How many is too many?

I hear you loud and clear with the too many - I don’t have a ridiculous amount - but i have a hard time unloading the cheepies (which are still cool imo) but they accumulate fast . And guess what one on the way too…

Yeah I reached this epiphany of collecting for various reasons and realised I couldn't enjoy them all. Now I'm only willing to spend money on things that are ultra desirable, rather than just interesting.

Time for an intervention! get a Casio! once you get one in black you will never go back. You must need a wall of those spinny windup things and a watchmaker on speed dial.

They help keep your sanity and their just so cool. I've stalled at 35 I think?

I think that variety is great. Different looks for different occasions, outfits, events. I'm definitely going down that collecting path. 

What I dont get (and try to avoid) is 3 or more watches that look very similar. Like I see some collections posted and 6 of the 8 watches in the box look VERY similar. Same style, face, color scheme, etc. I dont get that. But thats just me.

I realize that many watches and spectrum of looks to match what I'm wearing/doing means less wrist time for each  one, but I also see it as less wear on each  watch, and hopefully a longer mint look for them. That's my take on it.

You cannot be the world archive of every watch ever made, so what do you want your collection to be? In what way is the new watch you contemplate buying really adding to the collection? By forcing yourself to answer that question you might be able to slow down the madness.

Cannot say that has worked for me yet, as I bought five watches last week, but at least these were adding things I didn't have before: a world timer, a field watch with strong lume, an annual calendar watch, a super-thin quartz, a watch with a micro-rotor movement. The gaps I find desirable to fill are now getting smaller: a watch with an alarm complication would be nice, perhaps a nice sector dial watch. Going forward, some watch types could perhaps do with an upgrade.

That way, you can keep the hobby going without going bonkers.

It is an odd point where you get to one a day for a month or one a week for the year. I’ve been enjoying the Cyma I picked up the other day quite a lot, and I was really into the Cooper I grabbed earlier this year, a watch can grab you at any point and sometimes you just dont know why and it makes this really unpredictable. I’m also rediscovering watches within my collection again, like the Majex which got a new strap and is back on rotation, so I’m not sure if I can impart any wisdom. I think I will be cutting the collection quite dramatically, there are things that are now really falling by the wayside, and it’s hard to see how I can justify their presence. 
oh, and the answer is 6. I ran out of fingers on one hand whilst typing this so I will just say 6 and assume that everyone will agree with that.

If this is you choosing your watch of the day you know you have too many.

I think I could easily be you one day, but I do try hard to be strict with myself. I tell myself that it's ok to admire/respect/desire a watch and not need to own it. Sometimes this self talk works.... other times not so much. There are some serious flippers out there that I have come across on other forums, and threads where you can post pictures of the watch you currently desire so others can roast it and put you off buying them (so helping you control the spending). There can certainly be an addictive element to it all, with the anticipation mostly I think.

I have a strong and real fear that I might head down this path as well. So far been toeing the line. 

As many as your wrist can handle 😉

Ah - not quite elbow deep. You wait till you try and get them round your belly, that’s where the true collectors are.

It was the addictive side that prompted the post. I had just bought a watch that I liked, but didn't love, and certainly didn't need. I was "watch sick" (not as serious as "dope sick"). I deleted all the things that I was watching in my eBay queue. Realizing that I had many more pictures of watches than my children on my phone I deleted those as well.

Usually waiting a couple of weeks to pull the trigger keeps me from buying on impulse. So, no pilot watches, blue dials, field watches that I only think that I need, I can wait. The problem is the inexpensive curiosities that can be had for a simple bid. That Voumard cost less than I normally spend on lunch, but it looks like any number of other things that I already own.  It is unique, but only in ways that I and few others know and can possibly care about.

Two further thoughts: 1) as a overgeneralized proposition, I receive more insightful comments from the other side of the Atlantic than I do from over here. It is always worth waiting to hear what you have to say when you wake up; 2) loud punk music in short doses resets the brain. British punk music was written by anarchists. American punk music was written by poets. So, when you need a reset find some Richard Hell and the Voidoids and let them fix your brain.

It is a good idea to wind all your watches once a week if you are keeping them in a safe. I rotate my watch every Monday, and I wind all the watches in my collection at the same time. This makes sure the oils are in the right place, and you don't damage your watches when you wear them weeks/months apart. I don't get to repeat a watch for couple of months, so by winding them once a week I hope to keep them healthy. 

What attracts me are the dials, and the finish, the craftsmanship. Collecting is a disease, and the disease is cured only when the patient dies. 

I have about half as many as the OP, and somewhere around ten or a dozen I started realizing it was excessive. I'm not an impulse buyer, and I'm pretty satiated, but these family vintage watches keep appearing and I feel obligated to revive them, plus they're great. I have a couple watches that I'm just waiting to give away.

The advice with thrift shopping was to ask yourself when and where you would wear the item. It's fine to have a couple once-a-year seasonal items, but you don't want redundancy or to be overwhelmed in impractical items that never see the light of day. Limit the novelty items.

Honestly, rotation is kind of a chore, and it reveals less preferred watches. That's the tipping point, where you realize that less favored items are being worn solely out of guilt or duty. Separating joy of ownership and joy of use becomes an issue here.  

i would ask same question to @chronotriggered how many is too many? 😂

You are describing a very familiar experience.

There are many answers to this - so apologies if this turns into whimsy or nonsense about half way through.

You have one wrist so the answer should technically be one. It’s not likely, because there is no ultimate watch. I’m not gardening in a Rolex, and I’m not wearing a Duro to a wedding / awards do.

I like the idea of 3 watch collections. I like the idea of 5 watch collections. But, it’s like most things, sometimes you like to play around. I’m at the stage where I have more than 5 watches that were straight up gifts, so there goes that idea.

The collecting is the fun part. I can count on one hand when I have said “Today I am going to buy one of those, and that is what I am buying today”. 95% of my bought watches were found by chance - as in I walk by a pawnbrokers, a jewellers, an antique stall, trawling through eBay, and something catches my eye and then it’s mine. Perhaps that’s worse than having a set goal or grail, perhaps the “Magpie method” ((c) chronotriggered) is the worst way to collect watches, but its how I roll. You probably learn more and make more mistakes, but then I pass that wisdom on.

When you get something incredibly special, like my VC, the game changes as well. I got mine more or less as I got into my 30s; completely unplanned but a lightning bolt moment. I had hit a pinnacle, so where next? That’s when the randomness kicks in, just to make it even more interesting. Ugly 90s Tags, bargain basement Swiss jobbies, Benrus, Gruen, Avia, Vertex, Cyma, Casio - I find a thing I want and just go to town in a short period of time. It’s bad, but I don’t need to go for the modern Black Bay, or the latest Omega, I’ve scratched those itches with them or similar. 

As destructive as this sounds, I think the magic number is when you pass a point that you think it should be. I have over 60 watches, and I am at the point where I need to consider (a) do I really need that one, (b) will I wear it after the initial honeymoon period, and (c) if it broke tomorrow what would I do with it. Upon reflection I could cut it to around 20, being brutal, and 30 being really soft. That’s probably still too many really for most people, and I know that once I do that, I’m going to fill it up again, probably with ATP issued Cyma, Vertex, Timor, and definitely 1960s Buren and Gruen.

TLDR; the answer is 6. I ran out of fingers again.

You mentioned that it's not about the money you spend on the watches, so is it that they don't feel special any more? Do you get pleasure out of any part of the hobby at the moment? 

I wouldn't feel guilty over buying watches that at one time you were happy to own but now have lost their appeal, because the 'catch and release' method is a cool way of enjoying watches to me. You find an interesting watch, enjoy owning it for as long as you feel is right and then release it back to the enthusiast community by selling it on to another collector. Whatever the difference between price paid and price sold (plus maintenance I imagine for vintage) is the cost of that owning pleasure. 

Maybe this epiphany of "wow, I have a lot of watches, what do I even need all these for?" is just what you needed to start thinking about moving some of the pieces on to continue their lives with a new owner and giving you a bit of breathing space to enjoy collecting again?

I'm pretty sure the whole world has heard of Marie Kondo and her methods for decluttering? One method is to hold an object in your hand and ask yourself if it 'sparks joy' within you. If yes, then it's a keeper, if not, then it's time it moves on. Maybe it could be something to try while listening to Richard?

If the thought of selling things on eBay sounds like a stress you can't be bothered with then you could always donate the watches to a charity.

I hope you find your joy again because your knowledge and experience is incredibly valuable to watch communities like this one and it would be a shame if you had lost all love for it. ❤️

Thank you for your comment.  At the risk of oversharing let me elaborate a bit. For about forty years, since I was a teenager, I have been an avid gardener. From the first camellia until the heat drives me indoors in mid-June I buy plants, plant seeds, take cuttings, and read books about plants and horticulture.  I know more about perennials then I do about watches, by far. In fact, I don't call myself a gardener, but rather, a "plant collector".  I like tropical plants growing in climes where they shouldn't. I like old garden roses and things that you can't find at your garden center.

It is now April.  I should be in the full force of my plant addiction.  I should be sneaking perennials into the garage so that my wife doesn't see them.  But this year I have bought nothing but watches.  Collecting watches has displaced my other eccentric habits. 

No hobby should displace something that you hold dear, even if it is just another hobby.  If I am spending too much time scrolling through eBay or Chrono24 I am displacing something else. The balance is off.  I must self-correct.

I was angry at myself for buying a perfectly useless watch because I could, not because I should. Inside this bubble this is normal behavior (or behaviour to you Old World types). We should all get out of the bubbles of our own creation sometimes.

"If one oversteps the bounds of moderation, the greatest pleasures cease to please."

-Epictetus

I was at the point that it took me a solid three months to get through one rotation.  It got to be a chore and I found myself wearing watches that I really didn’t want to be wearing on a given day.

I have cut down from over 100 vintage pieces to 8.  My modern collection is around 14 but I’d like to keep that down to my 12 slot box.

I feel better about my collection now.  I see people on different forums wearing my old watches and enjoying them.  I get to remember the details, feel and history of each piece even as I’m seeing someone else wearing and enjoying it.

I let go of a lot of great pieces early including some of my absolute favourites.  That was to break the emotional connection and allow the rest to leave without regret. Had I started selling off the cheaper or less desirable pieces first, I would have held onto more pieces for intangible reasons.

I’m in a good place now.  One or two 2 for 1 trades and my modern collection is back to size and improved in quality. 

I'm like the OP in so many ways but different in one crucial way - like a cat that just ate the family budgie - I regret nothing.

I have approximately (I don't need to do a count) 50 watches - my 'list' is about another 20 or so.  Adding a few to the list occasionally, culling a few from the list occasionally and buying a couple of watches a year I'll probably be slowly adding to my collection until I die in a few more decades (fingers crossed) and my girls get to fight over it - am I am totally at ease with that.  I am flummoxed at the idea others feel some sort of angst at the size of their collection - I can intellectually understand you do but I cant share the feeling.

Two key things inform this view.

None of my watches are alternatives/substitutes/stepping stones - a watch might cost $100 or $10000 but if I have a watch its because I wanted that watch.

I dont have one wrist - I have an infinite number of wrists.  Just as you can never swim in the same river twice, from one moment to the next I change, therefore my wrist changes therefore I have infinite wrists.

Well that's a coincidence! Tropical gardening is my bag also.

This is a picture of mine from last year:

The weather here in the UK is still too cold to be putting out the tenders, but once it warms up after Easter I think I will be focusing more on my plants than my watches again. Watches are a nice winter hobby 👍

Interesting turn this took with the interest of gardening, you and Deeperblue. I’m in as well. Maybe more landscaping with bushes and trees. Enjoyable hobby.

When it comes to accumulating watches I must say Watchcrunch has helped a lot. Since joining I have limited my use of Chrono24 drastically. I enjoy more to take part in this community and follow other enthusiasts watch journeys. I find myself enjoying the watches I actually own a lot more. I can say I stopped windowshopping in search of ”the next one”.

I have short of 30 watches. Too many to give each the wristtime they deserve but I can still enjoy them as a jewelery (or toys). At this level I now really take my time to evaluate my next purchase. I’m sure I will pass 30 watches but I will ”struggle against” it to prolong the timeline before it happens. I also started to handover watches to my children and also sold one. Not many have left but it help to keep the numbers down. My goal is one watch per year.

But now I have to end this. I’m down to the watchmaker to pick up another vintage👍

Find a friendly watch dealer…. see if you can trade several, lower value watches for one higher value watch. 
They get stock for their shop, you get less watches. I do it every now and then. 

5 or 6 is right for me.  I went with 2 for a solid couple of years, but a few more have shown up lately.

I am downright jealous of tree ferns. I could grow them in Louisiana, but not here in South Carolina. Our climate is both too hot and too cold (just barely, a couple of nights a year). We also can't grow Gunnera, both too wet and too dry. Every part of North America has extremes that you never see, except maybe in Scotland. Where I live would be nothing but sabal palms and long needle pines if Nature had her way.

My plant recommendation above is odontonema strictum (firespike). It is tender, from South America. It will reliably grow back from its roots (with some protection) and get to about 6ft. tall in a season. It takes a good deal of shade and will bloom in shade. It is a late summer bloomer that butterflies and hummingbirds love. That is a picture from my garden a season or two ago, it always winds up looking like that.  There is nothing easier to propagate:  just place a cutting in a glass of water.

My watch recommendation is a vintage Raketa from Ukraine. Don't overspend.  Excellent examples can be had for very little and they are tough.

No top number for me. I’ve got 10 quality automatics, 10 quality quartz, and ~20 keepsakes. Maybe not too bad after 30+ years of being a watch guy.  I’m sure there’s more to come. I like to wear my watches routinely. I now usually wear 2 a day, one for work, one for evening chores. So that’s my problem, getting too many to wear. Definitely a first world problem there. 

I know that feeling, I have done this myself. My watch collecting itch is still rather new, and I have round about 15 watches - including quite a few that do not really count (daily beaters before I was collecting). But I had other collecting hobbies that now take a backseat: dvds, lobby cards, magazines. My mag collection is still going, but filling the remaining gaps has become very hard, as my missing grails are as rare as hens teeth (never mind that I have run out of space). So, I curate that collection, but the excitement of adding something new just isn't there any more.

With my watch collection that excitement is still there, but I feel there is an end in sight, at around 30-35 watches (not including the beaters), getting there perhaps at the end of 2025. My road map would include, going forward, about 5-10 Chinese watches with interesting features, perhaps 3-6 vintage watches that are a little out there, a similar number of modern mid-range watches, and perhaps 3-4 watches north of £1000.

I am not able to give you a straight answer. 

Simply do what makes you happy, and do not put yourself in a hard spot because of watch collecting.