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How did you get into vintage watches?

  1. Thomas P. The P is for Palladium and Platinum Jul 11, 2016

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    So how did you get into vintage watches? I'm very interested to hear. I'll start with my story.

    My story starts with owning my dream watch at the time a 3689.30.31 WG Speedmaster. I really loved that watch for the first year that I had it. It was purchased used from a Timezone member. After a while, it started to gain +18 seconds/day on me. I was not happy with this and I had it adjusted by a local watchmaker. It was then spot on for several months but unfortunately it picked up dings and I really wanted to get the case refinished.

    I then took the watch to a local AD who sent the watch to a US facility rather than Switzerland against my request. Since the watch was still keeping time in spec I did not want it overhauled. Omega insisted that it needed an overhaul and would not agree to simply polish the watch. I figured they had the best case refinishers and reluctantly agreed to have the watch refinished and overhauled.

    To my horror the watch arrived back worse than when it went in. The caseback was deeply gouged, one of the lugs was overpolished and uneven with the rest of the case and the moon phase and date pushers did not function.

    The story only gets worse as the jewelry store refused to send the watch back. I even had to get legal help as I did not want to take possession of the watch less they blame the damage on me. Finally they sent the watch back and fixed everything for free. In spite of all this I ended up selling the watch anyway as it left a horrible taste in my mouth.

    In the end, I decided that I want to go into a watch purchase with low expectations of function (vintage) and be pleasantly surprised rather than the other way around. I ended up buying this after a few months getting the bad taste out of my mouth. Whats your story?
     
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  2. ahartfie The black sheep in the Spee-ee-eee-eedmaster flock Jul 11, 2016

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    My family likes to give group gifts for milestone birthdays. When I turned 40 a few years ago, I knew they would ask me what I wanted. I already have everything I need and I buy what I want, so I thought about it for a while, and when asked, was able to reply that I wanted money toward a vintage watch because I liked my grandfather's watch that I inherited. So, that's what they gave me.

    I did some research and found Desmond's blog about collecting Constellations (http://omega-constellation-collectors.blogspot.com/). From reading that, it was easy to decide what my purchase would be. A month later, I made my selection and became the happy owner of a C-shaped Constellation. 3 Constellations, one MegaQuartz, and a Zenith later, here I am.
     
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  3. dsio Ash @ ΩF Staff Member Jul 11, 2016

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    Bought a modern Seamaster Pro Chronodiver, was looking at other models and my mother needed a birthday present for my dad, so I helped her find a Constellation Piepan with the assistance of Desmond, he was the biggest help in that purchase (before OF existed Desmond's blog and Chuck Maddox's were among the only high quality Omega resources). From there I bought a 1680 sub for myself and continued down that path.
     
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  4. ONEWATCH Irony embodied Jul 11, 2016

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    This is easy. I bought a Seamaster XVI in 1977 to wear. 5 years later I put it in the sock drawer. 30 some years later I took it out of the sock drawer and it was a vintage!!!!
     
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  5. ulackfocus Jul 11, 2016

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    Had a bunch of quartz timekeeping thingies that I wore as accessories. Inherited my grandfather's WWII era rose gold Bulova in my early 30's the the rest is history. (as am I on several watch websites :eek: :D)
     
  6. noelekal Home For Wayward Watches Jul 11, 2016

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    I've always enjoyed vintage and antique objects of all kinds. I had always liked watches, but had done the quartz thingies for some years when I found a solid 18kt gold watch from the 1950s in the bottom of a .50 ammo can with a bunch of handloading supplies given me by a family member. Wound it up and it ran. Put a replacement strap on it and I was charmed.
     
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  7. aap Jul 12, 2016

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    A good friend would tell me how cool vintage Seikos are and it got me interested. Bought a vintage Grand Seiko from ebay as a bday gift to myself in June 2015. Then, I discovered this forum...
     
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  8. Togri v. 2.0 Wow! Custom title... cool Jul 12, 2016

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    I had read a couple of articles about vintage watches and began to want a quality vintage piece for when my daughter was born. Also I admired my dad's Omega, which he had inherited from his dad (I have it now), so I went and bought an Omega cal 267 from 1959 the day before my girl was born. It was my first vintage and first mechanical.

    Of course it was only meant to be one watch but one month later I had bought another, then one month later another. I have slowed down significantly since I started buying more expensive watches, so now I haven't bought a watch in over 3 monts. Will probably not buy anything for the rest of 2016 but at one point I got to have a Datejust or a GMT 16700 and perhaps a gold Connie similar to one I sold and regret to have parted with.
     
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  9. al128 unsolicited co-moderation giverer Jul 12, 2016

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    When I started, there were no vintage watches, only OLD watches.
     
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  10. stigmata Jul 14, 2016

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    Not a bad way to have a few different watches for different occasions now cheaply than buying new.
    Addictive passion
     
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  11. Euxinus Jul 14, 2016

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    I blame my WIS affliction on my dad. When I entered 9th grade he gifted me his first ever expensive watch purchase, an omega seamaster. I wore it every day and gained such an appreciation for watches. He bought the watch in the early-mid 70's, so I sorta grew up on vintage ( not sure if 70's is quite vintage yet).

    After wearing this seamaster every day for about 6 years I decided to dive into the vintage watch collecting world myself and bought myself a omega constellation pictured bellow.

    image.jpg
     
  12. gatorcpa ΩF InvestiGator Staff Member Jul 14, 2016

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    My father had a gold LeCoultre that I remember as a kid. When I was in college, they were robbed and all of Dad's jewelry was stolen.

    My sister and I decided that for his 70th birthday, we would try to replace the watch. At that time, gold was very cheap and it was surprising how inexpensive these 1950's were in comparison to the new gold Jaeger-LeCoultres, which were pretty much the same from a mechanical perspective.

    So I had to have one too and the rest is history.
    gatorcpa
     
  13. jens0125 knows that watches were made to be worn Jul 14, 2016

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    Was collecting Panerai.....then god damn Hodinkee ..reference points on omega speedmaster.....still like many panerai designs, vintage omega, longines, and rolex will be classics always no matter what new technology, they will likely hold value better...just classy
     
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  14. Spy You know my name. Jul 14, 2016

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    I was at an antique show a few years back and a watch dealer had a vintage bumper Seamaster with a seconds sub-dial at 6 o'clock. The watch was my introduction to OMEGA and vintage watches. It maintained decent time, but the crown fell off. My local AD repaired it and I wore it for a few days before the crown fell off again. I took back to the AD and he offered to buy it from me and, subsequently, I accepted.

    During those years I was working in retail at a clothing store. After the incident above, I walked through the store and noticed a watch on a bench in the shoe department. It was a gold OMEGA Seamaster from the 1960's and had an inscription on the case back about a retirement. The name on the inscription was unknown to me and I asked people in the vicinity if they were missing a watch. So, because no one claimed it I brought it to the store manager and asked him to put it in the safe. He did not believe the watch was of any value, but he put it in the safe anyway. Over a month past and I forgot about the watch. Then I noticed a chap fitting himself for gloves and noticed he was wearing a 2531.80. This made me remember the watch in the safe and I asked the manager if anyone claimed it. He told me no and that it was still in the safe. Since it was over 30 days he said I could have it. The watch needed a major overhaul and since I was not the original owner or even the child of the owner it had no sentimental value. My AD examined it and suggested that, since he knew I wanted a new OMEGA, he could buy it from me and use that money towards a new 2254. It took me less than a second to agree to it.

    Since that time, I have become more wise about watches and vintage watches. Although, my only vintage watch is a 1991 Swatch(could my 2254 count as vintage?), I do intend to add a vintage OMEGA to my collection at some point, but it will have to be just right.
     
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  15. Pakiwi Jul 14, 2016

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    I have always liked intricate and well made things. I always liked nice watches but could never afford one. When I got a good job, I started to look and didn't think I could swing a Speedmaster Moonwatch, but thought the reduced would be ok. I looked for quite a while when I found out my wife was pregnant and so the watch got put on the back burner. Now 16 years later after my father passed away, I got his collection of family watches. One his grandfathers pocket watch given to conductors on the railroad where he worked. His fathers watch which was given to him from the Queen's watch maker and comes with its box and my fathers 73 Omega Geneve. All work and I swap between the Omega, the Garrard and an Invicta. I just received a promotion at work with considerable increase and bought myself a Silver Speedmaster. Probably going to look at other older Omega's.
     
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  16. SpeedyPhill Founder Of Aussie Cricket Blog Mark Waugh Universe Jul 14, 2016

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    ??? How ???
    Bought a watch 40 years ago, today it's a vintage watch.
    That's how !
     
  17. jmiller Jul 26, 2016

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    Had this Bumper in drawer for 10 years after I found it in a consignment store in New Orleans. Paid 40$ for the watch, 1952 Caliber 344
     
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  18. Willem023 Jul 26, 2016

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    During my time as a student at university, a friend got me a job at an art- and antiques auction house.
    That re-ignited the interest for antiques and art my parents lovingly shoved into my unwilling mouth as a youngster.
    Saw some 'old stuff' (amongst others: watches) being sold and off I went.

    Being one of the youngest of the whole -large- family (all nice things were already in the pockets or on wrist and fingers of nieces and nephews...:whistling:), the only thing left was the old 20's pocket-watch of one of my grandparents, being an Omega.

    Well.....

    W
    Schermafbeelding 2016-07-26 om 23.49.43.png
    Schermafbeelding 2016-07-26 om 23.49.57.png
     
    Edited Jul 26, 2016
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  19. ONEWATCH Irony embodied Jul 26, 2016

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    Nice barn find.
     
  20. stigmata Aug 21, 2016

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    Very cool!