As nice as watches from the likes of Rolex and Patek Philippe are, not everyone is fortunate enough to have the budget for them—but that doesn’t mean there aren’t some fantastic affordable substitutes out there. So, here are three expensive watches—and three alternatives for under £1,500.

If you’re just getting started with photography, you buy a Canon, or a Nikon. Hi-fi, something from Naim. A Porsche will most likely be your first sporty set of wheels. Brand recognition, heritage, market stability, resale prices, broad appeal, etcetera, etcetera. The list of reasons why all these companies are great places to put your money—and they are, everybody knows it—goes on and on. That’s why they’re the norm. For some people, however, normal is just too … normal. For some people, the interesting, the esoteric, the stuff that can only be found wide of the beaten path—that’s where the real gold lies. Question is, when it comes to a proper, hand-wound chronograph with all the bells and whistles—is a pen company that bit too far?

Historically, Montblanc was most closely associated with luxury pens, the Meisterstück being its most iconic and successful. The brand’s watchmaking debut didn’t come until 1997, when it opened up its watchmaking division in Le Locle, Switzerland. The name of its first timepiece? The Meisterstück. Like its namesake, the watch was a finely finished piece of craftsmanship, but the brand didn’t really find its footing in horology until 2006, when Richemont (who already owned Montblanc) also acquired the esteemed Swiss movement-making firm Minerva.

Montblanc in fact traces its roots back to the production of luxury writing instruments—which it still creates to this day—but turned its attention to watchmaking in 1997. A relatively young brand, it is increasingly creating beautiful and highly complicated timepieces, at affordable price points—especially since it made its first in-house movement in 2008.

Montblanc is bringing new meaning to the term 'lightweight' with its TimeWalker Pythagore Ultra-Light Concept. Weighing in at just 14.88 grams, the watch makes use of a newly developed composite material named 'Innovative, Technical, Revolutionary Resin' (ITR²).

In a spectacular celebration of the brand's 110th anniversary, Montblanc has created a range of new watches for their 4810 line - which received their debut at SIHH 2016. This ExoTourbillon Slim pays tribute to the golden age of transatlantic travel, with a sophisticated and timelessly classic design.