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Facts, Tips & Information About Russian Watches
Most people don't know a lot about Russian watches. In fact, you may never have seen one. And although Russian watches aren't nearly as well known as Swiss watches, their popularity is growing as top Russian brands like Vostok and Volmax become better-distributed and more widely available throughout Europe, North America, and the world. Russian Watch Guide aims to provide clear, accurate information for anyone interested in learning about or purchasing a Russian watch. If you are new to Russian watches, we suggest starting with the Russian Watch FAQ and Russian Watches 101. Why Buy a Russian Watch? Most Russian watches use mechanical jeweled movements (not quartz) and sell for between $30 and $600. Many watchbuyers consider this to be outstanding value for a quality mechanical watch. High-end luxury watches are also available. Designs tend to be strong and functional. If you like diver, aviator or military-style watches, you will probably like Russian watches. Russia is not new to watchmaking. It has a rich history of manufacturing mechanical watches that dates back more than eighty years. Not convinced? Here are more reasons to buy a Russian watch. Interesting Fact: The Sturmanskie watch manufactured by the First Moscow Watch Factory was the first watch in space. Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin wore this watch on April 12, 1961 when he became the first person in space. Watch video of this historic flight. What You Need to Know Before You Buy Of course, not all Russian watches are good looking or good quality. So you'll need to know which brands to buy and which to avoid, as well as where to buy them. You'll also need to know how to avoid getting stuck with a fake watch. And here are some special tips if you plan on buying a watch on eBay. Look for deals and special offers on our best prices page. Point of Confusion: Buyers are sometimes confused whether a watch is made by Poljot or by Volmax. Let's clarify the matter. Volmax is a young company founded by ex-Poljot employees. They purchased equipment from Poljot and some of their watches use Poljot movements. For this reason, some retailers refer to Volmax watches as Poljot watches. However, this is not strictly accurate. Volmax watches do not use the Poljot brand name or logo on their watches. The Volmax brands are Aviator, Buran, Sturmanskie and Russian Watch Factory (or RChZ). Detailed Information About Specific Models To provide more information about specific models of Russian watches, and give you a better idea of what you can expect if you were to buy a Russian watch, we publish articles and reviews. For example, see this Vostok Amphibia review or this Raketa 24-hour watch review. More Articles, Information and Resources On this site you'll also find information about Russian watch companies including Maktime, Moscow Classic, Raketa, Rekord, Volmax, Vostok, and Vostok-Europe. We are also building our technical information center which currently includes information about movements. Most pages of this site include a reader feedback section where you can post comments. We hope you'll use it to ask questions or share your knowledge. |