I purchased a $130 men's Citizen watch from a local jeweler to replace an aging $25 Timex that still worked but looked somewhat worn. At least, it looked worn to a lady friend who wanted me to go shopping with her. The internal workings of the Citizen watch were from Japan, and it included a flexible metal watch band by Speidel that was made in China.
The watch kept good time, but the watch-band links started to split and separate. I took it back to the local jeweler, along with the receipt and leftover links from shortening the original too-large band. The jeweler repaired it at no charge. But the band failed again and again and again, pretty much every 9 to 12 months. As the five-year guarantee was going to expire within the year, I asked the jeweler if I should contact his supplier about this serious quality problem.
The jeweler -- who must have been tired of repeated repair visits from me -- agreed and gave me the contact information. After an exchange of emails and letters, the company told me that the guarantee covered only the watch and not the "bracelet," which must be jeweler talk for watchband.
I wrote a fairly hot letter to the name and address I found on a Website for the North American president of the Citizen company. That produced a more positive response from a company employee, who sent instructions for mailing the watch to them for inspection and repair.
Of course, this was "not technically covered." They wanted $16 for their trouble -- it was their "policy." I paid in the spirit of compromise -- and to get my watch back. They replaced the band with a new one that didn't seem to have the flaws of the original. But two months after the five-year guarantee period ended, the watch quit for good. It's back to the Timex for me.
This entry was submitted by C. K. Walter and edited by Rob Spiegel
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I had an all stainless steel timex for year until I finally ran over it with a Ford F150. I guess Im old school and just dont feel right without an ANALOG watch. After a couple not so cheap Casio and Timex watches and having the bands break or get an awful funky smell to them, I went back to an all metal watch. A nice Omega I picked up for 7500 Tengiz.
One thing kids dont consider about using their cell phones to check the time is when traveling, your phone continually updates with the local time. I can look at an analog watch and tell you what time it is in all the important places. Like home so Im not calling my wife at 2am.
It seems the only people wearing watches these days are those who wear a watch for jewelry. My cell phone is my watch, or my computer at work or home, the clock in my car, etc.
Somewhere I have some old watches the still work, including an old self-winding Timex from the 1970's. I come across them every few years back in a drawer.
Citizen watches are now all "Eco-Drive" meaning they have a charge storage device that captures the energy in light. In theory, you never need to replace a battery (which costs less than $5). Instead every few years I need to replace this charge storage device which costs over $50! I would rather they just used batteries and not be so fancy. My old battery power Citizen lasted over 15 years before it broke.
The article does seem to poke fun at Chinese watch manufacturing. Having been to the train station in Shenzhen, China and being offered a $10,000 Rolex for 300 RMB ($50) that was guaranteed to keep time to the minute, I understand that Chinese brands may seem to be faulty, but there are some good ones. Sea Gull watches manufactured in Tianjin, China are known internationally for their quality. As for Citizen, I have had the same one for the last 10 years and other than damaging the crystal once, it has never needed any repair.
Watches, my daughter tells me, are passé. Everybody (I guess the same everybody whose mom let them do this or that) uses the clock on their cell phone. Being old school dinosaur, I still prefer a watch, and one with a face and hands instead of a digital. I tend to get them at that great bastion of retail, where a new watch is less expensive than replacing the battery or band of the old one. It grates against my old school soul to replace instead of repair, but money is still money, For $8 I can get a new watch. .. or for $15 I can get a new band and battery. For the record, my phone does have a clock on the inside, one on the the outside, dual readouts for world travelers, three alarms, a timer, and a stopwatch. Talk about overkill.
Citizens are ok watches. Don't expect them to last a decade. Seiko is a better watch, I believe. I have a few watches. A stainless steel Seiko and a plastic band and cased Swiss Army. I save the Seiko for winter months and A/C environments and the Swiss Army for the Summer months. No corrosion and the bracelets look great. Also, never put your watch in your pocket. Ruins the bracelets in no time. If you don't want Seiko try Fossil watches. A family member of mine who has a Jewelry store and sales Rolex and Fossil actually prefers the Fossil over Rolex. Fossil is much lighter and actually keeps time better. Don't have to wind it up everyday. In watches everyone wants the more expensive watch, but they also have a much bigger advertising budget.
Your point about sacred brands losing their quality standards was just what I was thinking, Rob. This column has documented stories of so many products from once highly trusted brands that fell off a cliff quality wise with modern-day engineering/manufacturing practices. It's almost painful to watch.
As for wearing a watch. I, for one, always have one on. But for me, it's more about the jewelry/accessory aspect--I don't necessarily care if it keeps on ticking!!!
Good question, Beth. That was the first thing that came to mind when the blogger mentioned going back to Timex. In this column, we've seen so many sacred brands lose their quality. I've owned Timex watches and they do go on forever. But times change. I no longer wear a watch. I find my cell phone has ended my need to wear something on my wrist. My wrist feels absolutely liberated. And the time on my cell is always accurate, never fails.
Got it, Rob. That makes sense that where's there is one failure, there's another. So I guess it's back to the old Timex brand, which "keeps on ticking." I'd actually be curious to know if modern-day Timex watches are as reliable as the older models.
Good point, Beth. The watchband, however, was a dark sign of troubles to come. In the end, the watch itself stopped working. So, whatever quality lapses were apparent in the watchband design also seemed to affect the design of the innner workings of the watch as well.
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