Hey guys, I joined this forum two years ago but just started posting this week. I am falling hard for vintage Omegas, but by the time I get to the price, I am taken aback. I have 4 kids, make a humble salary, and vintage Seikos have been my brand of choice since about 2000. I am hoping to land a vintage Omega chronograph in the near future, but the question keeps coming to mind, so I figured I would ask. How can you guys afford to build a collection with Omegas? Or what advice would you give to someone just starting out? At this point my MOST expensive watch is a 6105 diver which runs about $1200-$1500 (my average watch is worth $200-$400). Is everyone just independently wealthy?

Be gracious

 

I am a secondary school teacher, I dont earn fantastic money. I put away a bit of money every month and can buy a few watches each year. I think the key it to find the watches you want and save for them, while it feels that vintage watches rocket in price every year a fair proportion of them dont increase that much. If you save even a modest amount then before you know it you will have the funds to buy the watches you want. I took this approach when saving for a vintage Porsche, just putting 200pound away each month, after 5 or 6 years it added up to a fair amount and I was not far off my goal when I met my wife and the porsche turned into a wedding fund, but you get the point. If you want to buy new then, at least in the uk, you can buy on credit at 0% intrest over a few years. I would recommend putting away what you can afford and going after one watch. Spending is about priorities and you wioll be surprised at where you can save money without really noticing it. You could trade in some of your seikos, or sell the kids if that is an option.

 

I started with American pocket watches, which, for the quality you get, are very reasonably priced. A few a year at 4 or 5 hundred a piece doesn't break the bank (or rise the wife's eyebrow too much) Luckily my taste in vintage Omegas hasn't run into the chronograph turf, I spend my working life surrounded by fine measuring instruments, so I'm kind of sick of that stuff by week's end. A nice 40s or 50s dress watch in stainless steel can be had for well under a grand so, again, if one doesn't need a caliber 321, one can be happy at 3 digit prices.

My '55 Tresor cost me a bit, but there's one in every collection isn't there.

Unfortunately, if you need a chronograph or a diver..... an Omega can hurt price wise, probably why my old diver is a Seiko!

 

Flea market!

Tom

 

Am I wealthy? not by any means . More like bankrupt.
Sounds to me like you've got more important priorities than buying more watches.

 

My answer isn't wholly applicable because I don't have four kids and my wife works as well. That said, I was actually between jobs and on the tail end of a six week trip across Asia and few spots in Europe when I came across my Ed White. At the time, the price he was asking was far more than I'd paid for my other two watches, but honestly, the rush of finding it in an unlikely spot (and finding one that was worth owning) trumped the fact that I'd been spending money with no income for the better part of the past two months. I bought it and haven't regretted it for a second since.

Also, if you buy vintage and are buying "correctly" (meaning at a fair valuation or discount to the current market value), you should have no trouble moving it for the same price / a profit if you decide later that you need the money more than the watch. I essentially view all of my watches as very liquid assets...because they are.

 

Like Fritz I started with Pocket watches. Was left 1 Omega bought another, but now currently in a "wage drought" so just getting by. But still looking for that certain one that I just have to have.

 

Put me down for spending more money than I should on watches but I keep it under control and within my means. My advice is to really identify watches that strike your interest. Sure, some of the models you like will be expensive but I expect you'll find a couple that really speak to you and are affordable. Many of the guys on here will tell you that "the hunt" is part of the fun. Find those one or two you like and are within your current budget and learn as much as you can - dial variations, correct movement, how to assess the condition, years available, current market value, etc. If done right, you'll turn yourself into an expert on these couple of watches and the moment one comes up for sale BAM! you'll know it's a good one and you'll be ready to pounce. There's nothing better than finally purchasing the watch you've been researching and tracking. The feeling of strapping the watch to your wrist is fantastic if the watch is $200 or $10,000. And it's more satisfying than walking into a dealer and buying from the case. It's almost like you've earned the right to wear it. Maybe I'm reaching here...

Second, your interests will change over time. Sure, you can lay down $5K for a watch today but a year, two years from now you may move onto something else. Or maybe you really like the watch but as your knowledge increases you realize that you overpaid. Narrow your focus, learn, and ask questions - before you buy. You're in the right place. OF is a great resource. You'll find all the support and knowledge you need right here.

 

Nope, you're not reaching. Those two things are incredible feelings and way different from buying something out of the case.

 

You only need one Omega, plenty of models to choose from, I really don't get buying several old watches that need repair. Buy the watch that says YOU and enjoy wearing it daily and admire it's pristine new condition. Since I bought my new SMP I haven't looked twice at the drawer full of old watches including 2 old Omegas.

 

Having collected for over 30 plus years heed the observations of the current members. Buy the best you can afford and only ones that speak to you. I bought used/pre owned and traded at local shows and with other friends until I could buy my next "keeper". Having bought red subs at $2K and Date Justs (Rolex) for $250-500. allows me to recognize the high valuations and low value of money now. I've had the luck to buy early speedy's for less than a grand when they were soft and not enough smarts to have kept them

 

You gotta buy the ones that you love and buy ones that are in the best condition you can find. I wish I had known that when I started. I bought ones based on price, ie was it a "good deal". And unfortunately I did not really know what a good deal was....

I think the positive was that I started with low cost watches $100-300 and then move up to high cost $300-500 so the damage was not too bad from a financial sense. For example, I bought an vintage JLC with a slightly bent lug and an over patina dial. I think I paid $400 and the sold it for the same price, so really I was out the ebay fees. I also bought a franken, and I think I paid about $375, but really only now worth the cost of the movement ($150)

I buy ones I really love in the best possible condition I can find. Used. I want all my watches to be keepers.

I should add that it took me 3+ years to figure this out and consequently I have about 5-7 watches I plan to sell.

 

For me, here in my country you pay in 12 installments almost every store who accept credit cards!

So that said I bought my first speedy in 12 installments of about $250 USD/month...

Just needed a little courage.

 

Luckily I started about 15 years ago when they were very affordable. Undervalued. Everyone was focused on Rolex. Purchased several Omegas and Heuers low and sold/traded up. Heck, I bought a nice SM300 for $500! I can't justify paying retail for any of them now. I agree with Tom that flea markets are a very good place to look for watches but you need to educated. Buy low and trade up to what you want.

 

Much like you, I am also a newbie collector. The best advice I have gotten from this forum is to spend within your means, do it at your own pace, and focus on quality rather than quantity. Being a student, I am currently living on a stipend of ~AUD2300. I usually set aside a small sum of money every month for watch buying after accounting for daily expenditure and savings. I buy only when I am close to my budget. So far, I am going at about 1 watch a year. So it is definitely do-able, just be patient and spend time researching before buying.

And please share pictures of your 6105!

 

There is value in knowledge, and I mean tangible, dollar value.

I have a few hobbies and a common denominator among them is my obsession with learning as much as I can about the recipients of my desire. What invariably happens is that you are at a flea market, second hand store, or even pawn shop, and you spot that rare item that you don't care for but you know to be worth twice the asking price. That $250 watch you don't care for can easily buy you the $500 one that you do at half price. Same thing with vintage cameras, vintage bikes, or anything else you become familiar with.

 

I am not sure if it is allowed to post a live link, but I have one of them listed on Ebay so I can fund an Omega

http://www.ebay.com/itm/391236538011?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network

 

Somebody has to say it, If you can get that sort of money for an old banged up Seiko, well I'll call myself an Astronaught.

 

This I could not resist .... At least we have kept up our appearances

But seriously: it took me 6 years of saving, learning and 'not buying'. And I am very picky at what to buy, it is OK when it takes time.

 

Like you I also have kids but, in my case, they are a team of filipino children working round the clock shifts in a sweat shop to pay for my watches.