GMTs for non-travellers?

[Sodafarl]

Just wondering about GMT usage. In theory the GMT complication is something that should be right up my street as I travel a lot but I've never owned one. While looking at some, particularly the Explorer II, I wondered of those that buy them (GMT watches in general), how many actually use the GMT function, either for travel or to keep track of another time zone and how many just wear them because they like them regardless of the feature. Like people wearing moon phases without any need or interest in what the moon is doing.

For those that do wear them without any real travel or dual time zone requirement, what do you do with the GMT hand? What timezone do you set it to and why?

I'm certainly not judging anyone's reason for their choice. If you never leave your home town or make a call to another TZ yet own a GMT because you love the look that's cool. I'm just curious.

[Btreichel87]

Have an explorer II. Will rarely use the GMT feature. I just loved the package of the explorer II. Rugged watch with a date, and it's not a Submariner. The GMT is really a bonus. On the rare occasion I do vacation, it'll come in handy. But otherwise I just set it to my own time zone and use it as am/pm indicator. Like the original 1655 used the 4th hand for.

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[yankeexpress]

Travelers like the type of GMT with the quickset hour hand, like the Exploder, to adjust local time when landing in a new timezone, without stopping the watches movement.

Desk divers like the type of GMT with the quickset 24 hour hand to keep track of client timezone when speaking with them by phone, like the ETA-2893 watches.

My wife frequently asks me what time it is at her sisters house in Europe so she can call during waking hours.

At sea, I like to adjust my local time to correspond with the Sun position, so noon has the Sun overhead.

[Jack646]

I like a lot of GMT watches, but I’ve tried to adhere to the restriction of not buying watches with complications I have no practical use for (reminds me of guys driving Jeeps with lift packages and winches that do zero off-roading).

Since I don’t travel much, or call anyone outside of the US time zones, the GMT’s are a no go, but I’ve definitely wracked my brain trying to think of an excuse to get one.

[jt67]

I travel a lot and find the GMT functionality very useful. I have the GMT hand permanently set to my home time, and ‘quickset’ the hour hand to wherever I physically am.


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[clyde_frog]

I think it's completely unnecessary, whether you travel or not. I wouldn't say I'm against the complication, it's cool and everything, but you do not need it if you have a half-decent memory and now how to add and subtract. if I'm in New York, I know it's -5 hours time difference to the UK. All I do is look at the time and add 5 hours and I know what time it is at home. Now unless I have the memory of a goldfish or can't do simple maths like 7 + 5 = 12, I don't need a GMT hand to tell me that.

[Bradjhomes]

I think it's completely unnecessary, whether you travel or not. I wouldn't say I'm against the complication, it's cool and everything, but you do not need it if you have a half-decent memory and now how to add and subtract. if I'm in New York, I know it's -5 hours time difference to the UK. All I do is look at the time and add 5 hours and I know what time it is at home. Now unless I have the memory of a goldfish or don't can't do simple maths like 7 + 5 = 12, I don't need a GMT hand to tell me that.

That’s true if you travel once a year on holiday.

If you travel to multiple different cities all over the world, every month, it’s a completely different matter.

[Mike_Mac]

It’s simple — if you like the look of a particular GMT style watch, get it! Set it to GMT or local or whatever suits your fancy.

Nobody today wears watches with complications because they have to. They wear them because they like them. We all carry cell phones that can run circles around the functions a complex mechanical watch can do.

Just like the Jeep with a winch analogy — if you like it, get it. You’ll find an occasional use for it. And even if you don’t, who cares?

[clyde_frog]

That’s true if you travel once a year on holiday.

If you travel to multiple different cities all over the world, every month, it’s a completely different matter.

Why?

[the.hatter]

Have my GMT hand set to my local time too, so when I’m not traveling it’s basically an am/pm indicator.

Helps when I get the watch out and the powers ran down, and I want to set time and date.