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Legitimate-Risk-8045 t1_j7bl3wy wrote

Seiko and orient are brands that have watches of very good quality for your budget

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[deleted] OP t1_j7blyyr wrote

[deleted]

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IndianaFartJockey t1_j7c2kwp wrote

I wear one of their solar models daily. It's a great watch. Only three years so far, so not a BIFL recommendation yet. Still, I'm very happy with it

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markkenny t1_j7c8r90 wrote

SEIKO, a great mechanism, so search for YOBOKIES, (bonus points for working out what YOBOKIES means ;-) ). He makes one-off customs. Read the WIRED article or some of the stories about him and find his site. I have two and bought large faces with big clear numbers for my parents.

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ChunkyBrassMonkey t1_j7bo0cx wrote

G Shock

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F-21 t1_j7ja39e wrote

Those are very durable, but so bulky I'd bump them everywhere. If he gets remarks about his "funny watch" with the 10$ Casio, I guess he needs something more classic and dressy. A gshock... I mean, the whole oversized watch trend is the complete opposite of what an elegant dress watch is supposed to look like, even a sports watch looks elegant in comparison.

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waehrik t1_j7br70x wrote

For BIFL with minimal maintenance, go within Citizen or Seiko solar powered watches. Citizen brands theirs as "Eco-Drive"

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Homo_Stultum t1_j7c76ui wrote

Here for the citizen eco drive upvote , just got a leather band off Amazon to style it up

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fazalmajid t1_j7by0sf wrote

I paid less than that for my Glycine Combat 6, it's an automatic (self-winding) mechanical watch with a Sellita SW200 Swiss movement, a bronze case, green dial and leather band. You can also get a nice Seiko Presage for that price.

I'd suggest you check this filtered Chrono24 search, it's what I'd consider for your budget (new automatic mechanical watches from decent brands). Laco was one of the 5 original makers of pilot's watches for the Germans (A. Lange & Söhne, Laco, Stowa, Wempe, and IWC). Lange and IWC are out of sight expensive. Pilot watches have a certain rugged and sporty charm that would seem more like your style coming from a Casio.

I omitted Seiko because they have too many cheap Seiko 5 models, which are OK, but I'd rather get a Presage for that price.

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ducbo t1_j7cj9nu wrote

Seconding a mechanical watch. It needs no battery and can be repaired. Seiko makes great mechanical watches.

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make-me-lol-plz t1_j7bu2hz wrote

Any G shock square that is Bluetooth enabled.... reason being you will have the newer display/light and you can switch the month and day around. As standard they are solar powered and 200m water resistance. You can drop these things off building's and they will survive. Spend £100 on the gshock and save up the rest for your holy grail watch whatever it may be.

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Character-Fondant-26 t1_j7c57qs wrote

I love my Seiko 5, automatic movement means it is completely mechanical and does not need to be wound and does not require batteries. These range from $100 to $200 depending on which of many models in the series you like. My understanding is that they are not BIFL, more like buy it for a few decades before it will need a jeweler to disassemble, clean, lubricate, and reassemble (which may cost more than the watch cost but by then it’s sentimental value more than logic).

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pan567 t1_j7c9km9 wrote

Do you want an automatic watch or does this not matter? (I am assuming automatic at this point but if it does not matter I have some other recommendations. Do note that if you buy an automatic, it will need to be serviced periodically.)

Automatic Seiko divers are exceptional products. I have an SKX-007 and Stargate that I absolutely love. Both have been replaced with different models but Seiko divers are still stellar, and they have product lines starting as low as a few hundred bucks. They also offer numerous models with automatic movements that aren't divers, some of which are very nice for an affordable price.

Orient, Bullova, Hamilton, and Tissot all offer some reasonably priced automatics that are well made. Longines is a bit above your price, but they make outstanding timepieces and are solid watches to buy used.

A bit above that and you could get a used Oris. I would recommend reading about their products. Their style is a love-or-hate but they make some awesome watches and are a stellar company with a huge presence in the watch community.

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Caliswift t1_j7cjxk1 wrote

I suggest looking for a brand called Mido. It's not as common in the U.S. They are part of the Swatch Group along with Omega, Longines, Rado, Tissot, Hamilton, etc. I was able to find an Ocean Star 200 online for $500 U.S. Full Swiss, day/date complication, and caliber movement.

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iamjustaguy t1_j7dh6n1 wrote

For 500 euros, you may want to consider a 2-watch collection.

I am a big fan of Seiko. I have several. You can get a really nice one well under your budget, and pick up a Casio for the beach.

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AlpineRavine t1_j7eumwa wrote

A seiko presage is the way to go. If you want to bump your budget to 700, there is the fantastic Tissot PRX Automatic (I also own one). The Quartz version of the same watch if better value, at around 350, but there is something about automatic watches that feels more BIFL :)

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3yoyoyo t1_j7fhoto wrote

Buy Casio, Shakira would agree!!

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F-21 t1_j7j9ts8 wrote

Check out the Citizen Eco Drive. They're solar powered so there's no battery replacements needed, they're quartz so they're very accurate, and they come in many styles from sporty watches, divers, to more elegant classic designs. Since they're quartz, some models are also extremely thin, the classic style models can be thinner than a mechanical watch can be, which looks really elegant...

Mechanical watches... I admire them but they're not practical for me. I like something I can set up and forget about it, don't wear it over the weeked and not worry about it...

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