zOwie Omega Discussion Forum

: 1. The omega website states to avoid temps
: below 0 Celcius. I periodically work outside

What this means is the accuracy of the watch may be slightly reduced at extreme temperatures. No harm will come to the watch. But also, as BCT mentioned, if it is on your wrist, the watch itself will be WELL above freezing from your body heat. If your wrist is at 0 degrees, then you've got worse problems that your wristwatch's accuracy.

: 2. I am leaning towards the GMT because I'll
: have limited used for a bezel and think the
: less moving parts the better. Are the
: internal parts, GMT and SMP similar?

Extremely similar. The GMT internals are slightly altered to provide the functionality for the extra hand. But both are equally good and reliable inside.

: 3. I have the one watch does all philosophy.
: For the last 13 years I have used a Casio
: G-shock without a hitch. Will the Omega do
: the same with reasonable use?

Define reasonable.

Keep in mind that ANY mechanical watch will be less shock resistant than the average quartz watch--and noticably less than a G-Shock. So you CANNOT expect a luxury mechanical to take the same level of abuse as a your G-Shock may have.

That said, it is not easy to damage a modern mechancial watch. They are designed to deal with the bumps and knocks of everyday life. But they still can be broken and damaged.

Replacing a G-Shock with a mechancial SMP or GMT is like replacing a pick-up truck with a sports car--they are not intended to be equal and interchangable for all their possible uses. What is "reasonable" usage of one is not reasonable usage of the other.

So make sure you are clear on what is reasonable usage of a mechancial watch. One common misconception of first-time luxury watch buyers is believing that paying lots of money means they are buying something that they can use and abuse and it will take it. Wrong! Expensive watches are *jewelry*, not indestructible military grade tools.