brands it as a “women’s” piece when the same piece in a larger size with a high quality mechanical movement marketed as a “men’s” piece sells for the same money, or in some cases less. They justify the asking price based either solely on their name, or by adding a bunch of precious gems to an existing men’s watch and selling it as a piece of jewelry rather than as a high quality time piece. We feel that it’s disingenuous at best, and robbery at worst, and it does not give female collectors the credit or the product that they so rightly deserve. I don’t believe we ever once mentioned or spoke negatively about any of the brands you specified in your comment

      We have a tremendous amount of respect for brands such as Seiko, Grand Seiko, Credor, Citizen, etc. A Grand Seiko quartz movement is a thing of beauty that’s been custom designed and built by a craftsman which easily justifies its asking price. This is much MUCH different from a fashion brand that sources a cheap off-the-shelf quartz movement, throws it in a stainless steel case, slaps some diamonds on the bezel and then charges $10,000 for it. We own several Seiko quartz and mechanical pieces, along with a Grand Seiko, and if you follow us on social media or listen to later episodes you’ll note the massive amount of credit that we give to Seiko for their incredible dials, which frankly are some of the best in the industry. Heck we even defend INVICTA when most blogs and Podcasts in the industry do nothing but deride the brand!

      Again, we thank you for your comments and respect the opinions of all listeners. We hope you’ll give us another chance. If you do, I think you’ll find that we’re very welcoming of all watch types, all brands, and of ALL collectors.

      1. We’ve only heard the first two podcasts so far, and I guess PG’s comments early in this episode about cheap plastic quartz movements turned us off, Yes, we certainly agree with your assessment about designer brands that overcharge for low quality movements/cases, and we’re not fans of low end fashion brands that use cheap quartz movements that will barely survive to the first battery change. But I do believe there are collectors, not unlike me and my wife, who put behind us the hassle of winders or setting/winding mechanical watches and moved on to equally finely finisned, high quality quartz alternatives. Yes, I own a Spring Drive, but just the one, and thankfully, with a 3 day reserve, it usually makes it back on my wrist before it stops running. Not having a case full of mechanicals has less to do with the need for servicing, it has everything to do with the ease of grab and go quartz, and I think it would serve your listeners well if you spent some time covering the upper end of the quartz market.

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