"Geeking Watches – Now in Japanese" By Rasmus Jakobsen

There are often two kinds of watch geeks. Those who swear by the more traditional, Swiss watchmakers, and those who look to the east, more specifically Japan, when it comes to investing in a new wrist adornment. Up until recently I belonged to that first group. I have dedicated a worrying amount of hours on research using search words such as "Omega dive watches", "Swiss made watches" and "IWC vs Jaeger LeCoultre". Over the past year I have swapped one Omega for another and never considered why ‘Swiss made’ was my natural preference.

But in the last few months I have pursued new paths for some unknown reason. I turned my attention to the Japanese watch market. When one speaks of Japanese watchmakers, it is a relatively comprehensible topic. There are of course a slew of makers, who primarily deal in quartz-based watches, but if we concentrate on mechanical quality watches, which is what I do, there are very few - but very interesting - Japanese makers. One of which is Seiko, of course.

To many, Seiko is synonymous with cheap plastic watches and hardy G-Shock-models, but the company, founded in 1881, is capable of so much more. Alongside the quartz models they produce mechanical watches of the highest quality. From the amazingly affordable “series 5” to the extremely exclusive "Grand Seiko" watches. The thing, they all have in common, apart from their in-house produced movements, is that they are the result of Japanese thoroughness and a rare sense of quality and finesse. In other words you would be hard pressed to find mechanical watches of a similar quality at the same price. Value for money, one might say.

I had been searching for an understated dress-watch with a leather strap for some time, to supplement my steel diver’s watches (I'll cover them in a future post), when I clicked on to SeiyaJapan.com that deals in some of the most interesting watches on the Japanese market (and offers worldwide shipping). This is where I found the watch that brought me to my keyboard to write this post: Seiko SARB072 with in-house-movement 6R15.

Since receiving the watch four days ago I have only taken it off, when it was of the utmost necessity to do so, and I have no doubt whatsoever, that this watch is a keeper. For just under 4.000 Kr, which was the sum I ended up paying including tax and VAT, one could hardly ask for a better deal. Precisely and thoroughly tested automatic movement, a face of sapphire-cut glass, a beautiful case with lovely details and finesse, and a nice, comfortable leather strap with a steel buckle.

Enough talk – let's look at some pictures. The following are taken from timetapestry.blogspot.com

Watches - Omega Speedmaster with Fluco Cordovan watchband

I came across an old picture of my friend Rasmus' late Omega Speedmaster. I say late because the watch has been sold and replaced by another Omega. The Speedmaster is equipped with a shell cordovan watchband - which is made in Germany by a company called Fluco. I have a couple of these cordovan watchbands myself, and I have to say, that the price is hard to beat and the quality is very good. 

So if your watch is in need of a strap, then look no further than Fluco. They represent great value for money and if I had a shop, I would definitely pick these up.

If you have a nice watch of any kind (ATD is not about snobbery, so a nicely patinated Timex will also make do) and you want to share it on ATD, feel free to e-mail a picture. I will be sharing pictures of my watch collection in the time to come. They are probably being edited as we speak.

Victorinox Pocket Knife

This pocket knife is one of the more recent additions to my collection of knives. It was handed down to my by my sister, who didn't have a use for it. I actually don't know, why it was given to her, but it used to belong to my grandfather on my mother's side. My mother's father, Thorvald, was a sailor. He grew up on a farm, but left home to go sailing and did so for quite some years.

I don't remember much about him, except he had the biggest hands I have ever seen - at least from a child's perspective, but it has been confirmed by my family. And I remember him having quite a lot of tattoos, which I could stare at for hours. You have to keep in mind, that this was in the days, when tattoos weren't something, that you would seen on everybody, as you do nowadays.

This knife, is mostly referred to as a "Swiss Army Knife", because it was supplied to the Swiss army. It is in fact made by the company, Victorinox, which makes these knives and has done so for a long time. This knife is very famous, and I'm sure, most of you already know, that this is a great knife with a myriad of great tools and purposes. I'm really happy with mine, although I would of course like the "Champion" model, which is the one, that got picked for the Permanent Design Collection on the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Mine will suffice however, and I just need to get it sharpened and cleaned.

A fun fact about the name Victorinox, is that the name is a contraction of the name Victoria and the French term for Stainless steel, "acier inoxybable". Victoria was the founder's mother's name and in her honour he named the company after her, when she passed away. This I find very beautiful.