At what point in life did you decide to spend some real money on a watch?

California Dreamer

NSAman wrote: »

Have been looking at a few Watches lately. A significant milestone coming up and just wanted something to remember it by. Rolex has never interested me at all. Thoughts on the following:

http://https://www.breitling.com/mu-en/watches/navitimer/b01-chronograph-43/AB0121211B1X1/

Looking on Chrono 24, plenty of dealers have that at around €5k!

NSAman

California Dreamer wrote: »

Looking on Chrono 24, plenty of dealers have that at around €5k!

Thanks CD, have been shopping around and saw that there are sites with discounts. Just wondering if these are legit ???

jomashop watchmaxx etc....

California Dreamer

NSAman wrote: »

Thanks CD, have been shopping around and saw that there are sites with discounts. Just wondering if these are legit ???

jomashop watchmaxx etc....

They are grey dealers. The 2 I have I bought from dealers to make sure I had warranty.

A great source if you go down the Breitling route is breitling source dot com.

NSAman

California Dreamer wrote: »

They are grey dealers. The 2 I have I bought from dealers to make sure I had warranty.

A great source if you go down the Breitling route is breitling source dot com.

Thank you for the info CD, much appreciated.

C0N0R

Ok, just looking for some advice here, moved one step closer to buying another watch, visited a Rolex dealer yesterday to look at a Tudor Black Bay Steel and Gold, pretty sure it’s the watch I’m going to go for on the bracelet. Should one expect any discount on the Tudor range? Price is very competitive I think - €3777 based on today’s exchange rate, I work in the Middle East, and from a quick look it’s €5000 in Dublin. My intention was to purchase in Belfast next time I’m home and claim the vat back when flying back here but if no discount is available on Tudor then it makes sense to purchase here.

Can anyone recommend a high quality black rubber strap to suit the Black Bay? I do fancy a rubber strap to tone it down a bit as apposed to buying it on the leather strap.

Also had a look at a couple of Rolex’s - 41mm datejust and 39mm oyster perpetual, quite taken by the perpetual so I think that’s where I’ll be going next, coming in at €4733 at today’s exchange rate, I presume there would be no discount on one of these in an Ad at home?

Decided its best not to purchase both at the moment, buying two at once would take the pleasure off getting a new watch, I’ll spread that out slightly! One thing with the date Rolex’s - I just can’t warm to the cyclops, I know it’s possible to remove it, but are you affecting the future value dramatically by doing this?

Just to finish, I’d like to say thanks, I’ve been lurking here for quite a while and it’s really taught me a lot and peaked my interests in building a collection, I can see how it could become addictive, I’ve already decided I want a speedmaster after the Oyster Perpetual and will be putting my name down for a Sub, just incase! Great forum guys, one of the ones I check first everyday.

Thanks
Conor

Time

C0N0R wrote: »

Ok, just looking for some advice here, moved one step closer to buying another watch, visited a Rolex dealer yesterday to look at a Tudor Black Bay Steel and Gold, pretty sure it’s the watch I’m going to go for on the bracelet. Should one expect any discount on the Tudor range? Price is very competitive I think - €3777 based on today’s exchange rate, I work in the Middle East, and from a quick look it’s €5000 in Dublin. My intention was to purchase in Belfast next time I’m home and claim the vat back when flying back here but if no discount is available on Tudor then it makes sense to purchase here.

Can anyone recommend a high quality black rubber strap to suit the Black Bay? I do fancy a rubber strap to tone it down a bit as apposed to buying it on the leather strap.

Also had a look at a couple of Rolex’s - 41mm datejust and 39mm oyster perpetual, quite taken by the perpetual so I think that’s where I’ll be going next, coming in at €4733 at today’s exchange rate, I presume there would be no discount on one of these in an Ad at home?

Decided its best not to purchase both at the moment, buying two at once would take the pleasure off getting a new watch, I’ll spread that out slightly! One thing with the date Rolex’s - I just can’t warm to the cyclops, I know it’s possible to remove it, but are you affecting the future value dramatically by doing this?

Just to finish, I’d like to say thanks, I’ve been lurking here for quite a while and it’s really taught me a lot and peaked my interests in building a collection, I can see how it could become addictive, I’ve already decided I want a speedmaster after the Oyster Perpetual and will be putting my name down for a Sub, just incase! Great forum guys, one of the ones I check first everyday.

Thanks
Conor

That price is around what grey dealers are asking for BNIB, if that was their first price i'd say there'd be room for some movement, its not exactly a very in demand model. I'd offer 3500 and see what they say. As for straps everestbands do really nice good quality bands, but they're very expensive.

On the rolex cyclops, if you get one and remove it, Rolex would replace it for you for free within the warranty period for free if you wanted to sell. Make sure you keep us updated on whatever you get.

C0N0R

Time wrote: »

That price is around what grey dealers are asking for BNIB, if that was their first price i'd say there'd be room for some movement, its not exactly a very in demand model. I'd offer 3500 and see what they say. As for straps everestbands do really nice good quality bands, but they're very expensive.

On the rolex cyclops, if you get one and remove it, Rolex would replace it for you for free within the warranty period for free if you wanted to sell. Make sure you keep us updated on whatever you get.

Thanks, took the plunge and ordered the strap from Everest this evening, all I have to do it buy the watch now and then when I’m home put all together.

Another quick question - Watchwinders? The watch won’t be worn daily, any recommendations re winders? Some of the wolf ones are lovely, but not sure how I sit with the price?

Thanks again folks

Keyzer

I was 39 when I got my Speedmaster, adore the thing.

Always had an interest in watches but only really got into it in my late 30's.

banie01

Keyzer wrote: »

I was 39 when I got my Speedmaster, adore the thing.

Always had an interest in watches but only really got into it in my late 30's.

Ditto! Had a few good divers that were actually used for diving.
Hit 39, started considering selling my last titanium diver and now own 3 more watches :pac:

Time

C0N0R wrote: »

Thanks, took the plunge and ordered the strap from Everest this evening, all I have to do it buy the watch now and then when I’m home put all together.

Another quick question - Watchwinders? The watch won’t be worn daily, any recommendations re winders? Some of the wolf ones are lovely, but not sure how I sit with the price?

Thanks again folks

Wolf are nice but tbh you can't go wrong with one from Wish.com or ali express. For a fraction of the price you'll get one thats almost identical.

banie01

Time wrote: »

Wolf are nice but tbh you can't go wrong with one from Wish.com or ali express. For a fraction of the price you'll get one thats almost identical.

I picked up a nice 4 winder and 6 slot one far @€;60 delivered from AliExpress.

It's in my bedroom, near silent and it left me sneak some carbon fibre cool into the wife's lair :P

C0N0R

banie01 wrote: »

I picked up a nice 4 winder and 6 slot one far @€;60 delivered from AliExpress.

It's in my bedroom, near silent and it left me sneak some carbon fibre cool into the wife's lair :P

Any chance of a link?

Time

banie01 wrote: »

I picked up a nice 4 winder and 6 slot one far @€;60 delivered from AliExpress.

It's in my bedroom, near silent and it left me sneak some carbon fibre cool into the wife's lair :P

That’s a good point actually, you want one that’s quiet, especially if you have it in your bedroom

893bet

I don’t see the point unless you have an annual calendar or similar.

banie01

893bet wrote: »

I don’t see the point unless you have an annual calendar or similar.

I do take your point but that said I like to know I can rotate without setting the time everytime I go more than a couple of days without swapping watches.

C0N0R wrote: »

Any chance of a link?

https://a.aliexpress.com/_rwsMdn

If I was buying against I'd probably go with wood tho

Filmer Paradise

Myself & the Missus have a policy of giving fairly good gifts on 'zero birthdays'.

On my last 'zero', she got me a Hamilton intra-matic 38mm.

Nearly 2 years later, it's been on my wrist every single day.

I work in a manual job, keen on DIY, fixing cars etc...

Not a scratch on it thanks to the saphire crystal and the quality ETA 2892 movement is very accurate.

Quality watches are made to be worn.:cool:

54and56

Filmer Paradise wrote: »

Myself & the Missus have a policy of giving fairly good gifts on 'zero birthdays'.

On my last 'zero', she got me a Hamilton intra-matic 38mm.

Nearly 2 years later, it's been on my wrist every single day.

I work in a manual job, keen on DIY, fixing cars etc...

Not a scratch on it thanks to the saphire crystal and the quality ETA 2892 movement is very accurate.

Quality watches are made to be worn.:cool:

100% similar story.

Was heading toward my milestone 40th so my present was a BBB Rolex I purchased in the US (New Hampshire where there's 0% Sales Tax) for US$6,825 which in (pre economic crash) 2008 converted to €4,350.

Have worn it almost every day since and had it serviced once over that time by Rolex in London which cost £475.

I see them for sale on Watchfinder for up to €13,000 so it's been a good investment but not one I'll be cashing in on any time soon.

swiwi_

So I had had a Longines Quartz watch since 2000, gift from my parents for my 21st birthday. Turning 40 in 2019, I decided it was time to change, especially as the Longines had cracked glass. I hadn't realised how out of date my Longines had become, in particular its small size (33 mm!).

I first googled value for money Swiss watches and came across Hamilton. I bit more research added Frederique Constant, also Mido. But I wasn't convinced after visiting the stores. With a budget I'd set max at CHF2000 and wanting an automatic, I did some more research, and time and again I came across Oris (as well as Longines) for that price range. The more I looked into Oris, the more I liked what I read and saw. Notably they only do automatic watches, they are still independent, they have a long history, and they have begun again to make their own movements (but out of my price range).

So I settled on an Oris Aquis Date like the picture below



I wanted leather because I have a gold wedding ring which doesn't fit so well to metal strap, and also to make it a tad less "sporty". But I think I might get a metal strap, so I can actually swim with the watch, and possibly get a second watch with a strap (the Oris pilot watches are very nice too).

I think for the budget I had the Oris is a very good choice.

Since then, I've done a lot more research on watches, and learnt a good bit. For my wife, I'm going to get a Nomos Tangente and for my Dad for his 70th a Farer watch.

As for myself, now that I've dipped my toe in the water, I might have to upgrade at a future point: watches that appeal include the more fancy Oris options, some of the Bell & Ross models, the IWC Spitfire range, I also quite like the Bremonts and then the Omega Speedmaster Moon models are pretty damn nice too.

Oris at CHF2000 gets a good starting automatic watch, increase the budget to CHF5000+ and you can get a very nice watch.

It's clear that some of the price differences between watches is "name recognition". Obviously, there are technical and component differences, with an in-house movement really increasing the price, but some of the difference is also just branding.

In any case, if you're looking a for a really well made watch with generally favourable on-line reviews and at a price that isn't exorbitant, then I think Oris is a great place to start.

Nice forum BTW!

btkm8unsl0w5r4

Oris is a credible choice and often overlooked.

redlead

Nice watch. Oris is a great place to start off in quality automatics. For a similar price range I'd give a shout out to Junghans too. Beautiful bauhaus design for those that don't want a sports swatch. I'm guessing you'd like that too if you are considering the Nomos for your wife. I've never actually seen a Nomos in the flesh but on paper they seem like a great watch.

I'd tend to disagree with your comment on name recognition being a big differentiator in cost though. If you exclude Rolex and the likes of some Pateks where demand is in excess of supply, or where supply is being manipulated, I think you tend to get what you pay for. As you go from say a Hamilton up to the likes for an Oris/Longines, then up to an Omega or Breitling and then up again to something like a Girard Perregaux, the quality of the watch does tend to improve noticeably with each step up (along with the price).

swiwi_

redlead wrote: »

I'd tend to disagree with your comment on name recognition being a big differentiator in cost though. If you exclude Rolex and the likes of some Pateks where demand is in excess of supply, or where supply is being manipulated, I think you tend to get what you pay for. As you go from say a Hamilton up to the likes for an Oris/Longines, then up to an Omega or Breitling and then up again to something like a Girard Perregaux, the quality of the watch does tend to improve noticeably with each step up (along with the price).

What I mean for example is Oris vs Tag Heuer for example. From what I've read, Oris is every bit as good, if not better, but Tag has a premium for name recognition. In each price category, you have this sort of thing. But obviously, across price bands there is a clear difference.

There is no way I'm ever spending the sums of money for Vacherin Constantin, Audemars Piguet etc...but an upgrade into the Omega/IWC/Breitling category is a definite possibility.

California Dreamer

If I was considering a new purchase for the next major milestone and opted for a Tudor over a Rolex would i be thinking that it was Lidl over Donnybrook Fair?

micks_address

California Dreamer wrote: »

If I was considering a new purchase for the next major milestone and opted for a Tudor over a Rolex would i be thinking that it was Lidl over Donnybrook Fair?

Nothing wrong with lidl but I think it's an unfair comparison.. maybe audi versus vw be more appropriate

banie01

California Dreamer wrote: »

If I was considering a new purchase for the next major milestone and opted for a Tudor over a Rolex would i be thinking that it was Lidl over Donnybrook Fair?

It would really depend solely on if you were only buying the Tudor as a stopgap or bridge to a Rolex.

I love the Tudor GMT, but I know a few folk who have bought one to scratch their itch for a Pepsi or other Rollie GMT and the watch wasn't loved.

It was a Sub (stitute :P ) and they treated it that way.

I don't know which Tudor you are looking at, but if it's what floats your boat!
Go for it.

Cienciano

California Dreamer wrote: »

If I was considering a new purchase for the next major milestone and opted for a Tudor over a Rolex would i be thinking that it was Lidl over Donnybrook Fair?

Well, you can always say the rolex isn't a patek, so I wouldn't worry about those comparisons. There's always something better.

DuckSlice

Whats considered real money?

When I was 25 I bought a Tissot PRS200 for £400 Sterling. Only wear it when I think of it and special occasions as I normally cant wear a watch at work. but have changed roles slightly so going to start wearing it again.

I would love to invest in a TAG Aquaracer Automatic, but unless I finance it don't think I could afford it

unkel

Whatever you do, don't finance a watch. Try find a good value second hand Tag, they do depreciate quite a bit in the first year or so. Bargains are always out there if you look long enough and hard enough, good luck with your search!

etxp

etxp wrote: »

Whats considered real money?

When I was 25 I bought a Tissot PRS200 for £400 Sterling. Only wear it when I think of it and special occasions as I normally cant wear a watch at work. but have changed roles slightly so going to start wearing it again.

I would love to invest in a TAG Aquaracer Automatic, but unless I finance it don't think I could afford it

It's different for everyone but I suppose "the cost of multiple holidays rather than one" kind of works for real money. An Aquaracer is multiple holidays for most people, and so it counts as it's a big decision.

shano76

Hi all, long time lurker here. Interesting discussion. For me the concept of "real money" is all relative and specific to one's own circumstances & stage in life etc. as many others here have said.

I've been into watches since I tormented my Dad for a Radio-Watch (bought with tokens from Texaco I think!) as a kid in the 1980s!

I went through a period over the last few years where I had other things going on & didn't have the same interest in watches. But I recently rekindled my love for them & in the last couple of years have been building up a bit of a collection again.

I'll likely never be able to justify an outlay for something at say 10K & above (even if I could afford it!) so 3-5K would be my grail watch budget I'd say. I'm at a stage now where I could probably do it, but knowing that that would be my ceiling would take all the fun out of the journey for me I think. I like the fun of spending a couple of hundred here & there & picking up something interesting that will eventually lead me to my grail (whatever & whenever that may be) but I don't want to cut the journey short so I'm in no rush!

Great forum & community by the way. Will try & get my post count up & stick a few pics up in the pictures thread.

Cassius99

shano76 wrote: »

I'll likely never be able to justify an outlay for something at say 10K & above (even if I could afford it!) so 3-5K would be my grail watch budget I'd say. I'm at a stage now where I could probably do it, but knowing that that would be my ceiling would take all the fun out of the journey for me I think. I like the fun of spending a couple of hundred here & there & picking up something interesting that will eventually lead me to my grail (whatever & whenever that may be) but I don't want to cut the journey short so I'm in no rush!

Great forum & community by the way. Will try & get my post count up & stick a few pics up in the pictures thread.

There's a lot of truth in what you've said there. There's a couple of pieces I'd absolutely love to own but the idea of just saving with that single goal in mind doesn't appeal to me right now. I'd miss the quirky little pieces that sometimes speak out to me at a certain point in time.
Plus I'd hate to bypass everything else just to get a grail watch only to be disappointed or underwhelmed by it.