Horological Meandering

Our timepieces may cause various emotions: our love for them may be feed by their beauty, they can allow us to think back to pleasant experiences, they can totally strike our imagination for their technical perfection, and so on. But, without any doubt - maybe with a bit of roughness - their functions have a real value in our daily life. I mean that, for many many reasons, we need to know what time is it, what's the date, how much time it's gone, etc.

Let's narrow down our attention to watches chosen as daily wearer. Since I started working, I've always chosen date-watches as daily wearer, essentially because I have to write down the date many times during my office time. During the last years I even used a day-date-month-chrono watch. Therefore, when I started foruming in PuristSPro, summer 2009, a no-date watch definitely wasn't an option, but... I sincerely think that it isn't an optimum to never change our own opinion! Day after day, my own tastes became less rigid about the presence of the date complication: at the beginning I've simply started looking also to no-date-watches, then I've learned to appreciate their aesthetics and finally - quite unavoidably, you may say - I've began to desire one of them. This desire has so much grown in me that I've designed a simple two-hand watch and put an order for it (it will be on my wrist in about one year); ok, this is another story, let's come back to the subject of this thread: me and no-date-watches.

That said, an unexpected event had recently forced me to use a no-date-watch: my two daily watches (both of them equipped with date) suffered, almost in the same days, some malfunctioning. Afterwards, I was forced to put on my wrist an old, no-date-mechanical-timepiece. The first days were, GASP!, a bit discouraging since I felt panic everytime I had to write down the date at the office, dozens of time a day: in fact I have the habit of taking a glance at my wrist everytime I need to know it. Now, a couple of weeks have been passed and I've learned to mind on the date and/or to found it elsewhere, but a serious problem has arised: a very big nostalgy of those frequent glimpses to my wristwatch! Consequently, I'm a bit disappointed and worried: what's the best for me? A beautiful no-date-watch that sometimes makes me a bit nervous, or a comfortable date-watch that in certain way looks a bit ugly???

Did you ever felt like this?

Thank you for reading, ciao!

and it feels much better than any other Rolex. At least during the weekends, why would we care about the date!

Being in good company, we could even forget what time is it, don't you?

In most of the cases, they ruin the beauty, the balance, the purity of the dial.

It is a bit excessive, but hey, you got the idea behind my words.

Best,

Nicolas

Yes, Nicolas, I've got your idea, as well as I've already knew it.

Just a question: what do you think about timepieces equipped with pointer date instead of an aperture date?

 

If it is something like this, I am more than ok:



Best,

Nicolas

All but two of my watches are no date by choice. 

The best example which comes to my mind is the Lange Datograph... The first one, not the latest...



Best,

Nicolas

. . . starting with a firm preference in favor of an absence of all calendar functions, to a split preference for either uncomplicated pieces or perpetual calendars, but nothing in between.  

Art,

How was good the date at 4:30.

Cheers,

Nilo

. . . because my preference for chronograph design in general reflects an absence of calendar indicators.  The purpose of a chrono is to measure a slice of time.   When a calendar function is added, the watch then has two objectives, and they are diametrically opposed - one focuses on the measurement of a specific event, and the other reflects the passing of time.  That's why many, if not most, chronos with calendar capabilities strike me as bipolar, for lack of a better term.  

The two chronograph "icons", Speedy Moon and Daytona are not "bipolar" but a calendar, when implemented as the Zenith "old/correct style", is nice.

Cheers

Nilo

Art, my opinion about these kind of watch is that they aesthetically works well once the timepiece is on the wrist, otherwise if I look them straight on, I sometimes find those apertures a bit "out of place".

. . . I'm drawn to the 4:30 date placement.  It's not where it's usually expected, so it tends to be less noticeable, kinda like umpires during a ball game . . . they're only obvious when making a call! 

i certainly think that a lot of no date watches have cleaner more balanced dials. today i'm wearing my Omega Railmaster which i personally think is one of the nicest modern Omegas due to the fact that it has no date and has a vintage look about it.

if you put a date on this watch it just wouldnt be the same. 

interesting thread which makes me think how badly placed a lot of the dates are on my watches, not that i'll be getting rid of them.

Graham 

...they really got this updated version right.  Now you've inspired me to wear it today! 


This message has been edited by mrsnak on 2012-02-28 09:11:40

I agree with you, Graham: I've seen quite a lot of watches with badly placed date apertures, but I also think that this kind of judgement sounds like a WIS-thing!

Especially during weekdays. Minor inconvenience but annoying enough to ruined a minute or two. I think my days are better when I wear the non-date watch after work.  

We can call it the nth case of "Tyler's split personality"??

))

I don't want him to know about my story with watches

at ease wearing a no date watch. Cheat your my own time so to speak. Why I say this? Cos I do not want to be bothered with the days which are passing me and with time only, I hope I can seize moments with it. I use the phone to tell me the day and date. I have 4 non date watches and they give me more pleasure relatively compared to day, date and month. Live now, today and not tomorrow. U should be blessed reading this now. By the way what day is today?

I better feel a similar sensation to the one you've described looking at the sweeping seconds hand, rather than observing the (seemingly) unmoving date disc.

Other than a couple of vintage timepieces where I was able to overcome a date on the dial, I am drawn solely to timepieces without them.  Now I like plenty of watches which have a date function, but would likely not purchase any of them.  I like the purity and balance of a dial without the date popping up somewhere.

Darren

Like you, I used to think a date is a must-have.  However, some watches I have come across do not have a quick date set (Panerai 270, JLC AMVOX 1), or require a pusher tool / toothpick to advance the date (GO Senator Chronometer).  Since I don't keep my watches running at all times, setting them to the right date is just too time consuming when I'm about to leave home and just want to pick up a watch, wind and wear it.  My no-date-watches (Panerai 371, Maurice Lacroix Le Chronographe Squelette) are ones I would choose first, followed by those with quick date set (IWC VC Ingy, JLC NSA) if I want something different. 

Blue

No message body

Date setting is a pain in the neck ( fingers and eyes )

home.watchprosite.com

You inspire me to wind my calendar watch everyday so that I don't need to suffer the torture.

Regards
Tyler

I have a few less watches now - maybe 10 less

...I think i won't ever have your kind of "problem". ;-)

On the contrary, I find exciting to set time and date on my watches!