плохой вахта?

July 25, 2006 12:33 PM

Has anyone had any experience with Vostok watches?

I think they're cool and want to give them as thank you gifts, but I'm wondering if they're crap. I read one complaint on eBay that they are not stainless steel, but plated brass and the plate wears off. Anyone else have this problem? Or any others? Secondly, if those are shit watches, where can I get some super cool watches for men that are around 50-75 dollars and not crappy?

posted by joaniemcchicken to shopping (6 comments total)

Funny you should ask. This one is either a Vostok or a Vostok knockoff. I've been wearing it for quite a while, with no plate wearing off. I do have some mechanical qualms with it (hence the linked question), but I guess that's a self-winding watch thing, not a Vostok thing.
posted by COBRA! at 12:42 PM on July 25, 2006

I had a vostok watch for about 15 years that I only wore occasionally. The thing kept good time and seemed pretty durable. It just broke a few weeks ago and I was going to buy a few more since they are such good conversation starters. They can be bought cheap on the web ($50 as I remember), and IMHO are worth the money for novelty alone.

Mine had to be wound every two days though, which was a PITA.
posted by phatboy at 1:14 PM on July 25, 2006

From what I have heard, Vostok offers decent value for the money. I don't think it's doing to fall apart in a week or anything.

Plating always wears off eventually, so I would not stress it. It's just kind of how it goes. If you want real gold but can't afford it, you'll have to deal with the reality of plating coming off. I would suggest just going with plain stainless steel to avoid this problem.

Serious watch people (of which I sort of am, I can geek out on watches for a long time) will tell you that it is impossible get a "not crappy" watch for under a couple hundred.

At the total budget end of the spectrum, it is very hard to beat Seiko.

If you can up your budget to around $200-$300, I suggest taking a look at Hamilton.
posted by falconred at 3:14 PM on July 25, 2006

I have an older Vostok that I bought on eBay. It does have the brass issue you mentioned but it's not bad considering its age. Other than that, it's a good, accurate watch. It's pretty rugged but clunky in that Soviet kind of way. The only annoyance, and a minor one at that, is the date only increments. If you overshoot, you have to go back around.
posted by tommasz at 3:17 PM on July 25, 2006

On the subject of $100 watches that look good and last, I've had excellent results with Fossil. I have no interesting stories to tell because my Fossil watch and the one I gave my wife just work, and I don't take care of mine well at all (I have a bad habit of clipping walls, doors, street signs with my arm).

Some of their watches are too trendy-looking for their own good, but there are a lot of nice basics in their line too.
posted by mendel at 7:35 AM on July 26, 2006

I got one a few years ago and managed to break it after about a year (I think I overwound it). It wasn't cost effective to repair unfortunately. Other than that it was a great watch that kept excellent time. Now I just use my cellphone :(
posted by jonesor at 8:07 AM on July 26, 2006