What have you discovered or learned on OF that thrilled you? What ended up being a curse?

I’ll start. As means of introduction, I’ve been a watch aficionado for 35 years. When I started out, I was thrilled with a nice Seiko. In 1999 I fell in love with the Omega Seamaster GMT 50th Anniversary, and that became my first automatic watch. Since then, I’ve only bought automatics, enjoying everything about them.

I never jumped on any forums, avoiding social media.

I jumped on here when I was trying to authenticate a watch I already bought - a vintage Omega Seamaster De Ville. (Yeah, I know...). Since then, this place has been a blessing and a curse.

Blessings:

All those gorgeous images in WRUW.
Learning about RubberB Rolex straps fitting Seamaster 300M variants with 40mm cases (at least older ones like mine). I love that strap.
Seeing a Speedmaster on a heavy leather strap and immediately ordering one for mine.

Curses:

Finding out about “super fakes.” Yikes. I was previously aware of street fakes. I actually became paranoid about my Planet Ocean, but @Archer talked me off that ledge. Thanks again!
Anyway, here’s my Speedy on a strap, arrived a couple hours ago.

 

Blessings are the watchmakers.

Curses are posters with few posts speaking ex cathedra about things they can't possibly know about.

 

Blessings:
*Straps, natos as well as bracelets - it's not a crime to mix it up a bit
*speedmaster101, ilovemyspeedmaster, MWO and all the amazing information... this should so be built into an OF wiki by reference
*Sounds daft but knowing there's a community to message with similar reasons as to why a hole is burning in their pockets...
*Knowledge, knowledge, knowledge and condition, condition, condition before hit of said button
*Buy the Seller

Curses:
*Straps, natos as well as bracelets - it's not a crime to mix it up a bit
*Speedy's
*Vintage vs. Modern
*Omega vs. Rolex

 

Blessings:
Pics
Knowledge
A very high class of people

Curse:
Having to exercise self control while hanging out with addicts

 

A place to live an insanity collectively. When it is collective, it is justified

 

Blessings- the people
Curse- enablers (see above)

 

Blessings: Omega forum introducing me to my:
- Apollo 13 45th anniversary (bought from a forum member)
- Apollo-Soyuz meteorite dial
- Apollo 11 50th anniversary

All of the above first spotted/heard about on these fine forums.

Curses: As above (I’m now skint).

 

Blessings: You guys and gals have amazing collections! I love it.

Curse: My eyes take a long time to regain focus when I exit!

 

Blessings: There are others out there with knowledge. That's the main reason I started browsing forums.

Curses: There are others out there with knowledge. It differs from my preconceived notions.

^^^Is that thing real?

 

Blessings: reading some great older posts by someone named ULackFocus

Curse: posts suddenly stop. Oh man, did he die?

Blessing: Nope, not dead. Just voted off the island

Blessing: Not being on the forum at the time, and missing what must have been a spectacular sh*tstorm

 

Blessing
The people here, have met a few and chatted to a lot and swapped watches with many.
(I try to help one new person a week as I was helped when I started. Have met some nice members this way)

Curse
Most of them have been booted

 

Dennis was a wealth of knowledge that did a lot for a long time for the horological world ( easily 20 years of good stuff that helped many )
He just couldn’t deal with the change to investment, money making game this hobby has become.
He’s ending was He’s own doing but there is many a time that I wish he’s knowledge on watches especially Longines was still here. Many here didn’t Or won’t get to see the Beautiful watches he went through over the years that were released into the world to many here for pretty much what he paid for them.

The man was a character I give him that.
But not one of the villains that has been booted for preying on members for nothing but greed and $$s. ( and many have been booted for greed )

 

Blessing
An awesome bank of knowledge.
A retail section that is by far the safest place to buy & sell a watch
A real varied collection of folk getting (or not) along. The Firearms thread still is a real eye opener!

Curse
Where has all my time gone? My wife peering over my shoulder... 'Are you on that bloody watch website again?' 'Why do you need more than 1 watch?'
A new innocent, naive poster carved up into small pieces (although I can't help watching)

 

This one is my least favorite aspects and one I continue to throw my body in front of. Sure, a veiled WTS can be informed to read rules, a “how much is this worth” can be gently told that it’s uncouth- I know from this perspective we get it daily and it gets tiresome, but they are new to the group, as we all once were. Never forget your beginnings.

 

Blessings:
1)
A treasure trove of different people and different watch collectors with varying taste. Lovely seeing other peoples watches and reading about their experiences.
2)
Avoiding a few "land mine"-watches. Looking at you 2914 "all original" with wrong hands
3)
Acquiring two beautiful vintage watches for a fair price.
4)
I can now identify a crude and even a fair redial with good odds.

Curses:
1)
Learning what truly "good"-condition is and henceforth not looking at your watches with the same glee. I guess you could call this "jealousy"
2)
An everexpanding collection even though I promised to limit my collection to eight

 

I dedicated one of my top two side- by-side dresser drawers to my home-made 40 watch divided insert with room for straps and accessories...I had about 25 at the time....and now I am spilling onto the dresser. Gonna have to clear out that second top dresser drawer

 

I remember when my wife pointedly noticed that my watch case was full. "I noticed there are no more open slots in your case. I guess there isn't room for another watch."

 

^^^Yeah, she only has ten fingers but there's always room for another ring.

 

Curse:

“My eyes get me in trouble,
Want every watch I see”

Finding stuff I never knew I wanted til I saw it.

 

Blessings:
Learning all about the noob tax

Curses:
.....after you have irreversibly paid the noob tax