Parnis mechanical and Parnis automatic watches

Parnis Chronometer - Power Reserve automatic watch

There's that old saying 'you get what you pay for' and that is often true. 

But sometimes what can surprise you, is what you actually get for something you didn't pay over the odds for. Welcome to the world of Parnis watches.

Parnis 44mm Military Aviator Vintage style hand wound watch

You can see any number of 'big name' watches on sale in shops or on-line with often 'big price' tickets hanging off them. But you don't have to pay big money for a nice looking watch. These examples show that.

Parnis 44mm hand wind Bauhaus style watch

With the demise of the majority of mechanical Swiss watches in favour of quartz movements in the 1980s, the industry discarded much of the tooling associated with the 'old' way of making a watch. So where did this technology go? Mainly to Russia and the Far East.

Parnis 44mm hand wind watch with 6497 style movement

With the lower wages and costs of the Far East, this has allowed makers in China to produce watches which look quality pieces at a fraction of the cost of a Swiss made one. The big names survive in Switzerland with their quality and price making some very nice pieces.

Parnis 6497 movement 46mm hand wind watch

The Chinese brands can suffer from rather 'indifferent' brand names, that sound quite comical to the Western purchaser. Parnis, although French sounding might be comical to some. However, joking aside they are nicely made and great value for money.

Another factor that has been overcome by the Parnis brand is the metallurgy, the material in these watches looks very good quality, the casings don't look 'brushed' there are no sharp edges on any I have had and the 46mm above looks even better than the photograph.

Parnis 43mm Power Reserve automatic watch

So the big question is - are they any good? The short answer is yes. The quality and price are there, at the moment these watches are way, way underpriced for what you get.

Parnis 43mm Power Reserve Automatic movement

What you get is a well designed, well made timepiece that is great quality. I have bought a Sewor tonneau watch before and it was cheap, it didn't keep time well. It may have been a bad one but after a few weeks it was not worth me wearing it. 

So I was a bit wary about buying another Chinese made watch, but I bought the silver power reserve at the top of the page used in the UK for about £50 and was surprised how good it was.

Parnis 44mm Hand Wind military style watch

I've run a selection of Parnis watches, most of which are from this page for a few weeks and they are all keeping great time, with each other and a 35 jewel Elysee I tend to wear a lot. 

Another good thing is their customer care is good, having not got the face colour in stock, I was offered a choice of hands on the watch I ordered, you'd have to go to someone exclusive for that otherwise. Most mainstream brands don't give you that.

Parnis 47mm Aviator style watch

The conclusion I have come to with these Parnis watches is that they look good, work nicely, are made and finished nicely and look more expensive than they actually cost. I must say I am very pleased with the ones I have purchased. 

With Elysee watches now going up steeply in price and many of them being made as quartz watches instead of using the Citizen Miyota movement as previously (Parnis uses this movement too), I am left with the thought - do I buy a Parnis watch I like or pay perhaps 5 times more for an Elysee?

I am a convert to Parnis, although I still have a few Elysee watches too. For everyday wear, I think these watches are underrated and unless you are a watch snob with deep pockets who can afford a big name Swiss watch, I'd say that you'd be on to a winner with one of these.

Check out www.mywatchcode.com for best prices on these watches plus also on Corget and other brands, some of the products on this site are not on Ebay, many are though. There are more on Ebay but they are more expensive.