Patek Philippe

About a month ago I purchased a 5711.  I have to say it is probably one of the most comfortable watches I have ever worn.  It's lite and aesthetically pleasing.  I have been wearing it pretty much all the time since I bought it.  I've owned a lot of watches including a Rolex sub, which was pretty much indestructible.  How does the Patek 5711 compare to the Rolex Sub for example ?  I don't work in construction,  I'm at a desk most of the day and I rarely do any heavy lifting but if I wanted to play tennis, go for a jog, or swim with the watch, would that be ok ?  I'm not worried about scratches as I think it adds character,  I'm more worried about the movement.  How much wear can it withstand ?

Looking forward to your responses.


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Myriad individuals would bag on you for these questions regarding the durability of a certain mechanical watch, but I think you're just being careful. A Patek Philippe is not cheap. The 5711/A is a piece you can jog and casually swim in. Look up water resistance depths for watches and their appropriate uses as well.

I don't know about tennis. Frankly, and I'm no physicist, I generally avoid activities that might involve shock to the watch. Mechanical watches are inherently fragile. I don't shoot my Glock, play basketball, or practice Muay Thai with any of my mechanical watches whenever possible. You know how many Richard Mille's Rafael Nadal has broken?

Just take off your watch during tennis. It's not worth it. Some of people here would think I'm being over protective of a watch, but I don't have money to senselessly put my watch at risk. There's no point! Just enjoy your PP when your done hammering away at a tennis ball.

The Nautilus case easily gets scratches... and if you ask to Patek, they will tell you that it is a very difficult case to be polished. And the less you need to polish it, the better.

Fx

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You're right, it easily get scratched, and it's not a good feeling when your PP get scratched. I prefer to wear it in situations that does not seem to expose the watch to scratches. I also think that that is the major problem about wear it in every situation.
I'm not really worried about mechanical damages, which I believe are very hard to be caused. Its outside, IMO, is way more delicate than its inside.

...is how precious you are about a watch that cost a good deal of money. For some, it was difficult just to be able to buy one and may want to preserve the pristine integrity as much as possible to either pass down or sell later.
The Patek slogan comes to mind.

Others, even in the same financial situation, figure that they buy a sport watch to wear to its fullest and won't hesitate to use it, damn the repairs that may ensue (as they do with any watch).

As mentioned, one person's notion of a strenuous workout will certainly differ greatly (ex: golf vs. rock climbing).

As an owner of slightly lessor priced watches, I do chose to remove some for certain activities in favor of more inexpensive (and durable) others. But I'm pretty rough. This message has been edited by mrsnak on 2011-04-21 17:45:48

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damage, best bet is to get a quartz.

cheers

PAt

bulk of opinions here,most are wary of the frailty of mechanical watches.
However,over the last forty years,I've subjected my omega deville chronograph to many games of squash and tennis without any detriment(as far as i know) to the movement.The case is another matter which resulted in a fair bit of required polishing----do they make watches more hardy in the past?

Nonetheless,I will not subject such an expensive sports watch like the 5711 to these activities---it's too pricey to repair(if need be) and i would really hate to scratch it!----not at that price!!


my two bits worth

henry

I think this one will have stay home during my strenuous activities.

Rotors and sports don't work very well together...

Beszt,

Nicolas.

...go for AP Offshore Rubber Clad...can take quite a few beatings.

The other things you mentioned are all fine, I just wouldn't push it with the other activities unless you're prepared for handle the freight charge if something should happen.

I've had a 3800 for since '86 and have had no problems at all, but I avoid shooting guns, golf, and motorcycles and use something else instead.

2.): there is NO real shockproof watch as they are all very, very delicate objects with very, very thin pivots and wheels.

ANY shock has an impact on the movement --> wheter you notice it immediately or later as they all add up.

 

I am not tired of repeating that it is a pure marketing tool from Rolex to claim that theire watches are sturdy, robust or in any other way immune to shocks.

 

My advice: no watch during exercise

 

The Nautilus is still a lovely peace and the water resistance is the "safety"  argument here.

Same with the Sub: 300 m is safe for any water.

 

Regards

Moritz

I don’t know if I am agreeing or disagreeing with the rather nervous consensus out there – several here clearly understand the details of a mechanical watches construction, and the risks involved in various activities. But this does not mean that a Patek or any other mechanical watch is unable to stand the tests of life – including tennis and golf. The idea that these activates damage your watch is rather like saying that standing up damages your knees. Of course it does – but it’s a relative discussion i.e. how much damage? And forget my opinion on the answer, ask yourselves. On what percentage of occasions after strenuous physical activity have you seen your beloved watch back in the shop in the following few months?

A Patek – like any other mechanical watch – will need a service one day. & most often this will prevent it from premature immortality.

The 5711 has the same 324SC movement found in the dress watches of similar functions and it is not as as robust as a Rolex watch. The movement has been crafted for beauty with the use of smaller thinner elegant parts and has a uni-wind rotor in gold which is heavy relative to pivot. The Rolex uses thicker steel where possible and has a multiwind lighter rotor. Thus it can take a lot more shocks without issue. Where the 5711 is dressed up as sport watch, it is still really an elegant dress watch at heart.

If a watchh is Swiss made, by law it must be able to withstand a certain degree of shock impact. As was explained to me, if you drop a watch onto a hard surface from 1m, Swiss law says that the watch must be able to comfortably withstand that. As I understand, this type of shock is something like 2-3Gs. If you clap, that is also 2-3 Gs. If you clap very hard, that can get to 4Gs. Playing tennis would also come into a category of 4+ Gs.

Some watches are made to withstand much higher levels. Bremont, for example, can withstand a vertical shock of 9Gs. The JLC Navy Seals can withstand similar shock both vertically and horizontally. Likewise the Ball & co.

I think unless a watch has been specifically designed to withstand shocks of this nature, I would assume only that it is standard 3-4Gs of shock. I would suspect that most of the Pateks are in this type of range and I would not want to play tennis in mine. I have the 5070 and Aquanaut and whilst I would think the latter is sturdy, i still wouldn't fancy testing it playing tennis.

 

if the above is full of BS...then i will blame the AD who told me!

that have been dropped from waist level positions that have not withstood the shock.

Broken crystals, bent dial feet on the dial, etc. have all occurred and duly noted on the repair estimate.

When they say "you merely take care of it for the next generation", they mean exactly that.... take care of it.

Wear it the same way you would with a $8-10,000 suit and you will be just fine. Take it on the tennis court or golf course and it's a roll of the dice.

It's only prudent to be careful while wearing a Patek.

When I got my 5712 back in 2008, I asked my trusted retailer and he said for swimming or running the PP is ok, but for more "action"-sports like tennis, golf or skiing, he would recommend a Rolex. Especially golf is supposed to be very hard on rotors, so I got myself a Rolex, which I wear for any kind of sporting activity. The rest of the time I wear the PP and up to now, everything is fine.

i like to swim or jogging "in dignity", for that, i wear a "cheap" Tag Heuer Aquaracer. even a Rolex is too risky for me, and God forbid wearing a PP.
my rule of thumb: never wear a Patek when sweating.