Boutique dive watches made in China - quality control vs major brands ?

I was thinking of expanding my watch collection to maybe include a watch or 2 from boutique brands ( such as Helson, Boschett, Deep blue etc ) - some of which may be made in China (?)

... while doing some 'review' searching here and on other watch forums .. I picked up some concerns / potential issues around QC and waterproofness ( interesting thread on one forum about Helson .. ).

Is the claimed waterproofness of small outsourced boutique brands (which may be made in China) as rigorously tested and certified as it would be for more major ( or niche) brands made in Switzerland, Japan or ( say) Germany? (FYI : I am totally confident of my Precista dive watch )

I have seen some rather mixed views on QC regarding brands such as Helson ... I wasnt sure what if any experience people have had on here ? what insight could be offered based on real ( diving) experience with various brands

.. thanks

You could ask the companies about their QC/pressure testing directly.

In the past i have dived with a Rolex Sea dweller and a Breitling Colt Superocean Professional and more recently,one of Eddies finest an 18A.
I have total confidence in any of Eddies.
I am drawn to military and dive watches,and have looked at Helson in the past but i too have read about the quality issues.
I have also dived with cheaper brands,such as Citizen ecodrive( mononcoque model) cant remember the model,and G shocks with no issues.
If i bought a New dive watch,to be used for its intended purpose,and it ended up being flooded,i would lose confidence in the brand.
I was a Sport diver,but i would never solely rely on a watch,that's why i always dived with a computer and a watch for backup.
I dived in this country mainly which has Zero visibility,some of the time i dived sea,quarries,lakes and rivers right through the year, when there was snow on the ground.
Diving is a dangerous and harsh environment and Cut Corners at your Peril!

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Originally Posted by barryw

In the past i have dived with a Rolex Sea dweller and a Breitling Colt Superocean Professional and more recently,one of Eddies finest an 18A.
I have total confidence in any of Eddies.
I am drawn to military and dive watches,and have looked at Helson in the past but i too have read about the quality issues.
I have also dived with cheaper brands,such as Citizen ecodrive( mononcoque model) cant remember the model,and G shocks with no issues.
If i bought a New dive watch,to be used for its intended purpose,and it ended up being flooded,i would lose confidence in the brand.
I was a Sport diver,but i would never solely rely on a watch,that's why i always dived with a computer and a watch for backup.
I dived in this country mainly which has Zero visibility,some of the time i dived sea,quarries,lakes and rivers right through the year, when there was snow on the ground.
Diving is a dangerous and harsh environment and Cut Corners at your Peril!

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Agree with your comments ... I use a Suunto dive computer .. watch is merely a timing backup / and useful for safety stop timing .. but I dont want to dive with an expensive(ish) watch I could not trust - flooding a $700-1,000 dive watch would not be amusing

I reckon Casio waterproofing must be quite good - when I first learnt to dive ( no dive computer, just depth meter and timer ) .. I also took my £10 casio watch, rated to '30m' .. obviously not a real dive watch.

I took it down to over 30m with no leaks .. quite amazing really.

recently have been using an old G shock G314-RL as backup for diving and yacht races.. quite a tough old watch

I have a Helson Skindiver and have been very impressed with it, good looks and very well made, certainly no visible quality issues, just the opposite.

I heard about the waterproofing from somewhere, so took it down Timpsons (yes the shoe people) and got it tested to 50m and it was fine.
The other one I heard about was the Brass/Bronze debacle which affected a good few boutiques.

If you are a pro-diver then no - desk diver fine, get it checked before a summer holiday.

Can't speak for every boutique brand, but my Armida is certainly standing up well to some serious diving abuse.

I think all the Helson waterproof issues stem from 1 guy in 1 thread on WUS. No problems with mine. Though I have to say that the Helson CS took a bit of a tumble when one of their regular guys became ill (the owner?). Recently it took them over a week to reply to a basic question and 6 days to get a reply to the followup. Not sure what to make of that.

The thing with production in China is that it's all down to the QC of the brand. Many big brands produce their stuff in China as well, sometimes even in the same factories as the small boutique brands.

To the OP, why the prejudice against 'made in China'? Most things are made in China these day and surely quality has more to do with brand QC than country of Origin.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by redsnapper

To the OP, why the prejudice against 'made in China'? Most things are made in China these day and surely quality has more to do with brand QC than country of Origin.

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.. not really prejudiced against China - however the problems I had read about did relate to watches made there .. hence the Q.

I have experience outsourcing hi-tech electronics manufacturing to China - in my experience there have been some systemic issues around the way contract manufacturing plants manage QC and procurement... not saying this is widespread .. but does raise questions

Just want to make it clear,that i have nothing against Helson,i would have one tomorrow as they make some beautiful watches,as does some of the smaller micro brands.
What i would like to know is does any manufacturer,individually pressure test each dive watch?
The issue i have with some of these micro brands is customer service back up,and will they be here tomorrow,when i need spares!
This is where i feel Eddy's service is first rate.

Quality is pretty good IMO for the prices.
The question about WR is fair and my belief is not all of them test every single watch.
By and large customer service from major micro brands gets glowing reviews on WUS. LOL at 'major micro'.

There's an ISO for divers' watches: ISO 6425.

Buying a watch that is tested to that standard should ensure that it's a good'un.

I've owned many Chinese micro brand divers and have had a couple of issues with Helson, one was a bezel insert missing some lume, this was replaced free of charge.

Also i recieved a 24mm shark mesh for a watch with a 22mm lug distance, this was also replaced free of charge.

Then i had a timing issue with one, the watch was sent back and replaced, but with a free upgrade of a Sapphire bezel insert.

The bezel insert was sent to me free of charge, as was the Shark mesh, i also received a free Cuda (Isofrane style) in Orange with the Mesh.

They also refunded the £36.00 UPS shipping that i had to spend to send the watch with the timing issue back for replacement.

The best micro Chinese brand that i have experienced is Armida, there watches are excellent.

Both Armida and Helson are manufactured at the Same factory and shipped direct from there.

I was always under the impression that an ISO rated watch,was individually tested before being shipped.

had 2 Helsons, both had to go back ; The skindiver crown came out, literally, and the Tortuga had a mark on the dial. Both sorted quickly by Helson / Fullswing, but put me off a bit.