SOTC is… (no pics)

…a bit out of control. As I approach a year of (over?)active collecting, I’m overdue to step back and take stock.

Recent threads on trimming a collection or how to sort/organize watch boxes have me thinking. My collection stands at 44 (after gifting one to my daughter.) However, 18 of those were an assortment of old watches I typically wore for a few years and moved on from. But I didn’t toss any and got a basic tool kit and case back press to change batteries. An old Swatch, a handful of Skagens, and a Timex or two. Three quasi-Soviet-era Vostok Komandirskies (aka the “troika”) were my first mechanicals, all purchased by friends/family in Russia. (Those are keepers.)

For a time I played the AppleWatch game until it became clear it’s less a watch than an extension to an iPhone, almost like a second monitor on a laptop.

I got a quartz Vaer because I didn’t think the AppleWatch was rugged enough for surfing lessons. Two years later a Seiko GMT opened the floodgates. Micro brands, cheap digitals, a few vintage examples to learn watchmaking, followed. I learned much and wanted watches that seemed forever out of stock. Until they weren’t. And all became available, in limited quantities, at roughly the same time. And I even picked up a few really cheap Chinese examples to see how they compare. (Getting better every day, it seems.)

With no real luxury or grail goals, I have a really fun assortment spanning functions, styles, and (affordable) prices. But three 12-slot and two 4-slot watch boxes seems a bit much.

I think I’m attributing more sentiment to the old ones in the nostalgia boxes than most deserve. They’re of little resale value but I will investigate Third-Watch.com and Timex’s ReWound program.

As to how to organize my A- and B-boxes, I had the nicest in A, which sits out on a dresser. B (and C) live in a closet. Not hard to access, but not close at hand. But if I value the variety as much as I claim, I need to mix them up. I’ve decided to treat the A-box as if it were a department store window. Dress it up for the season and feature different merchandise from the stock room. I don’t want a rigid rotation schedule but need to make some things more available from time to time.

I’d say I’m content but know others will come along. But after a bit of a frenzied time where a pleasant diversion was beginning to stress me out, I think I’ve got things a bit more under control. My collection is fun again.

Thanks for reading, if you made it this far. 🙏🏻