U Boat Watches

[Hambone]

I just came from the Tourneau AD where 4 or so U Boat watches found their way on my wrist. Geez, these
are cool watches and rather large. They are made by Panerai and were designed for the Italian and German navies
in WW 2. I was very tempted to break out the Visa for the 50MM Thousands of Feet with red dial. Funny how seeing them in person and wearing them make a difference. I have seen a few clients wearing them and this watch stands out big time.
It would be interesting to see what the rep looks like when and if they make one.

 

[horologie_unitas]

their prices..... a total joke.

 

[triple-d]

U-boat has some neat looking watches. I didn't know that Panerai made them.

Are they pricey enough to be repped?

 

[Hambone]

They start around $2500.00 and go from there. They are not really any more expensive than other quality gen watches. and Panerai watch works are up there in quality craftsmanship. The prices do indeed warrant being repped

 

[horologie_unitas]

Hambone,
i dont claim to be right...
but !

U BOAT .....made watches for the german Navy ? come on ! made by Panerai ? never.

i saw them real life...in my opinion....asian made case with a raw swiss movement....selling at top notch price !

the brand was just started a few years ago....now suddenly they have made watches since 60 years....
like DEFAUBERE ( a rich guy from Florida that buys an old swiss watchmakers name - along with 2 unimportant patents)
and suddenly....Defaubere is an old, experienced, fine swiss watch company with generations of experience.

come on.
but as i said....i can be wrong.

 

[Hambone]

Panerai has a history of watch manufaturing with Italy and Germany. Look at the "Kampfschwimmer" watch that is the beginnings of Panerai . Davidsen has a rep of this one as do others. Sorry HU, you have to click the 'wrong' tab on this one' Do some research, the U Boat watch was
an attempted timepiece at the end of the war and never really got off the ground untill the last few years. The watch is indeed made by
Panerai engineers. I am surprised you find this incredulous, however facts are facts and history cannot be re written to ones own preference.

 

[horologie_unitas]

Hambone,

Italo Fontana ( owner of UBOAT ) claims his grandfather had orders of the Italian Navy to design watches....what never happend.
and ...nowhere this story can be proven. i think its just made up so that ITALO gets a piece of the cake.

i personally saw a LIMITED...extremly rare LEFTHOOK version....exactly the same like INVICTA.....for Euro 900 ( 1450 $ )
the watch has mineral glas.....a ETA quartz movement.....and a cheap printed dial....thw watch looks and feels like 99$ !

the rest is made up to give those extremly overpriced watches a historical background. in reality Italo teamed up with a lebanese underwear designer
for the design of those watches.
please show me one single piece of evidence that gives these watches such a background. i have been searching the net for hours and hours !
oversized design - swiss raw movement - fake ! PVD meets neon colours - Panerai design, copulating with Bell & Ross design, at ridicolous price
that makes a UBOAT.
this company has no invention, patent, remarkable feature in the watchworld.....just a somewhat special design.

 

[hooligan]

I don't believe for a second that U Boat has any ties to Panerai or Richemont. I wait to be proven wrong, but I don't think it's going to happen.

AFAIK, ALL the Richemont groups' watches are Swiss made. These U Boats say made in Italy.

Perhaps the claim is "former Panerai engineers"? Remember Mario Paci was the chief engineer for Panerai up until the Vendome/Richemont buyout of the brand. I'd be willing to wager that not many (if any at all) original Panerai engineers are still employed by the marque.

 

[Dario33]

I saw these at an AD in the Bahamas while on vacation -- love the look -- hope some models get the rep treatment soon.

 

[OneTrueSaxon]

They look the dog's danglies to me - very nice.

I'm just worried that if I got one I'd want to torpedo a passenger liner

 

[horologie_unitas]

mineral glas, no lume, quartz movement. close to 1000 $ !!

==========================================================================

raw Valljoux 7750 swiss mvmnt - neon lume ( worse then Davidsens ) faux wanna be PVD 2900 $ !!

gimme a break ! Italo Fontano spend ( so he claims ) 7 years to finish the designs for these watches....

i say...big watch - diffrent design - diffrent colours - made up background in watchmaking - ridicolous prices.
these watches sell in the Carribean for 50% off ! ( Aruba - Caiman )

 

[horologie_unitas]

looks somewhat familiar ??

$ 50....also quartz, also mineral....comes from the same asian company but....$ 50 !

 

[babola]

looks somewhat familiar ??

Of course it does...instead OOZOO it should be called PANOOBOAT...LOL! :lol:

BTW, U-boat watches were always more of "joke" to me, sorry guys but I can't digest them - I tried, really, but in design, construction quality and materials chosen it's nothing more than Invicta's and Nautica's poor cousin.

...and claims by Italo that Marina Militare was about to use these for real ?!?!? Oh come, on...Guido Panerai was an inventor, a real one, this guy is nothing but a fraud.

Gimme a break...
:wink:

 

[robc_uk]

I have it on good authority that when a dealer in London took on these watches they sold none at all in a year. However when they stopped selling them they started selling TW Steel (the exact same watch sold by many dealers as Mont Blanc or Ferrari fantasy diving watches) and they sell hundreds a month. But then the average TW Steel watch goes for £150 (Quartz) and £300 (Auto).

ROb

 

[fakemaster]

We should start our own watch company.

However when they stopped selling them they started selling TW Steel (the exact same watch sold by many dealers as Mont Blanc or Ferrari fantasy diving watches) and they sell hundreds a month.

What would you say is the reason for that?

 

[robc_uk]

Price,well more accurately, value for money!

You can almost treat a TW Steel watch as an impulse purchase!!
R

 

[lupo]

you are wrong my friend,

Im in the process of getting a u boat watch for the last few months... these pieces are made by ITALO fontana, italian designer, NO history behing this brand, but there is a VERY large similarity in the design to old russian submarine divers watches from the end of the ww2. and the period of cold war.
the welder watches are also made by italo fontana = or better - these pieces are DESIGNED by italo fontana. made by a company making several differend brands. it is and L swiss L brand - means it is not fully made and assembled in switzerland.

these watches run in EU for much cheaper than panerai. e.g. a pam base logo compared to an U boat runs /depending on model/ for more than 50% more than U boat. On the other hand, you can get a nice welder watch - very simmilar design / for less than 400 euro.

bye.

 

[rogerwine]

Hey I own a U-Boat. I have a Left-hook Chrono. There is nothing wrong with it. The build is as good as any gen watch I own. The watch is cool, the watch is a looker. And hey smokers it's real !! It ain't Russian and it ain't Invicta. I have had it for 2 1/2 years and have worn it on a lot of trips and I have had more positive comments on the watch then any other watch I have ever worn. I paid 600 Euros for it and have never regreted it. H-U I'll sell it to you for a special price, so that when times get good you'll still have something to bitch and moan about.
Rogerwine

 

[horologie_unitas]

Roger,
...i dont want to offend nobody.
my own personal opinion....nothing else.
i saw the Welder square watch.....same quality as my 100 $ Bell Ross fake.
of course...as with any other product ...you like it...you buy it. it might be worth the money to you....i would chose another watch for the prices they ask.
and i insist.....all rumors.....that Panerai makes these watches....Fontanes grandfather a watchsmith for the german and Italian Navy, 7 years of developing...
come on. again ! me---- i dont believe all that. not a word. a smart marketing company developed a company background.....nothing else.

 

[roflwaffle]

I don't believe for a second that U Boat has any ties to Panerai or Richemont. I wait to be proven wrong, but I don't think it's going to happen.

AFAIK, ALL the Richemont groups' watches are Swiss made. These U Boats say made in Italy.

Perhaps the claim is "former Panerai engineers"? Remember Mario Paci was the chief engineer for Panerai up until the Vendome/Richemont buyout of the brand. I'd be willing to wager that not many (if any at all) original Panerai engineers are still employed by the marque.

there was that rumor that one of the head guys of panerai was going to uboat...

yea, i agree that these arent made by panerai.. there could be ties somewhere (like anonimo does have ties).. but its a bit far fetched.

love the red one they do..

though, are you really surprised the AD told you a bunch of shit? The rollie dealer i went to last weekend was a moron too and told all sorts of ... exaggerated facts... but at least rollie has a real history..