I just love quartz watches and the Oysterquartz
had flown below my radar for a long time. In November 2013 when I found this
one, before the Rolex price boom, the Oysterquartz was not very hyped. I was
given the chance to trade one for my Breitling Aerospace UTC and I was even
considering not to because I felt it might was a bad deal. How crazy is that?
Anyhow, I went for the deal and the moment I put the watch on my wrist I knew I
had done the right thing. For one it looked awesome but it also wore really
well and the fact that I had traded a Breitling for a Rolex also felt
satisfying. But that same night things changed. “WHAT THE HELL IS THAT TICKING
SOUND?!” The movement was really loud. I even buried it in my sock drawer and I could
still hear it! What the hell?! Even during office hours when I was surrounded
by constant noise I could still hear it. It almost drove me insane. It just had
to go. Despite its beautiful blue dial and fantastic design with the integrated bracelet,
its looks alone just weren’t enough to make up for the ticking sound.
 |
| #196 - The Rolex Oysterquartz, ref. 17000. |
I promised myself that I would never ever buy
another Oysterquartz. One year later I had to redo the mistake just to confirm
and to fully understand that the Oysterquartz wasn’t a watch for me. It's too bad they couldn't improve the Oysterquartz during all the years it was being manufactured. I know I'm not the only one out there being driven crazy by the sound it makes. If Rolex would announce an updated version of the Oysterquartz with the same design and the same size, but with an updated movement that holds up to the same quality as the Seiko 9F-movements for example, I wouldn't hesitate for a second.
© All pictures by a Watch
Flipper's Diary unless noted.
