Kickstarter buying advice

I've only ever supported 1 kickstarter campaign, for the Phantasos Triclops.

They took my money.  I have no idea when / if I will get a watch.  

But, I read about the project on Time & Tide and ABlogtoWatch, and I figure that they know what they're doing, right?  I mean, they must have done some due diligence, right?

...

Oh, god, I'm never going to see my money or my watch, am I?

Damn...that's rough.  No recourse either...  Now I'm wondering if I'm underestimating the financial risks.  Crap.

Ha!  Nah, I was totally joking around.  The Phantasos Kickstarter thing cost $650?  Something like that.  Someone put it very presciently on this forum:  "If you can't afford to lose your toys, you can't afford the toys."  If they end up stealing my money, it's okay.  It's an amount I can afford to lose.  And I guess that's how you gotta look at these Kickstarter campaigns, right?  Hell, it's gotta be how you look at watches, right?

My general rule for all kickstarters (not just watches) is only to support ones where the person/company has already made a similar product before.  Providing the kickstarter isn't promising miracles, they probably aren't out to scam you, but may not understand what it takes to bring a new product to fruition.

I did break the rule for one watch (still waiting for it, but it's only a little late at this point), because they had sent a prototype to a few different reviewers so I thought I'd risk it.

My one Kickstarter experience with a watch didn't turn out so well. It has been almost a year since I ordered my Spaghetti Scameti, and I am still waiting for it. 🤣🤣🤣

Seriously, I have not supported a watch myself, but one of my friends did, one of the watches Axios released on Kickstarter. I have funded other projects, with mixed results. Still waiting for one board game i funded a year ago. I would say don't spend any money on Kickstarter that you can't afford to lose. Not spend, outright lose. 😂

I tend to view a lot of these kickstarters with distrust. If a brand has already had a successful couple of campaigns then you can feel a bit safer that you will get something at the end, but it is still a risk. I have been burnt on software ones, so the same red flags would apply: no track record, no real demo, stock images, same old hyperbole…

I nearly went for the Axios Pathfinder kickstarter, I think it was their second or third campaign.

Nope. Not for me. If I wish to gamble with my money, I will head to a casino where I know my odds clearly. 

This is fine advice.  Most kickstarter watches are garbage--this is why they're trying to raise capital with what amounts to prepayments to finance what they're trying to produce.  No, thanks.  You want me to buy your watches, put up your own damned money.

Yep, why not gamble in a boozy, glamorous, seedy, exciting environment?  Have a great night out, it might cost you a bit, you might come out ahead.  That's all part of the excitement.  Why tie up your disposable income waiting for a Chinese watch that may or may not ever be made?  Doesn't make any sense to me.

Really not sure about the whole Kickstarter model at all. Seems sketchy to say the least. And the app is not good, so doesn't install confidence in the stuff they are trying to Start.

I backed one project a Watch brand called Lufbury who were going to build a trench watch back in 2019.

I pledged money but the guy doing the project cancelled it before it got to production and emailed me to say thanks but there were problems he hadn't foreseen and returned the money he had taken. Nothing happened after this.

Not a big fan of the website tbh.