Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie
Who Watches the Watchmen (Our Chit Chat Thread)
Options
Comments
-
-
-
-
-
-
Advertisement
-
Cyclingtourist wrote: »Interesting take on dealing with female Rolex salespersons, even if the terminology is a bit dodgy.
Cunning linguist is our fitz
0 -
-
-
-
-
Advertisement
-
-
Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 60,101 Mod ✭✭✭✭
Join Date:Posts: 59030
In reality CC vanishingly few work that way. We're a social animal and social animals thrive on all sorts of validation and that's not a negative that it's often seen to be - by hippies up in Tibet humming OOOOOOOMMMMMWho gives a shít what someone else thinks? - for the most part.
On the watch front I don't particularly care what people might think, however that's because I got into them at a time when nobody gave them much if any attention anyway, they were mostly cheap as chips and it was my little weirdo nerdy hobby(among many), so am coming from a very different angle. I would bet if I got into them in the mid noughties as it went more mainstream as a thing I would likely have a very different take on things. For a start I'd be influenced by social media and the web in general.
Plus I am actually weird as far as social competition(for the real want of a better term) goes. Never got into that even when I was in my teens. I always thought it a zero sum game. As Fitz notes nobody gives a flying about someone's watch anyway. Normal people aren't like that for the most part and do quite naturally care how they're perceived. This is a good thing IMHO.Rejoice in the awareness of feeling stupid, for that’s how you end up learning new things. If you’re not aware you’re stupid, you probably are.
0 -
-
Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 60,101 Mod ✭✭✭✭ Join Date:Posts: 59030
Or they quite simply have different tastes and different reasons for collecting F. And that's cool too.Lots of collectors always want watches that nobody else likes or wants, they are wacky you understand, mavericks, not sheeple. They generally have tragic collections of crap.
I knew a guy into cheap plastic 80's Swatch watches, particularly the extremely rare ones. He had a Picasso dial one, original packaging and all that, which at the time was worth over 10k. His collection was insured for four times that. Not my bag at all, but it gave him pleasure. Another guy I knew from the early interwebs initially was into early and unusual digitals. I suppose because when he was a kid they were a big thing that he couldn't afford at the time. Like many collectors of anything. And he had some scarily rare ones, all functional too. A red LED calculator example that was the size of a small house
really stood out. Funny enough that tiny niche in the hobby never went mad money, but values have remained constantly rising bit by bit for over 20 years. Sometimes niche areas go mental too. Military watches were "What? Really?" for the most part until about the mid noughties when they were cool hunted for wider audiences.
And on the actual horology front it's the niche more oddball collectors that often inform the discipline with new data on the history of brands, models and changing tech. Look at the chap from Pride and Pinion channel. He's an expert on current stuff(I presume? My knowledge is scant to say the least), but his knowledge of the actual history of horology appears to be minimal going on some of the stuff he says, yet his offerings are not considered tragic collections of crap. Different strokes an' that.Rejoice in the awareness of feeling stupid, for that’s how you end up learning new things. If you’re not aware you’re stupid, you probably are.
0 -
Rolex watches are really nice, I have had a few and they were all super nice. What I dont like is the fact you cant buy one, and the ever increasing grey market prices are moving the average Rolex into a price bracket where it cannot compete.
Do I want a new sub or Cyrus's perpetual JLC?. Nobody gives a fcuk about my watches anyway and I can count on one hand the number of times anyone has commented on a watch I was wearing so from now on I will get the watches I want (not a sh1tter licence). I get the impression the entire industry is getting off the Rolex train. Youtubers are reviewing less and less rolex (cause nothing is new and nothing is available) and retailers are pushing watches they can actually sell.
If Rolex are coming up against VC Overseas or say a Breguet XX chrono (or the Overseas Chrono) I certainly know which one I'd prefer
But hey that's the free market and people are free to buy whatever they want - if Rolex ends up with too high a price people will switch to alternatives until the price comes back down (unless it's a tulip bubble in which it will burst at some point).0 -
-
-
That is an incredibly tidy and impressive shed!
All that's missing is a leatherface mannequin!
0 -
Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 60,101 Mod ✭✭✭✭ Join Date:Posts: 59030
Don't try to burgle his house?
Rejoice in the awareness of feeling stupid, for that’s how you end up learning new things. If you’re not aware you’re stupid, you probably are.
0 -
-
Advertisement
-
-
You'll likely get far more comments about a quartz Tag F1 than some of the far more high end pieces here that'd get recognised in an instant elsewhere.
Wore a quartz tag for years, still have it, never got a single comment. At least with a Rolex you get a comment in a jewellers or from those in the know. Tags are mostly undesirable bar a few Monaco's. I would comment on a persons watch, but I wouldn't on a tag. Mostly because I would assume that person is not really into watches and it would lead to a awkward conversation.
Somebody crosses my path with a nice Navitimer I will say " Hey nice Navitimer thats cool" and I am almost guaranteed they will appreciate the comment at the least and may spark a conversation at best. This is me a tag owner saying this. If you have a tag and you love it, that great. I am happy for you. But they aint the greatest watches in the world even in their own price bracket.
Obligatory arty photo :
Absolutely - bit weird to say otherwise
I never did say otherwise, the discussion is in the nuance (and outrage is the destroyer of nuance), and started with Banie musing on weather he wanted a Rolex for the watch or because everyone wanted one. I commented that other people generally are not interested in watches so I personally was not buying any more Rolex cause I found other quality watches more interesting. Ciancieno though it was odd I would consider other people impressions of my watch at all. I commented that the wearing of jewellery is inherently a social game and that this concept of "buy what you like" is a dangerous one in watch collecting and gets immature collectors into a lot of troulbe (not just financially, but in having collections that have nothing of quality). By all mean buy what you like, but my advice is try to pick watches that at least some other people generally like too. There is a reason collectors gravitate towards similar watches, and I would never be so presumptious to assume that my personal taste knows better.
That Devon trend is "interesting" but for 20k I think you would want rocks in your head, ugly as hell IMHO. There is a tendency in watch circles for a sort of disingenuous withering positivity to creep in. Its a hobby of art and craftmanship appreciation, we are allowed to have opinions on what is good and what is bad, thats the fun of it. To somehow have the opinion that there are no bad, ugly, poor value, badly made or overpriced watches because the purchaser "is buying what he likes" is the epitome of the participation award generation.0 -
Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 60,101 Mod ✭✭✭✭ Join Date:Posts: 59030
Oh I would agree if one wears a watch as jewellery and playing that social game as the primary thing. For many in the hobby and collectors it's not. Though I have found online and off those two positions can find it hard to understand one another and there's little overlap. Like I mentioned earlier I can think of very few watch nutz who straddled both camps. And then there's the broad gulf between new and vintage guys and rarely does that twain meet.I commented that the wearing of jewellery is inherently a social game and that this concept of "buy what you like" is a dangerous one in watch collecting.
For the vast majority of people during the 20th century and even today a watch was a (usually)one off practical item and jewellery often bought to mark a milestone in life. Hence why for the most part stainless steel models were much rarer as people went for gold or gold plated to reflect that(issued military watches being the outlier here). The watches as jewellery folks are simply continuing that tradition. That goes just as much for the 200 quid fashion watches as the 20k examples from the luxury brands. Though for watch nuts there's generally more expertise, argument, flipping and more watches going on.
The above changed or at least was added to with collecting itself becoming a bigger thing, driven by the interwebs. Then you saw the collecting guys, usually with a focus, who had been a tiny minority of weirdos, come into the game in numbers.
As for comments from jewellers: I was in a very well known Dublin establishment where one of the senior sales guys asked me if a Trench watch I was wearing was automatic or quartz... Rejoice in the awareness of feeling stupid, for that’s how you end up learning new things. If you’re not aware you’re stupid, you probably are.
0 -
Wibbs I think it goes without saying that when I comment on watches I am not commenting about the more unique type of collector, but the more mainstream watch collector (of which I am one and you are not). You are the exception that proves the rules. I honestly know nothing about vintage watches and espically the vintage you like. I could easily get caught asking a stupid question about it too, but at least it shows an interest. 0
-
Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 60,101 Mod ✭✭✭✭ Join Date:Posts: 59030
:eek::D Well kinda. IMH there would be two very general engaged collector types; the new/current guys and the vintage guys. Both pretty mainstream these days and the mindset is quite different. The vintage types are much less about the fashion/social cache(maybe among themselves) angle and the collecting focus is a lot wider. Well they have a hundred years of all sorts to choose from which kinda helps.Wibbs I think it goes without saying that when I comment on watches I am not commenting about the more unique type of collector, but the more mainstream watch collector. You are the exception that proves the rules. So it's a much broader church anyway. They're rarely flippers too. Well they tend to be hoarders as a breed. Like one chap on another forum that has something like 12 issued Rolex Milsubs. Lovely bloke too, but many in the new/current side might think him mad.
The exceptions to that would be the really high end trust/hedge fund types throwing the GDP of a small nation at auctions of Pateks made from rose unobtainium with a unicorn horn dial, only to see the same example show up in six months time at another auction, but they'd be a very rare breed indeed.
Down the years I've generally hung out on vintage focused forums because I preferred the vibes in general. On the mil watch forum I've seen the regulars have just as much of a genuine "oh nice one, you jammy bastid!" over a rare Vietnam issued piece made from plastic as they do over a French issued Breguet type XX. That and I prefer the history, both personal and horological attached to all that. A new[insert any brand here] doesn't have that to nearly the same degree for me, so I generally find them less interesting, unless they're an unusual not so safe choice, or they're a personal milestone piece for someone.Rejoice in the awareness of feeling stupid, for that’s how you end up learning new things. If you’re not aware you’re stupid, you probably are.
0 -
:eek::D Well kinda. IMH there would be two very general engaged collector types; the new/current guys and the vintage guys. Both pretty mainstream these days and the mindset is quite different. The vintage types are much less about the fashion/social cache(maybe among themselves) angle and the collecting focus is a lot wider. Well they have a hundred years of all sorts to choose from which kinda helps. So it's a much broader church anyway. They're rarely flippers too. Well they tend to be hoarders as a breed. Like one chap on another forum that has something like 12 issued Rolex Milsubs. Lovely bloke too, but many in the new/current side might think him mad.
The exceptions to that would be the really high end trust/hedge fund types throwing the GDP of a small nation at auctions of Pateks made from rose unobtainium with a unicorn horn dial, only to see the same example show up in six months time at another auction, but they'd be a very rare breed indeed.
Down the years I've generally hung out on vintage focused forums because I preferred the vibes in general. On the mil watch forum I've seen the regulars have just as much of a genuine "oh nice one, you jammy bastid!" over a rare Vietnam issued piece made from plastic as they do over a French issued Breguet type XX. That and I prefer the history, both personal and horological attached to all that. A new[insert any brand here] doesn't have that to nearly the same degree for me, so I generally find them less interesting, unless they're an unusual not so safe choice, or they're a personal milestone piece for someone.
I have tried a few vintage rolex forums and cant say the vibe was relaxed. There is huge knowledge asymmetry and the cost of entry is very high. Those vintage type were very cost/investment and social cache focused. Also some of the speedmaster collectors are totally militant and will eat you alive for suggesting one model that looks identical to another. I appreciate that they have the experiance and would put some stock in their opinions. When you playing with large amounts of cash you dont want to make rookie mistakes that only later turn out to leave me dissatisfied with my decisions. If I were to buy a vintage watch I would lean on your experiance in the area as I dont know what to look for, whats good, whats interesting and whats not.
Opinions are like assholes, everyones got one, but when a expert tells you that yours skinks you either listen, or go around will a smelly ass.:D0 -
Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 60,101 Mod ✭✭✭✭ Join Date:Posts: 59030
The clue is to be found in the title sad to say F. If it's got a more US focused membership, double that. Their aspirational culture tends to make them love to spout how much they've been ripped off.I have tried a few vintage rolex forums and cant say the vibe was relaxed. It's also not helped by Rolex themselves as until recently they'd "destroy" a watch in vintage terms with service parts sometimes to the point where Trigger's broom was in play and they have never been helpful when it came to their vintage owners and won't confirm or deny anything. Add in soaring values and the huge number of franken fakery that follows even the vintage end(I'm no 60's Rolex expert by any measure but I'd reckon at least a third of dealer vintage Rollies are "wrong"). So I'm not so surprised there's a lack of relaxation there.
Hmmm. For yourself I'd actually reckon a 70's Omega Seamaster of some nature. Has the name and cache, robust watch, properly serviced just as good as new(and no issue with spares), decent "modern" size for the most part, not silly money to get into and you'll get your money back getting out.If I were to buy a vintage watch I would lean on your experiance in the area as I dont know what to look for, whats good, whats interesting and whats not.
On watch experts on the interwebs I prefer if one person tells you you smell, ignore them, if ten do, buy soap.Opinions are like assholes, everyones got one, but when a expert tells you that yours skinks you either listen, or go around will a smelly ass.:D Rejoice in the awareness of feeling stupid, for that’s how you end up learning new things. If you’re not aware you’re stupid, you probably are.
0 -
On watch experts on the interwebs I prefer if one person tells you you smell, ignore them, if ten do, buy soap.
Hey maybe I like having a smelly ass, I dont care what the consensus is Who are they to say the bang of crap is wrong, it makes me happy, we all love the smell of our own after all. I am in a smelly ass facebook group and we all agree there is nothing wrong with it, infact those suckers washing, and bathing and wiping are just chasing some social norm driven by expectation. Its actually healthy to let the bacteria breath on the cheeks. :pac::pac::pac::pac: 0 -
-
Advertisement
-
![[Deleted User]](/applications/dashboard/design/images/defaulticon.png)
Advertisement