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Lloyds Watches

1K views 14 replies 11 participants last post by  Always"watching" 
#1 ·
Has anybody heard anything about the apparently British brand Lloyds watches? From the website their watch looks quiet handsome and uses a Swiss movement?
 
#2 ·
The watch featured on their site costs £1099 PLUS delivery. Having checked their spec on this link http://www.lloydswatchco.com/downloads/series-a-operating-instructions.pdf , I find that they are using the ETA 2824-2 clone otherwise known as the Sellita SW200-1.

The Sellita movement can be bought from somewhere like ofrei - using mid exchange rates - for about £150 and no doubt, probably cheaper elsewhere. The company will, presumably, get them cheaper as they are trade and buying in bulk from the manufacturer.

The watch itself looks pretty basic and has a date function. Yes, it has lumed hands - whether anything else on the dial is lumed remains to be seen.
Apart from the nice touch of the Audemars Piquet style bolts in the bezel, for me it has nothing going for it.

Given what the movement can be bought for - and let's face it that is the very heart of the watch - how on earth does the company justify the price?
If the case was 18K gold filled, then maybe a price of about £400 might be justified, but the case on this is 316L stainless steel.

Oh just seen it is a limited edition. Does that justify its price for a plain watch? Not in my book

Here's the spec from their site:

THE WATCH

  • Limited Edition - 500 pieces Worldwide
  • Individually serial numbered
  • Hand finished and assembled in the United Kingdom
  • Date function
  • Sweep second hand
  • Full Stainless Steel 316L case - polished and brushed
  • Case Dia. (Excluding Crown) - 43mm
  • Case Thickness - 10mm
  • Sapphire Crystal Glass
  • Exhibition case back with Sapphire Crystal viewing window
  • Laser etched detailing on Rear Bezel and Crown
  • 3K Gloss Carbon Fibre dial with White numbering
  • Polished Steel hands with luminosity
  • Genuine Leather strap with contrast stitching
  • Push down crown with dual O Ring seal
  • 3 ATM Water Resistance

I'm sorry but £1099 AND delivery is not in my opinion a justifiable price for this watch. And if other people think it is, the company might at least give you FREE delivery.

My apologies for the rant.

Regards to all

David
 
#6 ·
Bit expensive for a standard Sellita that isn't from a known manufacturer. You could pick up a nice secondhand superOcean for that cash, or an SMP.

I also don't actually like it that much, especially the date taking such a huge munch out of the 3.
 
#7 ·
'Individually serial numbered'

Aren't all watches?
Yep!!
No, not at all - - most mid price cheaper end watches aren't except in fairly genuine limited editions. Any maker who churns 'wm out by the thousands plus quantities isn't going to bother with serialing them, too much time involved and an oncost that's not considered necessary.

You MAY find a generic model number, all the same of course, on them, but hardly ever a serial number
 
#8 · (Edited by Moderator)
Nothing about them piques my interest especially for the price so I think I`ll pass.

I`d rather have an RLT :biggrin:
 
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#9 ·
I don't like company websites that under the 'about us' tab, don't actually say anything about who 'about us' actually are. They also seem to have nicked an advertising slogan from Christopher Ward.

Anyway, the owner of the company is, unsurprisingly, called Jordan Edward Lloyd. The contact address given on the website is the companies registered address, some sort of new build next to the Welbeck Arms pub. Presumably that's where the watches are 'hand finished and assembled', as per their website?

The watch does nothing for me and does seem overpriced, but good luck to them. A little more transparency wouldn't do them any harm, either.
 
#10 ·
I am intrigued by your topic riatsala, and it would seem that there is something of a trend towards new watchmaking ventures that hope to be reviving British watchmaking and are proud of it. An example of this is the firm of Garrick London, and I can see some similarity there to Lloyds watches. I haven't actually researched Lloyds watches properly, but when it comes to Garrick watches, which number only two models, they are pretty basic in essential specifications and use a hand-wind Swiss Unitas base movement.. If you want a Garrick watch, you will have to pay a minimum of about £2500, and that for a simple two-hand model. My opinion is that the Garrick watches, and perhaps those produced by Lloyds, are just too expensive and I would prefer to spend my money on something else, even if it isn't partly manufactured in this country. The time has not yet come when an entrepreneur launches a truly all-British modern mechanical watch, and when they do, I hope I will still be alive to celebrate it.
 
#11 ·
I'm always disappointed by the concept of modern "British" watches - mainly because they actually don't exist! What you get, in most cases, is a Swiss movement with a Britih-made dial, case, etc. As Honour has said, they day has yet to come when a 100% tooled-up British watchmaker comes into existence.

The nearest we get to it is the Essex guy (whose name escapes me) who bought up a load of Smiths movements from a stock in Holland and made them up into his own designed case. Interesting, but expensive and nothing out of the ordinary.

I think I'll be well dead before we see a real British watch and yet, with the Swatch embargo coming into force this year, there's never been a better time for the investment.
 
#12 ·
@‌ always"watching" and @‌will fly. I am intrigued as well. The apparent revival of the British watch brands is a little hobby of mine. I use the word "brands" rather than industry as there appears to be very little manufacturing happening. From what I can understand however there are some companies that are worth watching. I' m particularly fond of Pinion and I think Schofield are pretty brave. Neither of these companies have taken the super-British heritage route of Bremont. Christopher Ward also merit a special mention. From reading what many of these companies are saying it seems that it is just impractical to set up manufacturing here in the UK. Both Bremont and Chr. Ward are investing in movements but built in Switzerland. But then the British car industry does largely rely on foreign components.
 
#15 ·
Cracking picture, it'salivejim, and that watch is very lovely - so much more beautiful than the Garrick watches. For me though, the stumbling block would probably be the price and the exclusivity of the product. When I think of, and hope for, an all-British watch, I am really thinking of something more modern in approach and something that at least some sectors of the general public can afford.
 
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