10 years ago I was on WUS every day (under old management and before the exodus) and enjoyed learning and the debates and excitement of the rise of microbrands.
I bought some stuff that are still favs, like my Seiko SARB, HKEd 1963 manual chrono, and a Vostok Amphibian that has neither CCCP nor Сделано в России (Made in Russia) on the dial because nationhood was uncertain in 1991 while the factory continued production.
I reached a point at which I couldn’t justify spending $2000 for my fav Nomos and didn’t find enough pleasure in doing DIY repairs and memorizing historical Rolex ref numbers to go all-in and become a true horologist. Around that time, interest in vintage was growing and auction sites like Goodwill and Ebay no longer provided solid buying opportunities for vintage Seikos, Bulovas, NOS trench watches, and the like.
So I have dabbled in some interesting Chinese upstarts and mushroom brands (eg, the Nakzen Pagoda and an original design from San Martin), avoiding near-reps, but my enthusiasm continued to wane.
I still might buy a NTH dive watch, Archimede Outdoor Protect, or Halios, but I still have trouble pulling the trigger on $750+ watches. Maybe in 2024 I’ll find the time to sell off ~15 middlin’ watches and buy one that I really want.
10 years ago I was on WUS every day (under old management and before the exodus) and enjoyed learning and the debates and excitement of the rise of microbrands.
I bought some stuff that are still favs, like my Seiko SARB, HKEd 1963 manual chrono, and a Vostok Amphibian that has neither CCCP nor Сделано в России (Made in Russia) on the dial because nationhood was uncertain in 1991 while the factory continued production.
I reached a point at which I couldn’t justify spending $2000 for my fav Nomos and didn’t find enough pleasure in doing DIY repairs and memorizing historical Rolex ref numbers to go all-in and become a true horologist. Around that time, interest in vintage was growing and auction sites like Goodwill and Ebay no longer provided solid buying opportunities for vintage Seikos, Bulovas, NOS trench watches, and the like.
So I have dabbled in some interesting Chinese upstarts and mushroom brands (eg, the Nakzen Pagoda and an original design from San Martin), avoiding near-reps, but my enthusiasm continued to wane.
I still might buy a NTH dive watch, Archimede Outdoor Protect, or Halios, but I still have trouble pulling the trigger on $750+ watches. Maybe in 2024 I’ll find the time to sell off ~15 middlin’ watches and buy one that I really want.