Not every prospective watch buyer is a collector in the making, and not everyone is willing to spend thousands to get a watch with a good mechanical movement and high-end finishing. That’s fine. One really good watch is all you need. Something mechanical but built to withstand the rigors of everyday life. It should be simple but have enough visual flair to make it feel special. You don’t even need to spend that much to get such a watch. In the range of $1,000 to $2,500, there is a myriad of options from German, Swiss and Japanese brands that combine mechanical watchmaking, durable engineering and visual artistry.
Tissot Ballade Powermatic 80 COSC
The most downplayed achievement in mechanical watchmaking as of late just might be Tissot’s Powermatic 80 movement. It uses a silicon balance spring making it exceptionally accurate and anti-magnetic. That itself isn’t necessarily novel — plenty of high-end brands use silicon balance springs — but it’s a rare sight in watches coming in at under $1,000. Also rare at that price point is an honest-to-god, COSC-certified chronometer. In the Ballade here, it pairs that timekeeping prowess with a handsome exterior. You get distinguished Clous de Paris texturing on both the dial and the bezel, and a case that comes in at a modest and well-proportioned 39mm.
Case diameter: 39mm
Movement: Tissot Powermatic 80
Water resistance: 50m
Seiko Presage SARX055
Seiko’s Presage lineup has always been the link between the brand’s standard lineup and its high-end Grand Seikos, but this JDM SARX055 might be the true “poor man’s Grand Seiko.” At just a tick over a grand, you get arguably one of the prettiest dials at this price point, its numerous etchings giving the appearance of freshly fallen snow or washi paper, much like the Grand Seiko “Snowflake.” It doesn’t have that Seiko’s lauded Spring Drive but the mechanical movement inside — the in-house 6R15 automatic — is no slouch. On their own, these features would make a watch nerd swoon, but the SARX055 just so happens to be made from titanium that’s lighter, stronger and more comfortable than garden-variety stainless steel.
Case diameter: 40.8mm
Movement: Seiko 6R15
Water resistance: 100m
Sinn 556I B
While German watchmaker Sinn is known for its tough tool watches, it does make some dressy watches too. This 556I is somewhere in the middle. While it shares a chassis with the 556A field watch, it gets a simpler dial in “I” guise that’s more suitable for formal wear — a striking blue sunray dial also helps. Still, it’s a Sinn, which means that it’s fairly rugged. In addition to being water resistant to 200 meters, it’s also “low-pressure resistant” and the crystals (front and back) are made from durable synthetic sapphire. The transparent case back reveals an ETA 2824 automatic powering the watch, a movement that’s as ubiquitous as it is reliable.
Case diameter: 38.5mm
Movement: ETA 2824
Water resistance: 200m
Oris Big Crown Original Pointer Date
This watch is an homage to Oris’s very first pointer date watch built in 1938. Oris bills the Pointer Date as an aviation watch but thanks to its simplicity and vintage-inspired details — cathedral hands, an art deco font and coin-edge bezel — it’s probably more suited for business class than the cockpit. Oris does have a penchant for building study watches that are meant to function as tools, though, so the numerals and hands are coated in SuperLuminova for visibility, and the watch is fitted with an Oris movement based on a workhorse automatic from Sellita.
Case diameter: 40mm
Movement: Oris 754 (base Sellita SW200-1)
Water resistance: 50m
Nomos Club
Nomos’s most zeitgeist-y models are it’s colorful, Bauhaus-inspired pieces but there’s something about the brand’s oft-overlooked Club model that seems ripe for daily duty. At 36mm in diameter and a tick over 8mm thick, it’s far from the brand’s smallest offering. That said, its proportions are decidedly vintage in feel, especially compared to modern watches from other brands. The dial mixes in the brand’s playfully minimalist aesthetic with the feel of a vintage field watch and just a dash of color for good measure. The Nomos Alpha movement inside is a hand-winder but that just means you get more time to engage with your watch.
Case diameter: 36mm
Movement: Nomos Alpha
Water resistance: 100m
Bell & Ross BR V1-92
Bell & Ross’s entry to it’s vintage lineup is a modern take on the classic military watch. It features big Arabic numerals (in Bell & Ross’s excellent typeface) and hands coated in lume, as well as a curved sapphire crystal. Coming in at 38.5mm in diameter, the satin-finished stainless steel case seems almost perfectly-sized for all wearers, and despite its seemingly delicate look it’s good for a 100-meter swim.
Case diameter: 38.5mm
Movement: Bell & Ross BR-CAL.302 (base Sellita SW300-1)
Water resistance: 100m
Tudor Black Bay 36
The smallest member in Tudor’s Black Bay family is ostensibly a dive watch — though it feels more like an alternate take on the Rolex Explorer — and an ode to the smaller tool watches of the mid-20th century. When the big Swiss brands try to bring back vintage styles in larger cases, the small Black Bay makes a bold statement. It’s perhaps the most rugged-looking watch on this list, but because of its decidedly reserved case size, it’s as appropriate with a suit and tie as it is with jeans and a t-shirt. And yes, it’s slighty out of budget but absolutely worth that extra $25.
Case diameter: 36mm
Movement: ETA 2824
Water resistance: 150m
