How best to get into the watch hobby

While it might sound a little trite, I’d recommend just picking one, wait for it to surface and going for it...

If you decide it’s not for you, there’s always ebay and you’ll get most of your money back. That which you don’t, chalk it up to education.

@Jhawlz9989 - I'm going to give you (blunt) advice that I wish I was given over a decade ago.

1) Go big or go home, meaning don't dick around with watches that are cheaper imitations of the one you really want. It's just a waste of money. Better to save for the one you want.

2) Try on a few different models so you have a good idea of what suits you. A 34 mm watch with barely any bezel looks larger than it is because the dial appears bigger. If you can make a meeting of watch collectors in your area (a GTG / get together, or offline) ask a few guys to try on some of their watches.

3) Don't be afraid to ask for help. It will save you hundreds or even thousands of dollars on potential mistakes or poor choices.

4) Condition, condition, condition. Pay the premium for an excellent specimen. You won't regret it. How much that premium is depends on the particular watch.

Now that the basics are over, a couple ideas for you.....

As far as Constellations, look for the late 60's 168.015 Dome dials or 168.025 Pie Pan dials. These still have the great 564 calibers inside, but are a little smaller and can still be had close to your price range. Where Seamasters are concerned, you can get some nice 34 or 35 mm models from the early to mid 60's, particularly the 135.011 Seamaster caliber 600 manual wind series or the 166.0xx Seamaster DeVille automatics with 55x no-date or 56x date calibers inside.

Lastly - do NOT buy a black dialed vintage Omega without asking here first. We don't want another victim of Don Draper syndrome.

PS - check your private messages. I have a Seamaster on my eBay watch list that falls in your price range and seems like an honest, but not perfect, piece.

+1 on what the squirrel said.

associate yourself and always be with collector friends in your area

The only one way to find out if you like wearing a watch is to get one! If you want a classic Omega, you can't avoid investing some time and money. The good news is that if you buy a nice one you will almost certainly learn to love it, and in the unlikely event that you don't, you can easily sell it on.

Don't aim too high at this stage. Pie pan Constellations and black dial Seamasters are great but they are a minefield and you are in competition with people who really know their watches. A better plan is to buy the best example of a minor classic that you can afford. My suggestion is a 1960s auto Seamaster with 552 (or 550) movement. It will look good with anything you wear, if it has not been abused it will be just as accurate as a 551, and whether you progress to collecting high-end watches or never buy another one, you'll still enjoy owning it. The 552 Seamaster De Ville I bought in 2012 was my first good vintage watch. It's not my most spectacular one but I am still very fond of it, I have no plans to sell it and I still wear it from time to time. Remember: a minor classic is still a classic.

I don’t currently have the link but there’s also a thread going right now where people are showing their Omega purchases that fell under 500 dollars. They’re out there.

A lot to digest here - I appreciate everyone's feedback and passion. I'm really hoping I enjoy watches. I think yall are more excited for me at this point than me. I had several links to potential watches and an offer for a starter watch (I pay only shipping) by the time I woke up today.


Thanks for the examples - this definitely helps provide some great reference points. 35mm looks pretty close to the sweet spot for what I think of when it comes to watch proportions.


This is a great suggestion - I really struggled to find any new watches I could potentially purchase to get my feet wet. I've got the SNK793 (steel band, blue dial) coming on Tuesday!


I've been in the fishing thread, the WRUW today thread, and the good finds less than $500. Let's see if I've learned anything:

1) The lugs and crown lead me to believe its a ref 2921 or 2848, because of the contrasting dial I'm leaning towards 2848
2) If I'm right on that then the hour markers are off
3) I don't see any similar references that show such a large contrast in the dial, and this one looks painted when you look at the pictures up close
4) The spacing between the Omega symbol and written words is off
5) The "S" in Seamaster looks like a strange hybrid between the coat hanger style and later references



Fashion is not my thing, history is much more interesting. And great idea to find a collectors club in the area. I can appreciate that these watches have been ticking for fifty or so years, and have the mechanical precision to hold time to within a few seconds per day even after all these years, and I appreciate understanding how they work. The nuances of all the movements are what makes it such an interesting way to spend our time.

Once I figure out how much I enjoy wearing a watch, if I decide it's for me I intend to follow points 1 and 2 (as well as the others). I spend most of my time playing the guitar and own several nice guitars. I don't ever sell or trade my guitars because I knew exactly what I wanted when I purchased each one, I knew what to look for, waited for the right deal, and each one was filling a gap in what I needed to make music. I hope to take that approach with watches if everything works out and slowly build an excellent collection. As for missing out on that awesome avatar, sorry. My dad raised me on In Search of the Lost Chord, and Electric Ladyland so that album never came to mind... 😗

Welcome.

Based on the last post, u are in deep and you will fit in fine here. I think we all started in a very similar way, get our feet wet, not spend much. Then it progresses. Make a couple of mistakes along the way, learn, enjoy the hunt, meet up with others, learn more, etc.

But with all this comes a price. It ain't cheap. Buckle up and enjoy the ride. 😀

Well the first full day wearing a watch went really well! It's a little unusual to feel something heavy on the wrist but it's sort of like a shirt after a while, you feel it but don't pay any attention to it. I think the Seiko really looks great - it's hard to imagine getting such a nice looking watch for not much money. It's also a blast to watch the second hand make its way around the dial. It also wears a lot smaller than I thought a 37mm would wear. I don't know why I couldn't wear a 38 or 39mm watch and be fine. I don't particularly care for the metal band though. By the end of the day the clasp was starting to irritate my wrist. I'll start looking for leather straps. Am I in custom-length territory at 6"? Most brands that show up in searches seem to stop at 6.25". Hopefully the smaller size lug to lug on vintage pieces helps offset wrist size to some degree...





I'm going to follow this and the squirrel's advice - I've decided I'll try and go all out on either a minor (or major) classic but restrict my sourcing to OF. Once I started more critically looking at the watches (particularly Constellations) on eBay and other sites I've begun to realize how many really, really bad watches are out there. If I'm going to spend more money than I'd prefer, I would rather it be to another forum member for a really great example that I'll love looking at than on a crap watch I'll regret purchasing because I didn't know what I was doing. I at least have more control over the former than the latter...

Glad you're taking to wearing a watch. 👍 Don't judge all bracelets by the one on an inexpensive watch. Some can be damn comfortable. However, I'm more of a strap guy myself. (Does that make me a strapper? 😜)

You've likely fallen into the rabbit hole my friend.

As for strap suggestion, I'd look into some Shinki Hikaku leather straps like this:

https://oakandhoneyleather.com/collections/all-products/products/shell-cordovan-watch-strap

Or maybe a nice alligator/croc strap(sold by the same seller by special request).