First, a little rant about the luxury watch industry

Watched a YT video recently where a watchmaker compared watch brands to the Elvis story, and it stuck with me (I will look for it and paste in the comments).

Young Elvis was an edgy cowboy. Almost everything he did felt new. Same thing with a lot of the Swiss brands that get sold to us as “traditional” now. They were modern and disruptive once, tools to go to space, or the deep sea, or to be a suave spy… and not heritage objects at all. Then they became stars, racked up the cash, went mainstream, and eventually they hit the Fat Elvis in Vegas stage. Still famous, but a little decadent. You can love it, still, you’ve got to admit it’s mostly living off past glory.

That’s where a lot of the big traditional brands sit for me now. I own a couple of those “fat Elvis” watches and honestly I’m selling them. They’re too recognizable, also they won’t do their magic for me anymore… and after a while that kills the joy of wearing them. You start hearing “oh, a Tank, what a classic watch”like a TikTok conditioned reflex… and instead of making the watch more fun to wear it just makes it feel a little cringey and obvious... At a recent medical industry event I saw more two-tone Daytonas than could plausibly all be genuine, at least for my small country.

Once a watch gets recognizable in that way it stops feeling like a personal object and starts feeling like a LV bag for the wrist… sometimes unreasonably marked up, sometimes f4ke… and I don’t know what’s worse.

So… I’ve been drifting toward smaller, maybe newer, less status-driven makers. I love to buy watches pretty systematically, around three a year... not as an investment, just for the enjoyment of collection. Recently picked up a Credor Kuon and loved it, it’s kind of insane finishing quality in my opinion and it scratched my itch for luxury.

The Serica was a different itch. I bought it to replace my Tank Must. The Tank played an important role for me as my small, elegant option… but at the end of the day it’s a quartz watch, pretty overpriced, recognizable in that kind of TikTok cringey way… and honestly it was giving me luxury industry vibes instead of feeling like a cool watch to wear. I wanted something more of a personal classic, something I actually enjoy wearing. So I sold it; and for my 45th birthday I got myself a Serica Ref. 1174 Parade… Birthday’s technically still a couple weeks out, but I couldn’t wait. Opened the box, put it on.

Ok, chest unloaded, let’s get to the watch experience

A note on buying from Serica directly. I’d seen some mixed reviews online, but it turned out great: they replied basically every day and shipped fast with all taxes prepaid.

The packaging is worth a mention too. Small and shipping-conscious, not some huge box like an Omega comes in, but clearly deliberate. The watch box is compact and sturdy enough that it actually works as a travel case.

First thing that hit me was the finishing. It’s seriously impressive. I believe Serica isn’t casing this fully in-house, but whoever does it is doing great work.

The case is complex, with brushed and polished surfaces that go really well together. I love the multi-bezel structure, and how it ends in a crown guard on one side with a matching false guard on the other, just for symmetry. It’s dressy with a small dab of sportiness. It doesn’t feel like a generic case with a weird shape stuck on. It kind of reminds me of a less chad cousin of a Patek.

The caseback feels thin, and I guess there was no way to fit a display window there without messing with the thickness and Serica’s design identity.

It’s also very slim. About as thin as my Nomos Club Campus, which is hand-wound, so it has no rotor and is naturally on the slim side. The Serica is automatic and still gets that thin, which is impressive. It sits very close to the wrist.

The thinness gives it a slightly odd feel, though. The watch feels a bit empty inside, very light for what it is. The rotor isn’t loud, but with so little mass inside the case you can sometimes feel the movement. Tap the case lightly with a finger and it answers back with a tiny vibration… Not badat all… it just feels a little delicate.

Anyway, the case is a big part of the great quality that I sense from the object.

Went with the black dial and I’m really happy with it. It’s understated. No big logo, no text. Just “Serica Swiss” at six, and that’s enough. The texture is subtle too. Most of the time you don’t see it, but when light catches it right a curved pattern shows up. It’s something you notice while wearing the watch. The little polished hour markers are great as well, tiny bright dots on the black dial… almost like little stars.

The strap and buckle are probably the weakest part for me. The leather itself is nice and very soft, and it works well with the watch visually. But the finishing on mine wasn’t good enough. Near the buckle, around the hole and keeper, one of the thread ends had been burned or sealed in a way that left a tiny rough point sticking out.

It scratched my wrist. Small thing, but annoying enough that I got out a loupe and small scissors and did some micro-surgery on it. Took me a while to trim it without fucking up the strap. For the price, this should have been finished perfectly, like the rest of the object.

The buckle is beautiful, and I get the idea, the elliptical shape echoes the case. But practically I’m not sold… the edges are kind of sharp. It bites into the strap more than a normal buckle would, and after just a few wears I’m already seeing more marking on the leather than I’d expect.

One thing to keep in mind: if you ever want a different strap for this watch, it pretty much has to be custom made. The space between the lugs is very small and very thin, so an off-the-shelf strap just won’t work, it needs something made specifically for this watch. There are no quick-release spring bars either, but that’s totally understandable, the strap tucks in so tight under the case that there’s just no room for them. That said, I think it could look great in all kinds of colors, not only the ones the brand offers… which are also crazy expensive.

On the wrist it’s very comfortable but a bit unusual. Because it’s so thin and sits so close, the case feels slightly head-heavy next to the very slim strap and buckle. Not dramatic, just noticeable. I usually wear watches that feel more compact and integrated, so this is different.

Still, it’s a very good watch and I expect to wear it a lot. Not just as a dress watch but in daily use. These kinds of watches work well with casual clothes, same way a Cartier does, but this one doesn’t have the fat Elvis vibe.

And that’s exactly what I like about it. It feels like buying a personal classic, maybe a future classic, instead of someone else’s classic that some legend made his own fifty-plus years ago.

At the end of the day I wear watches for my own enjoyment, not to tell anyone anything… except maybe that I like nice watches.

First, a little rant about the luxury watch industry

Watched a YT video recently where a watchmaker compared watch brands to the Elvis story, and it stuck with me (I will look for it and paste in the comments).

Young Elvis was an edgy cowboy. Almost everything he did felt new. Same thing with a lot of the Swiss brands that get sold to us as “traditional” now. They were modern and disruptive once, tools to go to space, or the deep sea, or to be a suave spy… and not heritage objects at all. Then they became stars, racked up the cash, went mainstream, and eventually they hit the Fat Elvis in Vegas stage. Still famous, but a little decadent. You can love it, still, you’ve got to admit it’s mostly living off past glory.

That’s where a lot of the big traditional brands sit for me now. I own a couple of those “fat Elvis” watches and honestly I’m selling them. They’re too recognizable, also they won’t do their magic for me anymore… and after a while that kills the joy of wearing them. You start hearing “oh, a Tank, what a classic watch”like a TikTok conditioned reflex… and instead of making the watch more fun to wear it just makes it feel a little cringey and obvious... At a recent medical industry event I saw more two-tone Daytonas than could plausibly all be genuine, at least for my small country.

Once a watch gets recognizable in that way it stops feeling like a personal object and starts feeling like a LV bag for the wrist… sometimes unreasonably marked up, sometimes fake… and I don’t know what’s worse.

So… I’ve been drifting toward smaller, maybe newer, less status-driven makers. I love to buy watches pretty systematically, around three a year... not as an investment, just for the enjoyment of collection. Recently picked up a Credor Kuon and loved it, it’s kind of insane finishing quality in my opinion and it scratched my itch for luxury.

The Serica was a different itch. I bought it to replace my Tank Must. The Tank played an important role for me as my small, elegant option… but at the end of the day it’s a quartz watch, pretty overpriced, recognizable in that kind of TikTok cringey way… and honestly it was giving me luxury industry vibes instead of feeling like a cool watch to wear. I wanted something more of a personal classic, something I actually enjoy wearing. So I sold it; and for my 45th birthday I got myself a Serica Ref. 1174 Parade… Birthday’s technically still a couple weeks out, but I couldn’t wait. Opened the box, put it on.

Ok, chest unloaded, let’s get to the watch experience

A note on buying from Serica directly. I’d seen some mixed reviews online, but it turned out great: they replied basically every day and shipped fast with all taxes prepaid.

The packaging is worth a mention too. Small and shipping-conscious, not some huge box like an Omega comes in, but clearly deliberate. The watch box is compact and sturdy enough that it actually works as a travel case.

First thing that hit me was the finishing. It’s seriously impressive. I believe Serica isn’t casing this fully in-house, but whoever does it is doing great work.

The case is complex, with brushed and polished surfaces that go really well together. I love the multi-bezel structure, and how it ends in a crown guard on one side with a matching false guard on the other, just for symmetry. It’s dressy with a small dab of sportiness. It doesn’t feel like a generic case with a weird shape stuck on. It kind of reminds me of a less chad cousin of a Patek.

The caseback feels thin, and I guess there was no way to fit a display window there without messing with the thickness and Serica’s design identity.

It’s also very slim. About as thin as my Nomos Club Campus, which is hand-wound, so it has no rotor and is naturally on the slim side. The Serica is automatic and still gets that thin, which is impressive. It sits very close to the wrist.

The thinness gives it a slightly odd feel, though. The watch feels a bit empty inside, very light for what it is. The rotor isn’t loud, but with so little mass inside the case you can sometimes feel the movement. Tap the case lightly with a finger and it answers back with a tiny vibration… Not badat all… it just feels a little delicate.

Anyway, the case is a big part of the great quality that I sense from the object.

Went with the black dial and I’m really happy with it. It’s understated. No big logo, no text. Just “Serica Swiss” at six, and that’s enough. The texture is subtle too. Most of the time you don’t see it, but when light catches it right a curved pattern shows up. It’s something you notice while wearing the watch. The little polished hour markers are great as well, tiny bright dots on the black dial… almost like little stars.

The strap and buckle are probably the weakest part for me. The leather itself is nice and very soft, and it works well with the watch visually. But the finishing on mine wasn’t good enough. Near the buckle, around the hole and keeper, one of the thread ends had been burned or sealed in a way that left a tiny rough point sticking out.

It scratched my wrist. Small thing, but annoying enough that I got out a loupe and small scissors and did some micro-surgery on it. Took me a while to trim it without fucking up the strap. For the price, this should have been finished perfectly, like the rest of the object.

The buckle is beautiful, and I get the idea, the elliptical shape echoes the case. But practically I’m not sold… the edges are kind of sharp. It bites into the strap more than a normal buckle would, and after just a few wears I’m already seeing more marking on the leather than I’d expect.

One thing to keep in mind: if you ever want a different strap for this watch, it pretty much has to be custom made. The space between the lugs is very small and very thin, so an off-the-shelf strap just won’t work, it needs something made specifically for this watch. There are no quick-release spring bars either, but that’s totally understandable, the strap tucks in so tight under the case that there’s just no room for them. That said, I think it could look great in all kinds of colors, not only the ones the brand offers… which are also crazy expensive.

On the wrist it’s very comfortable but a bit unusual. Because it’s so thin and sits so close, the case feels slightly head-heavy next to the very slim strap and buckle. Not dramatic, just noticeable. I usually wear watches that feel more compact and integrated, so this is different.

Still, it’s a very good watch and I expect to wear it a lot. Not just as a dress watch but in daily use. These kinds of watches work well with casual clothes, same way a Cartier does, but this one doesn’t have the fat Elvis vibe.

And that’s exactly what I like about it. It feels like buying a personal classic, maybe a future classic, instead of someone else’s classic that some legend made his own fifty-plus years ago.

At the end of the day I wear watches for my own enjoyment, not to tell anyone anything… except maybe that I like nice watches.

It is not-so-subtle how a warmer band with a little texture (ostrich leather) changes the character of it. I really love how the midnight blue dial now pops…

Since band was custom made (on etsy) I managed to fit the Nomos buckle flawlessly.

Hope you guys like the combo as much as I do 🫀