Hi guys, the question is simple, I am trying to learn from your mistakes because I don’t have money to make my own.
And I thought we could share some stories too.
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I bought my first “luxury” watch B&R br05 for 5k fucking dollars. after one year i realize it’s actually shitty watch and sold for 2k. It was a good lesson though
Bought way too many watches that I just liked, instead of waiting to find one or two that I love and getting those. Now I have an embarassing amount of (thankfully mostly cheap-ish homage) watches that I almost never wear, a handful of watches that I think are pretty cool, and honestly none that I put on and think „I love this thing“.
really important learning imo
That’s basically my story, except that I have 3 or 4 that I love wearing.
Yep- dan henry, seiko mod, moonswatch pluto (when I already had the mercury), a casioak that doesn’t fit. All things I have to force myself to wear periodically
As someone who wants to get into watches but is weary of buying the “wrong” one, how have you been able to differentiate between a watch you simply like versus a watch you actually love?
In my opinion, you can’t, until it’s too late. You need to actually wear them for a while, by which point you’ve committed to the purchase. I have a bunch of watches, just like I have a bunch of coats and a bunch of shoes. I guess I could spend 5X the amount on a single expensive coat or expensive pair of shoes, but I’d rather have a collection.
TL;DR don’t get into watches, it’s a money pit!
Indeed
I def don’t see myself turning watches into a hobby, but after my grandpas watch was stolen almost 10 years ago I’ve been slowly considering a replacement. I started with looking at Fossil and have come so very far 😂
I think you either need to buy it or pick a watch, but wait months before buying. It might help to see it in person. You don’t need one of every type of one of every dial color. So get your favorite type in your favorite dial color. Think about what works for you, rather you working for it. I learned quickly that I don’t like mechanical watches. Erring on the smaller size is better looking and more comfortable as the watch slides around on the wrist, for example.
I was just typing the exact same thing before I saw your comment.
For a while I kept buying micro brands. There is nothing inherently wrong with them, but I bought a lot that I just don’t wear I was just swept up in the hype. It is a very real truth that buying a bunch of $300-500 watches ends up being a bit of a waste if they’re not things you’ll wear all the time. With the amount of micros I have sitting in a drawer I could have bought a nice Omega or one of those cool Glassbox Carreras instead. I’ll never get anything for them even close to what I spent so it’s probably not even worth the hassle of trying to sell.
Oh well, live and learn I guess.
Seiko Sumo. I kept thinking it’d be cool to have a 44mm watch as a skinnier guy. I saved up for months to buy it. After a few wears, I decided it was way too big and went back to 38-40mm watches. Now it just sits in my watch case
At least,if you ever wanted to sell or trade, you will get close to your money back. Sounds like it’s good condition, Seikos have been on the up and up
Cheap so I don’t really care about the money but I was disappointed when the buckle tongue broke on my Swatch a week into owning it. I wouldn’t buy another Swatch.
to be fair, they’re not meant to be worn all the time, they’re not an everyday watch. i had a new gent for 2-3 year, they don’t hold up.
I have a Swatch Sistem Through. I thought it was lovely initially, but it definitely has some room for improvement. It was my introduction to mechanical watches. Fully wound it runs -5sec a day. Middle of the reserve is ±0. The last day before the reserve runs out it runs +5. I usually wear it 3 or 4 days a week. Sometimes I can time it right and wear on/off for a few weeks without losing more than a second or two.
My biggest two problems are the plastic window that my dog managed to scratch while playing with him & the lack of serviceability. The plastic escapement isn’t making me feel great about it either.
Had I known what I know now, I would’ve bought myself a Seiko so I could teach myself the basics of maintaining & modding mechanical watches while my tastes expand.
I don’t think I’d buy another mechanical Swatch unless they completely change their approach to serviceability… I probably would buy one of their quartz watches for the designs alone or as a gift… They seem to last a long time.
Really - every watch I buy lol. Not regret per se, but there is always something with your new watch, and think, I could’ve gotten X with this money. It’s a disease… but I love it
My Tag Aquaracer quartz. It started losing time after only 3 years and so Tag stung me for a large amount of £££ for a full service. According to them this is to be expected as Tag is a “premium brand”. I won’t be buying another one
When I was getting into it, MVMT looked great bc they had fantastic advertising and their watches looked great. I ordered one, and I remember a guy I was waiting on at the time asked me what I thought about it. I looked at it, and it was minutes slow, the second marker never lined up, and I told him to not waste his money. I cheaped out admittedly for looks. Next thing I bought was a seiko cocktail time bc a buddy put me on. Still one of my mainstays.
Cheap watches that you buy on a whim. They hold your interest for a week but quickly end up collecting dust.
This
The ones with complications (GMT, chronograph) that were cool… but I never used. Just a waste of money on every flip.
Also watches that were too big for my wrist. “Yeah, cool” doesn’t work when there’s a hockey puck on your wrist.
OTOH, now I have the size and complications (or lack thereof) that I like ;)
Had a phase where I would just buy any good deal on a watch, and I ended up with a Seiko SUN023P1.
I get that some people love them, but I hated it. Bought it second hand and it was just way too big for me and everything about it felt wrong and it was underwhelming in every way possible. Form over function I guess. Was really difficult to sell as well, so I had to put it up as a bundle.
But it did teach me about watch dimensions in ways I just could not have learned otherwise. It also helped me prioritize in what I really wanted to wear, so these days I only own a Seiko 5 GMT. Don’t need anything else.
I bought a rotary chronograph a year or two ago. The watch kept stopping and starting, intermittently ticking so I took it back and got a replacement. Within a week, the hands on the watch misaligned and so I took it back and got a different watch. I feel that rotary has slipped in quality therefore I’ll never buy their watches again.
When I was younger I had around 6 metallic wrists watches and 2 like casual watches. I believe that they really helped me with my outfits. But now that Apple Watches have tons of different wrists colors and styles, there is no reason of buying others. Some people called me basic or that it is too informal but I think that if you find the right wrist and maybe even the right background in the Apple Watch it can match you with everything.
Many regrets in the comments could have been avoided if people had tried the watches on before buying.
None, really.
Got some inherited and/or very carefully chosen vintage watches (1920s through 1970s) which I absolutely adore, each and everyone of them. Had one sort of miss-buy over the years, which turned out to be rather fragile mechanically, so ultimately traded that back (proper dealer). One or two still on wishlist, searching for a solid example, which takes time (no hurry there at all).
Also own a few new, relatively (but not overly) expensive watches, which I only bought after serious consideration and comparison to all manner of alternatives. Like those a lot, wear them when appropriate, no regrets. There are a few still on my ‘wishlist’ that may survive the ongoing pruning I do of that list, so which I may end up buying down the line.
And I own a good handful of micro-brand watches. These are predominantly for fun and novelty, and frankly cost so little that they do not interfere with anything else. I am slightly faster and looser purchasing those, but still only buy only 10-20% of what I come across and (fleetingly) like. So perhaps not that surprisingly, none of those have really disappointed: I know what I got them for and why, and that is exactly what they bring.
My only overall hesitance is the simple fact that in the end, the more watches I buy, however carefully elected, the less I get to wear each of them on average. First world problem.
Timex Fairfield Chronograph.