Weirdest watch models/brands you know of?
One brand I have seen, that got my attention because of the weird disk display models, is Yankee Street, a sub-brand from Magnum focused on urban fashion designs. However this is the only brand I know of that is mass producing these types of disk dials, and they know it's more on the fashion side because there are normal models from them as well. And this disk dial watch comes in a lot of different colors, which reinforces my theory this is a dress watch.
What are some watch brands or models that made you baffled by how experimental, unique, or plain weird some or all the models are?
I am curious about collecting watches with unique features, may it be a function packed monster - like Casio digital models - or features that are not obvious to find around. Still, I am still new to...
More from mikaeshin
https://tokyoflash.com/
Everything is sci-fi wierdness that tends to be arrays of lights that may be easier to read if you grew up using an abacus.
My weirdest watch - I usually need more than a minute to figure out the time
recently atowak, not really my cup of tea though
Xeric | We make cool, unique & affordable watches – Xeric Watches
These guys make some pretty cool stuff. Not all of them speak to me, but all are unique. I do not own any but like to look every now and then.
For me, it’s MB&F…. Bonkers.
https://www.mbandf.com/en
Older Nixon, Mr Jones, Corum Big Bubble - the eyeball is one of my grails, really! :)
https://tokyoflash.com/
Everything is sci-fi wierdness that tends to be arrays of lights that may be easier to read if you grew up using an abacus.
Arrgh, shouldn't have clicked on that link! Just impulse-bought a Rotar! Damn you Oscar! ;)
The Cartier Masse Mystérieuse with the movement in the rotor was awesome:
and the Corum Golden Bridge is great craftsmanship.
The Cartier Masse Mystérieuse with the movement in the rotor was awesome:
and the Corum Golden Bridge is great craftsmanship.
This is some extreme engineering! I'd be afraid to wear them because I wouldn't want to break them!😮
https://tokyoflash.com/
Everything is sci-fi wierdness that tends to be arrays of lights that may be easier to read if you grew up using an abacus.
Some of these are hard to read? Maybe. But we can't deny they are full of personality.
There are moments when it's not about being the prettiest, but being unique in some way. The watches they offer look pretty avant-garde, like the Mugen model currently in the homepage, but also they have some interesting ideas, like the Revolving Disc, or Altimeter watch. This one looks amazing, in my opinion.
Part of my collection is weird and quirky watches that I never really wear, but that I find to be interesting and unusual in some way, and which are inexpensive enough to be purchased strictly for their weirdness. Some watches from that part of the collection include:
Slow Mo Quartz Watch - Single hander with 24 hour display forces you to look at the passing of time differently.
Bradley eOne quartz watch designed for visually impaired, and uses magnetic ball bearings to allow the wearer to "feel" the time.
Humism Dasein mechanical which uses discs instead of hands. Each disc has a different pattern, so as they turn, it results in mesmerizing, hypnotic patterns. The hour is shown by the black circle on the hour disk, and the minute is shown by the outline circle on the minute disc. Time in photo is approximately 2:24.
Phantasos Triclops, which uses a 3 armed rotating structure, with each arm containing a rotating cube with 4 faces, to tell the time. This one uses a Miyota 90S5 mechanical movement. The time in the photo is approximately 1:42
Part of my collection is weird and quirky watches that I never really wear, but that I find to be interesting and unusual in some way, and which are inexpensive enough to be purchased strictly for their weirdness. Some watches from that part of the collection include:
Slow Mo Quartz Watch - Single hander with 24 hour display forces you to look at the passing of time differently.
Bradley eOne quartz watch designed for visually impaired, and uses magnetic ball bearings to allow the wearer to "feel" the time.
Humism Dasein mechanical which uses discs instead of hands. Each disc has a different pattern, so as they turn, it results in mesmerizing, hypnotic patterns. The hour is shown by the black circle on the hour disk, and the minute is shown by the outline circle on the minute disc. Time in photo is approximately 2:24.
Phantasos Triclops, which uses a 3 armed rotating structure, with each arm containing a rotating cube with 4 faces, to tell the time. This one uses a Miyota 90S5 mechanical movement. The time in the photo is approximately 1:42
I am curious in adding a single handed watch to my collection, but not any watch just because of the novelty, I have heard that back when watches were not as common as they are today, the first pocket watches were single hand, since there was not much need to mark things like minutes (example watch from https://elitechoice.org/luxury/james-list-has-an-early-17th-century-pocket-watch-in-good-condition ):
Maybe this is an oversimplification of the whole history, but it's a food for thought about how precise we demand regarding time keeping compared to centuries ago. So if I want to have a single handed watch, I want it to feel as if it has connections to the past, or something to remember to slow down, and not something that seems to be a cheap watch with the minute hand missing.
It's like there's a competition to see who can make the most difficult to read watch.
I am curious in adding a single handed watch to my collection, but not any watch just because of the novelty, I have heard that back when watches were not as common as they are today, the first pocket watches were single hand, since there was not much need to mark things like minutes (example watch from https://elitechoice.org/luxury/james-list-has-an-early-17th-century-pocket-watch-in-good-condition ):
Maybe this is an oversimplification of the whole history, but it's a food for thought about how precise we demand regarding time keeping compared to centuries ago. So if I want to have a single handed watch, I want it to feel as if it has connections to the past, or something to remember to slow down, and not something that seems to be a cheap watch with the minute hand missing.
That is really cool, but I don't have a spare $78,000 laying around, so I suppose I won't be adding a 17th century single handed pocket watch to my collection any time soon.😀. I do have a few antique pocket watches, but nothing with any real collectability value.
FWIW, the Slow watch is a bit different than the more common single hand watches from brands such as Meistersinger in that it uses a 24 hour dial rather than 12 hours, so each day is a single trip around the dial. This watch was partially responsible for my interest in watches. I had bought it because I thought that the way it made me view the passage of time differently than normal watches was interesting. I wore it as my only watch for quite some time, and it got me thinking about other ways of representing time, which spurred me on to do some research, which led to my interest in watches. It certainly isn't a horological breakthrough, and may just be a novelty, but I enjoy having it as part of my collection.
It's kinda funny that I had no issue with using the Slow as my only watch, since it can really only tell time to the nearest 5 minutes, yet I'm usually a stickler for accuracy with my watches. I think it boils down to being accurate to the level of precision it is trying to display. If a watch has a minute hand, it should be accurate to the minute. If it has a seconds hand, it should be accurate to the second.
I have another manual wind watch with a 24 hour dial, but it includes a standard minute and seconds hand as well. I find it really messes with my mind because of that. A quick glance at the photo suggests that the time is 1:50, but it's actually 3:50 PM (15:50).
FWIW, another watch that I have with a feature that isn't very common is my Benrus WristAlarm, featuring an alarm function as the name suggests. The alarm is pretty much useless based on the fact that you'll only hear it in a quiet environment (although it also vibrates a bit when the alarm goes off), but I think that the concept is interesting.
That is really cool, but I don't have a spare $78,000 laying around, so I suppose I won't be adding a 17th century single handed pocket watch to my collection any time soon.😀. I do have a few antique pocket watches, but nothing with any real collectability value.
FWIW, the Slow watch is a bit different than the more common single hand watches from brands such as Meistersinger in that it uses a 24 hour dial rather than 12 hours, so each day is a single trip around the dial. This watch was partially responsible for my interest in watches. I had bought it because I thought that the way it made me view the passage of time differently than normal watches was interesting. I wore it as my only watch for quite some time, and it got me thinking about other ways of representing time, which spurred me on to do some research, which led to my interest in watches. It certainly isn't a horological breakthrough, and may just be a novelty, but I enjoy having it as part of my collection.
It's kinda funny that I had no issue with using the Slow as my only watch, since it can really only tell time to the nearest 5 minutes, yet I'm usually a stickler for accuracy with my watches. I think it boils down to being accurate to the level of precision it is trying to display. If a watch has a minute hand, it should be accurate to the minute. If it has a seconds hand, it should be accurate to the second.
I have another manual wind watch with a 24 hour dial, but it includes a standard minute and seconds hand as well. I find it really messes with my mind because of that. A quick glance at the photo suggests that the time is 1:50, but it's actually 3:50 PM (15:50).
FWIW, another watch that I have with a feature that isn't very common is my Benrus WristAlarm, featuring an alarm function as the name suggests. The alarm is pretty much useless based on the fact that you'll only hear it in a quiet environment (although it also vibrates a bit when the alarm goes off), but I think that the concept is interesting.
Of course, I don't mean buying a watch that costs more than a car either! 😜 But still, I would think about a single hand watch if there is some effort into the looks or precision, at least.
I think this 24 hour dial is interesting, but yeah, it would be a novelty for the first day, otherwise it would be a clunkier to use analog watch.
I'm keeping my eye on a watch at a local watchmaker that also has an Alarmdate automatic watch for sale, like the one you mentioned. I have never thought mechanical alarm watches existed, so if I have to buy just for the sake of collecting, it would be nice to have that Alarmdate, since the watchmaker is selling it for a bargain - maybe he doesn't know how rare it is to find this particular kind of watch 😉
Of course, I don't mean buying a watch that costs more than a car either! 😜 But still, I would think about a single hand watch if there is some effort into the looks or precision, at least.
I think this 24 hour dial is interesting, but yeah, it would be a novelty for the first day, otherwise it would be a clunkier to use analog watch.
I'm keeping my eye on a watch at a local watchmaker that also has an Alarmdate automatic watch for sale, like the one you mentioned. I have never thought mechanical alarm watches existed, so if I have to buy just for the sake of collecting, it would be nice to have that Alarmdate, since the watchmaker is selling it for a bargain - maybe he doesn't know how rare it is to find this particular kind of watch 😉
I had picked up that Benrus WristAlarm a couple of years ago for $100 CAD, which I felt was simply too good a deal to pass by. I later found a photo of an old Benrus watch ad showing what appears to be the same model, initially selling for $59.95 back in the 60's. I believe that alarm watches were pretty popular for a time, with the Vulcain Cricket and the JLC Memovox being more popular (and likely better built) than the Benrus.
How about a watch with green ooze instead of an hour hand?
Xeric | We make cool, unique & affordable watches – Xeric Watches
These guys make some pretty cool stuff. Not all of them speak to me, but all are unique. I do not own any but like to look every now and then.
They are indeed weird but interesting. Got this as a gift: