Of the two watches shown, I would go with the Tudor.
I am amazed by the number of people who would choose the Tudor over a Titanium GS Spring Drive GMT!
The mind boggles.
Tudor between these two, or some other GS, this is ugly, IMHO
Yes that was my reasoning too. Quite a few GS are shall we say garish - this being one of them. The Spring Drive Titanium Chrono being another with the chrono pushers which are way too big. Had the GS been the Spring Drive Snowflake - then it would have been different.
I'd vote for a GS, just not that one
Love the tudor, am thinking about it myself though haven't had the chance to try it on.
I reckon that if the OP can really get one for £3900 then he should snap it up! Correct me if I'm wrong, but I would have thought that getting a SBGE015 for the equivalent of £3900 anywhere would be quite difficult. It always had a higher RRP than the SBGE001 I think (which can be had for the equivalent of about £3900 in the USA).
Just one comment to the OP: If you are buying this from the USA and having it shipped into the UK, don't forget to budget for the VAT @ 20%, so about £780 (plus £15 or so for the courier's fee). If your buying price of £3900 includes the VAT then definitely, definitely buy it!
That's part of the joy of owning a GS, your average TAG Heuer wearer will assume that their timepiece is far superior to that 'cheap Seiko' on your wrist, when in fact YOU KNOW the opposite is true. I've only had one GS, it was the SBDG029 Diver Spring Drive the quality was amazing and when I let non WIS types handle it, even they were shocked at the quality. I wouldn't buy a GS new though, buy used and it shouldn't lose too much money.
I thought I should give you all a quick update. I decided against the Grand Seiko in the end as I tried on the steel version and found it a bit big for my girlie wrist. Also the fact that I wasn't able to see it in person before spending that amount of money was another negative. That left the Tudor, which I like but I just couldn't bring myself to put a deposit down for it. However I stumbled across this limited edition Grand Seiko ref Sbgx089. Yes it's a quartz but that doesn't bother me. The proportions I know will be a comfortable fit on my wrist, anti magnetic and I really like the touch of gold on the dial/seconds hand. Currently on its way to me from Japan and I ended up spending a lot less than I thought I was going to.
Goodness, that GS GMT is utterly lovely. That would be my choice by a large margin. Very special. I am quite envious....I want one.
Sadly, for me, Tudor is the lower grade version of Rolex . The Grand Seiko isn't the lower version of anything, especially with spring drive..
Good choice and actually closer in looks to the Tudor than the original GS you were looking at so makes a better comparison.
Congratulations...I think you will be delighted when that big box arrives from Japan. Very few people regret buying a Grand Seiko. And you will never meet another person wearing the same watch. Like the red font too, unusual for a GS.
It could be argued badge snobbery, of course, but no way I'd spend that much money on a Seiko GS, tech marvel or not.
The test, for me, is listening to someone asking "what car/watch/bike etc do you have", and where the simple answer has to be explained further to a layperson.
e.g. I have a Lexus. But it's a Lexus LFA. You know, the supercar one off Top Gear that is £350,000.
It's not that the answer has to be a "badge", more that it shouldn't have to be explained further.
At that point, the mystique has gone and, to me, it's no longer sought after.
Last edited by Siac; 5th April 2016 at 11:04.
I see your point, but I always underplay that sort of thing.
For me a Lexus LFA would be idea (in this respect anyway) in that I'd enjoy saying "I've got a Lexus" and having the other person imagine it was an i200.
If I had a Jaguar XJ220, I'd say "I've got a Jaguar" and let them think it was an old X-Type, similarly I'd say "A Lancia", if it was a Stratos.
It wouldn't work with a Ferrari or a Lamborghini, of course.
If I knew the person was really interested in cars, I'd say an "LFA", "XJ220" or "Stratos" knowing they'd know what that was, but for the general public, flaunting a brand name just sounds a bit vulgar to me...
Sadly I only own a Mazda
M
I can see both sides too. I like the reference to the interested parties where you'd say "Seiko GS" or some such, that makes sense.
Hmm, the vulgarity of the flaunting though... :)
Why else do people buy a watch that costs thousands, rather than a £9.99 Casio from Argos - it's a flaunt by simply wearing it, no?
Else why buy it in the first place?
I bought my GS for my personal pleasure of wearing it. So personal snobbery but no flaunting to others. I like that to them it's just another Seiko and i only seek to educate if they specifically ask. Anything else might lead to a reduction in scarcity which simply wouldn't do
I bought mine from a dealer off Global Rakuten.
I recommend Omicron watches for the model your after and they ship to the UK:
http://www.omicronwatch.com/#!produc...9-2b37d58ea2e7
I know Higuchi and Seiya Japan are held in high regard on this forum but I don't believe they ship GS to Europe any more.
Higuchi may state that publicly; the reality is rather different.l. My new GS sbgx117 is due to be posted on Thursday. I imagine Seiya might be equally helpful. I find the' block' on European sales especially distasteful because the European dealers don't even offer some of these watches.
Last edited by paskinner; 5th April 2016 at 13:19.
For one's own pleasure? I don't expect anyone to be impressed by my watches, cars, shoes, clothes, pens, knives, coffee machines, whatever...
I'm as equally baffled why anyone would buy things in the hope of impressing other people as you seem to be as to why people would buy things EXCEPT to impress others...
M
That stuff is only important if you are in effect buying to please other people or improve how they see you.
If you buy for your own pleasure then it just doesn't matter.
"Yes, it's just a Seiko" is an adequate answer for me.
For personal pleasure and satisfaction.
Last edited by markrlondon; 5th April 2016 at 15:17.
Because I can and I want one for ME
If someone thinks I'm a flash so and so for wearing it, fine
If someone thinks I've more money than sense, fine
If someone likes the look of it, fine
If someone hates the look of it, fine
If someone is jealous of my disposable income, they should have worked harder at school and once employed, worked smarter
Because I have an interest in watches and Grand Seiko make excellent watches. You could argue for the money that there is nothing better out there. Out of interest can I ask where your point of view is coming from? As a member of a watch forum I imagine you have an interest in such things and would therefore buy watches based on more than the brand on the dial?
That's good info. I will keep that in mind if I ever buy a Grand Seiko in future. What I find ridiculous is the RRP for GS in the UK compared to Asia. It is crazy that even if VAT added you can buy the same watch from another continent for a considerable saving compared to an AD based in the UK.
A minor point. Wouldn't all Quartz watches be 'anti-magnetic' ? What is there to magnetise?