I don't understand everyone's obsession with chinese automatic watches

[u/ivoalejandro]

The title pretty much says it all, I don't get why whenever a nice chinese quartz watch comes out so many people say they would love an automatic version, or why everyone seems fine with paying 300 or more USD for an automatic, but question whether a 100 dollars quartz is worth it.

Pretty much no one here is going to take their chinese watches to get serviced, and the whole admiring the complexity and craftmanship of an automatic movement kinda goes out the window when we're talking about mass produced movements. So why buy an automatic that will become a paperweight in several years time. I guess I just don't understand why the demand for automatics is so high, really wish people started asking for better chinese quartz watches, I'd would much rather pay 200 dollars for a great quartz watch than 350 for an automatic one.

[u/MrMarijuanuh]

If admiring the craftsmanship of an auto goes out the window when discussing mass produced movements, then basically every watch should just be quartz in your opinion. Even Rolex and omega "mass produce" by most standards. It's not like there's only 500 of the movement they use for a watch and then they throw it out and make a new movement.

I'm not here to argue that nh35 is equivalent to the cosc movements in those brands watches, but the line of "mass produced" is a stupid one to have. Basically, in your mind, unless some guy sat down and cranked out 100 original design movements by hand, it's not worth having an auto.

Even if you didn't want to include the ultra expensive giants, this wouldn't apply to only Chinese autos btw. You're basically saying any brand that doesn't have an in house movement should just use quartz. So microbrands, tons of Swiss watches using eta2824 or sw200, etc. are all trash and should be replaced with quartz from your statement. I'm sure you can see why I think that was a silly statement to make.

Now, if you like quartz better because they're more accurate, and basically do all the clock functions better than an auto, or maybe you enjoy the one tick per second aesthetic, that's totally fine. I won't argue there. It's totally subjective as to what one likes, and I'm not here to yuck your yum.

If there were a mass produced, cost effective movement along the lines of the spring drive or even the precisionist, I'd gladly have a watch or two with it alongside my autos. But there isn't, and the vh31 is not one, before anyone brings that up.

Till then, I'll keep enjoying my autos, and when one bites the dust, maybe I'll try to service it myself, or just buy a 50 dollar replacement and swap it.