A little bored this morning, checking in at various websites when I come across this gem on the Hodinkee. Their Bring a Loupe column usually has interesting watches but, as has been discussed here previously, their facts and opinions can be, at times, be a bit dubious. What immediately catches my eye is the picture that accompanies the title. A watch that I had in fact been watching on Ebay. A very nice example of what is sometimes known as a Speedmaster Companion or a Seamaster with Technical dial. https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/bring-a-loupe-march-15-2019 This example is slightly more rare in that it has Geneve badging on the dial (a detail not discussed) and has the Seamaster Hippocampus on the case-back. I have a little experience with this reference and its' brother with date window. In fact, I have five (see pic above). What is so annoying about this article is the lack of accuracy. In the title the reference number is there for all to see and it is wrong. Some simple research would tell the writer that the correct ref# for the watch will be 165.002 and if the watch had a date window ref# 166.002. What makes me go crazy is the laziness at Hodinkee. Time and time again their articles have issues that can easily be avoided with the most basic research. The reference # in the title is 135.007. A quick Google image search shows an obviously different watch. Am I being hypercritical?. Are my expectations out of line?. Don't we have an expectation of accuracy when reading material such as this?
I am merely Bourne Again. To anyone who understands my comment -- I started in this business punching my own JCL cards In one day I could cost my employer more in one day than I earned in a year. Did too. Too often
I am frankly surprised as I read more and more about some of the basic mistakes that they make. In the future, I will probably spend my time learning about specific references from this forum than from any of these websites. the REAL experts are all in here.
As someone whose day job involves a ton of researching and writing content for a very savvy audience, I know that it can take a lot of time, and effort to get things in the right order, with just the right level of detail, and exactly the right details/facts/data. If Hodinkee were a hobbyist blog, run by a couple of folks in their free time, rather than a well staffed, and well funded business, I'd cut them a whole lot of slack, but writing like this isn't really up to snuff. Sure no one here is paying Hodinkee, and we are, ultimately the product when we visit this site, but the sponsors arguably deserve to be in a business relationship with an organisation that does sweat the details and strives to provide great content, rather than posts inaccuracies and waffle. On a personal level, if you're not going to put the work into making a piece of content good and accurate, then what's the point of writing it in the first place?
As a matter of principle I find "bashing" counterproductive. Because then serious grievances are easier to dismiss as being made by people who have an axe to grind, or who just blabber because they're bored and don't have anything better to do. If their write ups are inaccurate (which I don't know because I no longer read it), I would be content for someone to point it out factually and for everyone to draw their own conclusions. I don't think the insults help with anything, except to vindicate any perception on their part that there's always disgruntled, envious people who need a scapegoat and that their success is the reason why they are being targeted.
165.002 gives me below and a raft of other dials before the one the article is about. Pretty easy to stuff up a Omega reference number https://omegaforums.net/threads/1966-omega-seamaster-165-002-military-dial.46005/
Hodinkee is a business It’s whole raison d’etre is to generate income through using, just hyperbole In that respect.…it’s moderately successful As a serious reference bank…it’s just amusing