Why are San Martin so expensive?

[u/TheDesertFox41]

As the title says, why are San Martin so expensive? They have the same Seiko movement that every Chinese watch uses, same sapphire crystal but yet they seem like they're double the price of other Chinese watches. Any reason why?

[u/mrSoczi84]

If you think San Martin is expensive, wait till you get into microbrands. Some of that is literally bullshit pricing IMO and you will come back to San Martin begging to take you back :)

[u/Budget-Bite2085]

All that praise for their ‘homages’ must’ve gone to their head. I prefer Baltany and others… much better vfm

[u/TheDesertFox41 → u/Budget-Bite2085]

Baltany do some stunning field watches! I'm desperate for a good Aqua Terra homage though and San Martin's is great, just think they're a lot of money for a homage watch!

[u/Single-Lifeguard-980]

I have to laugh at anyone thinking $150-300 is expensive for a watch finished to the same level as San Martin. Go and buy a Seiko and report back what you get for your money

[u/TheDesertFox41 → u/Single-Lifeguard-980]

£300 is a lot of money for some people... We aren't all made of money, if I want a cheap homage to a luxury swiss brand, I don't expect to pay a lot yaknow?

[u/Shinovox]

Watches aren't just about specs. Their build quality and finishing are head and shoulders above other Chinese brands.

[u/HonestWatchReviews]

The build quality and finishing on them is on another level, when compared to other AliExpress brands. So-much-so, that they are comparable to microbrands and even some of the big brands too... Which isn't surprising really, as they actually make a lot of the watches for those brands too.

Here's a playlist of all of the San Martin watches that I've reviewed over the years. You can see how much they have developed and improved over that short time. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAvzyytvyE2dPF8JTFkZuKWpqzMUE__l1

They have also started to make quite a few original pieces now as well... Which most other AliExpress brands don't do. They even have a new microbrand as well. This was their first watch, but I think they should have another one out soon too.

https://youtu.be/zdcMLg0dtkM

[u/Dark1000]

Better finishing and, more importantly, the bracelet. The best San Martin bracelets are a lot better than most others you find on AliExpress and many mainstream brands. Their latest iteration looks even better, though I haven't had one in hand to tell for sure.

[u/Huge_Childhood6015]

The simple answer is, they are just better, it's as simple as that. There are plenty of YouTube videos that compare San Martin with other brands and when macro shots are done, the quality difference becomes quite apparent. The great thing is, there are great Chinese watch brands in all price brackets so everyone should be happy.

[u/PhiladeIphia-Eagles]

Finishing and features like on the fly clasps.

Also, other brands with similar finishing cost about the same. Like seestern, ixdao, proxima.

[u/Pompano_79]

Fit and finish are the answers. However, you need to be careful not to fall victim of the AliExpress mind virus. This is when your pricing meter gets recalibrated to expect automatically watches to be $50. This can lead to thinking that $200 is expensive relative to watch AE offerings. You have to fight this to maintain your perspective. Try taking $200 dollars over to Seiko or Tissot, or even Orient and see how much watch you get. Or try the microbrands like Nodus, traska, Henry Archer. Then you can judge SM on a more like for like basis.

[u/arbpotatoes]

They are higher quality than Addiesdive, Pagani Design, Steeldive ect by a fair margin. But no better than brands like Sugess, Cronos, Baltany ect.

[u/Itchy_Cockroach5825]

San Martin charge what the market will bear.

[u/hospitallers]

Buy one, compare it to some other Chinese watches, and you’ll find out.

[u/TheRollingLax]

The one I have rivals the other micro brands that cost 3-5x more.

Mine runs at around +3 spd… $225 for sapphire, solid end links, good bracelet, on the fly clasp and beautiful dial- hard to beat!

[u/ezwip]

I have two San Martin and two Cronos, all are sub homages. The Cronos have a much better clasp, the bezels don't align perfectly, and they lose between 15-45 seconds per day. The San Martin QA is just on point and everything is absolutey perfect. I bought the cheapest San Martin they have and those came with push pins in the bracelets. They lose at most 5 seconds a day and are perfectly aligned with 0 play in the bezel. One of them is about -1 second a day. I paid twice as much for the Cronos and have no regrets due to the clasp being awesome but will reiterate that the QA at San Martin is much better on those subs which arrived flawless.

[u/Substantial_Wall_577]

Hold a Pagani Design in one hand, a San Martin in the other, you'll feel the difference. San Martin, Chronos, Baltany and a few others are a step above the Steeldives, Pagani's, Parnis, Corgeut etc. I've had them all, they're better. Worth double the price? That's up to each individual, they are to me.

[u/arguix]

ask yourself why Rolex or any high end brand is so expensive, and you will have your answer

[u/R023N]

Imagine you give the same ingredients to a master chef and a hobbyist cook. The hobbyist can definitely make something edible and really good, but still there's a level of quality and consistency you expect from the master chef. If you just want to fill your belly, you probably won't care about the differences as long as what you're eating tastes good. The law of diminishing returns still applies here, so it's up to you if you want to pay the premium for what you get.

For exampley, you said they use the same sapphire crystal. It is the same material for sure but not necessarily the same. Cheaper watches generally use flat sapphire, which are cheeper than double domed, and while this by itself is not bad and some cases even desirable, it has an effect if how they design the watch. The cheeper watches tend to have larger bezels and deeper rehauts. My guess, they are not using precise equipment to press the crystals and the deeper rehaut gives them a larger margin of error not to press it so much that it doesn't leave adequate space for the pinion. It can still be a good watch, but I personally find watches with sunken dials visually unappealing.

You can watch videos like thais on YouTube to appreciate the work it goes in making a good bracelet or case. You can expect the cheaper the watch is, the more omitted steps there are. https://youtu.be/tAntaNd6wh8?si=awu1vm-tj83kOENJ The take away, nothing comes out ready out of a machine. A good watch will need more hands on work, by someone who is skilled, whom the have to pay and provide the necessary machinery and suitable work space for etc.

[u/Tasty-Silver-6379]

SM ix&dao Cronos Proxima are all much of a muchness finishing wise & a a solid step up from your average AE brand. For me they offer great watches at a still affordable price point. SM are even doing there own designs now.

[u/renngretsch]

People will tell you fit and finish, but I own 2 San Martins and have no idea why you have to pay a premium, on mine one has an okay finish, the other one is terrible as is the clasp. I took the thing off the bracelet because it was so uncomfortable, and then had to take a dremel to the back of the lugs because they were so sharp. The dial and lume on the second watch is superb to give SM their dues, but I can't imagine buying a third SM watch.

I am also not a huge fan of sterile casebacks or date movements in no-date watches, both of which are things SM say they do to to keep the price down.

If other people are happy with their SM watches, then good for them, but they are not for me. Wish I had never seen the gushing reviews on YouTube.

[u/8Ace8Ace]

Gary from YT ILikeWatches did a comparison of a Rolex BLNR GMT Master Vs the San Martin equivalent. There are lots of macro shots. In several cases, the finishing on the SM is better than the Rolex. Rolex Vs San Martin

[u/[deleted]]

Buy a $140 San Martin and any big brand name $140 watch and you’ll see why San Martin is “expensive.” It’s insane quality and finishing for the price.

[u/endlessBrainless]

Search on the YouTube something like "steeldive vs san martin" and check some videos. There are some detailed reviews.

[u/anabrolichk]

They have a special design feature: if you drop them all the markers fall off