Elysee & Trias watches

Elysee and Trias watches - great watches for the money

Elysee Skeleton 35 jewel automatic

I first came across Elysee and Trias about 2003 when an Elysee often cost around £100. They are good looking watches, reliable and nicely made, Elysee and Trias sometimes have cases which look similar. 

The Elysee logo reminds me of the Longines logo. Its a stylish logo I think.

The Longines Logo

The first type Elysee watches I purchased had 'Dusseldorf Germany' at the bottom of the dial face, now they are marked 'Made in Germany' instead.

I noted on my older Elysee watches that the balance weight was often engraved and had the Elysee name engraved on them. The modern ones using the Citizen type movement are often plain or in the case of the Nestor, almost a skeleton frame weight.

The Elysee watches look very nice, the manufacture looks good, they look quality but are attractively priced. I have noticed that recently some of the Elysee models have been made with quartz movements where they were using automatic movements before.

Similarly, the prices of the automatic watches have increased, although there are sometimes bargains to be found out there from old stock in shops or shop sales.

The performance is good, I have a 35 jewel Elysee I wear daily and it keeps great time, it has a hack function so I can synchronise it with the radio time signal on the hourly news so I am within a few seconds of the true time daily which is fine by me.

The elegant 35 jewel skeleton watch

The 35 jewel skeleton even has gold plated movement parts

Elysee branded straps and buckles are standard

Elysee dual timezone with visible big date

Twin rotor design on the dual time zone 80433N

Elysee Big Date 35 Jewels watch

Elysee Priamos a stylish blue example - not one I have 

Elysee Gold Plated Automatic with big date

Elysee 22 jewel automatic with big date

Elysee Gold Moonphase

Elysee gold plated skeleton

Elysee Prometheus automatic

Elysee 21 jewel automatic

Elysee Genios aviator style watch

Elysee Nestor - Bauhaus styling modern made Elysee

Elysee Nestor Citizen / Miyota movement detail 

I have owned various Trias watches models over the years and there are some really nice ones about, often the photographs don't do them justice and they look better in reality which is a good sign.

I have seen similar models to Trias ones by companies like Linhart, Theorema etc. the faces and cases look similar and so do the movements. Whatever design you choose, classic or modern, I have found these watches to perform well and look stylish.

They are not expensive for what you get - often 21 plus jewels movement, stylish and well made watches for around £100 - £200.

It is always satisfying to ask someone how much they think the watch cost when they have commented on how nice it looks and you surprise them when you tell them it was far less than their estimate, plus it is automatic too. 

Trias also make some watches with Swiss movements too which are more expensive than the usual range.

Elegant Trias complication watch

Trias with drum case and ribbed bezels

Trias big date complication watch

Dual time Trias

Trias Pilot with Swiss Movement

Trias Skeleton watch - much like the Elysee version

Trias dual timer

Lindberg and Sohne a brand in the similar style of Trias

Therorema - again a similar style, a drum case twin time zone example

Chinese Mechanical and Automatic watches - good or bad?

A quick look at higher quality Chinese made watches

Stylish watches that often suffer from 'questionable' brand names?

Forsining brand watch - a bit too close to Foreskin - your opinion?

There are some nicely styled watches made in China on the market, at what look like ridiculously low prices. Are they all show and unreliable? Or are they viable alternatives to Quartz watches?

If you collect watches, the biggest drawback is that Quartz watches use batteries that typically last a year or eighteen months typically, so an inconvenience to have to keep renewing them. 

Automatic and manual watches may seem 'old school' but they are a better solution in that they never need batteries and a reliable movement can be an accurate time keeper, adequate for most of our needs.

Attractive styling - and price meaning you can often own a selection

There are some reviews on sites where some customers have reported reliability or time keeping issues, but then consider that of the many watches that are produced, the reviews are often good and the negative and problems reported seem few in context to the happy customers.

Jaragar - nearly Jaguar, why not Jagura?

The better made Chinese watches often feature genuine Citizen/Miyota type movements which have long been used in Japanese quality watches. Some cheaper ones do use 'clone' movements. 

Jaragar triangular shape watch - modern sports look and inexpensive

Generally speaking a genuine movement should give excellent timekeeping. Some watch forums contributors have criticized the assembly of parts, such as leaving fingerprints, inconsistency with lubrication of the movements, hair or dust on the movements etc.

The design and the finished product often look modern, but the real problem is the brand names. The ones they choose often might work in the far east, but don't work in the West.

Sewor - Sewer is too close, surely?

Stylish Sewor watches, but again let down by their brand name which is too close to 'Sewer', if only the factory had consulted with British brand name specialists or marketers before production, then the likelihood is that they would sell better.

Impress the ladies with your Parnis - Oo err Missus...

Parnis are nicely made watches with an almost 'French' sounding name but almost sounds too close to a male body part for some? 

46mm of Parnis! Even the hour hand looks like a knob!

If you forget the 'watch snobbery' - then you will often find that your stylish and inexpensive watch has people asking where you got it and then are surprised at the smaller price tag then they were expecting.

Parnis unbranded military/aviator style watch - 

looks attractive and classic and has no embarrassing brand name -

and at probably under £100 - could pass for a £500+ watch

Hand wind Swiss type movement Parnis for £60?

Corgeut in Blue - nice styling -

note the accurate strap stitching a sign of quality.

Unusual dished ribbed bezel.

Another nice 44mm Parnis

Parnis Chronometer with automatic movement 

a 44mm watch with power reserve indicator for around £60?

Stuhrling - Why not Sterling? 

But a clever play on combining the German 'Uhren' for watch and Sterling.

Stuhrling - the works view through the glass back

A nicely presented movement

Stuhrling is another interesting brand with a wide variety of products, at the higher end, they are higher priced. Often as with the watches featured in this discussion, they are 21 plus jewels movements which perform smoothly and keep good time.

Seagull - this one features a Swiss movement -  

some similar upmarket Chinese brands use the Unitas and similar movements

Finally, we move to the use of Swiss movements in Chinese watches. Essentially a good move, when combined with a nicely designed case and face, the Swiss movement is often seen as the desirable movement to have.

When you see a big name Swiss watch costing thousands, then the inclusion of a Swiss movement into a stylish far eastern attractive chassis makes good economic sense for the customer and the producer. 

Elegant Pilot style 6497 Corgeut, the unusual bezel I like

at around £70 why not? 

These watches fill a void between quartz watches, low end manual and automatics and the big name often Swiss made brands. 

Corgeut - sounds French a bit like Courgette 

but better than most brand names from Chinese watches! 

has a 6497 style movement and 44mm at the price what's not to like?

Filling the mid range £400 plus bracket watch range, these are affordable and appeal to many who want to wear a stylish watch that looks more expensive that it actually cost. 

A 6497 46mm case one which looks very Aviator at around £50 worth a punt

hand wound but a small price to pay - like the price tag!

At the end of the day, you get what you pay for they say and the higher end Chinese made watches have perfectly filled a market, a good product at a good price with reliability. The only negative is sometimes that the names are not always attractive to Western consumers.

Certainly for the price, you should get some years of use from them. Any on this review look stylish and classy, for the money they are good, but as I say you get what you pay for, however, some Chinese watches are high priced when they don't need to be so shop around.

The Wicker Man - restored Director's cut full length version.

The Wicker Man film - now restored to full length 

The Wicker Man - acknowledged as one of the classic British films of all time

You may have heard of the Wicker Man film, yet it is one that many have not seen. In an interview some years ago, Christopher Lee one of the lead actors commented that there was about 15 minutes missing from what had been filmed.

Christopher Lee (centre) in the lead role as Lord Summerisle

At the time of the film release he identified this fact but was told that the footage could not be located. It was some years before a good, original length film transfer came to light. The film has now been restored and issued in a 2 disc version, one disc is the 'as released' for cinema version and the other disc is the Director's cut, restored to the original, longer running time.

Edward Woodward as Sergeant Howie in the Wicker Man film

Identified as a cult film only after it was released in America, Wicker Man is more like a carnival than a true horror picture. Today's horror offerings really are more frightening and explicitly more violent, but the Wicker Man is more whimsical than you might be expecting. I think that this whimsicality gives the film something unique.

The Green Man Inn pub sign -

the Green Man, a symbol of the 'Pagan' style belief system, 
a belief system based partly on this featured in the film

The premise of the film is that Sergeant Howie (Edward Woodward) a policeman from the mainland, receives an anonymous letter reporting a missing child on the isle of Summerisle. Summerisle being a Scottish island overseen by Lord Summerisle (Christopher Lee). Summerisle is part of an archipelago of small and scattered islands off the Scottish coast.

Sergeant Howie is given the runaround by the locals from the outset

Upon arriving, Sgt Howie starts to make enquiries, only to find that he is mislead or in some cases, deliberately obstructed from finding out the answers he requires.

Ingrid Pitt (near camera) as the Librarian

Summerisle is a 'closed community' situation, a place where there are no outsiders and outsiders when they do visit, stick out. Things work differently on Summerisle, it is a cross between a feudal society with a belief system run along a Pagan style of reverence. (it is not difficult to see how a series like the League of gentlemen may have been inspired by this type of situation?)

Britt Ekland was another of the main players in the film as the Landlord's daughter

Sgt Howie is a deeply religious man, of the Christian faith and he soon finds things that give him displeasure happening on the island. He finds temptation from the Landlord's daughter (played by Britt Ekland) directed towards him. 

Howie Bursts in on Ingrid Pitt's character

Howie's prudishness seems old fashioned by today's standards, he does not pursue the obvious syrenical seduction coming from the landlord's daughter or is he distracted by the naked Librarian in her bath when he breaks into her house looking for the missing person.

The locals taunt Howie with the risqué folk song 'the landlord's daughter.'  

But Howie refuses to yield and continues his investigation singlehanded, on an island with no vehicles, (an island that he reached by piloting a seaplane into the local harbour).

The May Day procession scene

Howie suspects that the missing person may still be alive and joins the May Day procession, hoping to locate the target of his enquiries. He knocks out the land lord and takes his Mr Punch costume, joining the procession in disguise, he believes without his true identity being known.

Howie is unmasked 

Howie is correct in his presumption but is then overpowered - I won't spoil the ending but the film is an allegory of the closed society with its own way of things, in which the 20th century does not sit well in context, or is indeed welcome.

A local island, for local people - 

echoed in shades of 'Royston Vasey' some years later?

It is remarkable that the film was made at all, British Lion films that started the project went out of business during the film and two other concerns took on the project. This led to the cutting of some footage which did not help the storyline.

Filmed late in the year, it was often touch and go when filming to be able to get the external location scenes filmed whilst the sun made a brief appearance! The rugged coastline and isolated unspoilt location gave the film a feeling of insularity.

Fantastic location settings really enhanced the film

The Wicker Man has gone on to become a cult film, in the same way that many other cult films have, by not being that successful on release -  for Wicker Man it formed part of a double bill feature, which did it no real favours in the UK but in the US, with a bigger audience, it became well thought of.

The main actors in the film really stand out and even if the film was not a big earner for the in the first instance, it has no doubt helped them since with a revered film to put on their CV. A pity that with such a wealth of acting talent, that the film could not have been more involved. Perhaps the situation with the studio meant that the film had to be completed without delay.