Panerai Watch question
Discussion
Again - Many Thanks for those that have taken the time to respond.
I do have one more questions - with regards to the automatic that I am looking at and the explanation as to how this works above (I had asked the dealer if it was "kinetic" - which was probably the wrong phrase, hence him not understanding), and I understand now that this means it should not carry on working if worn for 42 hours. As per my original post, I do not plan on wearing every day. It will often be left standing past the 42 hours. So how long would it take to "catch up" after I wear it? Or is it the case I would need to reset the time, and date, and as soon as I wear it, it will start to move?
I did say I knew nothing of watches!
Dare I say it - this watch forum seems to be like the PH of old, with lots of helpful advice. Not a single dig about my choice, and yet plenty of advice on what I am looking at, and suggestions on other alternatives.
This could get dangerous for the old bank balance!
I do have one more questions - with regards to the automatic that I am looking at and the explanation as to how this works above (I had asked the dealer if it was "kinetic" - which was probably the wrong phrase, hence him not understanding), and I understand now that this means it should not carry on working if worn for 42 hours. As per my original post, I do not plan on wearing every day. It will often be left standing past the 42 hours. So how long would it take to "catch up" after I wear it? Or is it the case I would need to reset the time, and date, and as soon as I wear it, it will start to move?
I did say I knew nothing of watches!
Dare I say it - this watch forum seems to be like the PH of old, with lots of helpful advice. Not a single dig about my choice, and yet plenty of advice on what I am looking at, and suggestions on other alternatives.
This could get dangerous for the old bank balance!
I suppose that kinetic is the correct way of describing it, in that it is relating to movement, in this case your arm. This just works by moving a small rotor round inside the watch which will keep it wound. Most just refer to it as an automatic watch though.
If it's not worn for a few days then it will want re-setting again, this is just done by pulling the crown out and turning as on any conventional watch and takes but a few minutes to sort. However, you can't just put it on and hope it will go, as it needs to get a bit of power in the mainspring first, so you have the option of shaking it gently from side to side or the simpler way of just winding it up using the crown as we used to do with all watches many years ago.
Incidentally, I really like Panerai and still have no idea why I haven't got one. Scared of the choices I suppose, so would need more than one.
If it's not worn for a few days then it will want re-setting again, this is just done by pulling the crown out and turning as on any conventional watch and takes but a few minutes to sort. However, you can't just put it on and hope it will go, as it needs to get a bit of power in the mainspring first, so you have the option of shaking it gently from side to side or the simpler way of just winding it up using the crown as we used to do with all watches many years ago.
Fats25 said:
This could get dangerous for the old bank balance!
Oh it does... Incidentally, I really like Panerai and still have no idea why I haven't got one. Scared of the choices I suppose, so would need more than one.
Fats25 said:
I do have one more questions - with regards to the automatic that I am looking at and the explanation as to how this works above (I had asked the dealer if it was "kinetic" - which was probably the wrong phrase, hence him not understanding), and I understand now that this means it should not carry on working if worn for 42 hours. As per my original post, I do not plan on wearing every day. It will often be left standing past the 42 hours. So how long would it take to "catch up" after I wear it? Or is it the case I would need to reset the time, and date, and as soon as I wear it, it will start to move?
Kinetic is actually a mixture of quartz and automatic. A quartz watch is battery powered, whereas an automatic watch uses a weighted rotor to wind the mainspring. However a Kinetic watch, such as Seiko's offerings, uses a weighted rotor to charge a battery. Essentially, it's still a quartz movement, but will stop running if unused for several weeks/months.In comparison, a quartz watch will run for 5-7 years worn/unworn, until the battery runs out. There are premium brand quartz watches available. Omega and TAG include quartz models in their range. Quartz movements are not favoured by watch enthusiasts, mainly as the movements are cheap and clinical - It's a PCB board with resistors and chips!
However an automatic movement is cogs, springs and jewels - A bit more special! Automatic movements have power reserves. This is the amount of time the watch will run when not worn, after being fully wound, via your wrist movement or via the crown. So a 42 hour power reserve is just shy of two days running without being worn. As soon as c.42 hours is up, the watch will stop. To start the watch, you can either wind via the crown (model dependant), flick it a few times, or just put it on your wrist and move!
Other watches will offer higher power reserves, some of which boast 8 days of running! As for catching up, you just set the time once it's running again ...
You could purchase yourself a watch winder, which is a display box with a rotating watch holder. The watch winder slowly spins the watch to keep it wound/running when off the wrist. To be honest, one is best used when you have many watches, or a watch with lots of complications e.g. moonphase, triple calendar.Fats25 said:
This could get dangerous for the old bank balance!
It is! Half the addiction is searching for and buying a new watch! However once you've found your perfect piece, you'll constantly find yourself gazing at it! daveenty said:
Oh it does...
Incidentally, I really like Panerai and still have no idea why I haven't got one. Scared of the choices I suppose, so would need more than one.
You do need more than one - I have three....Incidentally, I really like Panerai and still have no idea why I haven't got one. Scared of the choices I suppose, so would need more than one.
OP. Panerai are lovely watches. Easy to wear, understated and for the very reason you mentioned one of my favourites.
Whilst I fully appreciate the build quality and excellence inherent in some other brands like Rolex or Breitling they do seem to be almost the BMW of the watch world - the one people get because they've heard they're good.
In general Panerais on leather seem to be more desirable than on bracelets but as mentioned get the bracelet up front as to get it later is very expensive.
There are a number of great after market straps around on the market - and when it comes to PAMS after market doesn't necessarily detract from desirability or value and a re a great way to personalise it or change the look.
FWIW I have the following (library pics not my actual ones):
PAM 111 (possibly my favourite and the one I wear most often)
PAM 288
Pam 308 (mine is on a metal bracelet).
Many Thanks for all the advice above.
I made the decision last week that I was going to purchase in Dubai, rather than in UK. Cost wise there was not much in it by the time the shop threw in an additional strap of my choice and buckle. I didn't need the additional buckle and strap but I decided I wanted to purchase in Dubai, then it will not only remind me of my 40th but also my time in Dubai as I won't be here forever. Also (and I'm sure this is stupid) but the watch number was better from Dubai too!
A couple of quick (poor quality phone photos) before it goes in the safe for another 6 weeks til the big day (although I have negotiated a special wear on NYE and our wedding anniversary in Jan).
Was also pleasantly simple to change the straps!
I have just noticed that the guy in the shop has set GMT as +4 hours from UAE rather than -4 hours !! Gives me something else to play with !
I made the decision last week that I was going to purchase in Dubai, rather than in UK. Cost wise there was not much in it by the time the shop threw in an additional strap of my choice and buckle. I didn't need the additional buckle and strap but I decided I wanted to purchase in Dubai, then it will not only remind me of my 40th but also my time in Dubai as I won't be here forever. Also (and I'm sure this is stupid) but the watch number was better from Dubai too!
A couple of quick (poor quality phone photos) before it goes in the safe for another 6 weeks til the big day (although I have negotiated a special wear on NYE and our wedding anniversary in Jan).
Was also pleasantly simple to change the straps!
I have just noticed that the guy in the shop has set GMT as +4 hours from UAE rather than -4 hours !! Gives me something else to play with !
Edited by Fats25 on Saturday 19th December 16:18
Fats25 said:
Many Thanks for all the advice above.
I made the decision last week that I was going to purchase in Dubai, rather than in UK. Cost wise there was not much in it by the time the shop threw in an additional strap of my choice and buckle. I didn't need the additional buckle and strap but I decided I wanted to purchase in Dubai, then it will not only remind me of my 40th but also my time in Dubai as I won't be here forever. Also (and I'm sure this is stupid) but the watch number was better from Dubai too!
A couple of quick (poor quality phone photos) before it goes in the safe for another 6 weeks til the big day (although I have negotiated a special wear on NYE and our wedding anniversary in Jan).
Was also pleasantly simple to change the straps!
I have just noticed that the guy in the shop has set GMT as +4 hours from UAE rather than -4 hours !! Gives me something else to play with !
Looks good, I still like the rubber or leather straps best. what did it cost you in the end? The straps aren't all as easy to change. My daylight has screw threaded pins but my GMT has the little push button underneath to release the pins which is equally as fiddly I made the decision last week that I was going to purchase in Dubai, rather than in UK. Cost wise there was not much in it by the time the shop threw in an additional strap of my choice and buckle. I didn't need the additional buckle and strap but I decided I wanted to purchase in Dubai, then it will not only remind me of my 40th but also my time in Dubai as I won't be here forever. Also (and I'm sure this is stupid) but the watch number was better from Dubai too!
A couple of quick (poor quality phone photos) before it goes in the safe for another 6 weeks til the big day (although I have negotiated a special wear on NYE and our wedding anniversary in Jan).
Was also pleasantly simple to change the straps!
I have just noticed that the guy in the shop has set GMT as +4 hours from UAE rather than -4 hours !! Gives me something else to play with !
Edited by Fats25 on Saturday 19th December 16:18
shep1001 said:
Looks good, I still like the rubber or leather straps best. what did it cost you in the end? The straps aren't all as easy to change. My daylight has screw threaded pins but my GMT has the little push button underneath to release the pins which is equally as fiddly
This one has the pins underneath, but I found them quite easy to change. The awkward bit for me was getting the buckle onto the leather strap. Not sure about the leather strap myself yet - I prefer the metal bracelet - but the leather strap is growing on me for more casual wear. With regards to price it was priced at AED 29,900 for the watch, AED 950 for the buckle, and the strap I chose was AED 800. I could have got any strap and the highest priced (crocodile leather) strap was AED 1200, but I preferred the calf leather. No point getting a strap I wouldn't wear, just because it was worth more money.
So was a total of AED 31,650 for what I got. I paid AED 27000 for all. For those that are really interested you can do the conversion to £ yourselves!
I had a quick try on this morning with my work shirt. Cuffs are going to be an issue I need to figure out before I can consider wearing with a long sleeve shirt.
Fats25 said:
I had a quick try on this morning with my work shirt. Cuffs are going to be an issue I need to figure out before I can consider wearing with a long sleeve shirt.
I thought I would update this thread. The cuffs became a real issue with the watch, I could not get on with it, so I decided to purchase another watch for wearing with long sleeves (man maths?!). Unfortunately I had a function that required long sleeve shirt, and I really wanted to wear the Panerai, and was before I bought the other watch. I tried one more time to squeeze the watch onto my wrist - and disaster.............. I managed to drop the watch from above waist height onto a hard tiled floor....
First inspection I though I had gotten away with it. I managed to wear the watch that day, and it kept time.
I then put the watch away until the next weekend, and went to change the strap and I realised I had broken it. One of the lugs was bent, and that meant the pin could not be removed to change the strap.
This all happened at start of June, and was taken to Panerai on June 12th. The watch has been sent off for repair, and is currently somewhere in Europe. I am expecting a full case replacement, and a bill of approx £2500
. It is insured - but even so is an expensive mistake I made. I have also heard horror stories of the Panerai service when watches have been sent back to Europe of time taken, and how they are looked after. I am hoping that I can have a positve story at the end. However my fear is based on a conversation I had in the AD where the guy said they may have to cut the strap off to repair. I suggested that they pulled the strap back and dremmelled the pin out first to save the strap. I had to point out his fear of damaging the lug was not necessary as the case (and therefore lug) would be being replaced anyway!
Moral of the story is don't put your watch on at a height. Always do over something soft where it cannot fall more than a couple of inches. I have certainly learned my own very expensive lesson here.
Fats25 said:
Moral of the story is don't put your watch on at a height. Always do over something soft where it cannot fall more than a couple of inches. I have certainly learned my own very expensive lesson here.
Sorry to hear about the incidentMoral of the story is, don't be so F**KING clumsy
I absolutely adore my 312 but you're right in that cuffs don't work with it and I'm not sure it works well with a suit (white face, brown strap) so I have a Seamaster for day to day wearing but I absolutely love wearing the Pam :-)
Sorry to read about your little accident and hopefully you can get it sorted.
Sorry to read about your little accident and hopefully you can get it sorted.
Dropping a watch accidentally is an easy thing to do ... Sometimes even dropping a watch from wrist height to carpet is enough to do internal damage! Genuinely feel sorry for you, OP. It's a bit late now, but was there nothing a watchmaker could do to bodge repair it for a lot less? It's one of the reasons I like bracelets and deployant clasp-based straps - If you slip, the watch still remains on your wrist.
Ikemi said:
Sometimes even dropping a watch from wrist height to carpet is enough to do internal damage!
I went to a 'watch-making masterclass' arranged by IWC at the Mercedes F1 team factory a couple of years ago and met one of their more flamboyant watchmakers. Part of his spiel about the quality of IWC timepieces involved dropping a Portuguese from chest height to the floor, then proving that it was still functioning. Apparently he did this several times each month (with the same watch - his own) with no ill-effects, despite the panic this caused among his IWC colleagues!
Not necessarily saying that IWCs are inherently tougher than other watches, but I bet some brands/models are tougher than others. I'd expect a Rolex to be pretty tough, for example.
Bad luck OP!
I've only even seen my Panerai as a casual watch because of the shirt cuff issue. You can get round it with double cuffs and 'chain link' cuff links or, for the more flamboyant, purchase a Galasso Interno8 shirt that has a cut out in the cuff specifically for larger watches!
I've only even seen my Panerai as a casual watch because of the shirt cuff issue. You can get round it with double cuffs and 'chain link' cuff links or, for the more flamboyant, purchase a Galasso Interno8 shirt that has a cut out in the cuff specifically for larger watches!
Bad luck OP!
I've only even seen my Panerai as a casual watch because of the shirt cuff issue. You can get round it with double cuffs and 'chain link' cuff links or, for the more flamboyant, purchase a Galasso Interno8 shirt that has a cut out in the cuff specifically for larger watches!
I've only even seen my Panerai as a casual watch because of the shirt cuff issue. You can get round it with double cuffs and 'chain link' cuff links or, for the more flamboyant, purchase a Galasso Interno8 shirt that has a cut out in the cuff specifically for larger watches!
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