Three watch collection…

My rotation now consists of 3 watches out of the 20 watches I own / have owned. Not sure why I needed to go through so many just to decide on something so simple. So the first is my beater which I love: Mudman solar twin sensor for 565RM. Next, my dressy MQ-27 + strap for just 90RM. Both from Casio. Finally, the sporty / interesting watch: my Tenor-Dorly, vintage Swiss made for 250RM (it was overhauled for 350RM, since it hadn’t a service since the early 70s). On the whole, coming in around 1kRM / $200.

The MQ will soon be on slim faux lizard while the TD is on black Chinese FKM rubber tropic / waffle for that sci-fi look. It’s the only mechanical and comes in under +8s per day.

The Mudman has a moonphase display which is something God told me to acquire while my grandma wanted to hand me down Grandpa’s watch, also a tank. The movement was ruined and not long ago, I replaced it with my own budget tank-style piece. Frugal Grandpa would have approved. 

The TD is a whole other story. It started with me seeing a man wearing a square analog watch on strap. I immediately made a mental note to track one down and do it justice. So it came down to a pretty beat up piece on sale via Carousell, from the east coast (over the mountains from where I live in the Klang Valley). One day, it failed to wind and the crown fell off. I was informed by the watchmaker it would need a movement overhaul. They didn’t do a very good job as the day-date setting is fiddly. Perhaps lack of experience with Swiss watches? But whenever I strap on my beat-up chunky square, I feel good vibes. More later…

It’s a bit difficult to assign roles to some watches as they overlap. I think the TD would do well for birthday dinners out, and get togethers where the plus sized Mudman would look out of place. The MQ tho, is more or less strictly for formal events when I wear my Cookmans and dress shirts. I have only one pair of chef’s pants and 4 ethnic-formal shirts.

Settled on this Citizen diver as my sports watch. About $180, with anadigi dial, orange hands, and a rudimentary dive computer. Now a happy man! The vintage TD wasn’t ‘interesting’ enough, was rather beat up and felt out of place with the other modern watches.