Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Who's got a nice watch? Traditional watches only, no smartwatches please.
- Thread starter JW8725
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I think a Cubic zirconia is just as nice as a diamond, but try handing the average woman a cubic zirconia engagement ring.
The justification is pretty easy. I liked it, and I wanted it. QED, I bought it.
Mostly disposable income.
What gets to me is people how spend most of there annual salary on a watch. Or have considerable debt.
In any case it boils down to a your money your choice scenario.
I wanted to buy an Omega Seamaster pro yesterday bought couldn't stomach the cost.
I collect watches as a hobby...
First of all, I'm only interested in mechanical watches. I'm fascinated by the art and science of watchmaking, and have been studying watchmaking on my own time for the past few years. Seeing what was achieved in the past by hand, and now with remarkable consistency by machine, is amazing. It's also thrilling to take a 100+ year old watch that may have been "dead" for 50 years, clean it and perform any other necessary repairs(sometimes quite a few), and then drop the balance wheel in and watch it take off running.
Secondly, the specific era I'm interested in is industrialized American watchmaking, primarily from about 1850-1900, although I stray into newer(American) stuff frequently, and also have a soft spot for high grade Swiss items from this era(Although many modern collectors hold up Patek as being the epitome of watchmaking, around the turn of the century there were probably a dozen Swiss makers who were on the same plain as Patek if not better, and because their names have been mostly lost to history they tend to be a lot more affordable. Ed Koehn, H.K. Ekegren, and even some top end Aggasiz movements fall into that category. Top grade American watches like the Edward Howard, Waltham "American Watch Company" and Waltham "Premier Maximus are also easily up there).
The American watch industry from that period is a microcosm of American industrial development as a whole, and showed the world that it was possible to make an accurate, high grade watch with remarkable consistency, and do so at a price that was not completely out of reach.
Plus, with the types of watches I focus on in my collection, there are an amazing number of variations and nuances in their production. These types of things are enough to keep any collector interested. Some of my fields of collecting are largely uncharted territory(i.e. not much research has been done on them) so it's exciting to make new discoveries or add to the body of research that's known on the watches I'm collecting.
And, since this is a picture thread, here's a recent acquisition. This is a Waltham 1883 model "Crescent St" grade. This was the highest grade of watch made in standard production of the 1883 model. I collect 1883 model Crescent Sts extensively, primarily for many and varied(as well as beautiful) demaskeen patterns-the "iridescent" pattern made by lightly scratching a repeating design into the plates. 1883 model Crescent Sts were made with either 15 or 17 jewels, with the 17 jewel ones tending to be later(a result of market pressure in the early to mid 1890s). This one is interesting in that it has a non-magetic balance wheel and hairspring(notice the while alloy hairspring), and is so marked. This is the first 17 jewel non-magnetic Crescent St I have personally encountered.
Because one could argue that watches are man's jewelry not a tool for a specific need. As a timex user I think that Omega Speedmasters are so nice and I would like to have one.
I love the SMP. Curious to see how you and others justify spending a few thousands dollars on a watch. Is it sheer disposable income or is there more to it?
Also do you look at it as a percentage of your annual income? Say ou make 100 000$/year and spend 3-5000$ on a watch it comes down to 3-5% of annual income.
Last edited:
Every time I see that name I think of this (turn the volume down if you're watching this at work) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NwdcRIOXBc
I don't really put that much thought into it. If I like it, can afford it (no financing), and it doesn't deplete savings too badly, I get it. If I looked at it as a percentage of annual income, those 3 alone I pictured earlier that were all purchased in the last 10 months would probably make me cry. But I don't spend money on much anything else (no bad vices and watches are my only hobby...well only one that costs money), so I don't feel too badly. Plus my wife just recently picked up one, so now she understands the interest and appreciation of expensive watches. So that helps to keep the significant other off my back about it. Lol.
Fitting as that reference is where the Shinola brand came from. Execs were in a meeting and one jokingly said "You don't know s*** from Shinola." The joke about the old polish later turned into the modern watch brand's name.
I took the rare opportunity today to wear a wristwatch. Even though I'm mostly a pocket watch guy, I do wear wristwatches on occasion and this one is one of my favorites. It's a Longines movement in an American-made Keystone case signed Longines-Wittanauer in the back. As Wittnauer was, for a while, the American distributor for Longines, this was a very common arrangement at one time. This watch date to the early 1950s, and is complete with a period correct armhair-pinching Speidel band.
I'm also posting this partially because someone in the Apple watch forum told me it was "total bull" to claim that most wristwatches of the 30s, 40s, and 50s were some shape other than round . The trend toward rectangular or other shaped watches was so prominent during this time period that many watch movements from this era-including the one in this watch as well as the famed Hamilton 980/982/982MP series were actually rectangular.
I'm also posting this partially because someone in the Apple watch forum told me it was "total bull" to claim that most wristwatches of the 30s, 40s, and 50s were some shape other than round
. The trend toward rectangular or other shaped watches was so prominent during this time period that many watch movements from this era-including the one in this watch as well as the famed Hamilton 980/982/982MP series were actually rectangular.
