Seem to have a bad name on the forum BUT are their products really that bad? I was looking at the new Trident Pro.. seems to tick the boxes but I'm worried about the CW reputation. What gives?
The Tridents seem great for their price, wave dial be damned. They seem to make pretty solid watches at reasonable prices. However I've heard their QC can be hit and miss. Their (un) official forum is full of stories of bezels falling off, and other tales of woe.
They have a great warranty though so... It might be worth giving "The Rolex of the internet" a try.
Just sold my U1 so I've got an empty slot in the watch box and I've been hankering now for a while for a GMT watch suitable for holidays etc. The C60/GMT does look good..
That will never not be funny...Originally Posted by jimmbob
I like Chris Ward as a person and as a brand. They come in for flak because their designs could originally be considered too much of an homage to Rolex, Omega or B&R etc. (much like Steinhart). They also have very frequent very big sales so there's definitely a perception they aren't worth paying for as it might be half price soon.
Once they'd secured exclusive use of movements coupled with Johannes Janke coming onboard with the jumping hours, airport time change, monopusher chrono and the new moonphase, they are coming very close to the big time in my opinion, those complications are executed as well as any brand. There are some issues IMHO with the clarity/quality of their crystal when viewed at even a slight angle and also the actual diameter of watches; a 43mm three-hander white dial with a thin bezel wears enormously for a dress piece. I see the new moonphase is a very stylish and classic 40mm. Smart move...
But 'on the up' is an understatement.
I have a C11 and have had an opportunity to compare directly a Steinhart Ocean vs a new Trident. I really fancy the new Trident GMT in white also.
I think most people's objections are to the recent(ish) price rises where they feel they're not such good value as they used to be - and to the frequent sales/discounting which means you can often lose money if you're a frequent flipper.
However from my observations on quality they're a match for most things at their current price point. The Trident is noticeably better quality than the Steinhart imo and worth the premium (with a caveat that you should look to buy using one of their frequent discounts).
I really want to see where they're going with the in house movement. It's pretty chunky at 13mm for the 5 day movement examples (one of the things that puts me off) - so it will be interesting to see how they can manage to put complications on top without making the end product too bulky. Agree with the above, "one to watch" but buy carefully.
Last edited by Scepticalist; 23rd September 2015 at 08:59.
Bottom line is okay but wait for a discount/sale then... The 60 day return looks a good thing as well.
Interestingly, I have been doing a bit of research with a view to a holiday watch for next year (currently PRS 18q territory), and Chr Ward has caught my eye along with the likes of Steinhart, Longines Hydroconquest, and Glycine.
I actually like the C60 for the wave dial but am not a fan of pcl's.
Do their sales events still benefit from their generous returns policy? If so, it does sound tempting.
A friend of mine, another touch-line dad, has a real liking for CW and has half a dozen. He seems to turn up to Sunday morning training with a different one on every week! However, I am amazed at the number of complaints he has about the quality control and he seems to spend most of his life sending the watches back, then being offered something else or a free strap in compensation. I'm not sure why he puts up with it as his dialogue with customer services appears never-ending!
It has put me off a bit
As far as I know yes, I have purchased before from them and the warranty is very good (I had to send one back through fault of my own). They repaired it and even changed the strap for me.
DB9Yeti has summed it up perfectly though (To be fair I think they have moved on from the Rolex/Omega homage) a big issue for me is their rather erratic pricing then sale then discount. That being said they seem to hold value reasonably well (that seems to be a very important thing)
I was a big fan of Christopher Ward watches, and have purchased a dozen or so over the years, although I no longer own any of them. Quality control has got better by the looks of things, although about 50% of mine had issues of one sort or another (dial printing/bezel misalignment/missing ceramic on a pusher) which should have been spotted before dispatch but were all sorted no problem at all by CW. The long warranty and customer service is genuinely very good.
I'm not keen on the new Chr. Ward logo now in use, and the watch designs are as subjective as any other brand really. There will be some you like, some you don't. The new complications coming out are very interesting, but at the new RRPs, the watches are no longer the exceptional value they perhaps once were.
The CW forum will have lots more information should you require it, it is definitely a supporter of the brand as you'd expect, but can be a bit 'cliquey' at times and suffers its fair share of 'enthusiastic' new members discovering watches and the brand for the first time... There is a small core of well established, friendly and knowledgeable members though who will be able to tell you all you need to know. It can be heavily moderated though, and criticism of the brand is often not well received. The head moderator runs the CW US showroom...
Overall though, it's a 'British Brand' and so I hope they continue to build on their success. I've just found the whole ownership journey needlessly frustrating, and the marketing approach and frequent sales do leave me shaking my head a bit at times.
Very poor man's Timefactors.
I would feel insulted to be offered one as a gift - and would refuse it.
Gray
There's currently a Ł50 voucher around until end Sept. To be fair Tridents only occasionally come up with bigger discounts than this
I've a couple.
For the money (especially in their frequent sales) they're perfectly good watches.
They're never going to appeal to the watch snob who wants to show off their expensive watches, but I'd say they're a match for Steinhart (I have a couple of these too) at least, although price wise they're pulling away from the German manufacturer, so I guess they need to be.
If you can see past the stupid snobbery and like a watch (of any make), buy it and enjoy it.
You will, though, have to live with watch bores telling you your watch is a 'rip-off of an XYZ'...
Not so sure about that... Have you seen the current CW prices?
M.
Price and value are two different things.
I think rather than get dragged down the road of which brand people prefer over another, or whether you'd be insulted if you received one as a gift, it's probably better to;
1. If they make a watch you like the look of, buy it, and if you can get it in a sale event, even better
2. If it meets your expectations, great, you've got a watch as well made as anything else out there at a similar price point
3. If it's faulty, or you don't like it, return for a genuinely no quibble refund, and no harm done.
If you don't like the brand for whatever reason, then don't do any of the above and just ignore them instead of trying to justify it.
It's what I do, for all brands, and it seems to work out ok....
I think they were once decent watches for modest prices, and as such, pretty fair value. The prices are no longer modest, and while their designs are both good and original, the good designs are not original, and the original designs are not good.
There's nothing terrible about CW as such - if all their stuff was as good as the Trident Pro, it would be very good - it's just that, by and large, other brands do similar watches better for less money.
Of course but that's not what you said
Breitling Cosmonaute 809 - What's not to like?
Every Christmas I always expect one to fly out of the mid priced Christmas crackers we buy, but so far I've been lucky and one hasn't
I dealt with ChWard twice (2 watch purchases) and have only good things to say about them. The wife wears a handsome piece from their now discontinued ladies line.
I feel it's a shame that a UK company fails to make the snobbery cut we have all placed out there regarding Swiss watches. I however admit I am complicit in this...
Which one? The ultra-precise jumping hours, the patented travel time or the monopusher chronograph?
Your amusing stereotype is out of date in afraid.
I hadn't realised there was so much unsubstantiated prejudice against Christopher Ward watches.
I realise the brand came from humble beginnings, and many of their styles are derivative or just don't appeal to me, but those that have passed through my hands have been well made, accurate and decent value.
I appreciate that if you have a safe full of Rolex/Omega/Breitling etc., you are only going to wear a CW watch when slumming or cleaning out the horse box, but for some people these watches represent the pinnacle of their aspirations.
I doubt CW will ever attain even a fraction of the respect afforded to the big brands, but as they move their products upmarket they are actually producing some significantly good timepieces - and they back it up with their 60/60 guarantee and reasonable service costs, which is remarkable in the trade.
I greatly suspect that if Synergies Horlogčres had released the same watches under their own name, the very people who slate CW would line up to praise them.
Very presumptuous methinks.
It's ok not to like a particular make/model BTW.
Why is it considered watch snobbery to dislike a brand? It sounds more like folks are snobbishly looking down on those that don't like the brand.
Gray
Ever been on a 'why do Grand Seikos cost so much, it's just a Seiko' thread..?
The 'christmas cracker' label is just a little bit silly now, like labelling all Seikos as cheap beaters.
I'd be interested to know how many of those who are dismissive of CW watches have actually handled them.
Has anyone mentioned the equally boring "They remind me of an ad in the Sunday papers" comment yet?
Quite and I for one did find the Rolex joke funny.
It is only watches for thingamies sake.
Ditto if you would receive one as a present; that is simply sweet. The giver knows you like watches and buys you a popular on the up watch. What´s not to like? Possibly being a snob perhaps?!
I have never compared any watch to a Christmas cracker prize. I fully understand, at least as much as a human can, that brands evolve and many target different segments of customer.
Gray
It seems like good sense to NEVER discount anything out of hand, rather than snobbish...
I don't like all CW's watches, I don't like any watches from some manufacturers and some 'brand images' make me feel a bit queasy, but I'd never say "I'd never buy an XYZ", because they may come out with something stunning at some point that I just have to have!
Who knows, I may win or inherit a large sum and feel the need for a Patek Phillipe some day...
M
Last edited by snowman; 23rd September 2015 at 12:25.
I've never seen one nor, therefore, handled one. What's your point? I don't like the brand and have no desire to see one. Why would seeing one change my feelings for the brand?
Gray
Some posts that start with a question that is perceived to have been done to death attract the fairly instant response, 'use the search facility OP.' Other posts, like those to do with CWL do not. I find that quite interesting. If the OP had done a search and settled down with a glass or ten of something enjoyable, he would find that CWL have come in for a thorough bashing in the past and yet, in more recent years, they have come in for increasing praise. I don't think the two are in balance just yet but I see balance in the not too distant future.
I have three CWL's; a C60 Trident, a C20 Lido and a forum limited edition, based on the C10. All three wear well, keep excellent time, are still covered under the exemplary 5 year warranty and attract positive comment whenever I get into a conversation with a fellow watch-nut. The guys at CWL have made some excruciating statements, 'the rolex of the internet' being one of the worst yet but I don't see that as anything more than a throw-away statement intended to provoke discussion and shake things up a bit.
The level of faults that are reported over on the CWL forum appear to be very high and there are cases of owners having to return their watches more than once but the counterbalance to that agreeably poor statistic is the customer service, which still shines out. I recall the percentage of faults compared to sales is less than 1%, as reported by CWL and that that percentage has been questioned by members of the CWL forum. My personal opinion is CWL need to get to grips with their QC and drive this percentage down but if the percentage of faults is somewhere between 1% and 5%, it is still a low percentage.
I have read just as many gripes on this forum about other brands and have also seen how my mother-in-law has had to put up with shoddy service from Rolex, in relation to her Datejust that keeps time about as well as the clock on her local church and also how my girl has had to send her Cartier back to Cartier so many times that she has forgotten what it feels like to wear her Santos. Infuriating for sure but our collective view is that there are more important things in life to get bent out of shape over.
Whatever people think, CWL are raising their game and have a range of watches to suit pretty much every taste. I would exhort the OP to join the CWL forum and enjoy immersing himself in the other side of the debate.
Presumably because if someone said they don't like a particular brand or style of watch it would be based upon some informed reason (tried one, saw one etc)
I think his point is we can safely ignore your views on the matter.
M
Breitling Cosmonaute 809 - What's not to like?
There is not a single watch brand I've come across that I like ALL their watches. That would be crazy.
But there are brands that I like and have no issue with them producing watches that aren't for me - And there are brands that I don't like that even if they produced a watch I quite like from a design perspective, I wouldn't buy because I don't like the brand.
This strikes me as normal, rational behaviour.
Wanting to try to like a brand to accommodate a possible purchase strikes me as demented.
Gray
You presume too much
Gray
A British brand trying to do something to compete with Swiss and Japanese manufacturers? A laudable idea, and something we should all be proud of.
That said, I struggle to like any of their designs. The Trident is close, but the Queen of Hearts hands and the awful logo spoil it. They've also upped their prices too much to remain a default choice, and their marketing just doesn't make it an aspirational brand irrespective of your income. Compare that to TF which does, and that's not fawning to our host but rather on account of everything from design to vfm, movement to understated quality.
And Jesus, I've got their webpage open on the screen and those green and purple dial - my eyes!
They are close to getting it right with some of the pieces, but IMHO they're not attractive enough in any guise to pay the asking price, and at over 1k for some they really aren't appealing. The movement inside may be great, but that's not enough. There are plenty of superb alternatives which would come first.
I wish them luck. It's not an easy market to succeed in.
If those are your feelings then I doubt it would but not having handled them may mean that you have a preconceived idea that may differ from the actual product.
Why would not liking the style or look be changed by handling a watch?
He said he'd never seen one, so how does he know what they look like?
Anyway, this is all getting a little silly.
OP, if you like a watch CW make, then it'll probably be a decent watch and if you have problems you will find CW's aftercare much more responsive than some 'premium' brands, who seem to think they've done you a favour allowing you to own one of their watches, whether it works or not!
You may find similar watches for more or less money.
If you like the new Trident Pros consider the Steinhart Ocean 1 (or 2) although they're a little more Rolex lookalike.
M.
Last edited by snowman; 23rd September 2015 at 12:49.
There is a picture of one of their models in this thread!.
Please don't think I am bashing the brand - it's a great story from the early days, but I do not like a single one of them nor do I think they are junk.
Well presumably, he averted his eyes to avoid being offended
M.
Nor would the brand image change.
Furthermore there is no reason needed for like/dislike, personal preferences, prejudiced opinion and snobbery. That does however cross the border if it is translated into factual statement; thát needs a foundation.
I do kind of see Grays point, sometimes and for whatever reason, you just don't like a brand.
I don't really like Invicta, but fortunately I don't seem to like any Invicta watches either, not that I've handled any.. (And not that I'm comparing CW to Invicta you understand).
I think for any watch company there is the product and the brand. Despite liking some of the products, I still struggle with the CW brand/image thing.
It's human nature regarding luxury goods I suppose, but I'm sure it will change over time as long as CW don't go down the rabbit hole...
Good example.
I loath the brand, shudder about most of their designs yet they do offer watches with COSC certificate at very low prices and WIS-dom hates them só much it becomes inverted snobbery to wear a COSC one bought for peanuts used. Preferrably either in leopard theme or with meteorite dial...
That's my main gripe, I can't shake the "Shopping channel" vibe. Which no doubt says more about me than anything else.
OK - invoking the word Invicta does actually make the very well :)
While I think CW are in a different league, each to their own.
Invicta and CW have the same lack of appeal. You can put Sector, TW Steel, and U boat in the same group for me too.
For the hard of thinking, I have seen pictures of CW but not seen one live or handled one ;-)
Gray
That sodding ChRwArD logo can bugger off as well.
gray hit the nail on the head above - I don't want to own any of those brands listed when there are much nicer alternatives in the same price range*
*nicer to me. It's an opinion.
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