Something I have a really hard time wrapping my head around with the AP Royal Oak.
So I'm nearing 40 and had a fascination with watches since early childhood, however I have never looked at watches as a hobby up until last year and I have never known of the AP Royal Oak up until then. So in my mind the Royal Oak is a recent model of watch, even when knowing it's been around that it's been around since the 70s.
Growing up I do not recall seeing a single Royal Oak, all I knew as child were the swatches and Casios I was gifted, and the Rolexes older members of the family owned during this time. And I didn't know until recently that there was on in Arnold Schwarzenegger's End of Days, a movie I vividly remember watching back in highschool but don't remember seeing the watch up until recently.
So I'm constantly perturbed whenever I see a vintage example of the watch that's been well worn, scratched and aged. It just feels like my perception of the world has been a lie.
A game developer by trade and a small time enjoyer of watches. If there's someone on the WRUW with really old-ass looking photos, that's me. Particularly fond of Casio, Citizen and vintage Concords.
Information was scarce in the 70’s. You had to actually buy hobby magazines or phone/mail a letter to enthusiast clubs to get any broad view of anything. Even if you saw something you might like, there was practically no way to find out what it was unless the person sitting beside you happened to know.
The internet is a game changer in terms of presenting a world view to anyone who cares enough to look at anything.