According to my wife, I have far too many of both. When you start this hobby you buy the big names because they are all you know. Then you become aware of the independents/micros/modders and you transform into an eight year old wandering through the Pokémon section in the toy store trying to “catch them all.”

Big names attract more attention from non-watch people and make you feel like you made a reasonably good purchase. They are also easier to sell when you get tired of them or realize white, opaline, and parchment are pretty much the same color except under a macro lens and you let FOMO get the better of you.

Independents/micros are really more narrowly tailored to the individual watch lover. Theses are brands typically started and run by true enthusiasts that offer styling and features for the few, instead of the masses. They have a real “for us, by us” feel about them. Micro brand owners post on forums, show up to watch meet ups, and care about how their product performs in the real world.

I’ve met and spoken with Mike France and Peter Ellis of Christopher Ward. When I inquired about a replacement watch band for my Furlan Marri, Andrea Furlan himself answerd my questions and handled my transaction. When I had a question about my new Clemence, Tom Clemence answered it. Who runs Rolex, Grand Seiko, or Omega and is it possible to speak with them directly?

There will always be the guys who only buy Rolex and nothing else; everyone else will eventually evolve into a multi-brand owner, both big and micro brand.

You are my new hero! I can’t believe I never thought of doing this. No more buying a strap that I think “looks” like it will go with (fill in the name of watch here). Oh crap! I just realized this is a gateway into a new strap addiction.

I use dive bezels mainly to help me bill for my time. I typically use it two ways: Count down time and Track time. Count down time is when you set the bezel for the total elapsed time you intend to spend doing something, say a phone call. If I want to limit my call to ten minutes, when I start the call, I rotate the bezel so that the minute hand is set at the 50 minute mark. When the minutes hand reaches the 60/0 mark I know ten minutes has elapsed and I am done. Tracking time is easier. Set the 60/0 mark to wherever your minute had currently is and when you are done with the task, just count the elapsed time from 0. The only problem you will encounter with using a dive bezel is for tasks that exceed one hour. If you don’t mind resetting your watch after using it for timing long events that exceed an hour, set your bezel to the 12 o’clock position and then set your watch to 12 o’clock as well. When you are done with your task, rotate the bezel to the position of the minute hand marking when you completed the task. Now you can track minutes and hours for up to 12 hours. If you need to know the current time AND keep track of time for events taking more than an hour, get a 12 hour chronograph. Mecaquarts only keeps track for up to 60 minutes.

The clasp fits securely on the locking end with a gap of 1.7mm as measured by my digital calipers while the watch is on my wrist. The non-locking side is measuring right at 2mm. Keep in mind the last link on each side moves a little so its hard to get a super-precise measurement. For reference, the gaps aren't too different from the gaps on my Speedmaster.

Thanks for the feedback. You make a very good point. It’s always a risk purchasing from an unknown company with little to no history in the business. That is why the information on this platform provided by actual owners is so useful; so you can have the most real world information possible should you choose to decide to make a purchase. I used to really fret about buying from a micro-brand, and there are some purchases that were not as good as I had hoped. But…the longer I’m in this hobby, the fewer poor purchases I make. Brew, Baltic, Christopher Ward, Weiss, Anordain, Traska, Boldr and Clemence all started small and all have made watches I really enjoy. In fact, every one of the watches I mentioned I like as much as my Speedmaster Racing and way more than my Breitling. In the end, I guess that’s the real measure of how good or bad a purchase decision is; do you like what you bought or not.

My father always said, "You should always have a watch, wallet, pocket knife, something to write with, and something to write on." I would add to that a flashlight and cell phone. I "suit carry" so I am restricted on what I can carry in courthouses and government buildings. For work, I always have a watch with some sort of timing function (countdown bezel, GMT bezel, or chronograph), Dango D01 Pen Wallet (holds pen, small note book, beard comb multi-tool), Big Idea Designs mini-click in copper, and a MecArmy SGN3 flashlight. The knife selection changes depending on where I am going; Collin or Denton County, the Ferrum Forge Gent will do fine, Dallas or Fort Worth usually warrant carrying the Spyderco P'Kal.

I own two Baltics and have friends with some as well, so I have been up close with eight of their watches. Both of my Baltics are very well regulated and keep great time. I have never seen a Lorier in person. Seems like they make a great watch, but there is nothing about their design language that I can't find easier in another brand. Lorier should explore some more contemporary designs before the watch buyers tastes move on from the current focus on vintage aesthetics.