Official Watch Enthusiasts Thread!

[92redragtop]

Yeah, as Tim said the forums like WUS and Timezone may work - there are lots of threads about newer watches so I think the expertise leans to nerwer but there are some threads on vintage, and there are collectors/aficionados on the sites. WUS is more user friendly to use. There's also Chrono24 for watch listings - I think private sellers can list on there too.

The Omega Speedys are nice watches and I waffle between getting one or not...but so far have leaned to a little more niche/rare brands. They're pretty common so that's good and bad but they seem to hold value decently since they have broader market appeal (they spend a lot on consumer marketing) versus a niche/specialized high end brand. There's Rolex's junior brand as well, Tudor, but I'm not sure if the Speedy or Tudor would hold value better. You can also look at US based grey market (genuine) retailers to save a few dollars on a new watch (versus pre-owned).

[WTF]

^^^^ one thing for sure when you buy a quality piece...there is a market to sell it if/when you do...and you'll still get a half decent buck for it years after you bought it

for whatever reason my wife seems to like the watches Gucci puts out...probably bought her 8 or 9 of them over the past 29 years

pretty sure they're worth next to nothing after the fact.....$40 quartz movement...non-precious metals, styles that get dated etc

she actually nailed me for one when we went to pick up my Seamaster Chrono in January.....I wasn't about to say no considering what I was putting on my wrist

but....we've probably spent around $7000 on all those Gucci pieces.....and I'd be surprised if the lot of them were worth like a few hundred at best now

if we dropped that $7k on something like an Omega Ladies Seamaster Auto.....it would still be worth thousands today

and the Quality manufacturers stand by their stuff....back in 2015 I broke the hidden clasp button on the bracelet of my Oris....and I bought it from a club member...so while I have the box and papers it's not like I bought it from a retailer.....but, I walked into the Oris dealer in the Royal Bank Centre downtown....he sent it out to Oris' head office in Montreal...and they apologised for that happening and fixed it for free...at this point it was probably a 6 year old piece out of warranty.....needless to say I wouldn't hesitate to buy another Oris when one turns my crank

[92redragtop]

^^^^ one thing for sure when you buy a quality piece...there is a market to sell it if/when you do...and you'll still get a half decent buck for it years after you bought it

for whatever reason my wife seems to like the watches Gucci puts out...probably bought her 8 or 9 of them over the past 29 years

pretty sure they're worth next to nothing after the fact.....$40 quartz movement...non-precious metals, styles that get dated etc

she actually nailed me for one when we went to pick up my Seamaster Chrono in January.....I wasn't about to say no considering what I was putting on my wrist

but....we've probably spent around $7000 on all those Gucci pieces.....and I'd be surprised if the lot of them were worth like a few hundred at best now

if we dropped that $7k on something like an Omega Ladies Seamaster Auto.....it would still be worth thousands today

and the Quality manufacturers stand by their stuff....back in 2015 I broke the hidden clasp button on the bracelet of my Oris....and I bought it from a club member...so while I have the box and papers it's not like I bought it from a retailer.....but, I walked into the Oris dealer in the Royal Bank Centre downtown....he sent it out to Oris' head office in Montreal...and they apologised for that happening and fixed it for free...at this point it was probably a 6 year old piece out of warranty.....needless to say I wouldn't hesitate to buy another Oris when one turns my crank

Yeah, the fashion watches give you a recognizable name and look but there is nothing under the hood so there's no resale value to them. Only way to buy those is online and avoid crazy retail markups.

[92redragtop]

My wife was going through these cheap fashion watches many years back and they just wouldn't last (not related to battery) and wanted a "nice" watch that would last. I ended up getting her a Raymond Weil 2-tone and it's been going since then (about 12 years). They are an under-stated Swiss brand that is still independently owned versus multi-brand corporate (unfortunately their resale isn't as good as the better known prestige names). My only regret was buying her a quartz model versus mechanical....I didn't know any better back then.

[allicedout]

My only regret was buying her a quartz model versus mechanical....I didn't know any better back then.

I've heard some pros and cons regarding mechanical time pieces. Can you elaborate? My understanding was you really had to pick and chose a quality mechanical piece for it to be reliable.

[92redragtop]

I've heard some pros and cons regarding mechanical time pieces. Can you elaborate? My understanding was you really had to pick and chose a quality mechanical piece for it to be reliable.

A quartz is basically a circuit board of sort with a few moving parts but super accurate (which is the basic function of a watch of course) whereas a mechanical watch has many moving parts and like a car needs fluids to keep its heart beating and parts moving (and while accurate, not so much as a good quartz). Some are building for offroading and other cannot take that kind of abuse depending on the level of complications built into the watch. If you're looking for something more durable a tried and tested Rolex or Omega are quite versatile and high volume enough to have been put through all kinds of conditions. They also tend to use common engines so a lot of the bugs get worked out quickly. The maintenance intervals also tend to be longer as a result. When you get into higher end and niche luxury brands they are low volume, usually have more complications, in-house movements (so less real world testing), and maybe made from more precious, softer, metals. The maintenance windows tend to be shorter on these. You're probably likely to have more issues with these as you add more bells and whistles added in the parts composition. I know the Zenith I have comes with a warning not to use the watch during aggressive sports/activities that would expose the watch to shock whereas some of the heavy Rolex/Omega type watches may be more suitable for that type of activity. They are all "quality" pieces just built for different purposes so you choose a quality brand and model that suits what you will subject the watch through.

[tulowd]

Got rid of the Tissot ladies watch, the pocket watch chain and the 4 coins today. Found a couple of Speedmasters for around $2500 CAD; also looking at the TAG Carrera chrono mechanicals.

[92redragtop]

Got rid of the Tissot ladies watch, the pocket watch chain and the 4 coins today. Found a couple of Speedmasters for around $2500 CAD; also looking at the TAG Carrera chrono mechanicals.

Nice - have fun with the search.

[Scrape]

what he said.

Nice - have fun with the search.

[Laffs]

I don't need a Hulk Submariner, I don't need a Hulk Submariner, I don't......I need.....