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Timex vs Orient

Timex vs Orient

The two cheapest routes to a good mechanical watch. Orient makes its own movements and covers them for three years; Timex puts sapphire and 200m on automatics it does not name.

By Sawyer V. · Published

The short answer

Orient, for a mechanical watch you intend to keep: in-house automatics that hand-wind and hack, and a three-year warranty against Timex's one. The Orient Kamasu is the best watch of either brand here. Timex's Expedition Pioneer is the counter-argument — sapphire and 200m one tier down — but Timex does not name its caliber.

Timex and Orient are the two brands where a mechanical watch costs the least, and they get there in different ways. Orient builds its own movements — every Orient automatic here is an in-house caliber that hand-winds and hacks — and covers most of them for three years. Timex does not name the movements in its automatics and puts its effort into the case: sapphire and 200m, a tier below where those numbers usually appear.

The ownership facts, side by side

TimexOrient
Warranty1 year3 years (2 on the Orient Star here)
Movement namedNoYes — in-house
Hand-winding and hacking statedNoYes
Deepest rating here200m200m
Published US service pricesNoneNone

On prices: we publish no figure we have not verified today, so every buy button reads "Check price on Amazon". Tier placement is our structural judgment, not a price claim.

How we picked

We have not worn these watches. What follows is what we checked instead, on documents you can open yourself — the same criteria, in the same order, on every roundup on this site. The full method is on the methodology page.

  1. 01Movement

    Orient makes its own automatics and states hand-winding and hacking. Timex does not publish the caliber in its automatics here.

  2. 02Warranty

    Orient three years on most models here; Timex one year, excluding the crystal, strap, case and battery.

  3. 03Crystal

    Sapphire on the Kamasu, the AK00 and the Timex Expedition automatics; mineral on the Bambinos; acrylic on the Marlin.

  4. 04Service

    Neither publishes a US service price list.

  5. 05Water resistance

    Up to 200m from both, on the Kamasu and the Expedition automatics; 30m on the Bambinos.

Disclosure · Some links below are Amazon affiliate links. If you buy through one we earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It does not decide what goes on this page or in what order — here is exactly how that works.

Quick picks

Ranked on the Keep Score below — six published specifications, weighted identically on every page. The last row is the one we would not buy.

#WatchBest forKeep ScorePrice
1

Orient Kamasu RA-AA0004E39B

Sapphire, 200m, in-house automatic, three years.

The best watch of either brand9.0/10
Check price
2

Timex Expedition Pioneer Automatic 41mm TW2Y87400

Sapphire, 200m, automatic, one tier down.

Timex's best argument8.0/10
Check price
3

Timex Expedition Field Post Titanium Automatic 41mm TW2Y90900

Titanium, sapphire, 200m.

Titanium, which Orient does not offer here8.0/10
Check price
4

Orient AK00 Version 3 RA-AK0007S30B

Domed sapphire, day, date and a 24-hour hand.

An Orient with domed sapphire8.0/10
Check price
5

Timex Marlin Automatic 40mm TW2V44600

40mm, acrylic, 50m, mid-century styling.

The Timex dress automatic6.5/10
Check price
6

Orient Bambino Version 7 RA-AC0M03S30B

38.4mm, 44mm lug-to-lug, in-house, three years.

The Orient dress automatic6.3/10
Check price
—

Orient Bambino Version 9 RA-AK0803Y30B

Day, date and a 24-hour hand — at 14.2mm, with mineral and 30m.

Skip this one

Not against the Marlin5.9/10
Check price

Keep Score is arithmetic, not opinion — six published specifications, weighted the same way on every page. The formula is on our methodology page, so you can re-run it yourself.

01

Orient Kamasu RA-AA0004E39B

Best for: The best watch of either brand

9.0/10

Keep Score

Crystal
2.5/2.5
Serviceability
2.5/2.5
Water resistance
1.5/1.5
Warranty
1.05/1.5
Strap standard
1/1
Cost-to-keep transparency
0.4/1
Check price on Amazon

#ad Affiliate link · We publish no price we have not verified today

Sapphire, 200m and a screw-down crown around Orient's in-house F6922 — hacking and hand-winding — with a three-year warranty. Neither brand makes a better watch at this level.

41.8mm across, on a 22mm strap.

On paper this is the best value in the category and it is not close: sapphire and a hacking, hand-windable in-house caliber at a price where Seiko still fits Hardlex. Orient's three-year warranty is longer than Hamilton's or Tissot's.

Manufacturer specifications for the Orient Kamasu RA-AA0004E39B
MovementOrient F6922 in-house automatic, hand-winding, hacking
Power reserve40 hours
Case41.8mm stainless steel
Lug-to-lug46.8mm
Thickness12.8mm
Lug width22mm
Crystalsapphire
Water resistance200m
Warranty3 years

Specifications read from Orient Watch USA product page, RA-AA0004E39B.

02

Timex Expedition Pioneer Automatic 41mm TW2Y87400

Best for: Timex's best argument

8.0/10

Keep Score

Crystal
2.5/2.5
Serviceability
2.5/2.5
Water resistance
1.5/1.5
Warranty
0.35/1.5
Strap standard
1/1
Cost-to-keep transparency
0.2/1
Check price on Amazon

#ad Affiliate link · We publish no price we have not verified today

Sapphire and 200m on a steel-bracelet automatic, one budget tier below the Kamasu.

The caliber is unnamed, the warranty is one year with exclusions, and it is 14mm thick.

Sapphire and 200m for the money is real. What Timex does not publish is the caliber — which means you cannot look up what an overhaul costs before you buy, and that is exactly the number this site exists to check.

Manufacturer specifications for the Timex Expedition Pioneer Automatic 41mm TW2Y87400
MovementAutomatic (caliber not published by Timex)
Power reserveNot published
Case41mm stainless steel
Lug-to-lug48mm
Thickness14mm
Lug width20mm
Crystalsapphire
Water resistance200m
Warranty1 year

Timex's one-year warranty explicitly excludes the crystal, strap, case and battery.

Specifications read from Timex product page, TW2Y87400.

03

Timex Expedition Field Post Titanium Automatic 41mm TW2Y90900

Best for: Titanium, which Orient does not offer here

8.0/10

Keep Score

Crystal
2.5/2.5
Serviceability
2.5/2.5
Water resistance
1.5/1.5
Warranty
0.35/1.5
Strap standard
1/1
Cost-to-keep transparency
0.2/1
Check price on Amazon

#ad Affiliate link · We publish no price we have not verified today

Nothing else from either brand on this site is like it: titanium, sapphire and 200m on an automatic.

A 50mm lug-to-lug on a 41mm case, the same unnamed caliber and the same one-year warranty.

65 grams, sapphire and 200m is a spec sheet Timex has no business hitting. The one-year warranty is the reason to think about it: everything else here is covered for two to five.

Manufacturer specifications for the Timex Expedition Field Post Titanium Automatic 41mm TW2Y90900
MovementAutomatic (caliber not published by Timex)
Power reserveNot published
Case41mm titanium
Lug-to-lug50mm
Thickness13.5mm
Lug width20mm
Crystalsapphire
Water resistance200m
Warranty1 year

Timex's one-year warranty explicitly excludes the crystal, strap, case and battery.

Specifications read from Timex product page, TW2Y90900.

04

Orient AK00 Version 3 RA-AK0007S30B

Best for: An Orient with domed sapphire

8.0/10

Keep Score

Crystal
2.5/2.5
Serviceability
2.5/2.5
Water resistance
0.6/1.5
Warranty
1.05/1.5
Strap standard
1/1
Cost-to-keep transparency
0.4/1
Check price on Amazon

#ad Affiliate link · We publish no price we have not verified today

Domed sapphire over an in-house F6B24 with day, date and a 24-hour sub-register, and a three-year warranty.

42.5mm with a 50.5mm lug-to-lug and 14mm thick — a big watch.

Domed sapphire at this price is unusual and it is why this one is here. The 50.5mm lug-to-lug is not — that is a big watch, whatever the 42.5mm on the spec sheet suggests.

Manufacturer specifications for the Orient AK00 Version 3 RA-AK0007S30B
MovementOrient F6B24 in-house automatic, hand-winding, hacking
Power reserve40 hours
Case42.5mm stainless steel
Lug-to-lug50.5mm
Thickness14mm
Lug width22mm
Crystalsapphire
Water resistance50m
Warranty3 years

Specifications read from Orient Watch USA product page, RA-AK0007S30B.

05

Timex Marlin Automatic 40mm TW2V44600

Best for: The Timex dress automatic

6.5/10

Keep Score

Crystal
1.8/2.5
Serviceability
2.5/2.5
Water resistance
0.6/1.5
Warranty
0.35/1.5
Strap standard
1/1
Cost-to-keep transparency
0.2/1
Check price on Amazon

#ad Affiliate link · We publish no price we have not verified today

The Marlin is the Timex most often cross-shopped against a Bambino, and it has the better water rating — 50m against 30m — under an acrylic crystal that polishes out.

The caliber is unnamed and the warranty is one year.

Acrylic reads as a downgrade and mostly is not: it scratches easily and polishes out with a cloth and a tube of paste, which sapphire does not. On a watch you intend to keep for decades, that is a feature.

Manufacturer specifications for the Timex Marlin Automatic 40mm TW2V44600
MovementAutomatic (caliber not published by Timex)
Power reserveNot published
Case40mm stainless steel
Lug-to-lugNot published
Thickness13mm
Lug width20mm
Crystalacrylic
Water resistance50m
Warranty1 year

Timex's one-year warranty explicitly excludes the crystal, strap, case and battery.

Specifications read from Timex product page, TW2V44600.

06

Orient Bambino Version 7 RA-AC0M03S30B

Best for: The Orient dress automatic

6.3/10

Keep Score

Crystal
1/2.5
Serviceability
2.5/2.5
Water resistance
0.3/1.5
Warranty
1.05/1.5
Strap standard
1/1
Cost-to-keep transparency
0.4/1
Check price on Amazon

#ad Affiliate link · We publish no price we have not verified today

The 38.4mm Bambino: an in-house hacking automatic, a 44mm lug-to-lug and three years of warranty, against the Marlin's unnamed caliber and one year.

Domed mineral glass and 30m are the compromises.

A 44mm lug-to-lug is genuinely small by modern standards, and this is the Bambino to buy if the 40.5mm versions never sat right. The domed mineral crystal is the compromise, and it is the one Orient never fixes on this line.

Manufacturer specifications for the Orient Bambino Version 7 RA-AC0M03S30B
MovementOrient F6724 in-house automatic, hand-winding, hacking
Power reserve40 hours
Case38.4mm stainless steel
Lug-to-lug44mm
Thickness12.5mm
Lug width20mm
Crystalmineral
Water resistance30m
Warranty3 years

Specifications read from Orient Watch USA product page, RA-AC0M03S30B.

Skip this one

Orient Bambino Version 9 RA-AK0803Y30B

Best for: Not against the Marlin

5.9/10

Keep Score

Crystal
1/2.5
Serviceability
2.5/2.5
Water resistance
0.3/1.5
Warranty
1.05/1.5
Strap standard
0.6/1
Cost-to-keep transparency
0.4/1
Check price on Amazon

#ad Affiliate link · We publish no price we have not verified today

The Version 9 adds weekday, date and a 24-hour sub-register to the Bambino, and that is what makes it 14.2mm thick — the thickest Bambino there is.

Against the Marlin it gives up water rating, 30m against 50m, and adds a full millimeter of height for complications a dress watch rarely needs.

If you want a Bambino, the Version 7 above is the one.

At 14.2mm this is the thickest Bambino here, which is what a day-date-24h module costs you in height. Worth it only if you will actually read all three.

Manufacturer specifications for the Orient Bambino Version 9 RA-AK0803Y30B
MovementOrient F6B24 in-house automatic, hand-winding, hacking
Power reserve40 hours
Case41.5mm stainless steel
Lug-to-lug47mm
Thickness14.2mm
Lug width21mm
Crystalmineral
Water resistance30m
Warranty3 years

Specifications read from Orient Watch USA product page, RA-AK0803Y30B.

Which to buy

If you wantBuy
The best watch of either brandOrient Kamasu
A named, in-house movement and three yearsOrient
Sapphire and 200m at the lowest tierTimex Expedition Pioneer
TitaniumTimex Expedition North Titanium
A vintage-style dress automaticOrient Bambino V7 for the warranty; Timex Marlin for 50m

Each brand on its own: Orient and Timex. Orient against Seiko is here, and against Citizen here.

Questions people actually ask

Is Orient better than Timex?

For a mechanical watch, usually: Orient makes its own hacking, hand-winding automatics and covers most for three years, against Timex's one. Timex's Expedition automatics bring sapphire and 200m to a lower tier, without a named caliber.

Timex Marlin or Orient Bambino?

The Bambino V7 for the in-house movement, the 38.4mm case and the three-year warranty. The Marlin for 50m against 30m, and an acrylic crystal that polishes out.

Which has the better warranty?

Orient, at three years on most models here — two on the Orient Star skeleton — against Timex's one, which excludes the crystal, strap, case and battery.

Does Timex make its own movements?

Timex does not publish the caliber in the automatics we cover, so we cannot say — and you cannot look up what an overhaul will cost. Orient names every caliber and makes them in-house.

Sources

Every specification and figure on this page came from one of these documents. Where a manufacturer does not publish something, the page says so rather than filling the gap.

Read next

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The longest warranty against the best crystal policy, from two brands that publish no service prices.