Handcrafted watch or
big brand: which to choose?

A Rolex costs several thousand euros. A hand-assembled Seiko mod costs between 180 and 320 euros. The question is not which is "better" but to understand what you are truly buying in each case.

What you pay for with a big brand

When you buy a Rolex, a Patek Philippe, or an Audemars Piguet, you are not just paying for a watch. You are paying for a brand, a heritage, an image, a global distribution network, advertising campaigns, and resale value. All of this comes at a cost — and it is considerable.

Concretely, the manufacturing cost of a basic Rolex Submariner represents a fraction of its retail price. The rest is the brand. This is not a negative judgment; it is simply the reality of luxury. You are buying status as much as a watch.

That said, major houses produce movements of remarkable precision and finish, often made in-house, with very high quality control standards. No one denies this.

What you get with a handcrafted watch

A handcrafted watch like a Seiko mod is built differently. The automatic Japanese NH35 or NH34 movement from Seiko is at the heart of the piece. A caliber renowned for its reliability, used by hundreds of manufacturers worldwide.

Around this movement, everything is selected: the case, the dial, the hands, the bezel, the sapphire crystal. Each part is chosen for its quality and assembled in our workshop. The result is a unique watch that you won't find anywhere else.

The honest comparison

The Seiko NH35 movement: reliable or not?

This is the question we are asked most often. The NH35 is an automatic Japanese movement manufactured by Seiko Instruments Inc. (SII), the movement manufacturing branch of the Seiko group. It powers thousands of watches worldwide, from microbrands to military watches.

Its accuracy is ±10 seconds per day on average. For comparison, an ETA 2824-2 (the benchmark Swiss movement) displays ±4 seconds per day as standard.

Who is the handcrafted watch for?

A Seiko mod is made for those who want something different.

• You love watchmaking but don't want to pay the price of industrial luxury
• You are looking for a watch that exists in only one copy
• You want to be able to choose every detail — dial, bezel, bracelet, color
• You want to offer something memorable and personal

Our creations — each watch is assembled for one person, according to their taste.

Our verdict

If you are looking for an investment, a collector's item, or a globally recognized status symbol, a major brand remains the logical choice. No one will dispute that.

But if you are looking for a beautiful, reliable, unique watch, assembled for you without spending several thousand euros, then a Seiko mod is probably the closest thing to what you really want.

At Modding Watches, we do not claim to compete with Rolex. We do something Rolex doesn't: a watch that exists in only one copy, made for you, hand-assembled.