Dress Watches and Vacheron Constantin

[tony20009]

So, I'm partial to dressier watches. I love more casual styles, but I find it far easier and far more appropriate to dress down a dressy watch than it is to dress up a sport/casual watch. Some of my watchie friends will disagree, and that's fine; one must do what works for one's own sense of style on such matters.

Well, what's a dress watch? A dress watch is a watch that:

1. Is thin
2. Is not cluttered with tons of numbers and distractions on it's face
3. When it has "stuff" on its face, the "stuff" is balanced in it's presentation or artful in its entirety
4. Fits easily under one's shirt cuff
5. Is not a dive watch, or any other type of "purpose" watch
6. Has a strap made from some sort of skin
7. Has a bracelet that has smaller "sections" rather that larger

Now of course there can be an exception to every one of those points above, except 1, 4 and 5.



I guess there could be a reason why a person might wear a purpose watch in a dress situation. James Bond had a legit need for his tricked out Omega Seamaster, but that didn't make the watch a dress watch. It just gave him a good reason for not wearing a dress watch with a tuxedo.


So what's this got to do with Vacheron Constantin (VC)? Well of the three top watch brands, IMO, VC by far does dress watches better than the others. Indeed, they do it better than pretty much everyone, as far as I'm concerned. Yes, everyone makes a nice round dress watch and plenty of them are just as nice looking and just as fine horologically as VC's Patrimony watches are. But where VC ups the ante is when one moves away from simple, round watches. IMO, nobody has the breath and depth of alternatives that VC does in super sexy dress watches. Along with the Patrimony, there's the Historiques, Malte, 1972 and Metiers d'Art lines.


Patek Philippe (PP) is surely a better recognized name, and there isn't one single thing wrong with any PP watch. But as a brand, they just don't have the dress watch space -- not meaning special one-off, singular pieces -- boxed, wrapped and tied with a bow like VC do.



Here are some examples.


Patrimony - Your bread and butter round watch. Nothing wrong with this, but it's hardly going to boil the blood. Indeed, I think Piaget, PP and ALS offer more sublime alternatives in the basic round watch arena withe the Altiplano, hobnail Calatravas and Saxonias, respectively. And among the ultra-thins, nobody beats Piaget if that's the movement direction one wants to pursue.


Malte - Here you start to get into what sets VC apart. I love how their Maltese cross logo is incorporated into watch strap and the tourbillion, and I don't generally like the look of tourbillion, but this one doesn't bother me at all. The tonneau shape is just different enough to add some flair to the overall look.



Historiques






Metiers d'Art -- as if those aren't just awesome enough, they have their art watches that are just amazing.



All the best.

[Devious21]

Wow. Those art watches are amazing.

[Red Bread]

I've always preferred VC to PP, not sure exactly why, I guess it's just the underdog thing. I'd have to say that if I were spending the money though, I'd probably buy an A Lange over either though.

[tony20009]

Originally Posted by Red Bread

I've always preferred VC to PP, not sure exactly why, I guess it's just the underdog thing. I'd have to say that if I were spending the money though, I'd probably buy an A Lange over either though.

I think that a major part of why one rarely sees VC watches is that the things VC does better than the other top tier brands are things that cost huge sums. While every VC has a steller movement inside, it's neither better nor worse than offerings from other top brands like PP, ALS, Breguet, Parmagiani, de Bethune, Arnold & Son, and many others. So while one will certainly have a fantastic watch buying any VC, their styling is what, for me, distinguishes them from the other top major brands.

For example, the Patrimony is a beautiful watch. It's got a stellar movement inside of a well designed round watch case. Lots of folks make excellent, beautiful, round watches, so I'd choose a basic round watch from a brand that doesn't make something more distinctive than that.

For me, ALS is a great choice for a round, regular duty dress watch. The Saxonia and Richard Lange lines are spot on, as is the JLC MC and JLC MUT. Plus, as a round watch, I feel like a round dress watch is a round dress watch; the dial, hands and numbers will distinguish it for me more than the case design. So, in a simple, round dress watch, I'd most likely pick an ALS over a VC. In practice, I'd go with the Piaget Altiplano over both because Piaget is the king of thin, round dress watches. It's what they are best known for and they do it better than all others.

Of the VC offerings, I'd pick either one of the Chinese New Year watches (snake or horse) or one of the Historiques (the long rectangular one) or the 1972, my favorite (shown here: http://www.f30post.com/forums/showpo...7&postcount=17).

I really like ALS for two of their watches (not discussing their movements per se, because the achievement there speaks for itself). I really don't see myself wanting either and having anything as an alternate consideration. They are more likely watches I'd consider against each other than against competing brand's watches. Both are stunning, but I'm definitely more a "good looks" junkie than a movement junkie, even though I appreciate great movements and they matter somewhat to me.

• Lange1 -- mostly for what it represents for ALS' re-entry to watchmaking in the modern era. I think it's pretty dramatic looking in black (GL1), but rather bland in silver (L1). (even when I tried it on, I liked black better)
• Zeitwerk I like for it's funky looks, which I actually like better than the L1, even the newer version of the new GL1 with its lumed date and see through dial.

Visually, I might consider a GO Pano-watch, but who knows which one. I do prefer the GOs visually. I prefer the Panomatic Date's look but the multidimensional dials on the Panomatic Counter is quite unique and the insane symmetry of the PMC is just stunning. The Panomatic Lunar is impressive, but to me, there's just something that's not right about the balance of all the watch face elements. That said, if the seller were offering a good enough deal, I could be persuaded.

All the best and TY for your thoughts.

[Red Bread]

Great discussion, thanks. I love GO's too. I nearly bought a Pano-Graph many years ago and still wish I had. Not the most functional thing, but incredibly unique.

The only German I have now is a daily Sinn 856 with an ETA 2892, I had planned on trading it for a GO Sport Evolution, but waited too long and Swatch killed off that model.

[tony20009]

Originally Posted by Red Bread

Great discussion, thanks. I love GO's too. I nearly bought a Pano-Graph many years ago and still wish I had. Not the most functional thing, but incredibly unique.

The only German I have now is a daily Sinn 856 with an ETA 2892, I had planned on trading it for a GO Sport Evolution, but waited too long and Swatch killed off that model.

It's still around. And it looks great. That's the thing I really adore about GO. They make just beautiful watches. I don't know who their aesthetics designer is, but I sure wish s/he'd moonlight at some other companies once in a while.

There are several available on Chrono24, some are even new. Luxury Bazaar still has several different models of new ones too.

• http://www.luxurybazaar.com/subcateg...rama_Date.html
• http://www.chrono24.com/en/glashuetteoriginal/prices-for-sport-evolution-impact-watches--mod347-new.htm
• http://www.amazon.com/Glashutte-Orig...ef=pd_sxp_f_pt

All the best.

[KennyLim333]

The watchface on your smartwatch such as Moto 360, LG G Watch and Samsung Gear can customize by yourself. It's FREE and you can try it now!

[1MOREMOD]

Originally Posted by Devious21

Wow. Those art watches are amazing.

I'd say amazingly ugly. Sponge Bob watch looks better.

[GraphiteBrawler]

I have a passion for the Zeitwek series. When the original came out in the rose gold I thought i'd pass out from envy.

[mookie45]

I love the ultra thin and simplistic design of the Piaget Altiplano. Examining the craftsmanship up close on this watch is mind blowing. The rose gold/brown color for me:

http://www.piaget.com/watches/rose-g...watch-g0a35131

[K19BMW]

Originally Posted by tony20009

So, I'm partial to dressier watches. I love more casual styles, but I find it far easier and far more appropriate to dress down a dressy watch than it is to dress up a sport/casual watch. Some of my watchie friends will disagree, and that's fine; one must do what works for one's own sense of style on such matters.

Well, what's a dress watch? A dress watch is a watch that:

1. Is thin
2. Is not cluttered with tons of numbers and distractions on it's face
3. When it has "stuff" on its face, the "stuff" is balanced in it's presentation or artful in its entirety
4. Fits easily under one's shirt cuff
5. Is not a dive watch, or any other type of "purpose" watch
6. Has a strap made from some sort of skin
7. Has a bracelet that has smaller "sections" rather that larger

Now of course there can be an exception to every one of those points above, except 1, 4 and 5.



I guess there could be a reason why a person might wear a purpose watch in a dress situation. James Bond had a legit need for his tricked out Omega Seamaster, but that didn't make the watch a dress watch. It just gave him a good reason for not wearing a dress watch with a tuxedo.


So what's this got to do with Vacheron Constantin (VC)? Well of the three top watch brands, IMO, VC by far does dress watches better than the others. Indeed, they do it better than pretty much everyone, as far as I'm concerned. Yes, everyone makes a nice round dress watch and plenty of them are just as nice looking and just as fine horologically as VC's Patrimony watches are. But where VC ups the ante is when one moves away from simple, round watches. IMO, nobody has the breath and depth of alternatives that VC does in super sexy dress watches. Along with the Patrimony, there's the Historiques, Malte, 1972 and Metiers d'Art lines.


Patek Philippe (PP) is surely a better recognized name, and there isn't one single thing wrong with any PP watch. But as a brand, they just don't have the dress watch space -- not meaning special one-off, singular pieces -- boxed, wrapped and tied with a bow like VC do.



Here are some examples.


Patrimony - Your bread and butter round watch. Nothing wrong with this, but it's hardly going to boil the blood. Indeed, I think Piaget, PP and ALS offer more sublime alternatives in the basic round watch arena withe the Altiplano, hobnail Calatravas and Saxonias, respectively. And among the ultra-thins, nobody beats Piaget if that's the movement direction one wants to pursue.


Malte - Here you start to get into what sets VC apart. I love how their Maltese cross logo is incorporated into watch strap and the tourbillion, and I don't generally like the look of tourbillion, but this one doesn't bother me at all. The tonneau shape is just different enough to add some flair to the overall look.



Historiques






Metiers d'Art -- as if those aren't just awesome enough, they have their art watches that are just amazing.



All the best.

Tony i think i speak for everyone on the E90 watch section when i say PLEASE TAKE SOME PICS OF YOUR COLLECTION AND POST IT!!! I've read a ton of your posts the last 2 years while on this site and you must have one hell of a collection! I think everyone here who is interested in watches would love to see some pics of it.