I've had a Steeldive SD1970 Willard for two years now. I wear it daily, and it runs like a charm. No scratches, no scuffing. Been in the sea, the sauna and snowboarding with it. Still looks like new. A well invested 60 Euros.
'THE TRUTH: After 5 years of wear and tear' is not an honest title if you have owned the watches a shorter time and/or have worn them only a few days. Dec 2024 minus 5 years is Dec 2019, btw.
Yeah! The title should be: "Some AliXpress Watches I Bought, Some Three Years Ago, But Some From Other Times, Either Older Or Newer, But Older Than Most Watches Reviewed On TH-cam, But Including One That's Roughly Five Years Old, But Maybe Not Exactly, And How They Are Performing Now At Various Ages." Always need a catchy title. 👍 🙄
Great done. Brovo. I find that they need proper oiling and you can adjust the timegraph buy opening it making it better. My younger brother bought a gold Rolex used from a jeweler he knows for $20,000 usd. It started loosing a lot of time which means if needs service just like your watches. So the moral of this is, expect to clean and oil plus re-timegraph your watches after time. It matters none Chinese or Swiss. What does matter is how much it would cot to clean it and get back up to a better accuracy.
Good video, I just wanted to point out something about your watch with the tourbillon movement. The accuracy degradation is to be expected, hi-beat movements require servicing and oil change more often (every 3 years or so) because they work harder than lower beat movements, that could probably last 5-10 years without servicing. Of course the quality of the movement (and high quality oils/lubrication) plays a big role too.
Thank you very much and you are right, but in this instance as I have not worn the watch that mucho guess it might either what you say or a matter of the lubricants drying out. Thank you and have a lovely Christmas
I have a cheap "winner" brand watch. I wear it all the time as a beater. The automatic disc is garbage but winding it once or twice a day keeps it on time good enough for me. It looks similar to an iwc model . It's only been three yrs so far and I dont have a fancy pulse meter. Best $40cad I've ever spent imo
Wearing my Pagani Design Air King V2 homage for the last few weeks. I love it, it’s cheap, but it’s a good watch, amazing value for money. I prefer quartz, especially for work, hard use, but I’m going to put this watch through the paces and save up for a Rolex AirKing. Honestly I see this watch powering through decades of daily wear, the NH35, 316L SS, and Sapphire glass is good. It’s running right around +10spd, I might regulate it at some point in the future, and file/round off the sharp spots along the clasp, bracelet, nothing a little work/diy can’t fix.
Thank you for taking the time to put this together. I’ve always felt, if you take care of your things, your things will take care of you. Thanks again and looking forward to great content in 2025. Joyeux Noël!
I have the Aesop rose gold aventurine turbillon and it runs about +15 seconds - but thats ok because the most it gets worn is up to 4 hours when going to special events every now and then.. but given I have around 80 watches now, they are always going to be in good condition! I do like miyota 9 series and the seiko VK quartz, Ronda quartz are good too. I have PT5000, SW200 and ETA 2824 watches but still prefer the good ole NH35 as those swiss ones 'seem' delicate. But of course, G-Shock DW5600 and the Mudmaster for the win for me....
@@haping1 Thank you so much! I didn't have a Timegrapher at the time I bought them, but for the Tourbillon I've been documenting it, here's 2 years ago: th-cam.com/video/TRZsn3HtowQ/w-d-xo.html
Great video Olivier! I've made at least half dozen purchases from AliExpress without any problem what so ever! As to quality of watches, like most things you get what you pay for. I have a Skmei for work NZ $10 still going strong 1 year later. Pagani Design Explorer 1, NZ $130 of which the finishing for the price is outstanding, and lastly a Militado D12 with the cathedral hands (Longines version?) on a green NATO, NZ $140 which looks fantastic as well with bead blasted case! Anyone who ignores or snobs on AE watches is missing out IMO. Cutting off your nose to spite your face 😅. All the best for 2025!
All screwed pin bracelets need service checks of the pins. They can back out with use. One trick is to remove each pin of a new watch bracelet and reassemble them after coating the shaft with silicone lube or bees wax. It is the stiction between links that loosens the threads and the pins back out.
@@Horologique - personally, I have been tinkering all of my 60 years on this planet. So I briefly thought about screw-in pins vs push-in cotter-pins, my experience in other projects, and order strictly and exclusively push-pin bracelets ONLY. I do not quite understand, why the community has such bias towards screw-in pins, when push-pins are much more secure and easier to work with, if you spend 10 dollars for a basic watch-maker tool-kit. Grant it, those tools are not real pro-grade and can cause a little more fiddling, but for occasional use, they are just fine, if you are not running a professional jewellery shop!
--> What on earth will our friends in the region of Jura, Switzerland do when the Chinese watch-making industry "matches" the internal quality of current Swiss watches. Right now, the Chinese factories have matched the exterior parts of Swiss watches on a few models. If eventually a San Martin overtakes a Swiss watch for under $500 USD, it will be as bad as the "quartz crisis" of the 1970s.
That's a very insightful thought! The Swiss strategy is backfiring, as they have outsourced bracelet and case production to China Chinese brands have caught up! Now if they put a SW200 movement inside, then that's it, the quality gap is almost non existent. The Swiss still have prestige though, which is huge for some buyers, and warranty which is the Achiles heel of the Chinese brands.
What would it even mean for a Chinese bootleg watch to “overtake a Swiss watch?” No one buys a Rolex or Omega simply because there is not a viable $500 alternative. You can already buy a copy at 1% of the full price that is effectively indistinguishable from the real thing to the average person. Not to mention that you can buy plenty of good looking well designed watches that are more accurate than a Rolex for 0.1% of the cost. Anyone who buys an actual genuine Rolex does so because it’s an actual genuine Rolex. No one actually *needs* one, it’s something you buy because you have money to burn. So I don’t see a $500 watch taking any of the big luxury brands customers away.
Thanks Olivier, this review is really interesting to see After few years if these chinese bargains are reliable or not so much... It appears to be quite good in the end, except for one who broke! Not that bad... Merry christmas to all! 🎉😊🎉
NH35s have a really broad range out of the factory. What were their numbers new? Maybe something is plus 5 now, but it was -15 when bought. It's more accurate because it got magnetized or something silly.
--> Hey Olivier, great video. Please do a short video on your OLDEST WATCH you bought from ALiEXPRESS. And describe how it has weathered in your collection and use. Merci encore.
@@Mr.BMT216A thank you so much! This is the first Aliexpress watch I bought 5 years ago: th-cam.com/video/ZwZhQlWlQhQ/w-d-xo.html It still works fine, but the bracelet is destroyed
Have you ever taken them to a watchmaker for maintenance? Mainly cleaning and oiling. All the youtuber watchmakers that disassemble aliexpress watches, say that they always come bone dry, so if you want something out of them, better have them oiled and cleaned. I guess the lesser cheap variants would improve if you would give them this tlc.
Yes, that's the challange. I have taken an old soviet mechanical watch to a cheap watchmaker, and he drenched it in oil. I had to wipe som off the top gears where i had access to. God only knows what's beneath. The watch is running fine though for a year now... i only payed around 20 €. But i have to find another inexpensive watchmaker.
Regarding 2 of your watches, for one, I too have the "Newman's Own" Pagani (model is PD-1676), and it has 2 flaws: 1) The hands become invisible in many dim light situations, when they cross the panda eyes, so that was my first and last panda eye watch! I am happy I learned about panda eyes from a 50 dollar watch, instead of a 17 million dollar model! 2) How can Pagani be so stingy, they do not even add a sample package of "Newman's Own" salad dressing to this icon! About the tourbillon: Have tried to demagnetise it? I had a couple watches that ran fast. After using a demagnetiser (push the button with the watch on it, and then slowly pull the watch away), they are very well behaved! They hold time like a quartz, when I wear them for a day and take them off while sleeping.
The amplitude is the degree of rotation of the balance spring, and therefore is a testament to the "health" of the movement. Beat error is the difference between the swing of the balance wheel in one direction and in the opposite one, think of a pendulum to its further left or right. You want this measure to be the closest to 0
Great update. I have both the Seagull 1963 (5 yrs) and the CIGA Series Z (2.5 years), both continue to run really well, very pleased with both. Put the CIGA design on a bespoke padded red Horween leather strap that cost nearly as much as the watch. Worth every penny, totally elevated the look, night and day difference. 🌟
Thank you very much for the nice comment and the feedback! I'm curious to see your Ciga on the leather band! If you can drop a photo on the Horologique Facebook Group I'd be glad 😁👍. Merry Christmas 🎅
@Horologique Hello from Brazil again! You can check with a compass. If the arrows moves with the watch by they are magnetized. I believe there are TH-cam vídeos explaining about it. Super easy!
There is no such thing as an AliExpress watch, they are just a selling platform. It's a bit like saying an eBay watch. Sorry to be pedantic, but it drives me mad
@@gregtolley3455 these movements are known to be fragile and loose precision very rapidely. They need regular services on a daily use, that's why swiss sold this tech to china in 1963. 😎
@Horologique Just weird to see ... Im plumber and i would never juse cheap tools .. Probably does the Job fine but i dont think someone has the " watchmaker mentality " If he use so cheap equipment .. normaly people who apreciate small Details on watches also want nice tools or its someone who doesnt See the small difference 🤷🏻😅 Probably a app and jusing the Phone works too ( somehow)
I've had a Steeldive SD1970 Willard for two years now. I wear it daily, and it runs like a charm. No scratches, no scuffing. Been in the sea, the sauna and snowboarding with it. Still looks like new. A well invested 60 Euros.
@@williamf.9615 incredible, thank you very much for your feedback which will I hope help many others 👍
I wear a Baltney, NH35, daily in construction - still looks new, runs great. Gone thru three straps but watch is almost as new.
@@jims4539 wow incredible!
'THE TRUTH: After 5 years of wear and tear' is not an honest title if you have owned the watches a shorter time and/or have worn them only a few days. Dec 2024 minus 5 years is Dec 2019, btw.
Yeah! The title should be: "Some AliXpress Watches I Bought, Some Three Years Ago, But Some From Other Times, Either Older Or Newer, But Older Than Most Watches Reviewed On TH-cam, But Including One That's Roughly Five Years Old, But Maybe Not Exactly, And How They Are Performing Now At Various Ages."
Always need a catchy title. 👍 🙄
@@M123OCT Or simply: 'Some older Aliexpress watches revisited'
Totally. The TH-camr dilemma
@@Horologique What dilemma? Both new and old viewers recognize, if they are somewhat intelligent, that they are being conned.
@@Pierluigi_Di_Lorenzo”Being conned”…? Wow what an emotional rollercoaster your life must be 😂
Great done. Brovo. I find that they need proper oiling and you can adjust the timegraph buy opening it making it better. My younger brother bought a gold Rolex used from a jeweler he knows for $20,000 usd. It started loosing a lot of time which means if needs service just like your watches. So the moral of this is, expect to clean and oil plus re-timegraph your watches after time. It matters none Chinese or Swiss. What does matter is how much it would cot to clean it and get back up to a better accuracy.
Good video, I just wanted to point out something about your watch with the tourbillon movement. The accuracy degradation is to be expected, hi-beat movements require servicing and oil change more often (every 3 years or so) because they work harder than lower beat movements, that could probably last 5-10 years without servicing. Of course the quality of the movement (and high quality oils/lubrication) plays a big role too.
Thank you very much and you are right, but in this instance as I have not worn the watch that mucho guess it might either what you say or a matter of the lubricants drying out. Thank you and have a lovely Christmas
@@Horologique Low quality oils do dry out on inactivity yes. Merry Christmas
I have a cheap "winner" brand watch. I wear it all the time as a beater. The automatic disc is garbage but winding it once or twice a day keeps it on time good enough for me. It looks similar to an iwc model . It's only been three yrs so far and I dont have a fancy pulse meter. Best $40cad I've ever spent imo
I bought that out of curiosity . Other than it has little reserve and won't run overnight it's still working ..
I’ve actually found the accuracy of watch errs on the faster side the worse a watch runs. Clean consistent lines on the graph are a positive sign.
Wearing my Pagani Design Air King V2 homage for the last few weeks. I love it, it’s cheap, but it’s a good watch, amazing value for money. I prefer quartz, especially for work, hard use, but I’m going to put this watch through the paces and save up for a Rolex AirKing. Honestly I see this watch powering through decades of daily wear, the NH35, 316L SS, and Sapphire glass is good. It’s running right around +10spd, I might regulate it at some point in the future, and file/round off the sharp spots along the clasp, bracelet, nothing a little work/diy can’t fix.
Interesting to see how theyre going, good video
Thank you for taking the time to put this together. I’ve always felt, if you take care of your things, your things will take care of you. Thanks again and looking forward to great content in 2025. Joyeux Noël!
@@adk7962 thank you si much for your continued support my friend. Merry Christmas 🎅❄️
I have the Aesop rose gold aventurine turbillon and it runs about +15 seconds - but thats ok because the most it gets worn is up to 4 hours when going to special events every now and then.. but given I have around 80 watches now, they are always going to be in good condition! I do like miyota 9 series and the seiko VK quartz, Ronda quartz are good too. I have PT5000, SW200 and ETA 2824 watches but still prefer the good ole NH35 as those swiss ones 'seem' delicate. But of course, G-Shock DW5600 and the Mudmaster for the win for me....
Thank you for your feedback. Yes, our collections end up ballooning out of control 😂
Great review. Thanks.
Did you check the watches on the Timegrapher when you bought them?
Best regards and Bon Noel.
@@haping1 Thank you so much! I didn't have a Timegrapher at the time I bought them, but for the Tourbillon I've been documenting it, here's 2 years ago: th-cam.com/video/TRZsn3HtowQ/w-d-xo.html
Great video Olivier! I've made at least half dozen purchases from AliExpress without any problem what so ever! As to quality of watches, like most things you get what you pay for. I have a Skmei for work NZ $10 still going strong 1 year later. Pagani Design Explorer 1, NZ $130 of which the finishing for the price is outstanding, and lastly a Militado D12 with the cathedral hands (Longines version?) on a green NATO, NZ $140 which looks fantastic as well with bead blasted case! Anyone who ignores or snobs on AE watches is missing out IMO. Cutting off your nose to spite your face 😅. All the best for 2025!
Thank you so much Adrian, you are totally right, there are gems to be had on Aliexpress. Enjoy the holiday season ❄️
Merry Christmas to you and Yours Big Daddy and of course Big blessings my friend 👍
@@michaelj8793 thank you so much my dear friend, Merry Christmas to you and your dear ones 🎅👍
All screwed pin bracelets need service checks of the pins. They can back out with use. One trick is to remove each pin of a new watch bracelet and reassemble them after coating the shaft with silicone lube or bees wax. It is the stiction between links that loosens the threads and the pins back out.
That's very sound advice! Some use Locktite
@@Horologique - personally, I have been tinkering all of my 60 years on this planet.
So I briefly thought about screw-in pins vs push-in cotter-pins, my experience in other projects, and order strictly and exclusively push-pin bracelets ONLY. I do not quite understand, why the community has such bias towards screw-in pins, when push-pins are much more secure and easier to work with, if you spend 10 dollars for a basic watch-maker tool-kit. Grant it, those tools are not real pro-grade and can cause a little more fiddling, but for occasional use, they are just fine, if you are not running a professional jewellery shop!
--> What on earth will our friends in the region of Jura, Switzerland do when the Chinese watch-making industry "matches" the internal quality of current Swiss watches. Right now, the Chinese factories have matched the exterior parts of Swiss watches on a few models. If eventually a San Martin overtakes a Swiss watch for under $500 USD, it will be as bad as the "quartz crisis" of the 1970s.
That's a very insightful thought! The Swiss strategy is backfiring, as they have outsourced bracelet and case production to China Chinese brands have caught up! Now if they put a SW200 movement inside, then that's it, the quality gap is almost non existent. The Swiss still have prestige though, which is huge for some buyers, and warranty which is the Achiles heel of the Chinese brands.
Chinese watches along with the smart watch rise must have the Swiss pretty worried
What would it even mean for a Chinese bootleg watch to “overtake a Swiss watch?” No one buys a Rolex or Omega simply because there is not a viable $500 alternative. You can already buy a copy at 1% of the full price that is effectively indistinguishable from the real thing to the average person. Not to mention that you can buy plenty of good looking well designed watches that are more accurate than a Rolex for 0.1% of the cost. Anyone who buys an actual genuine Rolex does so because it’s an actual genuine Rolex. No one actually *needs* one, it’s something you buy because you have money to burn. So I don’t see a $500 watch taking any of the big luxury brands customers away.
Doesn't matter most Chinese watches don't have the heritage which is also an important factor
Thanks Olivier, this review is really interesting to see After few years if these chinese bargains are reliable or not so much... It appears to be quite good in the end, except for one who broke! Not that bad... Merry christmas to all!
🎉😊🎉
@@frankyz007 thank you SO MUCH my friend for your enduring support! Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones 🎅
NH35s have a really broad range out of the factory. What were their numbers new? Maybe something is plus 5 now, but it was -15 when bought. It's more accurate because it got magnetized or something silly.
Watches generally are durable
Even fake watches can last for years
but the automatic ones need some kind of service along the way
a question i have about automatic watches
How do they fail ??
What is breaking ?
@@dartagnan1954 it's pretty much like a car, many moving parts working together. Something will inevitably break if not maintained correctly
--> Hey Olivier, great video. Please do a short video on your OLDEST WATCH you bought from ALiEXPRESS. And describe how it has weathered in your collection and use.
Merci encore.
@@Mr.BMT216A thank you so much! This is the first Aliexpress watch I bought 5 years ago: th-cam.com/video/ZwZhQlWlQhQ/w-d-xo.html
It still works fine, but the bracelet is destroyed
Merci Olivier. I have the Pagani version of your 43mm green submariner. Happy New Year à vous.@@Horologique
Have you ever taken them to a watchmaker for maintenance? Mainly cleaning and oiling. All the youtuber watchmakers that disassemble aliexpress watches, say that they always come bone dry, so if you want something out of them, better have them oiled and cleaned. I guess the lesser cheap variants would improve if you would give them this tlc.
@@szakacselod8452 no I haven't! Yes that might be the answer, I have to find a watchmaker that wants to do 8t for a reasonable price though
Yes, that's the challange.
I have taken an old soviet mechanical watch to a cheap watchmaker, and he drenched it in oil. I had to wipe som off the top gears where i had access to. God only knows what's beneath. The watch is running fine though for a year now... i only payed around 20 €.
But i have to find another inexpensive watchmaker.
Given that you have a timegrapher, why would you not simply recalibrate the watches. Most watches would slip accuracy over a year
Because that would mean opening the watch, adjusting it myself and potentially compromising water resistance. And basically I'm a lazy f**k 😂
@@HorologiqueI think it is fun and satisfying to regulate watches
@@Horologiquewhat a terrible excuse. You have a lot to learn about watched.
@@Horologique😂😂 thanks for the honesty
but that would make a great video
I have nh35 based tandorio explorer 1. Plus 10 seconds in one week which is sublime. 100 USD. Bargain
Regarding 2 of your watches, for one, I too have the "Newman's Own" Pagani (model is PD-1676), and it has 2 flaws:
1) The hands become invisible in many dim light situations, when they cross the panda eyes, so that was my first and last panda eye watch! I am happy I learned about panda eyes from a 50 dollar watch, instead of a 17 million dollar model!
2) How can Pagani be so stingy, they do not even add a sample package of "Newman's Own" salad dressing to this icon!
About the tourbillon:
Have tried to demagnetise it? I had a couple watches that ran fast. After using a demagnetiser (push the button with the watch on it, and then slowly pull the watch away), they are very well behaved! They hold time like a quartz, when I wear them for a day and take them off while sleeping.
Thank you for your feedback. At this point I might try demagnetising the Tourbillon, even though that an actually magnetise a watch that is ok
Can you explain the meaning of amplitude and beat error?
The amplitude is the degree of rotation of the balance spring, and therefore is a testament to the "health" of the movement. Beat error is the difference between the swing of the balance wheel in one direction and in the opposite one, think of a pendulum to its further left or right. You want this measure to be the closest to 0
Looks like you need to zero out the beat error and regulate some watches!
Even if you buy the cheapest watch every 3 months it's still works out cheaper.
Great update. I have both the Seagull 1963 (5 yrs) and the CIGA Series Z (2.5 years), both continue to run really well, very pleased with both.
Put the CIGA design on a bespoke padded red Horween leather strap that cost nearly as much as the watch. Worth every penny, totally elevated the look, night and day difference. 🌟
Thank you very much for the nice comment and the feedback! I'm curious to see your Ciga on the leather band! If you can drop a photo on the Horologique Facebook Group I'd be glad 😁👍. Merry Christmas 🎅
Buen análisis 😊
@@comprandobien muchas gracias 👍
Hello Olivier, nice video! Have you checked them for "magnetized movements"? Thank you. I'll would realy like to know.
Hello and thank you! No I haven't, I don't even know how, even though I have a demagnetising tool, but I hear you can mess your watch up with it
@Horologique Hello from Brazil again! You can check with a compass. If the arrows moves with the watch by they are magnetized. I believe there are TH-cam vídeos explaining about it. Super easy!
Hello Olivier, I will send you a link to know about magnetized watches: th-cam.com/video/FywSHMNh84E/w-d-xo.htmlsi=ciYVjy6PeJIXBF9b
Merry Christmas!!!
@@ricardonercolini6053 thank you! I know how to do it but it's tricky because of they are not magnetised you can end up magnetising them...
So the tourbillon which is supposed to increase the accuracy, keeps degrading over time. Oh, the irony... LoL
Lool 😂
😂😂
My 1963 died in just under a year. Never again.
@@S-Ltd1000 how unfortunate, i've had mine for about 5 years with no problems, in fact wearing it now. 🤷🏻♂️
@michaelredding6219 they have a reputation for failure. I was one of the unlucky ones.🤷♂️
There is no such thing as an AliExpress watch, they are just a selling platform. It's a bit like saying an eBay watch. Sorry to be pedantic, but it drives me mad
Your 1963 has counterweights on both sub dials, that's a no no.
@@gregtolley3455 these movements are known to be fragile and loose precision very rapidely. They need regular services on a daily use, that's why swiss sold this tech to china in 1963. 😎
@@frankyz007thanks for the info. I was thinking of getting one. So for me its a No now.
@frankyz007 lol no...the og venus calibre was extremely reliable, and the only problem was it thickness.
I have one that is now about 80 years old.
The Timegraph is also chinese ...
So cheap meter controlls cheap watch ???
I don't think you understand how a Timegrapher works
@Horologique Just weird to see ...
Im plumber and i would never juse cheap tools ..
Probably does the Job fine but i dont think someone has the " watchmaker mentality " If he use so cheap equipment ..
normaly people who apreciate small Details on watches also want nice tools or its someone who doesnt See the small difference 🤷🏻😅
Probably a app and jusing the Phone works too ( somehow)
Your video is nonsense
As is your comment
@Horologique Your mom goes to college
@Horologique 💯 . No context or explanation, just babbling of the mentally deficient. Feel free to delete this if you want 😅.
The watch bracelet didn't break , you left the pin to loose and it fell out. totally your fault