Rolex and Handgun Shooting

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After thinking about it, I did once damage a watch at the shooting range. Years ago, I took my shiny new watch off while shooting big bore revolvers, because of what the watch was doing to me, rather than the other way around. For some stupid reason I placed it on top of my targets and when a breeze came, it blew my the targets off the bench. The watch landed face down on the concrete and chipped the face.

I just counted nine Eco-Drives. Think I'm developing a watch problem.
 
This is the only automatic I've shot with (ProSpex "Monster" dive watch) and it's been fine. I have a couple heirloom watches residing in a safe deposit box, might as well break them out, come to think of it ...
Monster.jpg

Of course, during my military career, our G Shock watches were the standard (now it seems the cool guys are branching out into Suunto and Resco pieces, the watch choices are getting as broad as the sunglasses and tactical pants options) ...

G-Shock.jpg
 
My former Father in Law worked for decades as a Road Car Inspector for the New York City Transit Authority in the Coney Island Yard. That meant that he was an electrical and mechanical repair man for the subway trains. He worked either on the 700 miles of track that the MTA has or in the yards. I had the same job but in the barns. So one day he's underneath the train working when some fool ignores the lockout and starts the train rolling. My father in law was dragged 60 yards and spent some months in the hospital.

When they dragged him out from under the train he was still wearing his Timex watch and it was ticking. So..."Takes a licking and keeps on ticking" was true of both the man and the watch. He kept that watch for the rest of his life.

He tried to get Timex to use his story in an ad but John Cameron Swayze declined.
 
Umm....I wore a Hamilton Standard with OD green canvas band for a year of shooting everything from my .22 pistols to eight inch guns.

Later in civilian life it live until a flip and two rolls totalled my car and my flying wrist smacked it on something that cracked the crystal and it died.

-kBob
 
My Seiko 5 lasted about 5 years of daily wear and tear. Getting banged on stainless steel work benches, shooting 44 and 500 mag constantly.

Oddly enough, it took a year of sitting in a drawer to kill it. Haven't been able to get it to run again and it worked fine when it got put away.
 
Like I said shooting any gun won't hurt a Rolex. I've had one since 1998 and been shooting since 1976. You should have seen the look on the jewelers face when I took my watch in for a cleaning and tuning when I told him I run it through the dishwasher after I change the oil in the car because it gets covered in oil. I've been beating the crap out of the watch for 22 years and it still works.
-mike
 
gotboostvr said:
My Seiko 5 lasted about 5 years of daily wear and tear. Getting banged on stainless steel work benches, shooting 44 and 500 mag constantly.

Oddly enough, it took a year of sitting in a drawer to kill it. Haven't been able to get it to run again and it worked fine when it got put away.
Click to expand...

Not uncommon for an automatic watch to need a service every five years.
 
mikey98e said:
Like I said shooting any gun won't hurt a Rolex. I've had one since 1998 and been shooting since 1976. You should have seen the look on the jewelers face when I took my watch in for a cleaning and tuning when I told him I run it through the dishwasher after I change the oil in the car because it gets covered in oil. I've been beating the crap out of the watch for 22 years and it still works.
-mike
Click to expand...

I can see how that wouldn't hurt it, they're pretty well hermetically sealed.
 
chicharrones said:
In my limited recent watch experience, I've killed a couple sub $100.00 Russian Vostok mechanicals (Komandirskie and Amphibia). They give me about a year of service, then "sproing".

A low end Seiko 5 is much hardier than those Vostoks, in my own usage.

But for guns or at work, I prefer a $20.00 analog display Casio that has day, date, and a rotating bezel to use as a start or stop marker. It's essentially a lower than low end Seiko 5, but with a quartz movement that keeps time better than any mechanical I've ever had. It gets scratched up and I don't care. I replace the whole watch when the battery dies, only because I want a different color dial the next time around.
Click to expand...

No doubt a quartz will keep better time than a mechanical, but unless your name is James Bond it probably doesn't matter. A mechanical also won't die on you at random times like a quartz running out of battery.
 
Sebastian the Ibis said:
Expensive watches are like expensive guns, they are too pretty to take shooting much. Any scuffs or scratches errode the resale value. If you like the watch and want to wear it have at it, but realize the value will be lost if it’s actually valuable in the first place. Most watches lost their value the minute they leave the store, but a new old stock Rolex is one that can be worth a lot more.
Click to expand...

Sort of, but you'd be amazed at the beat up old collectible models selling for big money. Here's one:

https://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=744937

Most non-watch people who came across that at a garage sale wouldn't give it a second look.
 
I wear a Walex made by Casio Lasts about 2 years then the battery goes dead and I buy a new one $19.0.
Only problem I've had with it is it didn't recognize the leap year, so I had to go back to the gun shop to redo my paperwork as I was one day off.:oops:
 
People seem to think because Rolex watches are expensive, they should be babied. Nothing could be further from the truth, they are very strong "tool" watches.

I bought a Rolex Submariner in Geneva in 1970, had on my wrist for 40 years. I shot with it, rode motorcycles on and off road, did car repairs, hammer drills, hot showers, swimming, mt. climbing, diving, etc. It never came off, and it never stopped running.

Ten years ago my son hinted he liked it, and off my wrist it came. He seems to really enjoy it, but doesn't treat it like I did. That's his problem. lol

Another thing, that watch, a 5513 model, is now worth about $8K. Not bad for a watch I paid $127 for. Yes, the sports models do appreciate.

$127 in 1970 with inflation would be $840 today, so that watch has appreciated almost 1000%.

Have to say, I do miss it when I see him wearing it. lol
 
Speedo66 said:
People seem to think because Rolex watches are expensive, they should be babied. Nothing could be further from the truth, they are very strong "tool" watches.

I bought a Rolex Submariner in Geneva in 1970, had on my wrist for 40 years. I shot with it, rode motorcycles on and off road, did car repairs, hammer drills, hot showers, swimming, mt. climbing, diving, etc. It never came off, and it never stopped running.

Ten years ago my son hinted he liked it, and off my wrist it came. He seems to really enjoy it, but doesn't treat it like I did. That's his problem. lol

Another thing, that watch, a 5513 model, is now worth about $8K. Not bad for a watch I paid $127 for. Yes, the sports models do appreciate.

$127 in 1970 with inflation would be $840 today, so that watch has appreciated almost 1000%.

Have to say, I do miss it when I see him wearing it. lol
Click to expand...

As a guy on the Rolex forum from Switzerland said, there, a Rolex is a workingman's watch.
 
Paul7 said:
No doubt a quartz will keep better time than a mechanical, but unless your name is James Bond it probably doesn't matter. A mechanical also won't die on you at random times like a quartz running out of battery.
Click to expand...

In my experience, when my mechanicals have died, I can't resurrect them with a simple battery replacement like I can with a quartz watch.

Believe me, I really do like mechanical watches, especially the automatics. But since I won't put a $100.00+ watch on my wrist due to my work and chores, apparently that doesn't buy into the sturdier movements available.
 
I haven't had a mechanical watch since 1968.

I wear a Swiss Army watch model that is said to be the best one for people who hammer and chop things.
 
Paul7 said:
Sort of, but you'd be amazed at the beat up old collectible models selling for big money. Here's one:

https://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=744937

Most non-watch people who came across that at a garage sale wouldn't give it a second look.
Click to expand...

At $14,500.00, you're right. I wouldn't give that a second look. No matter that it is 56 years old. Lol. :D

My apologies. I have clearly posted in a thread I have no experience in. :cool:
 
D.B. Cooper said:
I have a Citizen Eco Drive. I LOVE that thing. EDC for 4 years now. I had a Dakota watch prior to that, and it was great, but it chewed up batteries.

OP:

So the thing one has to worry about with mechanical watches (and you obviously already know this) is that impacts and shocks tear up the internals. I read somewhere about 3-4 years back that, for this reason, one should not chop wood while wearing a mechanical watch. I gave up on owning a mechanical watch (I wanted to be self sufficient and not have to keep buying batteries.) due to the purchase price of even "cheap" versions. So with that, I would say "why take the risk?" I'm no expert on watches, but I would think that any Rolex would be in the thousands of dollars.

It's funny that such high end watches can be so delicate. WhenI was in the military, everyone had a Casio G-Shock, and I think there is probably a good reason. I never had one because I dislike digital time pieces-every clock in my house is analog. In those days of my youth, I wore a Timex Expedition.
Click to expand...

I've got a G-Shock that's solar powered. It's close to 15 years old and has never needed a battery. Even if it sits in the house for months it still has a charge.
 
Speedo66 said:
People seem to think because Rolex watches are expensive, they should be babied. Nothing could be further from the truth, they are very strong "tool" watches.

I bought a Rolex Submariner in Geneva in 1970, had on my wrist for 40 years. I shot with it, rode motorcycles on and off road, did car repairs, hammer drills, hot showers, swimming, mt. climbing, diving, etc. It never came off, and it never stopped running.

Ten years ago my son hinted he liked it, and off my wrist it came. He seems to really enjoy it, but doesn't treat it like I did. That's his problem. lol

Another thing, that watch, a 5513 model, is now worth about $8K. Not bad for a watch I paid $127 for. Yes, the sports models do appreciate.

$127 in 1970 with inflation would be $840 today, so that watch has appreciated almost 1000%.

Have to say, I do miss it when I see him wearing it. lol
Click to expand...
HA..my one son says he wants my GMTMaster when I 'go south', the other wants my USN leather flight jacket..NOT DEAD YET tho..

Bought my GMTMaster in 1978 for $645..now, nice shape used ones(like mine) go for $7500++ YIKES...

BUT, since I can't buy another..I don't shoot with it..not worried I'm gonna hurt it, just don't want to fall down or lose it or whatever...
 
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