Beginning my watch collecting journey
Hi, all WatchCrunch people. I'll try to keep this short but would like to summarize how I got here.
I have always been .. I think fascinated is the right word.. with watches and clocks. And I suppose horology in general. Never really had the means to collect. Now into my 50's, I have found the bug resurfacing.
I lost my father about six years ago and have two of his watches put away. A couple months ago I was talking with my mother (she's 88) when she said her watch needed a battery. It's kind of a match to one dad wore for years. Decades. I took hers and pulled his out of a box and took them both to a watch place. Nothing fancy but means something to me. Seiko quartz watches. Had new batteries installed, and while hers was in good condition, dad's was really rough. The guy asked if I was planning to wear it. I thought about it and decided I will. So a new band and a new crystal set me back probably more than the watch is worth, but it looks beautiful!
My wife had given me an engraved Fossil for my birthday last year, and I had it put up for dress-up dinners and the like. Also nothing expensive (I'm not wealthy) but still really cool. It's a Fossil.
My father's other watch looks brand new. A Rolex homage piece known as an Invicta Diver. I've always loved that watch! The automatic winding was always interesting to me.
The bug rediscovered, I found myself reading and learning and loving watches in earnest. I started following subreddits and researching great budget collection starters and quality dailies. Hinted with the wife for father's day (I'm a step dad but they celebrate it as if I'm a dad!) and.. received nada. WTH?! I asked, she said she had no idea what to get me. I said we were just emailing and texting about all these watches for weeks! Next thing, she sends me $100 and says "Toward whatever watch you like. Happy Father's Day!" Ok, cool! Thanks, honey! So I bought myself a new Seiko 5 Sports field watch (SRPG35). I love the beige on black and beige NATO strap. Purchased a black NATO, a beige leather NATO, and a black leather standard with quick release pins. The thing is fully convertible and too much fun! Wife says I'm enjoying this too much as I lay out my clothes for the next day at work, color coordinating my watch and my boxers! Haha! I say I'm enjoying it just exactly the right amount!
Ok, getting long. Sorry, and thanks for reading! - To wrap up, I was showing off the new watch and dad's refurbished Seiko Quartz to mom when she pulls a couple old watches out of a jewelry box and asks if I wat them. YES, please! So I have now found myself in possession of her father's watch, which I learned yesterday is a 1938 Hamilton Reagan (it works!), and another tiny woman's watch my dad gave her in 1959. I haven't identified it yet beyond it being a Longines.
All of these watches, along with a three others my wife owns, now reside in a nice Rothwell 12 Slot Leather Watch Box on the dresser. And I just love it!
So in the course of about 2 months I went from having a couple watches to what can honestly be described as a decent (albeit small) collection of about 9 watches. And so my journey has begun.. and today I have found myself here, to share with to learn from you all.
Thanks for reading. -Scoop
Always had an interest in watches and clocks but never any means to really collect. Recently truly began my collecting journey, and as such am also beginning my education into the subjects of horology...
Welcome to the Crunch, it’s a friendly lot here, look forward to seeing your watches 👍
Wow, are you in trouble. You’re gonna need more watches, and probably a second pair of boxers (trust a fellow Georgia native, it’s a game changer!).
Glad to have you here. Welcome to the Crunch!
Wow, are you in trouble. You’re gonna need more watches, and probably a second pair of boxers (trust a fellow Georgia native, it’s a game changer!).
Glad to have you here. Welcome to the Crunch!
I know I wrote a long intro but I'm pretty sure I said I'm not wealthy. All this talk about a second set of boxers is crazy talk. They have an inside and an outside for a reason. - Thanks for the welcome, and the real out loud laugh!
What a nice post. I love watches but equally I like the story behind them just as much. You have a good collection going there. Welcome to WC.
I know I wrote a long intro but I'm pretty sure I said I'm not wealthy. All this talk about a second set of boxers is crazy talk. They have an inside and an outside for a reason. - Thanks for the welcome, and the real out loud laugh!
And a backward and forward, as I always joke to my wife (in the hope that, one day, she’ll find it funny).
Love your story, I am not going to debate the quality of your bank account because the true enthusiast is not constricted by dollars. You sound like a man who is hooked. After society started to return back to some sense of normal, I visited a weekly watch, antique market here in my hometown, ran into a few dealers, sellers that I know vaguely from past years. There was an elderly Asian gent who was interested only in the junkers, watches tossed into cardboard boxes that even collectors would not bother with. I recognized him as one of the staff watchmakers in a shop that did warranty work for several watch brands including Patek. He must be pushing 90 but still enjoys servicing some worthless no name watch for his own deeply personal reasons.
Welcome. Thanks for sharing your watches and story. Hang out for a while this is a good place to be.
Love your story, I am not going to debate the quality of your bank account because the true enthusiast is not constricted by dollars. You sound like a man who is hooked. After society started to return back to some sense of normal, I visited a weekly watch, antique market here in my hometown, ran into a few dealers, sellers that I know vaguely from past years. There was an elderly Asian gent who was interested only in the junkers, watches tossed into cardboard boxes that even collectors would not bother with. I recognized him as one of the staff watchmakers in a shop that did warranty work for several watch brands including Patek. He must be pushing 90 but still enjoys servicing some worthless no name watch for his own deeply personal reasons.
I was looking at this video of a watchmaker (imagine that) a while back. And he held up a (Waltham?) watch that was really rough. Then he said, "It looks really bad now, but Don't worry, although it's been neglected, it will be lovingly restored." I thought that was beautifully stated. And by the end of the video, the watch was indeed beautifully restored.
I was looking at this video of a watchmaker (imagine that) a while back. And he held up a (Waltham?) watch that was really rough. Then he said, "It looks really bad now, but Don't worry, although it's been neglected, it will be lovingly restored." I thought that was beautifully stated. And by the end of the video, the watch was indeed beautifully restored.
I saw quite a few Waltham watches when I collected vintage, Swiss movements, American cases. Simple timepieces but also beautiful. I spent a lot of time visiting a seller who was not a trained watchmaker but self taught taught me tricks of the trade when he wasn’t trying to cheat me.
Hello Scoop from Georgia. Thank you for your story. I relate to it quite a bit. I've loved watches all my life, I'm guessing because a) it's inborn and b) I grew up in the 1960s and watches were as ubiquitous as cell phones are today. I had watches as a child, then I had a motley collection of 4 (Armitron, Gitano, Fossil, and TAG Heuer) in the 90s. When the children came, I got a job (hospital clean room) where I was forbidden to wear a watch. Fast forward 20 years and I am retired, have a little $$$ to spend, and my daughters are grown, although still local, and a dinner out with them is a great place to wear a dress watch. Out of 31 watches, my most expensive one ($180) is a cousin to your watch, which looks absolutely great btw. I have the orange Seiko SRPD59.
I got a huge kick out of where you said you had a small collection of 9. Some would consider that complete overkill. But here's the TOP SECRET thing about watch collecting. Don't worry, nobody but you will see this. Nobody ever reads my stuff. You ready? The top secret is that there are no rules, but we like to pretend that there are. That way, we all have at least a semi-great time endlessly discussing arcane horological minutiae that nobody else cares about.
I'll bet your restored Seiko is a stunner. I still have my Christmas '86 watch that Dad got for me. I occupy the $200 and under territory. There's great fun here, as long as we show financial common sense. If we are needing something crazy expensive, somebody on the site will be glad to show us theirs and we might get an interesting story too.
I don't suppose at some point you could post your whole watch box with yours and your wife's watches in it? That would be good. Again, thanks.
I saw quite a few Waltham watches when I collected vintage, Swiss movements, American cases. Simple timepieces but also beautiful. I spent a lot of time visiting a seller who was not a trained watchmaker but self taught taught me tricks of the trade when he wasn’t trying to cheat me.
You and he had an . . . interesting relationship, I'd say. I hope he came out on the short end and you didn't get cheated by him.
If I can find that video again, I'll post its name on WC. It's about an hour but I think a lot of us would like to see it.
I criticize the internet a lot, and it does seem like everything's amazing and nobody's happy, but I can think of any subject under the sun and instantly find ten documentaries about it on my $19.95 streaming box. But I don't remember the title of that particular video. I still think it was a Waltham he was working on.
Welcome to watch crunch
Welcome to the crunch! Lots of temptation around here though. 🤣
Welcome! That Hamilton of yours is stunning; I'm jealous!
Hello Scoop from Georgia. Thank you for your story. I relate to it quite a bit. I've loved watches all my life, I'm guessing because a) it's inborn and b) I grew up in the 1960s and watches were as ubiquitous as cell phones are today. I had watches as a child, then I had a motley collection of 4 (Armitron, Gitano, Fossil, and TAG Heuer) in the 90s. When the children came, I got a job (hospital clean room) where I was forbidden to wear a watch. Fast forward 20 years and I am retired, have a little $$$ to spend, and my daughters are grown, although still local, and a dinner out with them is a great place to wear a dress watch. Out of 31 watches, my most expensive one ($180) is a cousin to your watch, which looks absolutely great btw. I have the orange Seiko SRPD59.
I got a huge kick out of where you said you had a small collection of 9. Some would consider that complete overkill. But here's the TOP SECRET thing about watch collecting. Don't worry, nobody but you will see this. Nobody ever reads my stuff. You ready? The top secret is that there are no rules, but we like to pretend that there are. That way, we all have at least a semi-great time endlessly discussing arcane horological minutiae that nobody else cares about.
I'll bet your restored Seiko is a stunner. I still have my Christmas '86 watch that Dad got for me. I occupy the $200 and under territory. There's great fun here, as long as we show financial common sense. If we are needing something crazy expensive, somebody on the site will be glad to show us theirs and we might get an interesting story too.
I don't suppose at some point you could post your whole watch box with yours and your wife's watches in it? That would be good. Again, thanks.
Hi, Sam. Thank you, too, for sharing. I'm very much enjoying others' stories as well.
I find it interesting, and I don't know whether inspiring or deflating, to hear your collection and niche fall into the sub-$200 range. That price point makes my wallet happy! The amazing watches I see that cost in some cases SO much more and that I yearn to own makes me a little sad. Kind of like my life long love for cars.. the vast majority of which I could never hope to own or drive or even see irl. So, obviously there's a price line for my "new" addiction over which I shall live vicariously through others who are kind enough to share here and elsewhere. I suspect my line will be more than $200.. but not much more. Thank you!
As for a picture or three of the watch box and my budding collection, yes. Of course! I'm honored and humbled to be asked. Thank you! .. Now to figure out where exactly to do so here on the site..
Well, there we go! Right here in the reply! Enjoy!
It is my pleasure to present for any and all who are interested, my collection as it sits today:
Thank you for putting this up. It's quite a varied collection already, and I know about some of the history from your previous post. A great thing about watch collecting is that there are no rules, but we sure have fun on this site pretending there are.
Maybe there'll be a change and the economy will come roaring back and/or you'll come into some $$$ but in the meantime, a lot of big shot manufacturers are happy to sell us some really good watches for not much $$$. Your new Seiko is proof of that, it stands out like a beacon in your watch box. Citizen, Tissot, Casio, Seiko, and Bulova are some of the big hitters, then some have sub brands like Lorus, Alba, and Caravelle, and I have a few interesting microbrands as well like Techne and Aragon. There were some really great photos sent in for the obscure brands post of watches that didn't cost a lot of $$$.
I'm still trying to find a way to post photos on WC without getting my phone involved. It's low on data and I want WC content to come to my laptop only, and besides, my vision's not great and I prefer photos on a bigger screen. I really enjoy the high end photos but I think the low end is not represented as well as the high end. I've gotten some great watches for not much $$$ by the big manufacturers or microbrands, and no one has seen these watches.
That watch box is a beauty too. Again, thanks.
Nice way to get into watches
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