patrick_y[PuristSPro Moderator]
28389
You're welcome.
Jul 01, 2014,10:01 AM
First of all, go with the ones you like, the ones that DO LOOK GOOD on your wrist and the ones that will complement your collection the most. What do you like?
Regarding the case design on the 5074 and 5079, these watches have a cool case design from the early 1900s pocket watches that Patek Philippe used to produce. The bezel is a stepped bezel, and the lugs also have a "step" in them. The lug and bezel are unfortunately difficult to polish though, because once you polish the watch, the sharpness of the stepped design is softened.
I'm a huge fan of the 5074 with the cathedral gong. But I will also say that the 5079 is nice because without the perpetual calendar it's easier to set the watch to 12:59 and hear the full chiming sequence. With the 5074 you'd be screwing up the perpetual calendar every time you wanted to do this. They're also large watches, the 5074 is 42mm in diameter, making it very large.
Going back to the history of the 5074 and 5079 case, the historical pocket watch that's in Patek Philippe's museum is a secular perpetual calendar. A normal perpetual calendar has to be adjusted in years 2100, 2200, 2300, but not 2000, and 2400 (years not divisible by 400). This one is a "secular" perpetual calendar and does not have to be adjusted because the watch's internal mechanism compensates. While the 5074 does not have this feature, it is a perpetual calendar, making it closer in relation to the historical pocketwatches.
The 5104 is another special watch that I'm not terribly familiar with, since I don't have a huge desire to own one (I have an intense desire to own a 5074 but I don't have the guts to spend the money). But it's a modern movement with a cool rotor and case design. If you like Skeleton watches, this may be your thing.
Just some thoughts. Now, add your own preferences.