This is approximately my situation: I have expensive watches I don't want to sell, and the ones I don't care much about are not worth enough to justify the hassle of dealing with Ebay. But they are too nice just to throw away. I have given a few away, but most people don't want a mechanical watch even as a freebie.

Excellent write up. Thanks for taking the time to do that. I hadn't thought about it until prompted by your post, but the Seamaster actually predates the invention of what we now think of as a "dive watch." So when you look at the very early Omega Seamasters, they look much more like Seamaster Aquaterras than Seamaster Professional 300m's.

I have no research to back this up, but my perception is that people are becoming less interested in having things (watches, razors, frying pans, firearms, jewelry, cabin by the lake) previously owned by their parents or grandparents. This whole "family heirloom" idea seems to have lost its luster in the last 50 years. I'm sure there are counterexamples, but in general I think that's right. Otherwise there wouldn't be so many items available in estate sales.

The watch industry (particularly Patek) has pushed the heirloom idea on THIS generation of watch buyers to boost sales, and it's clever marketing. But I wouldn't count on the NEXT generation being that excited about the legacy except to the extent there is $$ value there.

Buy it for you or buy it for someone else as a gift. But don't pretend the purchase for yourself is justified because your son will cherish it in 50 years.

I often wear my high end watches -- including dress watches -- with casual/weekend attire. There's something fun and a little mischievous about it. A bit of fun. I wear whatever watch I want whenever I want. Timex Easy Reader to a formal event? No problem here.

Once I was at a ritzy garden party brunch in Alabama, and I heard the elderly hostess say to her friend, "I was going to use the pink tablecloths, but I was afraid they would clash with the baked carrots."

That ain't me, babe.

Catch them at a high-end charity event, a top restaurant, or the symphony. They'll have their good watches on.

For business it's a little tricky. Flexing and showing off is sort of out for most business contexts these days. It may come back, but for now guys want to project understated power. Like Bill Gates and his Casio Duro.

BTW, nice watch. It'd look great with a pair of old Levis and a T-shirt.

"This is a Vostok; it's probably my watch."

My first step when I bought my Vostok Zissou was to put it on an inexpensive black silicone dive strap and buy a red stocking cap. My second step was to ignore the fact that it runs slow by about 80 seconds per day. I have another Amphibia (Scuba-dude, no date) that is quite accurate. I guess it's tough to be consistent when your movements are created by a 300 lb. babushka wielding a ball peen hammer and a blow torch.

I own exactly 48 watches, because I have 4 watch boxes that hold 12 each.  In the abstract I think that's too much.  I can't wear them all easily in a reasonable amount of time.  I look at my collection and say, "I should get rid of some of these."  That's in the abstract.

But when I look at any given watch, I don't want to get rid of it.  At least not at the price I could net from it.  I bought all of these watches for a reason.  So I think, "I really like this watch; why would I get rid of it?"

But I'm committed to 48, so when a new watch comes in the front door, another gets dumped.  I'll stick with that as long as I have watches I feel comfortable dumping.