You, your definition.

Is it a simple calculus where there was an almost infinitesimal number of that particular watch ever produced (like under 100 or 50 or less).



Is it a combination of scarcity plus condition? For example: 196x's Rolex dive watches are the opposite of uncommon but true mint condition divers tend to be pretty rare, right?


How about provenance? It's pretty easy to track down down a mint condition 1960's Jim Clark but #curveball, say you found a Jim Clark that was owned and worn by...Jim Clark? That's rare, right?

What makes a watch rare to you?

Oh, and please feel free to share your most rare watch.

Thanks for playing!

 

I hear these are fetching top dollar recently. I can’t recall having seen many.


Sorry, couldn’t resist.

Consider this post in remembrance of the Squirrel, aka Dennis.

 

I type out all that shit and that's the best you come up with? Don't show up at the next NYC meat up

 

Oh, thank God airansun isn't some sperg'd out autiste and got the joke. We can be friends, I promise.

 

Why is a pig partially inserted into that cow's stomachs? Is this a new take on turduckens? A pow? A cig?

As far as 'rare' goes to me, it means in limited supply. Celebrity ownership does not make it rare to me, although it can add value.

 

Udderly insane putting a pig in a cow's stomach

 

I would qualify as most probably rare a watch that isn’t « yet another xxx » (where xxx stands for the model), something I have rarely or never seen or heard about. Something where my brain goes « WTF !? No way !! »



Can also be a common model in a totally uncommon condition considering its age. See true NOS pieces, I mean truly new old stock...



Or pieces with exceptional aging effects.



And for sure the very special super limited editions plus unicorns with special stories or provenance.

 

"Very Rare" Often misused (and I guess also over priced, at least in this case).




But on a more serious note. Even at 50 made, I have seen three sold over the years, so maybe not that rare.

 

mmmmmmmmmmm beer

 

This is my rarest watch. Standard 3017 movement, but this 'naked' dial, with no tachy or telemeter scales, appears to only have been available to the UK market between April and December 1966. How many were made? We'll never know.

 

Can only find traces of one of these. Sure, a lot of other Lemania made watches share bits found here....but I can’t find this exact configuration (or even similar subregister markings in those with a similar dial layout). I guess that describes ‘a good steak’...

 

Exerpted from “Darlinboy’s Dictionary of Horological Terms”

rare1
rer/
adjective

1. primarily used by eBay (and other online and bricks and mortar) sellers of various stripes to sell their all-too-common run-of-the-mill over-polished re-dialed pieces of crap. For reference, there were 28000+ “rare” watches available on eBay at the time of this entry.
   synonyms: POS, common as dirt, overpriced, frankened, put together, fake, counterfeit, dishonestly described

2. A polite descriptor used by me to compliment a fellow enthusiast’s relatively uncommon timepiece.
“Very nice! That’s a rare bird indeed”

3. (Archaic) Few were produced, top examples are extremely hard to find, and even if one were available you can’t afford it.



p.s. What the is a “meat up”? Some kind of trendy/kinky NYC club-scene thing?

 

Aah. The outstanding and extremely sought-after Women's MOO Watch. You can't put a price on that. Believe the hype!

 

Yeah. A NYC meat up looks like this. (Courtesy of Jacob Riis)

These guys are professional tenderizers. (Bandits Roost, off of Mulberry, a couple of blocks from Five Points, over 100 years ago.)




Sometimes, OF looks this way to some posters here.

 

If I go to Chrono24 and I can't find it, it's "rare" if less than 6, it's "uncommon". My own definition

 

Rare = out of my budget, look for something else

 

Rare is not always expensive, picked this original gold 1941 iwc for not too much!

 

lovely!