RLT Watches - anybody used them?
Discussion
Looking for a small (ie 38mm or smaller) automatic chrono for my 11 year old.
Googled 38mm automatic chronograph and found:
http://www.rltwatches.co.uk/acatalog/Chronograph.h...
who are Ollech and Wajs?
Any good or avoid?
Googled 38mm automatic chronograph and found:
http://www.rltwatches.co.uk/acatalog/Chronograph.h...
who are Ollech and Wajs?
Any good or avoid?
Hi, I have had an Ollech & Wajs ID 1066 for about 4 years and I've just sent it back to RLT watches for a service.
My watch is fantastic value for money. Swiss made, using a commonly used ETA 2824-2 movement (you might see these in Oris watches for instance), 200m water resistance, sapphire crystal and so on. All for £195. The quality isn't Omega or Rolex standard, but for the price, excellent value.
The only problem is that suppliers are finding getting hold of these watches very hard at the moment. There are several possible reasons for this. It might be because the company is very small, Mr Wajs is getting very old and output is being cut back enormously. There is talk of the comany being wound up. It might be that supply of the ETA movements is also drying up for the smaller manufacturers, limiting their output. Latest news is that there is no problem with the company, and will be more stock soon, but prices are going up.
Whatever the problem is, stock is getting very rare. RLT don't seem to be holding much stock now, and Chronomaster stopped selling them a while back. We shall see what happens.
So in the meantime, If you see one you like and it's still available I'd fill your boots, because these watches are pretty well regarded and collectible, particularly the military and divers watches. One story being that O&W watches were popular with GIs in the Vietnam War as they could get them mail order and they were cheap and tough. Hence the popularity of the military watches.
As for RLT watch service, I had no problem with the order process, all done online with a pretty swift turnaround. Had a couple of email exchanges during this which were very satisfactory.
Four years later, I've sent my watch back for a service, as I have found the reserve has become a bit irregular (won't last the night sometimes) and new bezel insert fitted which has worn a bit. This is going to come to £55 including postage, which considering the price of a high end service I think is pretty good value too. My only complaint is that I have had to be fairly "proactive" chasing info and dates etc from Roy - to the point I wonder if I'll ever see the watch again!
My watch is fantastic value for money. Swiss made, using a commonly used ETA 2824-2 movement (you might see these in Oris watches for instance), 200m water resistance, sapphire crystal and so on. All for £195. The quality isn't Omega or Rolex standard, but for the price, excellent value.
The only problem is that suppliers are finding getting hold of these watches very hard at the moment. There are several possible reasons for this. It might be because the company is very small, Mr Wajs is getting very old and output is being cut back enormously. There is talk of the comany being wound up. It might be that supply of the ETA movements is also drying up for the smaller manufacturers, limiting their output. Latest news is that there is no problem with the company, and will be more stock soon, but prices are going up.
Whatever the problem is, stock is getting very rare. RLT don't seem to be holding much stock now, and Chronomaster stopped selling them a while back. We shall see what happens.
So in the meantime, If you see one you like and it's still available I'd fill your boots, because these watches are pretty well regarded and collectible, particularly the military and divers watches. One story being that O&W watches were popular with GIs in the Vietnam War as they could get them mail order and they were cheap and tough. Hence the popularity of the military watches.
As for RLT watch service, I had no problem with the order process, all done online with a pretty swift turnaround. Had a couple of email exchanges during this which were very satisfactory.
Four years later, I've sent my watch back for a service, as I have found the reserve has become a bit irregular (won't last the night sometimes) and new bezel insert fitted which has worn a bit. This is going to come to £55 including postage, which considering the price of a high end service I think is pretty good value too. My only complaint is that I have had to be fairly "proactive" chasing info and dates etc from Roy - to the point I wonder if I'll ever see the watch again!
Edited by prand on Friday 3rd July 11:51
I've bought from RLT in the past and always had good service and very prompt responses to any emailed questions I've sent.
Also have an O&W, with which I'm very pleased (A120); it doesn't get the wrist-time it deserves (mainly because I cannot make up my mind about which strap to fit) but happens to be the most accurate mechanical I have.
Also have an O&W, with which I'm very pleased (A120); it doesn't get the wrist-time it deserves (mainly because I cannot make up my mind about which strap to fit) but happens to be the most accurate mechanical I have.
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