Which mechanical chronograph movements have a reputation for robustness and reliability?(Bonus points if you know of any "affordable/bang-for-buck" ones)

For affordable mechanical chronographs, really your best bet is the Seagull ST-19 movement.

Seagull make their own watches, but personally, the style has never really struck a chord with me.

There are, however, a number of companies who case that movement in their own watch. The best example that comes to mind is the Lorier Gemini Chronograph. An absolute stunner of a timepiece! Check them out if you're not aware of them.

You might even be able to find a sweet deal on the secondary market, albeit they don't come up for sale often - which is a clue into their appeal in and of itself...

Thanks for replying, unfortunately I've known a couple of people who had watches with that movements and had issues with them(they could have just been incredibly unlucky) so I must admit I have somewhat of an unconscious bias against them.

Any thing with a vajoux(spelling may be off) movement as long as rotar wobble dosent bother you

Absolutely! If you buy a Seagull from Ali then you pays your money and takes your chances... A coin toss at best. Too much of a gamble for me.

That's the difference with Lorier. The Ortega's take immense pride in their brand and timepieces. They test each and every movement before it goes out the door, and will help you should you have an issue.

Is it more expensive than an AliX Seagull or Surgess? Yes. Can't deny that. But what you're paying for is a far superior watch and a brand that stands by their timepieces. A bargain at twice the cost in my opinion (even if you need to save a bit more for it).

Food for thought!

What's the issue with the rotor wobble?

Thanks! that's good to know. Don't really know much about the brand(never seen a "Lorier" in the flesh). Will have a looksie!

Nothing it’s just unidirectional so there is a little wobble if you shake your wrist then rest it. I like the wearing experience personally

Ahhh, sounds comparable to me getting used to some of the "Miyota"'s noisy rotors? I could live with that 😄

Unfortunately as far as chronographs go you can only pick 2 of the 3 (mechanical, durable, affordable)

So.....durable and affordable ? 😛

For this sort of budget a Valjoux 7750 or Sellita equivalent SW500 is probably your best bet. Swatch group brands like Hamilton or Longines offer improved versions over the base movement with increased power reserves & column wheel in the case of Longines for example

So that means quartz 😉

Robust/cheap, cheap/mechanical, robust/mechanical

Love my solar speedtimer! (I've seen the mechanical speedtimers at 30% off throughout this past year but I have no idea about the movement/have not had the budget for it) That Fortis looks super cool

Plus - thanks for all your replies and tidbits of information - appreciated greatly :)

You could take a punt on this. It's using a seiko mechanical movement (NE66 I think)

80s onward: the Valjoux, now ETA, 7750 family and its Sellita clones.

If you want to keep the watch for decades, I'd personally avoid the more exotic modern derivatives of the 7750 like the Longines with column wheel and anything with extended power reserve.

That's because Swatch Group now refuse to supply parts to independent watchmakers and refuse to repair most vintage watches in their own service centres - good luck getting any 70s or older Tissot serviced by any Swatch Group Service Centre.

Regardless of condition they'll send it back as "parts no longer guaranteed available, here's a voucher to get $50 off a new Tissot".

They don't even try to see if there are parts in their own inventory or elsewhere, whereas a good independent will scour the internet or let you know the part number, let you do the searching and keep the watch until you locate the part.

70s and earlier: Landeron 48 and 248 family:

Produced for decades in the millions, cheap, bombproof, tons of parts available and, when they run out, movements to cannibalise. Many examples in nice condition out there which are relative bargains. E.g. This 70s one was £200.

Should probably also mention this as its within your price range. Movement is ETA 7751. Case is solid 18k gold. Produced late 80s to 90s. £1800 secondhand.

Valjoux/eta 7750. Brilliant workhorse movement.

Another vote for the Lorier Gemini, Seiko solar speedtimer or anything with the indestructible old school Valjoux 7750. My speedmaster date (JDM from the early nineties) with the valjoux is an incredible watch. I find the rotor wobble charming- almost like a heartbeat that catches you by surprise.

The elephant in the room is that many people dislike the sub-dial layout of the 7750 at 6, 9 and 12. There are 3, 6, 9 variants but they're much rarer and pricier.

If you can get into the aesthetic the PRX Chronograph from Tissot may be worth looking at. I haven’t owned one, I don’t know anyone who owns one so all I’m really advocating is that they exist, they’re in the price range, and Tissot isn’t going to disappear and leave the watch difficult to service.

They seem to be a bit big and bulky but that doesn’t turn me off.

Miyota 90** series, La Joux Perret LJP-G100, any Sellita or ETA, Valjoux 77** or the equivalent La Joux Perret LJP-L100 (and variants), Seiko NE88, Seiko 6R series are all proven.

Seagull ST19 movements are great.

However, 90% of Seagull's models are not available outside of China.

The models you can get on AliExpress or any international sale channels are limited.

The Accutron is sweet

I mean that more in terms of the lack of QC. AliX is really hit and miss