# Please Rate The 10 Best Watch Maker



## goodguy (Mar 9, 2011)

I might be wrong and I would be happy to hear your opinion but I think for many if not most Rolex is as high as we can get price and quality wise.

Watches above Rolex are simply too expensive to most people, heck Rolex is too expensive for most people too.

So putting Rolex at the top or same quality and price range company at the top please make a list of the best watch makers when number 1 is the best.

I know this list will be for many a personal choice and taste but I am sure I will be learning a lot from this list.

I will also be happy if you added why you think each watch maker deserves its place in the list and why its above or below other watch makers.

Thank you


----------



## scottswatches (Sep 22, 2009)

1, Bregeut

2, Patek Phillipe

3, Vacheron Constantin

4, Blancpain

5, A.Lange & Sonne

6, Glashutte

7, IWC

8, Ulysse Nardin

9, Zenith

10, Jaeger-LeCoultre

This changes with the wind, as I have just realised I haven't included Franck Muller, Girard Perregaux, Audemars Piguet and the all time number one George Daniels (oh, and of course







). And all of the above have and do make some hideous watches that are not my taste, but are still beautifully crafted.

I'd list Rolex just outside this list, but I still rate them very highly.

The other way that you could look at this is who has done the most for Horology? Rolex, Omega, Seiko and Swatch then all come into play, but I have gone with my personal list. Feel free to agree


----------



## Benzowner (Nov 11, 2009)

I'll give it a whirl from the watch makers I know, and I am sure there are a lot I don't know

Richard Mille

Panerai

Hublot

Franck Muller

Jaeger Le Coultre

Rolex

Zenith & Omega

TAG=IWC & Ebel

Breitling

Raymond Weil

Chopard

Cartier

You will see I rate Rolex as mid table, this is just my input, I am sure there will be many changes to my list.


----------



## Livius de Balzac (Oct 6, 2006)

Not top 10, but 7 levels of quality

1. Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin, A. Lange & SÃ¶hne, Blancpain, Breguet

2. Jaeger-LeCoultre

3. GlashÃ¼tte Originale, IWC, Eterna

4. Rolex, Omega, Breitling, Grand Seiko, Panerai

5. Longines, Raymond Weil, Tag Heuer, Oris

6. Tissot, Certina, Nomos, Seiko

7. Casio, Swatch


----------



## harryblakes7 (Oct 1, 2010)

My Top Ten - Old & New

1. A.Lange & Sohne

2. Breguet

3. Patek Philippe

4. John Harrison

5. Antoine Le Coultre

6. International Watch Company

7. Rolex

8. Omega

9. Jules Jurgensen

10.Vacheron & Constantine


----------



## Guest (Apr 4, 2011)

Keep in mind that some of the rarer high end Seikos have award-winning movements which will deserve substantially higher ratings than those you tend to see in the average high street jeweller's shop. This makes it a bit misleading to rank Seiko very low, although taking an average across their entire range it makes far more sense.


----------



## Walnuts (Apr 20, 2010)

Benzowner said:


> I'll give it a whirl from the watch makers I know, and I am sure there are a lot I don't know
> 
> Richard Mille
> 
> ...


I'm not even going to attempt this, but I'm surprised you would rate Richard Millies mostrositys at the top. I am also surprised you put in Hublot don't they use fairly standard eta movements as well as looking gaudy? Also very surprised to see Raymond Weil in there, most of their watches are fashion watches. Tag = to IWC :thumbsdown:


----------



## bobbymonks (Jan 13, 2009)

=1. Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin, Audemars Piguet

2. Zenith

=3. Rolex, Omega, Breitling

4. Panerai

5. Heuer (not TAG H)

6. Seiko

7. Longines

8. Tissot

9. Bell & Ross

10. Swatch

and I'm a lucky guy as I have at least one from each maker (except Tissot so far)


----------



## seemore (Oct 25, 2007)

I think Livius de Balzac is probably on the right track it,s more about tier,s. By the way where would you put minerva/montblanc


----------



## Dusty (Feb 3, 2010)

I see some have Zenith on their list but even they make some howlers










:jawdrop:


----------



## 86latour (Jun 3, 2010)

Livius de Balzac said:


> Not top 10, but 7 levels of quality
> 
> 1. Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin, A. Lange & SÃ¶hne, Blancpain, Breguet
> 
> ...


I agree with that almost entirely, I say almost..

I'd probably include Zenith somewhere and regrettably, I think Mr Muller deserves a place somewhere too. As for Nomos, know next to nothing about them so couldn't really comment.


----------



## 86latour (Jun 3, 2010)

Bazinga..that's 500!

Well 501 now......


----------



## Redd (Mar 11, 2011)

Pretty much all mens glossy mag top 10's so far, for the wealthier among us and lottery winners (anyone got the 6 numbers for Friday's Euromillions btw?)

In my world the best watch makers are the likes of Steinhart, RLT, Timefactors, Benarus, Kemmner, etc. Bangs per buck superior to many of the marque brands mentioned so far and a chance for mere mortals to own a great non-high street time piece.

e.g. Is a Bugatti Veyron the best car in the world? To look at or drive down the Autobhan.... maybe. For commuting to work, doing the school run, weekends away, etc.....nope.

I'd be too scared to wear most of the expensive watches listed in 'normal' life and risk desk swirls or worse.

So what makes a watch maker 'the best'?


----------



## Stan (Aug 7, 2003)

Redd said:


> Pretty much all mens glossy mag top 10's so far, for the wealthier among us and lottery winners (anyone got the 6 numbers for Friday's Euromillions btw?)
> 
> In my world the best watch makers are the likes of Steinhart, RLT, Timefactors, Benarus, Kemmner, etc. Bangs per buck superior to many of the marque brands mentioned so far and a chance for mere mortals to own a great non-high street time piece.
> 
> ...


Well, that's a breath of fresh air.:wink1: It was begining to stink around here.


----------



## MattG (Jul 24, 2010)

Livius de Balzac said:


> Not top 10, but 7 levels of quality
> 
> 1. Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin, A. Lange & SÃ¶hne, Blancpain, Breguet
> 
> ...


I'd agree with this way of looking at things.


----------



## Mechanical Alarm (Oct 18, 2010)

Lets see...

1) Timex

2) Poljot

3) Gruen

4) Wittnauer

5) Benrus

6) Ingersoll

7) Galco

8) Wyler

9) Bucherer

10) Smith's [just for you guys!]

... Perhaps I didn't understand the question.


----------



## williamsat (Feb 21, 2005)

Livius de Balzac said:


> Not top 10, but 7 levels of quality
> 
> 1. Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin, A. Lange & SÃ¶hne, Blancpain, Breguet
> 
> ...


Don't think that's far off.

:thumbup:


----------



## dapper (Jun 18, 2004)

Livius de Balzac said:


> Not top 10, but 7 levels of quality
> 
> 1. Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin, A. Lange & SÃ¶hne, Blancpain, Breguet
> 
> ...


These are more like price levels than levels of quality.

A quality levels list would have to start with Credor :yes:


----------



## Redd (Mar 11, 2011)

I really like mechanical alarm's list :thumbsup:

And having thunk about this for all of a few minutes, I have come up with a top 1.

:notworthy: Seiko :notworthy:

I can't think of another manufacturer to touch them tbh from reliable cheap and cheerful, through multiple price bands and styles, all the way up to mechanical master pieces that are a technical match for best GQ magazine advertised brands in most of these other top 10's.

I'll fetch my coat


----------



## stevieb (Feb 12, 2010)

There are so many top manufacturers its hard to complie them in a list.

Nobody seems to have considered Harry Winstone, Corum, Franc Vila, Parmigiani Fleurer, Gerald Genta, Daniel Roth, Rodger Dubuis, Bovet, Greubel Forsey etc etc etc.

All produce beautiful well engineered wristwatches.

A trip to one of the big fairs in Basel gives you an idea of just how many there are.

I'm going next year any one else considering?

steve


----------



## Rotundus (May 7, 2012)

stevieb said:


> There are so many top manufacturers its hard to complie them in a list.
> 
> Nobody seems to have considered Harry Winstone, Corum, Franc Vila, Parmigiani Fleurer , Gerald Genta, Daniel Roth, Rodger Dubuis, Bovet, Greubel Forsey etc etc etc.
> 
> ...


got to go with this one really.

that's not to say there isn't plenty of good stuff from elsewhere in the world - and indeed dross from the traditional watchufacturing nations.

a bit like trying to pick your favourite song or meal - bound to be some you havn't tried, your taste may change and there is no cast iron standard for "best" anyway.

would rather pick favourite model than manufacturer personally. each to their own.

toodles...


----------



## mel (Dec 6, 2006)

Mechanical Alarm said:


> Lets see...
> 
> 1) Timex
> 
> ...


Don't care if you understood the question or not, that's certainly a list of some of the best in affordable watches worldwide, although I'd think about another Russki in there somewhere's - Boctok/Vostok - and maybe drop out Galco, but then - I'm an "affordables" man. :yes:

Any of these can/could be bought for not too high a percentage of an ordinary person's salary or wage, and will normally give years of service with minimum downtime - and accuracy to a high enough level for over 99% of the population :lol:

Hey, nine times out of ten, us Timex afficionados can resurrect 50 year old plus pin pallet movements to full working life with a clean and lube and a tweak on the regulator - proving they

"Take a Lickin' and Keep on Tickin'" :to_become_senile:

I've Smiths, Ingersoll, Witnauer, Vostok, Poljot, Gruen, Benrus and Elgin standard movements and affordable all like that! Go for what you can afford, but think of getting the best you can find if it's vintage, or look for "NOS" :notworthy:


----------



## mercuryus (Feb 4, 2011)

stevieb said:


> I'm going next year any one else considering?
> 
> steve


Yeah - I'm thinking about going next year. Haven't been to one yet - and next year is looking good for me to go.


----------



## Mechanical Alarm (Oct 18, 2010)

mel said:


> Mechanical Alarm said:
> 
> 
> > Lets see...
> ...


Thanx Mel... I was half-joking since everyone was going with the very top of the crust... I thought I would go the other direction. I was going to add Elgin , Hamilton, Waltham, Illinois, etc. since they can be had fairly inexpensively but they can also go into big bucks with some gold cases and higher end movements, etc. - I'd even considered Seiko and Swatch (mechanicals) but I decided someone would probably get offended if I clumped them in with the cheapies. I'll have to have another look... I thought Galco's were cheap! It's been awhile. They were when I got mine.

Stepped out for a sec. Seems they are still cheap - according to the bay, anyway. Decent diver on there for just over a buck ($100).

Glad someone could appreciate it, Mel!

Maybe we should start a new "Cheapo" thread and see what we get. Sure, anybody can name the top end.


----------



## mrteatime (Oct 25, 2006)

im not sure that this is altogether right imvho....but, are we talking watchmakers who make there own movts and are totally "in house" as opposed to those that decorate an ETA or similar?? otherwise 90% of those listed if we are talking "in house" dont count.....

just my 2p's worth...


----------



## Walnuts (Apr 20, 2010)

I know one or two have already mentioned but I really think Seiko should be up there, they sell from Â£60 all the way up to over Â£400,000 and everywhere in between there is no one else that can say they do that. They use all in house movements, even on their cheaper models they have bracelets that more prestigious brands wish they had and have even come up with a pretty awesome lume.

Seiko :notworthy:


----------



## Watch-nut (Oct 31, 2009)

Livius de Balzac said:


> Not top 10, but 7 levels of quality
> 
> 1. Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin, A. Lange & SÃ¶hne, Blancpain, Breguet
> 
> ...


A really good way of looking at it, so many watchmakers are much for muchness, modified eta's etc, this way it does show bands of quality instead. Not sure i would see Eterna anywhere near Glashutte who make there own tooling so that they can make all thier own parts

But the pricipal of levels of quality is sound


----------



## mel (Dec 6, 2006)

Well, if you're gonna' limit it to "in-house" production - that puts Smiths top of anyone's list

1 Smiths

2 Timex or Rolex

3 Rolex or Timex

4 Seiko

and the next six is anyone's guess. Smiths were the ONLY manufacturer worldwide that produced everything "in-house" for all their own models (at their peak) except hairsprings. That was cases, dials, hands, movements from scratch, straps, bracelets, even spring bars, buckles for straps down to printing their own paperwork in-house and making the boxes. themselves. It was a bl**dy disgrace that the then British Guvmint decided to back BMC (British Leyland) rather than Smiths - and we all know what happened to the British Car industry - Chinese taekawya anyone? :fear:

Rolex (AFAIK) made their own everything except some parts of cases, and some bracelets were, maybe are still, outsourced. Timex produced most items in the Timex watch except dials - sometimes outsourced, and bracelets. Seiko are maybe the nearest to matching Smiths in the current marketplace, again if anyone can correct me, I'll happily stand corrected.









Another 2c worth (+17.5% VAT of course)


----------



## scottswatches (Sep 22, 2009)

didn't rolex use a zenith movement in the daytona? And VAT is 20% thanks to the same people who let smiths down


----------



## bobbymonks (Jan 13, 2009)

mel said:


> Well, if you're gonna' limit it to "in-house" production - that puts Smiths top of anyone's list
> 
> 1 Smiths
> 
> ...


PP & VC make their watch cases & movements in house.

In fact in the last couple of years PP came up with their own quality standard which is stamped / engraved on each of their movements which far exceeds COSC ratings

And VC have been around since 1755, the oldest continuous watch maker in Swiss history, maybe the world, but not sure on that part.


----------



## bobbymonks (Jan 13, 2009)

scottswatches said:


> didn't rolex use a zenith movement in the daytona? And VAT is 20% thanks to the same people who let smiths down


Yes they did. They used the El Primero movement until 2000.

Which according to 'the experts' is the best automatic chronograph movement ever made, so the newer Daytonas are actually inferior in comparison, but still a great COSC movement.

One of the most desirable SS Daytonas is the 1999 transition model, new face and sub-dials but with the El Primero movement.

But even more desirable is the Zenith powered model with the upside down 6 on the bottom sub-dial


----------



## Nagraboy (Jun 25, 2012)

Patek Philippe

Audermars Piguet

Vacheron Constantin

Jaeger LeCoultre

Breguet

These would be my top 5 companies with a long track record of excellent watchmaking.

There are many other manufacturers who I admire for their history, quality of finishing or technical innovation including but not limited to:

Rolex

Greubel Forsey

Chopard

Philippe Dufour

Zenith

Omega

Too many to list, plus there are many small brands producing amazing work at astronomical prices which I don't know much about!


----------

