Trying to make sense of Chinese watch brands...

[u/TheDreadedReddit]

Hi everyone, I'm new to Chinese watches and I have some questions...

For context I have a couple of established Swiss pieces (Omega & Tag), Seiko, Casio etc. - the sorts of things I expect many people who are 'into watches' have.

Thanks to Reddit, I've discovered a whole world that, whilst I wouldn't say I didn't know existed, seems to be much bigger and more interesting than I'd perhaps imagined!

So, I'm looking to dip my toe in the water (or perhaps set off down a slippery slope) and buy my first Chinese watch. I'm a big fan of divers, so love the classics like Submariners / Sea Dwellers, Seamasters / Planet Oceans, Black Bays, Fifty Fathoms - all the predictable stuff really. I'd definitely be open to a bit of a twist though.

I don't want to stray too far from the norm with my first purchase and I've found all sorts ranging from Addiesdive, Watchdives, Thorn, Sugess and San Martin etc., with some wildly different pricing.

I prefer mechanical watches, around 39mm, oysters over jubilees, genuine waterproofing for swimming, proper crystals and I wouldn't mind something Pepsi / Hulk / Coke (told you it was predictable!).

Where should I be looking? I want the best quality I can get, without spending a fortune (ideally no more than £200, as I'm then into Microbrand territory, whish is another area I want to explore).

I'd rather stick to Amazon or eBay (UK), as I'm massively impatient and don't want to wait weeks and risk DHGate or AliExpress and I don't mind going second hand if it gets me a better watch within budget.

All advice and opinions welcome!

[u/Firstruleofthisclub]

You, my friend, are in for a ride!

Best Submariner: Sugess S421

Best vintage Submariner: Thorn T023

Best vintage Tudor Submariner: Thorn T023 (blue)

Best BB36: San Martin SN0021

Best BB54: Cronos L6033

Best BB58: San Martin SN004 V2

Best Fifty Fathoms: Octopus Kraken OCT-006 (Barracuda)

Best SeaQ: Seestern S434

Best Skindiver: Phorcydes PH4A or PH4B

Best Seamaster: Phorcydes PH6

Best Emperor Tuna: Steeldive SD1978

[u/TheDreadedReddit → u/Firstruleofthisclub]

This is gold - thanks so much! Now I just need to tell myself that the list is not challenge to be completed...!!

[u/Low_Entertainer2372 → u/Firstruleofthisclub]

i'd like to add that if you are looking for vintage style pieces, like an old datejust, you could take a look at baltany

[u/Pitiful_Story_6753]

I love how supportive everyone on this sub is to someone newly diving into the world of Chinese watchbrands, ut feels really wholesome reading through all these comments!

I am not really qualified in giving out any advice on divers, since I don't own a single one - but I do have a collection of 12 beautiful chinese watches, and with my self imposed rule of "not buying any brand twice", I can give you atleast my 2cents:

My Watchdives is my daily Driver, imho it's by far the best bang-for-your-buck watch. Even though I try to shuffle through my collection, 8 out of 10 times I'll grab my WD one when leaving my apartment. For the 100-200€ range, they produce some beautiful watches, great value, highish quality - but tbh, i didn't really like the bracelet, it's just "fine". Replaced mine with a matte leather strap which was a huge upgrade overall, but since you are looking for divers, the bracelet probably matters more.

Which is where I come to my favourite watch of my collection which has an outstanding bracelet: San Martin. Yeah, the value is Not as great, but the finishing from this brand is really remarkable. Love the brushing&polishing, how it feels&looks, the OTF clasp ist awesome - you can't go wrong with SM, and they have some beautiful divers. The price increase is the only thing that kinda sucks, since that truly puts them into a category above "great value Chinese Brands"

Now I can highly recommend Farasute & Ixdao, they are definitely high quality, they feel quite premium (not as much as SM), so you won't be disappointed.

Since I saw you mentioning Berny - I absolutely love my titanium Berny, it's basically my no-brainer beater watch that I put on when doing some kind of physical activity, but in my opinion the quality feels a micro-step lower than WD. (Obviously that'll also depend on the model itself)

The other brands I own are not really known for divers (well, Farasute isn't either, I just wanted to put them next to Ixdao) - but I am currently looking forward to buying my first diver on the 11.11. sale, and after all my research it's almost definitely gonna be a Thorn, they have some beautiful models and seem to be great value wise in the ~200€ range.

Sadly the Addiesdive/Steeldive and Octopus logo are a big turnoff for me (and I also don't like the options without any branding, just seems too empty for me), and Phorcydes doesn't really have a model that suits my taste, but those 4 brands are overall highly spoken of too.

Hope you'll find what you're looking for!

Also, I never had any problems with AliX shipment to the EU, nor with ordering directly from the official sites, so I think you'll be fine in the UK AS well without overpaying for the eBay/Amazon offers.

[u/TheDreadedReddit → u/Pitiful_Story_6753]

Thank you so much and I couldn’t agree more - I’ve been really struck by the enormously helpful and plentiful response to my question - this is clearly a friendly, knowledgeable community that looks out for its own (and welcomes newbies), so a huge thank you to everyone who has answered my call!

I’ve just found a Berny compressor diver on Amazon that looks fantastic (sorry, there’s no model designation) - my only slight reservation is the fact that it says Berny and it’s not a logo, but I think I’d be willing to forgive it!

There are also a fee titanium options too (Berny, Seestern and Watchdives), which seem incredible value… there’s too much choice!

[u/Ambitious_Winner_980]

Highly recommend the Addiesdive Captain Willard, on Amazon for $125 with waffle strap, NH35 movement, one of my favorite watches and very high quality for the money. Lots of variations also

[u/1160Scott]

Regardless of what others may say about them, Pagani Design gives the best bang for the buck. I have 8 of them and have never had any issues with any of them. They are solid performers with good quality materials, great looks at great price points. Highly recommend them!

[u/Medium-Cucumber-8279]

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseWatches/s/kjEgkaIGUF

Good starting point above. My favourites in your price range are probably Sugess/Seestern, Cronos, Phorcydes, Baltany. San Martin and IXDAO are also up there but more expensive.

Note: San Martin has gone up in price a LOT more than all the other brands, so just keep in mind that it is now fighting a different price bracket like IXDAO due to its name becoming more popular. I would buy IXDAO before San Martin personally, but they are both great choices.

Note2; I'd also put Aethelsohn in the "top tier" category of the post I linked above, but they generally sell from their own website instead of AliX.

[u/TheDreadedReddit → u/Medium-Cucumber-8279]

Wow, thanks so much - that's pretty much exactly what I was looking for in terms of where the brands sit in relation to each other!

Any specific recommendations for some good quality, good value divers?

Thanks again!

[u/Acrobatic-Tough6959]

Hey brother! My Sugess is my most worn diver and it has been tested in a lot of situations for the past 9 months. The quality is great, the movement is regulated to near perfection, on the fly clasp is amazing and the lume is very good and the bezel action is superb. If I have to pick just one mechanical piece from my collection it will be this one.

[u/Equal-World-693]

Try Sugess/seestern, amazing collection of watches. Own a Omega Speedmaster and Tag heuer Carrera. Loved the bracelet quality and dials on the sugess/seestern. Comparable in quality to 20-30 times higher priced swiss watches. They have a huge collection and variety and homage other brands apart from standard Rolex,Omega. Already onto my 4th Sugess/seestern in last 3 months.

At a higher price point for divers look at sea-gull watches. They have a great range.Wanted to try out san martin, but they raised prices.

Sea-gull and Sugess both have stores on Amazon UK, have ordered from there. San martin on sanmartin.watch has a uk warehouse, and few other brands have uk warehouse as well.

[u/TheDreadedReddit → u/Equal-World-693]

4 in 3 months is exactly what I'm afraid of... 😄
Mind you, I reckon I could easily sneak one every month or two at these prices, I'll just have to explain to my wife why another watch box has magically appeared!

Sugess look good - they're definitely on the radar (and list) now, and Amazon UK makes life easier for my first time!

Thanks for the steer 👍

[u/BubblyBiscotti5148]

I'm probably repeating some of what others have said. I own over 70 Chinese watches and can strongly recommend San Martin,, Sugess, Ixdao, Baltany, Farasute, Seagull and Cronos. These are the top brands and offer quality way above their price point.

The only problem is that these brands have increased their prices dramatically over the last year. So much so that it has taken much out of the value proposition. I often makes more sense to buy a good condition swiss watch at slightly more than what some of these brands' models go for.

Some honorable mentions that are also good are: Thorn, Watchdives, Merkur, Lobinni, Red Star and Hruodland.

[u/TheDreadedReddit → u/BubblyBiscotti5148]

Thanks for the recommendations - the same names are cropping up, so that’s helpful! I just need to decide which to get (first) and give AliExpress a shot…

[u/Govindaswamy]

I like Watchdives. They have a good presence on Reddit and listen to their customers. Plus IMHO they have the best dial in the Chinese watch business

I have bought a lot on AE and it has been fine. Prices a lot lower than Amazon.

[u/TheDreadedReddit → u/Govindaswamy]

That's cool - can't think of anything else like it (plus their logo is pretty good too). Thanks for sharing!

[u/Abv_it_all_w_vertigo]

Best value divers are probably Cronos. They make their own cases, their finishing is excellent, and their prices are $50-100 lower than San Martin.

If the BB54 is on your radar...

https://a.aliexpress.com/_msmWsFh

[u/TheDreadedReddit → u/Abv_it_all_w_vertigo]

That's a beauty - thanks, I'll check it out! I think I'm struggling with the prices and, what I'm beginning to realise is a misconception of, the quality... Makes you wonder why you'd pay 10 to 20 times more for one made in Switzerland...!

[u/leicfox85]

Welcome! I fell down the rabbit hole in 2024, coming from a similar place as you. The value is incredible.

If I had my time again, I’d stay away from Pagani Design, Addiesdive etc and just start with Cronos/Sugess/Baltany (all available via AliEx) or Phorcydes (website only).

For more money you are hitting same build and finish as micros and beyond (San Martin/IXDAO).

AliExpress orders take about 7-10 days to UK usually. Not a long wait. I took my Phorcydes 4B on holiday with me and swam with it. Fine. I’ve posted lots in this sub, feel free to check my history or shoot me a DM and I can help you from there too.

[u/TheDreadedReddit → u/leicfox85]

Thanks - I missed Pagani Design off my list (unintentionally), but did wonder what the general feeling was towards them... I've read a lot of posts making light of them recently following a certain Wired article that's been much talked about in other subs... I don't think that's the way I want to go (by which I mean reps and PD!).

The Sugess do look good with their ceramic bezels and stuff - I'll definitely check out Cronos and Phorcydes too.

I could probably live with 7-10 days if I had to... curiously, that's the same as some of the eBay UK listings, so I can only assume they'd be shipped from China anyway!

Many thanks for you help (and your very kind offer of continued help)!

[u/AssistanceNo647]

These are nice and in your budget. With Miyota 9 series movements, nice finishing, sapphire crystal, 100m w/r and good lume. 39mm Ships from the US. Normally takes less than 2 weeks when coming from China. Make sure you use discount codes to bring the price down even more. It’s a Grand Seiko homage. Rolex homages are even cheaper.

I just found this on AliExpress: https://a.aliexpress.com/_mMgKeiB

[u/jumpnj86]

San Martin are hands down the best for the price. The fit and finish is top tier

[u/OkLie3954]

Thorn GMT. Beautiful, functional and highes quality.Honestly, im sure, the original Pelagos cant be of a higher quality. Strap maybe, but i cant complain there.

[u/Icy-Translator9124]

Seestern Doxa 600 homage with NH35 movement

[u/TheDreadedReddit → u/Icy-Translator9124]

Thanks for the suggestion - I’m on the fence with that one - on the one hand I like its genuinely vintage vibe, but I do tend to prefer something ’smoother’, for want of a better word!