Watches - another OCD problem
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Anyone following the Only Watch auction?
The big results were:
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The Patek Phillipe 5208T sold for CHF 6.2 million.
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The FP Journe monopusher fetched CHF 1.15 million.
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The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar went for CHF 800K.
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The Lefty Bronze Black Bay hit CHF 350K, down on the record set last time.
My favourite piece, the Laurent Ferrier x Urwerk, went for CHF 100K. It's far cooler than the Patek, so the owner should be happy that he or she saved CHF 6.1 million.
No real bargains this time round, though.
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the prices are starting to get ridiculous nowadays. in other news, there's an interesting write up in hodinkee's first publish about "the" paul newman. not "a" paul newman..
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I think that what's happened is there's been a lot of money pumped into the financial system, and the top 1% (or 0.1%) have been looking for returns in alternative asset classes. Watches are one, classic cars are another, and then there's property. Well, apart from Perth that is!
I saw you'd picked up a copy of the Hodinkee magazine on Instagram. Is it any good?
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I saw you'd picked up a copy of the Hodinkee magazine on Instagram. Is it any good?
yes i love it. it's more than just watches and they provide more literature than what's posted on their website. vintage cars, houses, watches. as long as it falls within it's style, you name it, they'd probably/eventually cover it. also i'm a huge fan of reading of printed material, so that's definitely a plus.
i'd say go grab one but the shipping cost more than the magazine. the only reason i managed to get it was because i pooled 4 friends and shared the shipping.
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Given Amazon can ship books worldwide pretty cheaply, I'm surprised that Hodinkee couldn't figure out a cheaper delivery option.
I do like Hodinkee, but I do find that they've got a slightly smug tone at times. I'm just reading about their new shop, and they're trying to sound as though they're the saviours of the watch industry. Plus their bragging about their app is annoying because they don't support Android.
I'll get around to picking up the magazine at some point. Thanks for the recommendation.
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They don't support Android because Android is for grubby fingered plebeians. People of taste and sophistication, like Hodinkee readers, are Apple users.
Silly man.
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It occurs to me that we should have a thread á la "Unpopular Opinions" called something like "Embarrassing Admissions" (it says admissions @Chris , not emissions , so don't worry).
I can test run the idea here:
I don't own a watch, nor have I since I was 12. I have no idea about watches and this thread might as well be written in γρεεκ
Let the humiliation commence…
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It's pretty simple @neph93:
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If you're not into watches, you think that Rolex is the top brand. If you are, there's a chance that you'll think they are because they're over-engineered.
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Patek Philippe are usually considered the finest watches by people in the know.
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But real watch nerds rate A. Lange & Söhne more highly.
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Blancpain, Seiko (and Grand Seiko), Rolex and Tudor are the favoured brands in the forum.
Follow these rules, and you'll fit right into the discussion.
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Tbh I follow this thread because I’ve learnt almost everything I know about denim and denim production, and absolutely everything I know about leather, boots, and fabric etc from this forum over the last few years. I’m hoping some of the watch knowledge (and interest) will rub off but it’s almost impenetrable right now. I’m still trying to work out what the entry level brands I should be looking at are and what kind of watch I actually like.
Your potted guide is helpful though, so thank you.
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Glad to help @neph93.
If you want to follow the watch scene, Hodinkee and aBlogToWatch are the biggest sites. You could probably add Monochrome to that.
I'm going to throw in another recommendation: The Watch Snob on Askmen. Yeah, he acts more superior than Hodinkee and aBlogToWatch at their smuggest, but it's tongue in cheek.
As for choosing a watch, I'd buy what you like and can
affordget past the missus. I'm pretty certain that if you asked the regulars on this thread for an opinion, you'd get different suggestions. For example, @Giles likes Blancpain; @louisbosco is a Rolex man; and I'd possibly go with something like Chopard. -
@neph93 to be fair to everyone and all brands, i'd even say don't look at this thread. start seeing out mechanical watches, then learn about movements then figure the brands you like and why you like them..
Eg. i started out with a simple kenneth cole automatic movement. heck, i didn't even know what movement was in it. all i know is the more i wore it, it'll keep ticking on.. then i slowly explored seikos and stumbled upon steinhart and vostok. before graduating to swiss brands.
what i can safely say is to look at swiss ETA/unitas movements as they're fairly common and used by most watch brands putting out entry level watches. even the old panerai's are run with a modified swiss eta movement before they starting producing in house movements..
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For anyone considering picking up a potentially expensive watch habit, I'd say that the second-hand market is your best friend. Watches depreciate on a scale comparable to cars.
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^,^^ about time.
And for the record if you are looking at a preowned Panerai. Make damn sure all the paperwork is in order as well. Replications are so good that w/o paperwork its VERy difficult to tell them apart. My $0.02
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Worldwide though: https://www.watchrecon.com/
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Thanks everyone. I think @louisbosco has a point that my research needs to start at a basic level. I’m becoming familiar with strap types and learning about movements is next. As far as the style of watch I like, I need to study things a little more. Lots of useful links provided here.
At the end of the day I’m not looking for a new hobby, just one decent timepiece. Although there was a time I just wanted a decent pair of jeans and look how that went…
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At the end of the day I’m not looking for a new hobby, just one decent timepiece. Although there was a time I just wanted a decent pair of jeans and look how that went…
Which is exactly why I look, but don't dig in this thread, lol! I tend to over-do hobbies, so I know getting too deep in this thread could be tragic, lol!
I just want one nice, classic piece that I'll be able to proudly pass on to my son in the future…
