Inside An Automatic Watch
Depending on your age, you may or may not remember seeing your father wind his watch each night before going to bed. If he did not, he would surely wake to a watch that had stopped. Those days became history with the advent of the automatic watch. What makes it automatic? It still has the same basic mechanism to keep the watch working, but how that mechanism is powered changed the way we cared for our watches.
All mechanical watches work in a similar manner. They require a movement of a series of gears to “tick” of increments of time, which in turn registers as movements of the hands on the face of the watch. A rotor in the watch sits on a staff in the middle of the watch’s movement. It rotates in a circular motion and winds the mainspring which is the source of power in mechanical watches. With an automatic watch the winding of this spiral spring is done automatically with any arm or wrist movement.
Self-winding, automatic watches work great for people who wear the watch each day, but if you do not wear the watch frequently, it needs manual winding about twice a week. Even automatic watches will stay working better if they are wound manually about once every two weeks because this helps keep the watch lubricated. It is a misconception that automatic watches never need any winding, since it all depends on the movement of the arm to keep it functioning well.
A power reserve lets the movement of your watch keep time for anywhere between 10 and 72 hours. There is something called a power reserve, and the bigger the reserve, the longer your automatic watch will keep running without further movement or manual winding.
Rolex was the first watch manufacturer to devise and patent the rotor system that is still used today. They called it the Perpetual and it was part of the popular Oyster line created in the early 1930s. Emile Borer was the Rolex technician who came up with the system, but he was not the first to develop a rotor. That distinction goes to Swiss watchmaker, Abraham-Louis Perrelet as long ago as 1770. This was quite the invention because it wouldn’t be until much later in time that wrist watches were worn and there just wasn’t enough physical movement with a pocket watch to make it a feasible way to move the rotor and wind the mainspring.
Automatic watches differ from quartz watches which are powered by batteries and not by either a manual or automatic winding system. Powered by a battery, the quartz crystal inside a quartz watch vibrates nearly 33,000 times per. Watch batteries last about two years, where automatic watches have a never ending source of power: movement or motion.
Quartz watches account for most moderately priced watch sales today, but connoisseurs of watches still like the prestige and elegance of a finely crafted mechanical watch. Automatics have started to regain some of the quartz market in recent years accounting for huge increases (95%) in sales between 1993 and 1995.
Lubrication is essential to keeping an automatic watch running well. Watches can be lubricated by manually winding the watch periodically and taking it in to a jeweler once about every 3 to 5 years. When winding an automatic watch, just wind it about 30 to 40 times or until you feel some resistance. Keeping the watch is a watch winding box is also a good way to keep the watch lubricated.
Automatic watches are also quite affordable. They actually come in every price range. Some economical brands include Invicta watch and Orient watch, and then the price can reach into the very expensive range depending on the embellishments or the prestige of a specific brand.
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ORIENT AUTOMATIC WATCH YFH04001B YFH04001D YFH04001M
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VINTAGE ORIENT MULTI YEARS AUTOMATIC GENT CALENDER 2. $199.99 |
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ORIENT WOMEN’S WATCH AUTOMATIC 21 JEWELS STAINLESS S ROSE GOLD MOP DIAL ORIGINAL $240.00 |
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ORIENT STYLISH AND SMART DUO WV0331NR Automatic Ladies Watch 21 Jewels NEW JAPAN $329.97 |
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RARE ! ORIENT SK CRYSTAL WORLDTIME AUTOMATIC 21 JEWELS DAY/DATE WATCH FOR MEN $79.99 |
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RARE ! ORIENT SK CRYSTAL WORLDTIME AUTOMATIC 21 JEWELS DAY/DATE WATCH FOR MEN $79.99 |
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RARE ! ORIENT SK CRYSTAL WORLDTIME AUTOMATIC 21 JEWELS DAY/DATE WATCH FOR MEN $79.99 |
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90′s Orient Automatic Day/Date Watch – Exc Condition $49.99 |
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RARE ! ORIENT SK CRYSTAL WORLDTIME AUTOMATIC 21 JEWELS DAY/DATE WATCH FOR MEN $79.99 |
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RARE ! ORIENT SK CRYSTAL WORLDTIME AUTOMATIC 21 JEWELS DAY/DATE WATCH FOR MEN $79.99 |
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ORIENT WOMEN’S WATCH AUTOMATIC ALL STAINLESS S .21 JEWELS ORIGINAL EDITION $119.30 |
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ORIENT JAPAN MEN’S WATCH AUTOMATIC ALL STAINLESS S ORIGINAL EDITION JAPAN NEW $140.00 |
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New ORIENT Red Dial Day/Date Men’s Automatic Watch $89.95 |
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ORIENT WV0251DB World Stage Automatic Watch 21 Jewels $425.00 |
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ORIENT WV0081FX Automatic Watch 21 Jewels $405.00 |
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Orient Star Automatic Watch LADY’S WV0061DB $435.00 |
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Orient DUO WV0351NR Automatic Ladies Watch 21 Jewels $315.00 |
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ORIENT STAR Automatic WZ0151FH 84,000JPY NEW!!!!!!!!!!! $600.00 |
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New Orient Gold Dial Day/Date Automatic Men’s Watch $84.95 |
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Orient Gold Dial Day/Date Men’s Automatic Gold Watch-04 $89.00 |
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ORIENT Automatic Multiple Day & Date Men’s watch 100m WR Gold URL005EU $178.00 |
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New Orient Star WZ0011EJ Automatic Watch EMS F/S $615.00 |
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Orient Star WZ0251FD Automatic Watch $1,657.75 |
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Orient Star WZ0011DV Automatic Watch from Japan New $539.99 |
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Orient Star WZ0021DV Automatic Watch from Japan New $539.99 |
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Orient Star WZ0031DV Automatic Watch from Japan New $539.99 |
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Orient Star WZ0041DV Automatic Watch from Japan New $539.99 |
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ORIENT DUO WV0581ER Mechanical Automatic Watch Japan $315.99 |
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ORIENT DUO WV0591ER Mechanical Automatic Watch Japan $299.99 |
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ORIENT DUO WV0601ER Mechanical Automatic Watch Japan $299.99 |
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ORIENT DUO WV0611ER Mechanical Automatic Watch Japan $299.99 |
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Computer Processing of Oriental Languages. Beyond the Orient: The Research Challenges Ahead: 21st International Conference, ICCPOL 2006, Singapore, … / Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence) $71.99 This book constitutes the thoroughly refereed proceedings of the 21st International Conference on Computer Processing of Oriental Languages, ICCPOL 2006, held in Singapore in December 2006, co-located with ISCSLP 2006, the 5th International Symposium on Chinese Spoken Language Processing. Coverage includes information retrieval, machine translation, word segmentation, abbreviation expansion, writi… |
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Invicta Men’s 8932 Pro Diver Collection Silver-Tone Watch $53.43 Big, bold and masculine, the Invicta Quartz Pro Diver 8932 is an affordable luxury watch with classically styled features. This precisely constructed quartz timepiece for men features a solid stainless steel case that’s 37mm wide, slightly smaller than its 8926 cousin. It has a black face with Tritnite luminous hands and markers and a unidirectional black bezel with white numerals and markings. Ot… |
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Invicta Men’s 8926OB Pro Diver Collection Coin-Edge Automatic Watch $84.99 Classic styling and high performance add up to an outstanding sport watch for your land or sea adventures. This automatic watch, from Invicta’s Pro Diver series, places a large round stainless steel case on a robust triple link steel bracelet. The black dial is designed for quick and easy read-off, even in low light conditions. It offers three-hand function with Tritnite-coated luminous hands and … |
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Invicta Men’s 8926 Pro Diver Collection Automatic Watch $79.99 Big, bold and masculine, the Invicta Men’s Pro Diver Automatic watch is an affordable luxury watch with classically styled features. This precisely constructed timepiece for men features a solid stainless steel case that’s 40mm wide (1.57 inches). It has a black face with Tritnite luminous hands and markers and a unidirectional black bezel with white numerals and markings. Other features include a… |
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Orient Men’s Automatic Watch CEM65005D $94.69 Orient Watch: Orient CEM65005D men’s watch features brushed finish stainless steel case with blue unidirectional rotating bezel and screw down crown. This great watch also comes with high quality Japanese automatic movement scratch resistant mineral crystal water resistant up to 200 Meters 9 inches black rubber strap with stainless steel buckle and navy blue dial with day-date display and luminous hands and hour markers. |
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Orient Men’s Automatic Watch CEM65004B $93.98 Orient Watch: Orient CEM65004B men’s watch features brushed finish stainless steel case with unidirectional rotating bezel and screw down crown. This great watch also comes with high quality Japanese automatic movement scratch resistant mineral crystal water resistant up to 200 Meters 9 inches black rubber strap and black dial with day-date display and luminous hands and hour markers. |
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Orient CEM76002B Men’s 100M Automatic Diver Watch $118.99 Orient Watch: Orient CEM76002B men’s watch features brushed finish stainless steel case with unidirectional rotating bezel and screw down crown. This great watch also comes with high quality Japanese automatic movement Orient Caliber 46943 power reserve of approximately 40 hours scratch resistant mineral crystal water resistant up to 100 Meters 8 3/4 inches Orient rubber strap and black dial with day-date display and luminous hands and hour markers. |
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Orient CEM76003D Men’s 100M Automatic Diver Watch $118.75 Orient Watch: Orient CEM76003D men’s watch features brushed finish stainless steel case with unidirectional rotating bezel and screw down crown. This great watch also comes with high quality Japanese automatic movement Orient Caliber 46943 power reserve of approximately 40 hours scratch resistant mineral crystal water resistant up to 100 Meters 8 3/4 inches brushed finish stainless steel bracelet with fold over safety clasp and blue dial with day-date display and luminous hands and hour markers. |
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Orient CEM76003W Men’s 100M Automatic Diver Watch $118.75 Orient Watch: Orient CEM76003W men’s watch features brushed finish stainless steel case with unidirectional rotating bezel and screw down crown. This great watch also comes with high quality Japanese automatic movement Orient Caliber 46943 power reserve of approximately 40 hours scratch resistant mineral crystal water resistant up to 100 Meters 8 3/4 inches brushed finish stainless steel bracelet with fold over safety clasp and white dial with day-date display and luminous hands and hour markers. |
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Orient CEM76001B Men’s 100M Automatic Diver Watch $118.75 Orient Watch: Orient CEM76001B men’s watch features brushed finish stainless steel case with unidirectional rotating bezel and screw down crown. This great watch also comes with high quality Japanese automatic movement Orient Caliber 46943 power reserve of approximately 40 hours scratch resistant mineral crystal water resistant up to 100 Meters 8 3/4 inches brushed finish stainless steel bracelet with fold over safety clasp and black dial with day-date display and luminous hands and hour markers. |
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Orient Men’s Yellow Automatic Dive Watch CEM65001Y $123.93 Orient Watch: Orient CEM65001Y men’s watch features polished finish stainless steel case with black unidirectional rotating bezel and screw down crown. This great watch also comes with high quality Japanese automatic movement scratch resistant mineral crystal water resistant up to 200 Meters 8 3/4 inches polished finish stainless steel bracelet with deployment clasp and yellow dial with day-date display and luminous hands and hour markers. |
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Orient Men’s Automatic Dive Watch CEM65002D $132.88 Orient Watch: Orient CEM65002D men’s watch features polished finish stainless steel case with unidirectional rotating bezel and screw down crown & case back. This great watch also comes with high quality Japanese automatic movement scratch resistant mineral crystal water resistant up to 200 Meters 8 3/4 inches polished finish stainless steel bracelet with fold over safety clasp and blue dial with day-date display and luminous hands and hour markers. |
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Orient Men’s Automatic Dive Watch CEM65001B $120.58 Orient Watch: Orient CEM65001B men’s watch features brushed finish stainless steel case with unidirectional rotating bezel and screw down crown. This great watch also comes with high quality Japanese automatic movement scratch resistant mineral crystal water resistant up to 200 Meters 8 3/4 inches brushed finish stainless steel bracelet with fold over safety clasp and black dial with day-date display and luminous hands and hour markers. |
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Orient EM7C002B Men’s Thresher Stainless Steel Automatic Black Dial Watch $139.74 Orient EM7C002B Thresher automatic men’s watch features a 44mm wide and 12mm thick solid stainless steel case with black ion plated unidirectional rotating bezel and textured screw down crown. Orient EM7C002B is powered by an accurate Japanese Orient caliber 46943 automatic movement. This stylish watch also features a sharp looking black dial with luminous hands and hour markers day-date display window at 3 o’clock 40 hour power reserve scratch resistant mineral crystal and water resistant to 100 meters. Orient EM7C002B is equipped with a 22mm wide solid stainless steel bracelet with deployment clasp. Orient EM7C002B Men’s Thresher stainless steel automatic black dial watch is brand new and comes in an original Orient gift box and is backed by an 1 year manufacturer warranty. |
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Orient EM7C004D Men’s Thresher Stainless Steel Automatic Blue Dial Watch $131.75 Orient EM7C004D Thresher automatic men’s watch features a 44mm wide and 12mm thick solid stainless steel case with unidirectional rotating bezel and textured screw down crown. Orient EM7C004D is powered by an accurate Japanese Orient caliber 46943 automatic movement. This stylish watch also features an attractive blue dial with luminous hands and hour markers day-date display window at 3 o’clock 40 hour power reserve scratch resistant mineral crystal and water resistant to 100 meters. Orient EM7C004D is equipped with a 22mm wide solid stainless steel bracelet with deployment clasp. Orient EM7C004D Men’s Thresher stainless steel automatic blue dial watch is brand new and comes in an original Orient gift box and is backed by an 1 year manufacturer warranty. |
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Orient EM7A002R Men’s Aviator Stainless Steel Luminous Dial Automatic Watch $152.25 Orient EM7A002R Aviator automatic men’s watch features a 43mm wide and 12mm thick solid stainless steel case with textured screw down crown. Orient EM7A002R is powered by a reliable Orient caliber 46943 automatic movement. This eye-catching watch also features a full luminous dial with luminous hands and black Arabic numeral hour markers day-date display window at 3 o’clock scratch resistant mineral crystal and water resistant to 100 meters. Orient EM7A002R is equipped with a 22mm wide solid stainless steel bracelet with fold-over double push button safety clasp. Orient EM7A002R Men’s Aviator stainless steel luminous dial automatic watch is brand new and comes in an original Orient gift box and is backed by an 1 year manufacturer warranty. |
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Orient EM7C005W Men’s Thresher Stainless Steel Automatic White Dial Watch $131.75 Orient EM7C005W Thresher automatic men’s watch features a 44mm wide and 12mm thick solid stainless steel case with unidirectional rotating bezel and textured screw down crown. Orient EM7C005W is powered by an accurate Japanese Orient caliber 46943 automatic movement. This stylish watch also features a milky white dial with luminous hands and hour markers day-date display window at 3 o’clock 40 hour power reserve scratch resistant mineral crystal and water resistant to 100 meters. Orient EM7C005W is equipped with a 22mm wide solid stainless steel bracelet with deployment clasp. Orient EM7C005W Men’s Thresher stainless steel automatic white dial watch is brand new and comes in an original Orient gift box and is backed by an 1 year manufacturer warranty. |
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Orient EV0S004B Men’s Union Black Dial Leather Strap Automatic Watch $138.75 Orient EV0S004B Union automatic men’s watch features a 41mm wide and 10mm thick solid stainless steel case with textured push/pull crown. Orient EV0S004B is powered by a reliable automatic movement. This stylish watch also features a sharp looking black dial with luminous hands and silver tone hour markers day-date function scratch resistant mineral crystal and water resistant to 50 meters. Orient EV0S004B is equipped with a 22mm wide genuine black leather strap with stainless steel buckle clasp. Orient EV0S004B Men’s Union black dial leather strap automatic watch is brand new and comes in an original Orient gift box and is backed by an 1 year manufacturer warranty. |
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Orient FEM7C003B Men’s Automatic Stainless Steel Black Dial Watch $206 Orient FEM7C003B men’s watch features a 44mm wide and 12mm thick solid stainless steel case with textured screw down crown and unidirectional rotating bezel. Orient FEM7C003B is powered by a reliable self winding automatic movement. This stylish watch also features a sharp looking black dial with luminous hands and hour markers day-date display function scratch resistant mineral crystal and water resistant to 100 meters. Orient FEM7C003B is equipped with a 22mm wide solid stainless steel bracelet with fold over safety clasp. Orient FEM7C003B men’s automatic stainless steel black dial watch is brand new and comes in an original Orient gift box and is backed by an 1 year manufacturer warranty. |
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Orient CFD00001W Men’s Stainless Steel Automatic Watch with Power Reserve Indicator $115.75 Orient CFD00001W men’s automatic watch is powered by a 21 jewel Orient in-house automatic movement encased in a 38mm wide by 11mm thick solid stainless steel case with screw down case back and has an approximate 40 hour power reserve. It features a power reserve indicator at 12 o’clock. At 3.3 oz this mid size men’s watches is a nice casual/dress watch to add to anyone’s collection. This watch also offers a date display white dial luminous hands and markers and is water resistant to 50 meters. Orient CFD00001W is equipped with a 19mm wide stainless steel bracelet with fold over clasp and can fit up to an 8 inch wrist. Orient CFD00001W is backed by an 1 year manufacturer warranty. |
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Orient CFD00002T Men’s Brown Dial SS Automatic Watch with Power Reserve $115.99 Orient CFD00002T men’s automatic watch is powered by a 21 jewel Orient in-house automatic movement encased in a 38mm wide by 11mm thick solid stainless steel case with screw down case back and has an approximate 40 hour power reserve. It features a power reserve indicator at 12 o’clock. At 3.3 oz this mid size men’s watches is a nice casual/dress watch to add to anyone’s collection. This watch also offers a date display brown dial luminous hands and markers and is water resistant to 50 meters. Orient CFD00002T is equipped with a 19mm wide stainless steel bracelet with fold over clasp and can fit up to an 8 inch wrist. Orient CFD00002T is backed by an 1 year manufacturer warranty. |
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Orient CFD00001B Men’s Black Dial Automatic Watch with Power Reserve $114 Orient CFD00001B men’s automatic watch is powered by a 21 jewel Orient in-house automatic movement encased in a 38mm wide by 11mm thick solid stainless steel case with screw down case back and has an approximate 40 hour power reserve. It features a power reserve indicator at 12 o’clock. At 3.3 oz this mid size men’s watches is a nice casual/dress watch to add to anyone’s collection. This watch also offers a date display black dial luminous hands and markers and is water resistant to 50 meters. Orient CFD00001B is equipped with a 19mm wide stainless steel bracelet with fold over clasp and can fit up to an 8 inch wrist. Orient CFD00001B is backed by an 1 year manufacturer warranty. |
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Orient Men’s Orange Mako Automatic Dive Watch CEM75001M $141.89 Orient Watch: Orient CEM75001M men’s watch features brushed finish stainless steel case with black unidirectional rotating bezel and screw down crown & case back. This great watch also comes with high quality Japanese automatic movement scratch resistant mineral crystal water resistant up to 200 Meters 8 1/2 inches brushed finish stainless steel bracelet with fold over safety clasp and orange dial with day-date display and luminous hands and hour markers. |
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Orient Men’s Orange Mako Automatic Dive Watch CEM65001M $111.05 Orient Watch: Orient CEM65001M men’s watch features polished finish stainless steel case with black unidirectional rotating bezel and screw down crown. This great watch also comes with high quality Japanese automatic movement scratch resistant mineral crystal water resistant up to 200 Meters 8 3/4 inches polished finish stainless steel bracelet with fold over safety clasp and orange dial with day-date display and luminous hands and hour markers. |
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The Orient $59.99 Alfred Rava The Orient – Wall Decal |
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Orient CEM5F003D Men’s Tidehunter Day Date Rubber Strap Blue Dial Automatic Watch $115.99 Orient CEM5F003D men’s Tidehunter series automatic watch features a 39.5mm wide by 13.5 mm thick polished and brushed finish solid stainless steel case with screw down case back and crown. It is equipped with a 20mm wide rubber strap. Like many other Orient watches this one is powered by Orient’s in-house automatic movement. Orient CEM5F003D also features a blue dial day date display luminous hands and markers unidirectional rotating bezel mineral crystal and is water resistant to 200 meters. This watch can fit up to an 8 1/4 inch wrist. Orient CEM5F003D is covered by an 1 year manufacturer’s warranty. |
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Orient FFD0F002B Men’s Vintage Black Dial Power Reserve Leather Strap Automatic Watch $212.25 Orient FFD0F002B Vintage automatic men’s watch features a 40mm wide and 12mm thick solid stainless steel case with textured push/pull crown. Orient FFD0F002B is powered by an accurate Japanese Orient Caliber 46N45 automatic movement. This attractive watch also features a sharp looking black dial with luminous hands and hour markers date function 40 hour power reserve indicator protected by scratch resistant sapphire crystal and water resistant depth is 50 meters. Orient FFD0F002B is equipped with a 22mm wide genuine black leather strap with buckle clasp. Orient FFD0F002B Men’s Vintage black dial power reserve leather strap automatic watch is brand new and comes in an original Orient gift box and is backed by an 1 year manufacturer warranty. |
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Orient FFD0F001B Men’s Vintage Stainless Steel Black Dial Power Reserve Automatic Watch $229.75 Orient FFD0F001B Vintage automatic men’s watch features a 40mm wide and 12mm thick solid stainless steel case with textured push/pull crown. Orient FFD0F001B is powered by an accurate Japanese Orient Caliber 46N45 automatic movement. This attractive watch also features a sharp looking black dial with luminous hands and hour markers date function 40 hour power reserve indicator protected by scratch resistant sapphire crystal and water resistant depth is 50 meters. Orient FFD0F001B is equipped with a 22mm wide solid stainless steel bracelet with fold-over double push button safety clasp. Orient FFD0F001B Men’s Vintage stainless steel black dial power reserve automatic watch is brand new and comes in an original Orient gift box and is backed by an 1 year manufacturer warranty. |