Rank your watch identification skills.

I think my watch spotting skills are probably pretty much in line with yours. As the ravages of time have played havoc with my vision, a casual glance from a few meters away won't do the trick. Even in my younger days, when my vision was better than 20/20, I doubt that I could have been able to "scan the room" and tell what watches people were wearing unless they happened to be holding up signs announcing their watch of the day.

There are so many watches and the fact the average person gets gifted a department store watch, which are inevitable homages of something else, it can be very hard to tell from a distance or even at 5 feet away. I would like to think I am pretty decent at watchspotting, but just the other day I mistook a white gold bezel YMII for a Skydwellar from about ten feet away. It happens to the best of us. 

I imagine I'm a 3 or a 4, although much more in identifying brand than model. In the same way that I can just sort of tell a model and trim level of a car in traffic without being able to explain how, there are many watches that I just get a gut feeling of what they are. It's just brute force pattern recognition, I guess. 

On the other hand, there are online photos where I think I know what is being shown, and I'm not even close. Those that can prattle about various reference number minutiae are on the top half of the scale, and honestly I don't think I care to join them.

No, no, no...  the photo of the home you have in your post is @JaeBust's...  or @JourneID's...  I get confused.  There are only so many Lange's and Rolls and Mclaren's you can see before you start getting them all mixed up - that goes doubly so with 20 bedroom mansions.

No, my house looks like a regular old house.  Kinda like this...

I just happen to have also dug a giant underground swimming pool for these purposes...

With regard to the primary question, here's how I think my brain does the whole watch taxonomy thing:

1. Apple Watch or not Apple Watch?
2. If not Apple Watch, what type of watch?  Diver, pilot, field, digital, dress, etc., etc.
3. From there, big brands are typically easily recognizable from 10 feet away

• Even though every dive watch looks like a Rolex, you can tell the real deal, because Rolex owners always cover their watches in dessert for Instagram

• Pre-Georges Kern Breitling watches are indistinguishable from Invicta for me, because they're all 65mm diameter.  Post-George Kerns Breitling look pretty unique and can be easily spotted because all Breitling owners come straight off the sets of Wes Anderson films...

• Omega you can always see from a mile away, because you're saying to yourself, "Why is that frumpy Asian wearing a tux here at Popeye's Chicken?  Oh!  He's got a SMP300 on his wrist!"

• Vostok wearers also come with easily identifiable markers...

• Grand Seiko owners...

There you go!  You'll never have trouble with watch identification ever again!

My watch identification powers from a distance of greater than 3 feet? 

I identified a citizen Pcat today!! Had a meeting and recognized the watch!! so I rate mysef about .000000009 

See, I wish I'd known this sooner.  You identify the wearer, not the watch.  You should change your name to HotandSmartWatchChick69.

One time I was helping my friend cater a wedding, and I asked a guy if he was wearing a Sea Dweller. He said "idk, wife bought for me". Wife looked at me and said in a snooty tone "Submariner... rOwleKs". Since then, I've pretty much stopped asking people about their watches lmao.

Thanks for this post, I'm getting some valuable tips.  After identifying the basic type of watch, identify the wearer, that will tell you a lot.  Second, where are you?  If you're in fancy town, that's a Rolex, if you're on the wrong side of the tracks it's an Invicta.

This should take my watch ID game from a -2 to at least a +3.

Yeah I too can't tell the difference between anything unless I'm close... like watch in my face close. 

Even watching TV shows, my wife is always like "what's HE wearing?"

I’m not even sure I could tell type of watch. I still sometimes get pilots and Field mixed up. 🤷‍♂️

I think I have a 50% accuracy rating. That said, I'll either be able to ID your watch perfectly, or I'll think your Breguet is a Diesel watch. Junghans be mistaken for a G-shock. Not a lot in between. 

Right!? 

I feel like my ID abilities are being hyped up beyond what they actually are.😆

I'd rate myself a solid 6 of 10.  I am very good with major brands, okay with very unique independents, and mostly hopeless with microbrands. I am also generally clueless as to references though with more common watches I can generally determine era.  If you ask me to I'd a pilot's watch or a field watch, I might scream.

My brain loves the little guessing game of watch spotting and I actually generally start with the bracelet clasps because it narrows it down so much.  Obviously non comprehensive but....

Rolex clasps have the little crown either on the fliplock or the clasp body.

Omega clasps literally say Omega unless they're older and then it's the Omega symbol.

Tudors have the little shield on the fliplocks.

JLC has the J and the backwards J.

Seiko always says Seiko. Rado always says Rado.  IWC always says IWC.

GS has the raised GS on a clasps that are always too small for the watch.

Glashutte has the G and the backwards G.

Cartier hates people who like bracelets and always has a butterfly clasp.

Once you get down to the brand, you can start narrowing.  Like once I figure out it's an Omega, you can rule out tons of watches.

If it has a helium escape valve, then it's either a Seamaster 300 or a Planet Ocean.  If it has arabics, it's a planet ocean.  If the bezel looks dull, it's one of the pre ceramic ones.

A lot of Rolex references can be boiled down to three questions.

"What color is it?"

"Can you turn the bezel?"

"Is there a cyclops?"

I'm not going to pretend that I'm flawless at it but my brain enjoys the process of elimination.

You've been snooping around my FB page again!

I have to say, I'm pretty good at it.  I mean I'm not going to know everything but I know a lot.  My kids are always testing me.

Is that your 190? 

Most of the people I meet during the day don't even bother with wearing a watch.

Call outs on the Vostok and Grand Seiko owners were both utterly inspired big man 😅👍🏻💡✅

first off, great topic/conversation starter. I'd say I'm a solid 7 out of 10 in the wild and 8.5 at dedicated watch events. Here are some instances of each that I vividly remember:

In the wild:

• in line at Costco, I saw a man wearing a Rolex DJ fluted jubilee blue dial with diamond indices
• in the k-drama my mom was watching, there was a Tag Heuer Aquaracer
• in a j-drama, the protagonist was wearing a Longines dolce vita on bracelet
• in a cooking show, the chef was wearing a Cartier panthere
• at Lemonade, a tall guy was wearing a time only Panerai
• at the wine section of Costco, a man was wearing a Rolex James Cameron Deep Sea
• also spotted JC Deep sea in line at Zara
• at h-mart, I spotted a guy wearing the new Seiko SSK003 batman/blueberry GMT. Saw the jubilee bracelet and black blue bezel

At watch events:

• saw the new Tudor Pelagos 39 yesterday at the BlogtoWatch/Ebay event
  • also spotted several Cartier's (Tank Francaise, new Santos with blue bezel and dial), an Omega Speedmaster Automatic Triple Date
• Ming is pretty easily identifyable
• At an FP Journe event, some guy was scrolling through pics of his watch collection and there are some wild DeBethune pieces I recognized (mainly from Tim Mosso's videos)

Yeah… cracking thread. And brilliant way to set it up @Deeperblue 👏🏼

I enjoy starting conversations in the wild, as I think it would always make my day if someone asked / complimented me on what I was wearing, so f*** it… I’ll go first. 

In order to start a convo, I find myself practicing spotting all the time. I think as enthusiasts its a reasonable expectation to have on ourselves to be able to clock the icons and/or brands at 10ft, 2-3meters. I have most luck when travelling, on trains or tubes, plus when out at restaurants. 

For instance, when a guy sits down at the table next to us and he’s wearing a Tag Monaco, it’s a hulking great blue stripey square on his wrist… how can I not notice that? 

Similarly a guy walked past us wearing a panerai yesterday. No idea of the reference, but the design cues (size, case shape, numerals, torch like lume even in day time!!) we’re unmistakeable. So he got a compliment and we had a chat. 

Speedies, SkyDwellers, Subbie/Seadwellers, Reversos, Daytonas, SeaMasters again are all pretty recognisable, particularly from the bracelets… You know a (imo-fugly 😬🤐) Seamaster bracelet from a mile off. Ps. Fugly totally subjectively but still love and appreciate them for all that they are. 

Beyond that I find myself seeing pieces that are semi-mass market and I’ve admired on here or on YT or have tried in in stores… mostly Seikos, Breitlings, Longines, Oris Etc. 

Not that this is a daily thing - far from it… maybe two or three times a month when I’m in a big city /travelling is when I get to turn on the w-adar (🤣, too much?!) and generally clock a few interesting pieces To try and have a friendly interaction with someone. 

It’s like Swiss Tony might say … “Spottinng fine timepieces is like making love to a beautiful woman. It begins awkwardly, improves over time and ends up with drool and mess everywhere”… or sthg like that 

😉😃😂👍🏻

my skill is just the same as you lol. i got poor visibility in the wild, in order to spot a watch from a distance i need to wear my glasses. but there are some place when i can spot a watch right which is the bar or at the airplane 😂

The only watch I can recognize on sight are the ones that are really recognizable. Like those Rado Diastars (is Rado still making them or are the things breeding in Rado's warehouses?)

Yeah I’m jealous of his eyesight I could barley read the date or sometimes the time on my own watch …😣

I'm lucky to be able to tell what's on my own wrist never mind anyone else's.

FINALLY SOMEBODY WHO AGREES THE OMEGA SEAMASTER BRACELETS ARE FUGLY!! I feel like we’re the only ones who have this opinion. Or perhaps everybody else is too polite to say it.

Honestly after reading this thread I think I’m a freak of nature because I almost never see a watch that I cannot identify. After looking at tons of watches on the internet all day every day, it comes naturally to me. You start to notice the small details that make each piece unique.

It’s like after seeing your friends or family so many times, you can easily identify them in a crowd of people even from behind. Watches all look the same like people all look the same. They don’t. :)

I need to stop spending so much time looking at watches online…

also, forgot to add, if there are any celebrity/athlete watch spottings I'm interested in, I always go to gettyimages to find the hi-res pics and then go from there. Usually they stick to the mainstream stuff. Very rarely will I see an independent or micro on those wrists.

Some notable watches I've picked up on

• AP made a custom royal oak offshore chrono for Liverpool after they won the premier league. It has a red dial with black subdials and many players and Klopp can be seen wearing it either on the black or red rubber strap
• Ryder Cup 2021 had a lot of nice pics of watches during the interviews/trophy celebration with the US team. I know some golfers already had watch sponsors like Collin Morikawa with Omega. Still a fun exercise
• Someone on r/watches or discord was asking about the watch of an NFL draftee and ends up he was wearing a quartz Tissot chronograph

Omega design team: “Yeah, it needs to be distincitve… so let’s have no taper at all, what looks like nineteen links across the width, add a clasp you could fend off an attacker with and shape the whole thing so it has the camber of a small hill…“

The market: “Yeaaahhhh… Bond tho! 🤤🤤”

On scale from 1-10, I'd rate myself a 6.5. If I'm out I'm wearing my glasses and can usually make out brand and model most of the time. However, I don't memorize reference numbers, calibres, etc. I wish I had total recall as it would be a great party trick.