Posted: 1/4/2026 11:02:29 PM EDT
[Last Edit: UTex86][Edited]
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You have an unlimited watch budget and unlimited access for the rest of your life, but you can only ever wear one brand. Sports, dress, working on the farm, daily driver, hunting, etc. What brand do you go with if you can only have one, forever? You can’t pick Swatch Group and everyone under them  No ulterior motive here, just thought it would be an interesting thought experiment / discussion. ETA: To clarify, you can pick any single manufacturer within Swatch Group, I just meant you can’t pick the entirety of Swatch Group (and all brands within Swatch Group) as a single manufacturer. So Omega and Longines etc. are good to go. |
| If I can have vintage and Neo-vintage, Rolex without a doubt. If they have to be new watches I'm not really sure. I honestly don't care for the styling of most of the really high dollar brands. |
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Tough one because regardless of how much money I have, being restricted to only one brand would be boring (and that would be true for me no matter if you are talking watches, cars, firearms or just about anything else). Part of me thinks, if money is no object then I might as well go with one of the major Swiss brands and even use them for beaters because if money is no object then who cares if I trash a $5-10K+ watch? Ruggedness or accuracy doesn't matter much then either because again, if it fails in any way, just replace it or have it fixed. I guess If I went that route, Rolex seems like an obvious choice but they just don't float my boat so probably Omega? But the other part of me thinks I might choose Seiko because I feel like they have the widest, most diverse catalog out there. From cheap beaters to high end Grand Seiko's and everything in between. Quartz, Solar and Mechanical in just about every style you can imagine. You could easily have 10 or more different Seiko's that have absolute nothing in common with each other. I'm not a collector but if I was going to start collecting any one specific brand, it would probably be Seiko. |
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Originally Posted By cjroman: Lots of RIF in the replies...OP said no Swatch group brands are allowed. All the Omega replies are verboten. No, he said you couldn’t pick the entirety of Swatch group. |
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Originally Posted By gotigers: The value and porfolio of Omega is the answer. They have so many great styles and prices. You can always find an Omega to fit your activity. this. I wore a seamaster as my only watch for 15 years. Suits, work, gym, whatever. If I had an unlimited budget I would probably pick them again but get weirder and wear a solid gold moon watch when wrenching on cars just to piss people off. 
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Originally Posted By cjroman: Lots of RIF in the replies...OP said no Swatch group brands are allowed. All the Omega replies are verboten. It is still the right answer. Why? is Swatch a negative. I think Blancpain might argue with that. I am not an Omega fan boy, I only have 1. |
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Rolex doesn’t have a whole lot that works for me. I can do 41mm but 42-44mm is my sweet spot with a penchant for 43 to 44mm. Now trends over time change, so they might go larger with more of their models in the future, but right now I’d rather go Tudor than Rolex. Omega is a solid choice. Does Grand Seiko count as part of the Seiko line? Even if considered its own manufacturer for this purpose, Grand Seiko is hard to beat between dive, GMT, dress,, etc. |
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Originally Posted By cjroman: Exactly, any Swatch group brand is not allowed according to OP. I think he meant that you could not use “Swatch Group” as a loophole to go with one from Omega, one from GO, one from Longines, etc. but had to pick only one of their brands exclusively. |
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Originally Posted By Newnimprovedusername: I think he meant that you could not use “Swatch Group” as a loophole to go with one from Omega, one from GO, one from Longines, etc. but had to pick only one of their brands exclusively. Originally Posted By Newnimprovedusername: Originally Posted By cjroman: Exactly, any Swatch group brand is not allowed according to OP. I think he meant that you could not use “Swatch Group” as a loophole to go with one from Omega, one from GO, one from Longines, etc. but had to pick only one of their brands exclusively. That's my take away as well. |
The duty of a patriot is to protect his nation from its government.
"I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice! And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue!"
"I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice! And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue!"
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Originally Posted By RobertL: No, he said you couldn’t pick the entirety of Swatch group. Originally Posted By RobertL: Originally Posted By cjroman: Lots of RIF in the replies...OP said no Swatch group brands are allowed. All the Omega replies are verboten. No, he said you couldn’t pick the entirety of Swatch group. Correct, this is what I meant but I see how it could be misinterpreted. To clarify, any single manufacturer within Swatch group is an option. |
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Originally Posted By frankinwr: Ok so I think the easy answer is probably Rolex but it feels boring. I think I lean to Omega for variety but I could see arguments for IWC, Cartier or maybe even Breitling Breitling would definitely be my second choice after Rolex. Omega doesn’t do much for me. The only one I really like is the speedmaster automatic with date. Most of their bracelets look like they are belong on a $150 Citizen. Cartier: square luxury watches, no thanks. My interest in square watches only goes as far as my G Shock and Apple Watch IWC: if you think Rolex is boring, IWC designs are about as interesting as a ream of printer paper. |
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Close call between Rolex and Tudor. I feel like Tudor has more variety up and down the lineup. Non-Swiss would be Seiko. |
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| Owning Rolex, Omega, and Breitling, I'd probably go with Breitling. The lineup is the most interesting and diverse, and they're always coming out with new designs. Omega makes great watches, but a lot of the good designs are concentrated around the classics (seamaster, speedmaster) while their willingness to experiment results in some absolutely weird designs. |
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Originally Posted By grambosc: Seiko. They have a variety of models and styles I'd like, and they beat the crap out of the arrogant Swiss in accuracy until the butthurt chocolatiers made the COSC certification Swiss-made only. Man, I like my Seikos, but none of autos are even close to the accuracy of my Swiss watches. Even my 47 year old Rolex OP Date keeps better time than my modern Seikos. Not that they should at all. They are a solid budget brand and do a great job for what they are. |
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Originally Posted By triburst1: Man, I like my Seikos, but none of autos are even close to the accuracy of my Swiss watches. Even my 47 year old Rolex OP Date keeps better time than my modern Seikos. Not that they should at all. They are a solid budget brand and do a great job for what they are. Originally Posted By triburst1: Originally Posted By grambosc: Seiko. They have a variety of models and styles I'd like, and they beat the crap out of the arrogant Swiss in accuracy until the butthurt chocolatiers made the COSC certification Swiss-made only. Man, I like my Seikos, but none of autos are even close to the accuracy of my Swiss watches. Even my 47 year old Rolex OP Date keeps better time than my modern Seikos. Not that they should at all. They are a solid budget brand and do a great job for what they are. Agreed My 2002 Datejust is +1.5 seconds per day. |
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Originally Posted By RobertL: If I can have vintage and Neo-vintage, Rolex without a doubt. If they have to be new watches I'm not really sure. I honestly don't care for the styling of most of the really high dollar brands. I have the same issue, but I'd choose Omega. I love the neo-vintage stuff (90s-2000s), and there are both classics and some wonderfully funky watches in their vintage catalog, but the newest models don't do it for me as much. Rolex just doesn't do a lot for me. They are certainly reliable and inoffensive, but I don't find them very inspiring. |
