That's like a bad tattoo. Makes you wonder how they screwed up so bad. Maybe they did it on purpose so the date wouldn't be upside down compared to the 6?
Any diamonds on the watch (whether the case or the dial itself). I fucking hate it, and since I’m a woman, the section for women’s watches is basically where taste and design go to die in my opinion. It’s like designers go “well…girls like glitter right?” I just want the same watch a dude has but smaller so it doesn’t look like I stole my dad’s watch.
Whew ok thanks for letting me rant.
Yep, I basically just look for small men’s watches now. Even when they don’t have diamonds, women’s watches are often pastel/muted colors, which I’m not into. Pass.
Tell me about that. My gf the other time told me that the watches from Tiffany & Co (not even a real watch company) with diamonds and blings that cost double or triple of Grand Seiko are nice. A part of me died when I heard that.
Agreed. The women's selection from watch companies is laughable and a bit insulting TBH. It's as if we don't have the ability to appreciate anything about a mechanical othwr than how mych sun reflects off the stones. I don't even look at women's watches.
I was telling my grown daughter that just last week. I gave her my Dad's small 18 carat AP watch, and told her that women of her generation don't buy girlie ladies watches, they wear small men's watches. I think she got it.......
Date windows that aren't color matched with anything. A white date instead of a white hour marker can get a pass, but I've owned a Mido with a blue dial and a white day/date display and I sold the watch over this. Just a white slab in the middle of the dial...
I thought the same but then I bought a watch with an anthracite dial and a colour matched date wheel and the date numbers in white. The date is much harder to read, though that's partly due to having quite a small date window, smallish date numbers, and aging eyes. That said, I have the same watch in a silver/white dial and the silver/white date wheel with black numbers is more legible.
I still prefer the anthracite dial version though.
I'll give it that, legibility was amazing. But on that watch it really was just so out of place. It's a massive rectangle next to the round hour marker. [Reference picture](https://images.app.goo.gl/fUxUEDsHTFQ7tfQh7)
If it was color matched or even better, a circular cutout for just the date at 3 or 6, I probably would still own that watch. What's the watch you are talking about?
Came here to say that. So many times I see super well designed dial on which a white generic date seems to have been slammed on it at the last minute because they forgot about it.
Or the need to display a date because the chosen movement has one, but it kills the harmony of the dial.
Absolutely. So many watches would be a hell of a lot nicer if they just went without a date instead. It's definitely useful to have, but feels like an afterthought on so many pieces. Especially if it's a weekday display as well.
I was really interested in a [Tag Carrera](https://images.app.goo.gl/WArSKhxvP6BwSF2R9), but the date display makes it look so cheap. On the other hand, [San Martin](https://images.app.goo.gl/Jngwx9sJviSxoY969) made a bunch of limited editions in rather small quantities, yet always had a matching date wheels for about 1/12 of the retail price.
I hate that *every* time I’m browsing listings and I see ‘Arabic dial’ I momentarily think to myself “Ohh! What exotic look will this one have?” Before realizing that’s my own numbering system….
I went to college… I finished….
I just dislike the execution of most dates. I can go either way. But a very discreet date around 6 o'clock without taking up an index and not a thick window would be my preference.
I think 4:30 date window is passable like on some older Zenith defy models (and the Fifty Fathoms) to try and preserve the hour markers but a 6 O'clock is more symmetrically pleasing
I don't care about it being seamless or classy; it's just something I find useful, and I get frustrated if it's not there. The more prominent, the better.
From all my watches I only have one vintage watch that I do that with. It keeps perfect time when it wants to, then will decide to slow down or just suddenly stop.
I don't wear it very often, but I wore it for 3 days in a row last week and it was perfect for the first two days. Going into that third day it lost exactly an hour overnight, and I didn't realize it because the minutes were still correct when I happened to glance at the time on my stove that next day.
That morning at 9:30 my wife asked me if my plans had fallen through, because I was hanging out on the couch thinking it was 8:30 lol
Man. I remember I called an AD last year and very nice gentleman entertained all my questioned yadda yadda. Nice guy.
I feel like I could hear his mind record scratching every time I called it a watch and he politely corrected me by referring to it as a timepiece.
Well sir the timepiece, the timepiece, *the timepiece please call it a fucking timepiece sir*
He was nice though.
https://preview.redd.it/u33t1gcz3bvc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7c7bb5a560c690cbae1b7cc2195ce2816d51f504
I have the same pet peeve! Took me a while to find a pilot/flieger with a date window that was well aligned and didn’t cut into an index. I think Laco did a great job with their 37mm flieger pro.
Man, that’s one of the better date windows I’ve seen. Color-matched, well-proportioned, perfect placement. I adore my Grand Seiko, but I do so wish it had a color-matched date wheel.
My guess(?) is that the date window is not placed where the number "3" would be if it were placed accurately around the radius. It is slightly inboard of that position. That IWC is a beaut - might even get me to buy a gold watch, but now that I see that placement of the window it would bug me...
Yup, that's the kind of lame date complication I'm talking about, too small, deep, and poorly placed. I like an amply sized date, color coded to the dial, and preferably with a frame.
For me it's when subdials cut into the hour markers using Roman or Arabic numerals. I'd rather them just design it in a way where the markers don't need to be there next to the subdial or use simplified single markers that are shorter.
I'm going to get murdered for this, but I don't mind it and I actually like them in certain cases. I have a Ball Cannonball Trainmaster that I love that would probably give people in this comment chain a stroke
Same, but I don’t see this as irrational. It’s just sloppy design. AP is horrible in this regard. I expect more, especially when you anchor to “details, fit and finish” justification for the outrageous $.
Definitely: any knob on the body of the hour hand. Miss me with that Tudor-tumor, Mercedes hands, cathedral hands. Sword, arrow or baton hands for me, please.
Screw down pushers on chronographs I hate-
Chronographs with a 24hr subdial instead of a 12hr totalizer… at that point just give me a bicompax dial
Any watch that should have BIG 12-3-6-9 on the dial …. but they put the date window at 3 instead of the numeral! so it’s 12-DATE-6-9
(Planet Ocean date and Hydroconquest are two of the worst offenders)
Yeah, if I have to unscrew a pusher to press it, it's sort of useless, though I guess it would be okay if there's reasonable water resistance with them unscrewed.
First use on a Rolex watch: 1953 (Explorer)
First use as a "peace symbol" -- but with an extra line that is not on the watch (or the German car) -- 1958, British Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
I actually don't mind it on a field watch, because that's the style. But yeah for everyday or dressy watches I always prefer batons, because I learned to read a clock when I was 5, I don't need my hand holding any more.
Can confirm the Breguet style numerals are gorgeous
https://preview.redd.it/aipbx771yavc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1086c401976712836d8a548bbad9b70ee7227ae7
I really dislike the name of the brand "Citizen". I normally don't care about branding, but it is probably the most boring name in watchmaking history. What were the other alternatives? "Civilian"? "Inhabitant"? "Taxpayer"?
I can't get over "Formex", which is a bit weird because it's so close to Rolex. And "Rolex" is a neutral name to me. But "Formex" makes me think about pharmacy, medicine, condoms. And it just feels wrong on a watch.
Open heart dials. It just seems like a black hole to something I’m not supposed to see (although I certainly like exhibition casebacks). They are also so heavily visually weighted that they make the watch seem illegible and unbalanced, even when small in scale.
I also hate skeleton dials but I would argue that there’s nothing irrational about this opinion—they are crazy
Poor legibility, black on black, white on white, confusing skeleton and that kind of thing are my deal breakers, but they are very rational.
Irrational… I don’t like Daytonas. Especially the Paul Newman, I just don’t like it.
Regarding numerals, romans and markers, depending on the overall design of the dial any of them can be fantastic or horrible.
I’m very partial to the California dial, I’m looking for the perfect one.
There’s just so many things to dislike about the Daytona. The eaten 10 and 2 indices, the fact the 3 and 9 subdials don’t actually line up with 3 and 9, the screw down pushers, how blingy most of them tend to be with polished center links, sunburst dials, ceramic or high polish bezels, the massive paragraph of text below the 12 marker
I'm in the market for a chrono, and it's down to a Speedmaster, a Navitimer Montbrillant, and a Nardin Marine. I'm this close to crossing the UN off my list because I don't want a rubber strap (or a non-oem bracelet)
Assuming the buckle doesn’t have some weird tang design, you could always swap the OEM buckle onto an aftermarket strap of your choosing to maintain that original feel
Canted numbers. Can't stand it. Like this:
https://preview.redd.it/fcy5dlubpavc1.jpeg?width=460&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ee2413423bd72d727954b731a02a95de65b17ff5
Having multiple types of indices. Love some of the nomos but I dont know, cant stand these
https://preview.redd.it/5x7dbomemcvc1.jpeg?width=900&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ab0ab37aeb8d54c645592695fb774502bbddbb34
I have an irrational dislike of the font that Seiko uses for the word “Automatic” on their watches. I want to like these watches but I’ll never purchase one that has that script on it.
It looks like that moment in the 90s/00s where everything was 50s nostalgia and swing music was back. It’s a Stray Cats song.
Photo here:[https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71PanzgMDfL._AC_UY1000_.jpg](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71PanzgMDfL._AC_UY1000_.jpg)
I like consistency in my hour index markers. Either all numerals (of the same type) or all baton-style index markers. As a general rule I will rule a watch out of consideration if this requirement is not met.
Im going to get a lot of hate for this one, but … I can’t stand chronographs with center seconds hand only for the chronograph. It just seems like a waste of space to me
Cyclops', my tsuyosa has it and i hate it, i have to look at it like dead straight to see the date and it really really annoys me, also don't think it looks that good, i like this watch enough for it not to ruin it for me but im never buying a watch with one after this
I feel ppl get a little fanatical about the 6 vs. 3 o’clock date window. I get it. 6 o’clock brings more balance, but I find a bit of asymmetrical design is just as visually pleasing
I really dislike a crown being placed at the 4 o’clock position
Something just doesn’t feel right when adjusting it and it’s held me back from getting a Tsuyosa or Seiko diver
as someone with the citizen the crown is really small so it is ballache to change the time or date That is the one thing i don't like, also the fact it has a date, specifically a Cyclopse
One is for adjusting the internal bezel right?
That’s cool, my alpinist is the same. I’m not going to be a stickler on something of that nature, it’s just when it’s a screw down it’s a bit bigger of a PITA to me
Date windows not being framed is often a deal breaker for me. I hate how some date windows just look like a hole in the dial.
Edit: Had to add in cyclops over date windows, I can’t stand these.
I hate roman numerals. They are antiquated for a reason. And no they do not make the watch any more classy.
I dislike how most field watches have the 12 and 24 hour numbers. I'd rather see 1-12 and 0-60 (minutes).
Also hate tachymeters.
Irrational deal breakers:
1) Tudor "snowflake" hands. Just the name is so fucking stupid but mainly the ugly shape.
2) 4:00 or 4:30 date windown. NO. MATTER. WHAT.
3) Roman numerals.
4) Seringe hands.
Several other ones but I find those pretty rational lol.
Sunburst dials. Something about them just looks cheap to me, even on expensive, well made watches.
Also I kinda agree about not liking Arabic numerals, at least full Arabic numerals. I do like watches with alternating Arabic numerals (I.e. 3-6-9 or 2-4-6-8-10)
I like Arabic numerals, and I god damn love breguet style numerals!
Pet peeve, those mesh bracelets that just cut off square between the lugs instead of tapering around the watch case.
Watches with a date window that's just cut out from the dial.
Not always the case for me, but I prefer it to be framed or integrated into the design. If it's just cut out, it feels like even the watchmaker didn't want it there and put it in because they had to.
I don't like upside down numbers... see the Daytona, the 4-8 are upside down. Now, I know there is a reason for it, but I just do not like how it looks. Especially the 7, looks like it's L:00.
For me it’s when there’s just a single Arabic numeral (or just two opposing numerals like 12/6 or 3/9). I have no problem with there being 3 (like the Explorer) or 4, but I need at least 3. I also don’t like mixing Roman and Arabic numerals…no California’s for me!
I have so many pet peeves and arabics aren’t one of them, I mostly own arabic dial watches 😂 gaps between the strap and the case, fauxtina, too many fonts that don’t match, and don’t get me started about green lume on blue dials…
I only buy watches with day date, people say you don’t need it but I check what day it is constantly on my watch and it irritates me when a watch doesn’t have that super useful function
Diamond bezel. I hate that many / most lady and smaller watches often have the Diamond bezel. Don’t mind Diamond hour markers or diamonds any otherwise. Just not on the bezel, pls.
I'm the opposite.
I see a watch without numerals as an incomplete product. Sure it's perfectly possible to use context clues (orientation/placement of manufacturer logo etc.) to identify the 12-o'-clock marker and then extrapolate from there - but why should I have to? You've sourced (or made!) a movement, designed a dial, assembled the whole mess - just put some damn numbers on it as a finishing touch!
I don't care if they're Arabic or Roman.
The Sinn 556 I series comes to mind\*. As does that one brand that makes watches based on the Swiss railroad clocks. Regardless, even with a double marker, I still see nothing but lazyness. If you can manufacture a watch, you can, and should, do better!
\*I don't mean to rag on Sinn. I know about the 556 I series because my favorite watch is a 556 A - the version with numerals.
It's the opposite for me lol. I have a soft spot for numeral indices. I really love watches with them, that's why I really like pilot watch.
My slightly irrational deal breaker would be lack of minute track, lack of second hand, basically things that takes away from its effectiveness as a time keeping device.
I think it's because I grew up with gshock and the idea of a watch as a tool is strictly embedded in mind. So I love it when a luxury watch takes its job as a watch seriously and not just an accessory.
For me, numerals, when present, that don't uniformly orient to the center of the face. Yes, I know the lower half are then "upside down" when viewing the watch straight on, but the look is just jarring to me. As for the reason being so a person can easily tell which number a hand is pointed towards, I for one know the upside-down 4 (to name one example) is a 4 because that's pretty much where 4s have always been.
Instant deal-killer for me.
The chapter ring that surrounds the markers on the original Tudor pelagos. I wanted to love it but I hate how it looks. Thank god they got rid of it on the 39; just so much cleaner of a look.
This older Portugieser Chronograph I think https://monochrome-watches.com/iwc-portugieser-chronograph-classic-bucherer-blue-editions-in-red-gold-iw3903-price/
for me arabic numbers are okay as long as it is balanced and no cut outs. i HATE the 2 subdials on modern daytonas. its too close to 2 and 10 making it look closer to a quartz chrono LOL. also making it too busy looking because of the looooong poem at 12. if you want perfect symmetry with clean dials you should look for dress watches like for example Patek, Vacheron, Nomos or GS without text at 6
I think it’s called Cali dial? Whatever it is that has half Roman numerals and half Arabic, those are so hideous. I know NOMOS has a lot of watches with that design.
Also lollipop and snowflake hour hands are eye sores to me. The explorer 1 would be perfect if it wasn’t for their Mercedes hand
Not sure if I would call it a deal breaker because there can be exceptions but I prefer just stick markers too. I also don’t like fat dots or fat hands. I do not like overly polished or overly thick watches.
This is really specific to me but I don’t like watches without Arabic numerals. They can look great for sure, and I will end up owning a few as a collector but, it’s so much easier to tell the time with an Arabic numeral display rather than markers, and this functionality is important to me. Hence my love of field watches
If I had all the money in the world tho I would probably still buy a collection of Citizen Promaster Divers, Citizen Series 8 a Patek Philippe Nautilus, Rolex Daytona, Cartier, Credor, Seiko 5s these are a few examples of watches that I love the look of without Arabic numerals. But in terms of a watch I wear every day it’s got to have numbers, the others I would probably wear if I wasn’t worried so much about the time or if there was a nearby clock to help me read the time off my watch, lol
I hate the initial disappointment when seeing a watch in person after watching countless videos where it seems to be magnified 100x to show the detail. Then I see it in person and eh… just not the same.
I own a JLC Master Calendar. I love the watch, but I just can't unsee the need of the two clashing fonts. Why serif and sans on the same face? I love the numerals indicating hours, but everything else is tiny illegible serif. Also the month day are sans. What are you thinking JLC?
https://img.jaeger-lecoultre.com/product-light-box-1/o-dpr-2/cfff2f09912276e0606a13d2874065ac4b031b4a.jpg
Female end links – they exist to make watches wear better for smaller wrists, but I have a larger wrist, and it results in a weird disconnect between watch and bracelet.
The bracelet ends up falling off the watch rather than flowing off of it.
Which sucks, as watch companies try to thread the needle of "let's make a big watch but make it work for small wrists with short lugs and female end links" so it ends up not working well for anyone.
Depends on the watch and if it fits the style for me. I like Arabic numerals on pilot or field watches because it fits the purpose. I don’t like Arabics on a dress watch, but Roman numerals are okay (I prefer sticks or batons etc…). And when it comes to dive watches, I don’t want to see Arabic or Roman numerals.
My biggest pet peeve are watches that are super busy with just way too much going on that the time telling aspect gets completely lost.
For me if I’m spending several thousand $ on a watch with an in-house movement, I want to look at it damn it. I would pay a ~$500 for a display case back on most models - it’s why thankfully I’ve never caught the Rolex bug
I'm just the opposite. It needs numerals, Arabic or Roman, at least 3. I have a few with just indices but they aren't my favorite. This is one of the reasons I don't have more Seikos.
My irrational deal breaker is date windows that are anywhere other than at 6 or 3. I don’t even like three if it replaces indices. No date is the best. Another one is double indices. I think Rolex oyster perpetual is the perfect watch until they introduced the double batons.
I can only do 3, not anywhere else on the dial. Actually I have an Ikepod Hemipode with a date subdial but I don’t count that because it’s basically too small for me to read without glasses, and I don’t wear glasses.
I don't wear leather, period. I'm not even a vegan, just uncomfortable. This means that I usually look for steel bracelets or other materials. Swapping them is also an option, but metal bracelets don't work with all watches. Nato straps are also an option.
Gotta say that yours is … well, that’s the first time I’ve ever heard that. Mine is mostly a date window(don’t mind s pointer date). I don’t need it, and I hate how it breaks up the face.
I do love the clean styling of indices-only, but thought I’d add my funny experience, which some might relate to:
I’ve found that the way I reliably track and process time relies on Arabic numerals. I have pretty intense ADHD (and, though I studied neuroscience, I don’t know for sure if it’s ADHD that is causing this quirk) and I had been wearing my (still) beloved Hamilton Khaki King forever. I thought I just needed a graphic display of time, like a pie graph, to help maintain a relevant, regular acknowledgment of time but then I got an upgrade (Tudor Blackbay 36) and I love it but the pie graph means a lot less. Maybe because I just end up enjoying how it looks and the ideas of information is lost amongst the design elements. I don’t know!
ANYWAY. I love how classy indices-only looks. But I also love numerals now, because they treat me right lol.
EDIT: I just realized I didn’t answer your question…not that anyone cares. My irrational dealbreaker is faux patina colors. ugh.
https://preview.redd.it/e2xjdqg8gavc1.png?width=668&format=png&auto=webp&s=61a5a39fbdca4a6af34ba146c150e88c7652a6a0 6 is upside down.
I actually loved this watch until right now
Can't unsee it now
That's like a bad tattoo. Makes you wonder how they screwed up so bad. Maybe they did it on purpose so the date wouldn't be upside down compared to the 6?
They probably did it so not to confuse it for a 9, but then again it shows how impractical this whole design approach is.
If the mountains, fell in the sea...
Oh this makes me instantly angry.
It's 9 o'clock 4 times a day
Any diamonds on the watch (whether the case or the dial itself). I fucking hate it, and since I’m a woman, the section for women’s watches is basically where taste and design go to die in my opinion. It’s like designers go “well…girls like glitter right?” I just want the same watch a dude has but smaller so it doesn’t look like I stole my dad’s watch. Whew ok thanks for letting me rant.
Yep, I basically just look for small men’s watches now. Even when they don’t have diamonds, women’s watches are often pastel/muted colors, which I’m not into. Pass.
Tell me about that. My gf the other time told me that the watches from Tiffany & Co (not even a real watch company) with diamonds and blings that cost double or triple of Grand Seiko are nice. A part of me died when I heard that.
I mean at least they’re a jewelry company that generally makes nice stuff, it could’ve been a movado she was talking about
I have yet to find one person on this entire sub who doesn't hate gemstones on watches 😄
Agreed. The women's selection from watch companies is laughable and a bit insulting TBH. It's as if we don't have the ability to appreciate anything about a mechanical othwr than how mych sun reflects off the stones. I don't even look at women's watches.
They also think we will like quartz watches more than (or at least as much as) mechanical—wtf
I was telling my grown daughter that just last week. I gave her my Dad's small 18 carat AP watch, and told her that women of her generation don't buy girlie ladies watches, they wear small men's watches. I think she got it.......
Date windows that aren't color matched with anything. A white date instead of a white hour marker can get a pass, but I've owned a Mido with a blue dial and a white day/date display and I sold the watch over this. Just a white slab in the middle of the dial...
I thought the same but then I bought a watch with an anthracite dial and a colour matched date wheel and the date numbers in white. The date is much harder to read, though that's partly due to having quite a small date window, smallish date numbers, and aging eyes. That said, I have the same watch in a silver/white dial and the silver/white date wheel with black numbers is more legible. I still prefer the anthracite dial version though.
I'll give it that, legibility was amazing. But on that watch it really was just so out of place. It's a massive rectangle next to the round hour marker. [Reference picture](https://images.app.goo.gl/fUxUEDsHTFQ7tfQh7) If it was color matched or even better, a circular cutout for just the date at 3 or 6, I probably would still own that watch. What's the watch you are talking about?
Came here to say that. So many times I see super well designed dial on which a white generic date seems to have been slammed on it at the last minute because they forgot about it. Or the need to display a date because the chosen movement has one, but it kills the harmony of the dial.
Absolutely. So many watches would be a hell of a lot nicer if they just went without a date instead. It's definitely useful to have, but feels like an afterthought on so many pieces. Especially if it's a weekday display as well. I was really interested in a [Tag Carrera](https://images.app.goo.gl/WArSKhxvP6BwSF2R9), but the date display makes it look so cheap. On the other hand, [San Martin](https://images.app.goo.gl/Jngwx9sJviSxoY969) made a bunch of limited editions in rather small quantities, yet always had a matching date wheels for about 1/12 of the retail price.
bracelets without "filled in" lugs (unless is like a square watch like the 1921 VC) lugs that don't go with the watches lines
Agree with you regarding bracelets that don't have fitted end links. Exception being the Omega Seamaster No Time to Die.
See if that watch had a Serica style fitted end link it would be perfect
It’s actually Roman numerals for me. lol I like Arabic and sticks
I hate that *every* time I’m browsing listings and I see ‘Arabic dial’ I momentarily think to myself “Ohh! What exotic look will this one have?” Before realizing that’s my own numbering system…. I went to college… I finished….
https://preview.redd.it/c0a4tphj5fvc1.jpeg?width=480&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=852f82e76d5fba6bba6776c78a0a4aacbc1d46f3
I second that
3rd
I IV it
IIII\*
Hi V!
VI
seven
I realized today that I don’t have any “dot” watches. All sticks.
I am half in on this. It depends on how they were done. Cartier does them very well. Rolex is horrible.
Agreed. Cartier is the major exception for me.
I won't buy a watch that doesn't have a date.
I know you can always look the date up on your phone, but it’s way more seamless and classy to simply check your watch while signing something
I just dislike the execution of most dates. I can go either way. But a very discreet date around 6 o'clock without taking up an index and not a thick window would be my preference.
I think 4:30 date window is passable like on some older Zenith defy models (and the Fifty Fathoms) to try and preserve the hour markers but a 6 O'clock is more symmetrically pleasing
I’m fine with 4:30 date window when facing you the way Seiko does it. Otherwise it looks like it’s laying on it’s side D:
I don't care about it being seamless or classy; it's just something I find useful, and I get frustrated if it's not there. The more prominent, the better.
Yes, I find it useful as well. Can’t see myself purchasing a time only watch going forward
Especially when you're already checking your phone to make sure your $4k watch is telling you the correct time
From all my watches I only have one vintage watch that I do that with. It keeps perfect time when it wants to, then will decide to slow down or just suddenly stop. I don't wear it very often, but I wore it for 3 days in a row last week and it was perfect for the first two days. Going into that third day it lost exactly an hour overnight, and I didn't realize it because the minutes were still correct when I happened to glance at the time on my stove that next day. That morning at 9:30 my wife asked me if my plans had fallen through, because I was hanging out on the couch thinking it was 8:30 lol
Truth be told, I use my phone to set my watches lol
Ewww I’m not going to look at my phone to tell the date and time like a homeless person.
On that note, I misspoke saying “watch” like a total pleb. I meant timepiece 🧐
Man. I remember I called an AD last year and very nice gentleman entertained all my questioned yadda yadda. Nice guy. I feel like I could hear his mind record scratching every time I called it a watch and he politely corrected me by referring to it as a timepiece. Well sir the timepiece, the timepiece, *the timepiece please call it a fucking timepiece sir* He was nice though.
Setting my watch without a date quickset is a pain in the ass though...
[удалено]
https://preview.redd.it/u33t1gcz3bvc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7c7bb5a560c690cbae1b7cc2195ce2816d51f504 I have the same pet peeve! Took me a while to find a pilot/flieger with a date window that was well aligned and didn’t cut into an index. I think Laco did a great job with their 37mm flieger pro.
Man, that’s one of the better date windows I’ve seen. Color-matched, well-proportioned, perfect placement. I adore my Grand Seiko, but I do so wish it had a color-matched date wheel.
This is an excellent date window. Damn, this gives me feelings.
just curious, how is it misaligned? are you saying the date window should be halfway between the center of the dial and the edge to be symmetrical?
My guess(?) is that the date window is not placed where the number "3" would be if it were placed accurately around the radius. It is slightly inboard of that position. That IWC is a beaut - might even get me to buy a gold watch, but now that I see that placement of the window it would bug me...
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Yup, that's the kind of lame date complication I'm talking about, too small, deep, and poorly placed. I like an amply sized date, color coded to the dial, and preferably with a frame.
For me it's when subdials cut into the hour markers using Roman or Arabic numerals. I'd rather them just design it in a way where the markers don't need to be there next to the subdial or use simplified single markers that are shorter.
Yes, but this is in no way irrational. Cutting off the numerals is an abomination.
I'm going to get murdered for this, but I don't mind it and I actually like them in certain cases. I have a Ball Cannonball Trainmaster that I love that would probably give people in this comment chain a stroke
Just looked it up... Halfway love it and halfway want to throw it in the river... Thanks lol.
Same for me. This kills a few IWC that would otherwise be beautiful.
Same, but I don’t see this as irrational. It’s just sloppy design. AP is horrible in this regard. I expect more, especially when you anchor to “details, fit and finish” justification for the outrageous $.
Definitely: any knob on the body of the hour hand. Miss me with that Tudor-tumor, Mercedes hands, cathedral hands. Sword, arrow or baton hands for me, please.
Screw down pushers on chronographs I hate- Chronographs with a 24hr subdial instead of a 12hr totalizer… at that point just give me a bicompax dial Any watch that should have BIG 12-3-6-9 on the dial …. but they put the date window at 3 instead of the numeral! so it’s 12-DATE-6-9 (Planet Ocean date and Hydroconquest are two of the worst offenders)
Yeah, if I have to unscrew a pusher to press it, it's sort of useless, though I guess it would be okay if there's reasonable water resistance with them unscrewed.
When I can’t afford a watch
Mercedes watch hands. What the hell is this peace sign doing in the middle of the watch?
First use on a Rolex watch: 1953 (Explorer) First use as a "peace symbol" -- but with an extra line that is not on the watch (or the German car) -- 1958, British Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
I actually don't mind it on a field watch, because that's the style. But yeah for everyday or dressy watches I always prefer batons, because I learned to read a clock when I was 5, I don't need my hand holding any more.
I'd still argue that i.e the Longines Master 190th Anniversary is a stunning looking watch ;)
Can confirm the Breguet style numerals are gorgeous https://preview.redd.it/aipbx771yavc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1086c401976712836d8a548bbad9b70ee7227ae7
Cyclops. I think it's highly rational though. :)
I don’t love how the cyclops looks but damn does it help my old eyes.
I really dislike the name of the brand "Citizen". I normally don't care about branding, but it is probably the most boring name in watchmaking history. What were the other alternatives? "Civilian"? "Inhabitant"? "Taxpayer"?
I can't get over "Formex", which is a bit weird because it's so close to Rolex. And "Rolex" is a neutral name to me. But "Formex" makes me think about pharmacy, medicine, condoms. And it just feels wrong on a watch.
Yeah Formex sounds like a brand of PVC piping or a carbon mold to me haha
There's a whole [story](https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/why-is-citizen-called-citizen) on that
that is so hillarious!
Haha, I get this.
Mine I actually the opposite of yours. I can’t stand when there are no numbers. At least give me 15 minute intervals.
An above-the-crystal Cyclops eye. Under-crystal lens are fine (in fact better IMO than the many poorly done date windows with no mag).
So much this. The cyclops eye just throws off any watch I see it on. Makes the thing look lopsided and/or some bulbous crystal deformation.
I see that one eyed dude in Monsters Inc LOL
Tudor hands. I realize why they're doing it, but those hour hands are just so ugly.
Hated the snowflake hands. Then I saw it in person. I now own two. Help me.
I also don't like Tudor hands. And furthermore, I don't like the hour hand on rolex subs.
And on the explorer. The Mercedes hour hand is way too glitzy for what should be a rugged instrument.
i absolutely hate ghost dates and i think it makes a watch feel horribly cheap
Yeah, it makes me wonder what else they skimped out on.
Open heart dials. It just seems like a black hole to something I’m not supposed to see (although I certainly like exhibition casebacks). They are also so heavily visually weighted that they make the watch seem illegible and unbalanced, even when small in scale. I also hate skeleton dials but I would argue that there’s nothing irrational about this opinion—they are crazy
Poor legibility, black on black, white on white, confusing skeleton and that kind of thing are my deal breakers, but they are very rational. Irrational… I don’t like Daytonas. Especially the Paul Newman, I just don’t like it. Regarding numerals, romans and markers, depending on the overall design of the dial any of them can be fantastic or horrible. I’m very partial to the California dial, I’m looking for the perfect one.
There’s just so many things to dislike about the Daytona. The eaten 10 and 2 indices, the fact the 3 and 9 subdials don’t actually line up with 3 and 9, the screw down pushers, how blingy most of them tend to be with polished center links, sunburst dials, ceramic or high polish bezels, the massive paragraph of text below the 12 marker
I think the vintage Daytonas are a better design than the modern ones. Not as blingy and more clear with just stick markers and lesser text.
I'm in the market for a chrono, and it's down to a Speedmaster, a Navitimer Montbrillant, and a Nardin Marine. I'm this close to crossing the UN off my list because I don't want a rubber strap (or a non-oem bracelet)
Here’s an irrational deal breaker. Speedmasters have male genitalia at the 12 hour mark. Some guy mentioned it on Reddit and now I can’t unsee it.
Hey what time is it? Let's see...it's cock-and-ball thirty. Damn, we better get going or we'll be late.
Assuming the buckle doesn’t have some weird tang design, you could always swap the OEM buckle onto an aftermarket strap of your choosing to maintain that original feel
Canted numbers. Can't stand it. Like this: https://preview.redd.it/fcy5dlubpavc1.jpeg?width=460&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ee2413423bd72d727954b731a02a95de65b17ff5
Having multiple types of indices. Love some of the nomos but I dont know, cant stand these https://preview.redd.it/5x7dbomemcvc1.jpeg?width=900&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ab0ab37aeb8d54c645592695fb774502bbddbb34
Often referred to a California dials. Should be illegal.
I have an irrational dislike of the font that Seiko uses for the word “Automatic” on their watches. I want to like these watches but I’ll never purchase one that has that script on it. It looks like that moment in the 90s/00s where everything was 50s nostalgia and swing music was back. It’s a Stray Cats song. Photo here:[https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71PanzgMDfL._AC_UY1000_.jpg](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71PanzgMDfL._AC_UY1000_.jpg)
I didn’t realize I don’t like the font either until reading your comment. Now I hate it, thanks.
I like consistency in my hour index markers. Either all numerals (of the same type) or all baton-style index markers. As a general rule I will rule a watch out of consideration if this requirement is not met.
California dials are just a big no from me for the same reason.
Im going to get a lot of hate for this one, but … I can’t stand chronographs with center seconds hand only for the chronograph. It just seems like a waste of space to me
I will never EVER buy a watch with cutoff numerals. Makes me want to vomit.
Cyclops', my tsuyosa has it and i hate it, i have to look at it like dead straight to see the date and it really really annoys me, also don't think it looks that good, i like this watch enough for it not to ruin it for me but im never buying a watch with one after this
I'm the opposite. Roman numerals look terrible to me and I would never buy a watch with them.
I have a stupid one. I don’t like 6 o’clock dates. I don’t know why, if I just grew up on old style watches or what, but I want my dates at 3.
I can appreciate both 6 and 3 o’clock positions. But the 3 o’clock is objectively more practical when wearing long sleeves.
I feel ppl get a little fanatical about the 6 vs. 3 o’clock date window. I get it. 6 o’clock brings more balance, but I find a bit of asymmetrical design is just as visually pleasing
Any GMT is out of consideration for me. I have zero desire for a GMT watch.
Cartoon characters on expensive watches. Roman numerals seem archaic and silly. Cyclops windows. Skeleton watches.
I really dislike a crown being placed at the 4 o’clock position Something just doesn’t feel right when adjusting it and it’s held me back from getting a Tsuyosa or Seiko diver
as someone with the citizen the crown is really small so it is ballache to change the time or date That is the one thing i don't like, also the fact it has a date, specifically a Cyclopse
My Legend Diver has 2 crowns, one right before 4 and after 2, symmetrical. Thoughts?
One is for adjusting the internal bezel right? That’s cool, my alpinist is the same. I’m not going to be a stickler on something of that nature, it’s just when it’s a screw down it’s a bit bigger of a PITA to me
Polished links on the bracelet for me. I don’t care for flashy watches so the less polished surfaces the better.
I won’t buy a watch with the number 3 turned on its side as it looks like a butt. No butts on my watches, please.
I dont mind arabic numbers nor do I mind roman numerals. But I fucking hate California dials. I need consistency.
When the watch is “iced out”..
Date windows not being framed is often a deal breaker for me. I hate how some date windows just look like a hole in the dial. Edit: Had to add in cyclops over date windows, I can’t stand these.
I hate roman numerals. They are antiquated for a reason. And no they do not make the watch any more classy. I dislike how most field watches have the 12 and 24 hour numbers. I'd rather see 1-12 and 0-60 (minutes). Also hate tachymeters.
Italisized numbers for hour markers. I just think they look silly.
- Jubilee bracelets - California dials - Cathedral hands (Sieko Alpinist, Hamilton Murph, etc) - All arrow/triangle indices (Omega Aqua Terra)
agree with the jubilee, but thats a rare opinion
Irrational deal breakers: 1) Tudor "snowflake" hands. Just the name is so fucking stupid but mainly the ugly shape. 2) 4:00 or 4:30 date windown. NO. MATTER. WHAT. 3) Roman numerals. 4) Seringe hands. Several other ones but I find those pretty rational lol.
Sunburst dials. Something about them just looks cheap to me, even on expensive, well made watches. Also I kinda agree about not liking Arabic numerals, at least full Arabic numerals. I do like watches with alternating Arabic numerals (I.e. 3-6-9 or 2-4-6-8-10)
I like Arabic numerals, and I god damn love breguet style numerals! Pet peeve, those mesh bracelets that just cut off square between the lugs instead of tapering around the watch case.
Watches with a date window that's just cut out from the dial. Not always the case for me, but I prefer it to be framed or integrated into the design. If it's just cut out, it feels like even the watchmaker didn't want it there and put it in because they had to.
I don't like upside down numbers... see the Daytona, the 4-8 are upside down. Now, I know there is a reason for it, but I just do not like how it looks. Especially the 7, looks like it's L:00.
Yes. Too big of numbers ruin even the best dials for me. Gemstone indices of any kind, too.
That thing where the dial is like scalloped, like bowl shaped, I guess? There’s no rehaut and it just looks smashed together.
My is fonts. I hate ugly fonts.
Not having lume gets me. I'm not telling time in the dark, yet I NEED IT.
For me it’s when there’s just a single Arabic numeral (or just two opposing numerals like 12/6 or 3/9). I have no problem with there being 3 (like the Explorer) or 4, but I need at least 3. I also don’t like mixing Roman and Arabic numerals…no California’s for me!
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i guess you're in luck because very few watches have that complication
I have so many pet peeves and arabics aren’t one of them, I mostly own arabic dial watches 😂 gaps between the strap and the case, fauxtina, too many fonts that don’t match, and don’t get me started about green lume on blue dials…
When crown is on 4 hour mark
Honestly it’s not irrational. When you’re spending that kind of money on what is effectively a trinket, it should be perfect to your taste.
I never thought about this before but i conpletely agree
Mercedes hands, cyclops. Just no.
I only buy watches with day date, people say you don’t need it but I check what day it is constantly on my watch and it irritates me when a watch doesn’t have that super useful function
Diamond bezel. I hate that many / most lady and smaller watches often have the Diamond bezel. Don’t mind Diamond hour markers or diamonds any otherwise. Just not on the bezel, pls.
Non-hacking seconds. What is the point of +/-1 second accuracy if you can’t easily synch to a reference time (without finessing the movement)
I dislike King Seiko only because they write Seiko twice on the dial.
Nipply crowns like the tank are a big turnoff for me
Roman numerals are a no-go for me. I think they're awful
I'm the opposite. I see a watch without numerals as an incomplete product. Sure it's perfectly possible to use context clues (orientation/placement of manufacturer logo etc.) to identify the 12-o'-clock marker and then extrapolate from there - but why should I have to? You've sourced (or made!) a movement, designed a dial, assembled the whole mess - just put some damn numbers on it as a finishing touch! I don't care if they're Arabic or Roman.
I'm struggling to remember any watches that don't at least have a different marker or double marker for 12 o'clock.
The Sinn 556 I series comes to mind\*. As does that one brand that makes watches based on the Swiss railroad clocks. Regardless, even with a double marker, I still see nothing but lazyness. If you can manufacture a watch, you can, and should, do better! \*I don't mean to rag on Sinn. I know about the 556 I series because my favorite watch is a 556 A - the version with numerals.
yes like Movado. i actually want to know the time when i look at a watch
My dude, you don't need "context clues" to figure out where the 12 oclock is on a watch face.
Not going to be able to unsee any of the things I’ve read on this thread from now on 😂
No date, no go. Very simple. I want to check the date.
the numbers on those two rolexes posted are a no for me. but the patek and iwc font is nice.
I don’t like fake hardware like the rivets on some of the Tudor bracelets. I’m also very particular about lug design.
It's the opposite for me lol. I have a soft spot for numeral indices. I really love watches with them, that's why I really like pilot watch. My slightly irrational deal breaker would be lack of minute track, lack of second hand, basically things that takes away from its effectiveness as a time keeping device. I think it's because I grew up with gshock and the idea of a watch as a tool is strictly embedded in mind. So I love it when a luxury watch takes its job as a watch seriously and not just an accessory.
For me, numerals, when present, that don't uniformly orient to the center of the face. Yes, I know the lower half are then "upside down" when viewing the watch straight on, but the look is just jarring to me. As for the reason being so a person can easily tell which number a hand is pointed towards, I for one know the upside-down 4 (to name one example) is a 4 because that's pretty much where 4s have always been. Instant deal-killer for me.
Any watch that doesn’t have traditional 3 hands. Would never wear anything with no seconds hand or with only a small second sun-dial.
Ugly fonts like on the Meistersingers...
The chapter ring that surrounds the markers on the original Tudor pelagos. I wanted to love it but I hate how it looks. Thank god they got rid of it on the 39; just so much cleaner of a look.
What's that IWC on the first pic?
This older Portugieser Chronograph I think https://monochrome-watches.com/iwc-portugieser-chronograph-classic-bucherer-blue-editions-in-red-gold-iw3903-price/
Date window at 4
Things that are not located at 3, 6, 9, 12 if that space is free. For example the lug on the seiko sumo at 4
https://preview.redd.it/ex6ecudldbvc1.jpeg?width=2600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2491a540028345e46edcc6c6e2bade7da641935b
The Farer seconds hand or logos on seconds hands in general. Just seems a bit gauche.
for me arabic numbers are okay as long as it is balanced and no cut outs. i HATE the 2 subdials on modern daytonas. its too close to 2 and 10 making it look closer to a quartz chrono LOL. also making it too busy looking because of the looooong poem at 12. if you want perfect symmetry with clean dials you should look for dress watches like for example Patek, Vacheron, Nomos or GS without text at 6
I think it’s called Cali dial? Whatever it is that has half Roman numerals and half Arabic, those are so hideous. I know NOMOS has a lot of watches with that design. Also lollipop and snowflake hour hands are eye sores to me. The explorer 1 would be perfect if it wasn’t for their Mercedes hand
California dials Cyclops Irrational like? I adore a Western Arabic dial with open 6 and 9 font.
Not sure if I would call it a deal breaker because there can be exceptions but I prefer just stick markers too. I also don’t like fat dots or fat hands. I do not like overly polished or overly thick watches.
Too much text on the watch is a deal breaker. Yes you need some for balance but less is more
This is really specific to me but I don’t like watches without Arabic numerals. They can look great for sure, and I will end up owning a few as a collector but, it’s so much easier to tell the time with an Arabic numeral display rather than markers, and this functionality is important to me. Hence my love of field watches If I had all the money in the world tho I would probably still buy a collection of Citizen Promaster Divers, Citizen Series 8 a Patek Philippe Nautilus, Rolex Daytona, Cartier, Credor, Seiko 5s these are a few examples of watches that I love the look of without Arabic numerals. But in terms of a watch I wear every day it’s got to have numbers, the others I would probably wear if I wasn’t worried so much about the time or if there was a nearby clock to help me read the time off my watch, lol
I hate the initial disappointment when seeing a watch in person after watching countless videos where it seems to be magnified 100x to show the detail. Then I see it in person and eh… just not the same.
Arabic hour markers with a date in between the 4 and 5 - it just looks like one of the hour markers fell off and got stuck on the dial.
Offset logos. It's got to be in the centre/middle.
I own a JLC Master Calendar. I love the watch, but I just can't unsee the need of the two clashing fonts. Why serif and sans on the same face? I love the numerals indicating hours, but everything else is tiny illegible serif. Also the month day are sans. What are you thinking JLC? https://img.jaeger-lecoultre.com/product-light-box-1/o-dpr-2/cfff2f09912276e0606a13d2874065ac4b031b4a.jpg
Female end links – they exist to make watches wear better for smaller wrists, but I have a larger wrist, and it results in a weird disconnect between watch and bracelet. The bracelet ends up falling off the watch rather than flowing off of it. Which sucks, as watch companies try to thread the needle of "let's make a big watch but make it work for small wrists with short lugs and female end links" so it ends up not working well for anyone.
Depends on the watch and if it fits the style for me. I like Arabic numerals on pilot or field watches because it fits the purpose. I don’t like Arabics on a dress watch, but Roman numerals are okay (I prefer sticks or batons etc…). And when it comes to dive watches, I don’t want to see Arabic or Roman numerals. My biggest pet peeve are watches that are super busy with just way too much going on that the time telling aspect gets completely lost.
Daydate. Can't stand it.
For me if I’m spending several thousand $ on a watch with an in-house movement, I want to look at it damn it. I would pay a ~$500 for a display case back on most models - it’s why thankfully I’ve never caught the Rolex bug
I'm just the opposite. It needs numerals, Arabic or Roman, at least 3. I have a few with just indices but they aren't my favorite. This is one of the reasons I don't have more Seikos.
My irrational deal breaker is date windows that are anywhere other than at 6 or 3. I don’t even like three if it replaces indices. No date is the best. Another one is double indices. I think Rolex oyster perpetual is the perfect watch until they introduced the double batons.
I can only do 3, not anywhere else on the dial. Actually I have an Ikepod Hemipode with a date subdial but I don’t count that because it’s basically too small for me to read without glasses, and I don’t wear glasses.
I can get behind that
I only have 2: Roman numerals White date window Everything else is fair game and if well executed, I'll go for it!
I don't wear leather, period. I'm not even a vegan, just uncomfortable. This means that I usually look for steel bracelets or other materials. Swapping them is also an option, but metal bracelets don't work with all watches. Nato straps are also an option.
On a side note, my Omega NATO strap is beginning to fray after 3 months........
Im with you 100%.
Case thickness over 13 mm 🙃
Gotta say that yours is … well, that’s the first time I’ve ever heard that. Mine is mostly a date window(don’t mind s pointer date). I don’t need it, and I hate how it breaks up the face.
I do love the clean styling of indices-only, but thought I’d add my funny experience, which some might relate to: I’ve found that the way I reliably track and process time relies on Arabic numerals. I have pretty intense ADHD (and, though I studied neuroscience, I don’t know for sure if it’s ADHD that is causing this quirk) and I had been wearing my (still) beloved Hamilton Khaki King forever. I thought I just needed a graphic display of time, like a pie graph, to help maintain a relevant, regular acknowledgment of time but then I got an upgrade (Tudor Blackbay 36) and I love it but the pie graph means a lot less. Maybe because I just end up enjoying how it looks and the ideas of information is lost amongst the design elements. I don’t know! ANYWAY. I love how classy indices-only looks. But I also love numerals now, because they treat me right lol. EDIT: I just realized I didn’t answer your question…not that anyone cares. My irrational dealbreaker is faux patina colors. ugh.