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The frenzied world of rare watches

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Re: The frenzied world of rare watches

#71

Post by aidenn0 »

jacquesm wrote: post #8
UmYeahNo wrote: post #7

I've been a fan of budget Seiko mechanical watches from the 60's and 70's. Most of the time they run well, servicing isn't terribly expensive, and you can get them for usually a few hundred dollars, maybe a grand for a really nice specimen. What's cool about them is you can decipher the serial number [0] to the month and year they were made, so they can commemorate an event, even if it happened a long time ago. But y…

I have one of these, a '5' and it still keeps time just fine after many years. It's a completely mechanical watch, no batteries to replace and no frills. It will likely outlive me.

I have a "5" that went through two bracelets before dying. At the time Seiko wanted a flat rate ($149 or $199?) to repair. I got a new kinetic for less than that, and I don't have to set the time weekly.

Re: The frenzied world of rare watches

#72

Post by Nextgrid »

random314 wrote: post #44
nightski wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In my experience hobbies are typically far more expensive than paying someone else to do it purely due to economies of scale.

Not for veblen goods

But the value of Veblen goods is based on paying for the real thing. If you build yourself a Rolex equivalent as part of your hobby it still won't be valued as a "proper" Rolex even if it was just as good quality-wise.

Re: The frenzied world of rare watches

#73

Post by helij »

ilamont wrote: post #15
UmYeahNo wrote: post #7

I've been a fan of budget Seiko mechanical watches from the 60's and 70's. Most of the time they run well, servicing isn't terribly expensive, and you can get them for usually a few hundred dollars, maybe a grand for a really nice specimen. What's cool about them is you can decipher the serial number [0] to the month and year they were made, so they can commemorate an event, even if it happened a long time ago. But y…

I am a fan of another Japanese watch brand, Citizen, particularly the Eco-Drive models. Solar powered, very durable, and they look great. Prices range from $100 for basic models to over $3000 for the Hakuto-R (there is some connection to the Japanese lunar mission, https://www.citizenwatch.com/us/en/product/CC4016-75E.html ). Most Citizen watches are water resistant as well. I've had one model running continuously fo…

After a search for a perfect watch buying and then selling anything from very cheap to very expensive I ended up with a solar G-Shock square with radio timekeeping. Indestructible, always on and always accurate. The perfect watch.

Re: The frenzied world of rare watches

#74

Post by MarkMarine »

ubermonkey wrote: post #28

I wore exclusively mechanical watches for most of my life, starting with a Rolex I inherited from my dad in the mid-80s. When he bought it, Rolex wasn't yet as insanely upmarket as they've become. It was kind of the obvious token of upper-middle-class success of the era. Dad's is the two-tone DateJust on what Rolex calls a "Jubilee" bracelet, and you've seen the color scheme and overall look on a million knock-off Ci…

Opposite for me. I don’t like wearing a watch in the evening, and I always forgot to charge the Apple Watch because it would be by the sink where I prepped dinner or somewhere. I never have to worry about charging my mechanical. I wear a brand that people obsessed with watches that appreciate don’t care about (so they lose value) but are mechanically “perfect.” Not a status symbol, I don’t have to worry about wearing it on vacation or anything. It’s a prized possession because of it’s utility.

Re: The frenzied world of rare watches

#75

Post by thom »

smackeyacky wrote: post #31

I have been watching a lot of youtube videos from "wristwatch revival", Marshall has an oddly soothing, breezy voiceover as he services mechanical watches. Its kind of like Bob Ross. The workmanship in even prosaic mechanical watches is neat to see as he disassembles them.

It was a weird crossing of streams when I first saw his watch channel, because I'd only known him as a Magic: the Gathering commentator and streamer. I can't even say "better known" given the relative subscriber numbers.

Re: The frenzied world of rare watches

#77

Post by Alex3917 »

kop316 wrote: post #46
Alex3917 wrote: post #21

Watches are a good example of the fact that, past a certain point, the only thing you can really do with money is paying other people to do your hobbies for you. Like you could learn how to make mechanical watches yourself, but wait, no, why not pay someone else to take up that hobby for you. At the same time, if you actually like doing your own hobbies then money loses its utility pretty quickly.

After skimming through a large portion of George Daniel's book "Watchmaking", if anything, I very much appreciate how complicated making a mechanical watch is, and even more so, how easy it is to get things wrong. From what I saw, you have to have a lot of tooks to make your own mechanical watch, and it would not be something I would want to do without someone skilled in the craft. That is a long way of saying, I am…

> it would not be something I would want to do without someone skilled in the craft.

I mean how is that different than any other hobby? I've never made a watch but I forage for mushrooms, and you wouldn't want to do that without being skilled in the craft either. It's pretty much the same for any hobby; the whole point of having a hobby is to become skilled at some esoteric thing.

Re: The frenzied world of rare watches

#78

Post by Domenic_S »

ubermonkey wrote: post #28

I wore exclusively mechanical watches for most of my life, starting with a Rolex I inherited from my dad in the mid-80s. When he bought it, Rolex wasn't yet as insanely upmarket as they've become. It was kind of the obvious token of upper-middle-class success of the era. Dad's is the two-tone DateJust on what Rolex calls a "Jubilee" bracelet, and you've seen the color scheme and overall look on a million knock-off Ci…

Annually?!

It is recommended to service your Rolex approximately every 10 years depending on the model and real-life usage.

https://www.rolex.com/watch-care-and-service/faq.html#:~:tex....

Re: The frenzied world of rare watches

#79

Post by kop316 »

randomhodler84 wrote: post #25

What is the allure of these things? They keep worse time that an ntp synced phone, have no internet connectivity and few features. It’s all conspicuous consumption, right? If you know, you know — a way to signal wealth without being too brazen.

>What is the allure of these things?

I like having something well made, looks nice, and will last on the order of decades. I also like not having something attached to my wrist that tries to grab my attention for every email, text, call, etc. that I get.

> They keep worse time that an ntp synced phone

There is nothing in my life that requires me to be in sync to a precision beyond +/- 30 seconds.

> have no internet connectivity and few features

Some folks (like myself) view that as a feature, not a bug. I actually like walking around without something constantly on my person that is always internet connected.

Re: The frenzied world of rare watches

#80

Post by kop316 »

Alex3917 wrote: post #77
kop316 wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

After skimming through a large portion of George Daniel's book "Watchmaking", if anything, I very much appreciate how complicated making a mechanical watch is, and even more so, how easy it is to get things wrong. From what I saw, you have to have a lot of tooks to make your own mechanical watch, and it would not be something I would want to do without someone skilled in the craft. That is a long way of saying, I am…

> it would not be something I would want to do without someone skilled in the craft. I mean how is that different than any other hobby? I've never made a watch but I forage for mushrooms, and you wouldn't want to do that without being skilled in the craft either. It's pretty much the same for any hobby; the whole point of having a hobby is to become skilled at some esoteric thing.

I would assume one could become skilled at mushroom foraging much, much faster and with much, much less tooling than creating a watch movement.
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