Thanks Alex. But it’s not really Kevski.
As regards mechanism, provenance and lifespan, Vostok are one of the most open and transparent shopping telly products. And decent enough watches as well. I do feel that Kevin tries hard to get things right (although his regular surprise at a revealed price- often a bit higher than on his son’s own website - got old very quickly).
He struggles a little with tech knowledge at times, but I have never felt Kevin has ever set out to mislead. Kevin, at heart, is one of the best, (IMO). As a comparator,
Poljot (a Russian watchmaker of similar product) used to enclose a slip with each purchase saying the average lifespan of their watches was 10 years. Actually, most watchmakers can service a Poljot 3133 and parts are easy to obtain - so effectively meaning that, properly serviced, they’ll last a good while.
No, for me, It’s not Vostok. It’s the others - and I’m sure they know who they are. These are generally, not always, Chinese mechanisms ( at least on many of their standard products), with brand name printed on them to order - almost all of these can be obtained for very little on AliExpress with different brand names. The telly-selling of these is ridiculous - claims of association with long-dead brands, where what has been purchased by the vendor is just the brand name; the real origins of the mechanism and their (when Chinese) provenance missed out or obscured. And the regular mentions ( on other channels) that these are heirloom purchases. They are not. In no sense whatsoever.
Sorry this was a long one. But I’d love to see lots of the other vendors answering these questions. And I’m sure they could still sell product if they were clear about what they are. Sell the look, or the value, or sell the features- but don’t sell them as heirlooms, or ‘timepieces’; and be clear about where they are from. A couple of years ago, every watch sale on selly telly began with a spiel about the watch being presented at Baselworld. Having been, many times, I can guarantee that was not really so. At one point I was convinced they’d been channelling Fawlty Towers and all had been at Basil World.
For me - that’s all I’d ask. We all expect a bit of salesmanship on selly telly, it would be very boring without it, and we know that not everyone can be an expert (it would be a very dull world). But curbing the excesses would, I am sure, bring more sales in the long term. Can’t help but think that some watch purchasers of a couple of years ago might already have sworn off ever buying more, because of the medium-term disappointment that must be apparent. After all, when they bring them for a service, or a repair, many of the Chinese mechanisms are basically uneconomic, or actually impossible to work on.
And Alex, thanks for listening. And replying.
