hi guys, my name is Paul, I am from Germany and I am a huge Omega Fan since I saw the beautiful SM in 007 GoldenEye.

I am starting a little collection at the moment and I gave myselfe a limit of 12.000 Dollars for the first years.

So my question: If you had 12.000 Dollars for OMEGA watches. What would you buy? Please explain your choice.

 

Why don't you just start small and get yourself the same Seamaster worn in Goldeneye?

 

Hi Paul

If you are happy with 1 watch :

105.012-65. It is the first watch worn on the moon, and the great grandfather of all current moon-watches.

If you would prefer three watches :

your james bond seamaster, a relatively modern (90's tritium) moonwatch, a flightmaster -> all popular stylish classics.

If you don't like any of the above, but love the Omega dress watches :

you can most likely buy many.

Whatever you decide to do regardless :

spend at least 3 months actively lurking here first, learning as much as you can (look at threads discussing the watches you are interested in, a lot of members post a lot of valuable insights which when taken correctly are quite educational) about whatever watch you decide upon, so that when the time comes to pull the trigger, you are confident about what you are doing and don't make any expensive mistakes. You can also post a watch to be vetted, but if you do, please provide your thoughts on it first (i.e. don't just ask 'what about this one guys') as we want to see the fruits of our time assisting you are actually making you aware of the things you should be aware of.

Welcome to the OF

PS: pick an avatar as well

 

$12.00? Possibly a NATO or cheap leather strap?

You'll need a couple of hundred minimum for an actual Omega watch.

 

Personal opinion but I would go :
Vintage Speedmaster - for everyday use
Vintage Constellation - for formal wear
Modern Seamaster - for the beach and swimming)

Go on holiday with the change

 

Whether it is old or new, and unless you want to make a profit by continually flipping watches, then my one and only piece of advice is buy what YOU like, not what other people say you should like.

 

First rush out headlong and buy the first pre-78 speedmaster that catches your eye.

Then wear it everyday until it breaks, or not, and in the meantime read this forum everyday and discover how good or bad your impulse purchase was.

Then move on and buy a better watch, any one, using the knowledge gained , one that gives you pleasure when you look at it. Then repeat the above in the second paragraph.

Welcome.

I hope your marriage is ready.


I realize this is against all the advice, but is what most of us have done to a large extent. I mean come on, research for three months? Who does that!

I know some do, but I don’t understand them

 

Buy as many constellations and seamasters from the 50-60s in the best condition you can get.

My explanation below.

 

If I had $12,000 and were forced to spend it on watch related merchandise, I'd use some of the money to buy at least a case of this:




It seems it's needed more than ever.

 

Are the newly imposed tariffs forcing you to purchase this from GB?

 

Luckily, there are still some retailers in the US with stock left.

 

$12 I'd buy a nato strap.

 

Hmmm. 12k. Ok. Here it goes:

Seamaster 120 166.027 2k
Constellation SS pie pan 1,5k
Constellation gold pie pan 2,5 k
Seamaster 600 SS 0,5 k
New speedmaster 3,5k
SMDV 14k 1k
Seamaster 168.024 1k

 

Ah. Pictures:

 

Welcome to the boards.

The only add on I would throw in is, whenever possible, TRY ON candidate timepieces in person. This will ensure you'll know how it looks on your wrist.

 

One of the most simple pieces of advice in watch collecting.

When I started in on vintage collecting. I was more about quantity. Lots of lower priced pieces that I liked. My collection is now moving away from that and into fewer, but rarer. I have been fortunate that my early choices were fairly good ones and I have seen modest profits from these watches as they have been sold off to buy higher end pieces.
With $12,000 to work with you certainly have options. With more money comes more risk, so I would advise, start slow and smaller priced. Your tastes will change.

 

I would suggest to think of the uses/occasions you want to wear the watches and think about what fits what you need.

One for everyday use - what suits what you do/wear daily?...maybe a tool/diver?
One for wearing smart/casual?
One to wear with shirt/jacket
Suit/tie
Dress

I'd consider a Planet Ocean / 2254
A Speedmaster
An Aqua Terra
And one of the lovely looking Seamaster 600's photo'd above

As said above though; lots to choose from, so research and view/try if possible.

Have fun!

 

Get the golden eye Bond SM300. It’s what you like dude, not what others like.

 

I would buy a Base 1000 bezel and wear it as a neclace

 

To echo what others have said, when it comes to exactly which watches to buy you should get exactly what you like. I won't throw any watches in for you to consider, but I will share what my process has been to date (as someone relatively new to this madness).

The first question to consider is why $12k and is that a lot of money to you? So that's two questions. I start with those because for me any Omega-level watch is a lot of money so I'm not likely to make frequent purchases. I'm also not eager to sell (likely at a loss) to buy something else. So I want to be really sure each one I buy is the watch I want most (in my price range) or keep saving to buy the watch I really want. I also second the comment to try watches on. Try ones on you think you'll like. Try on watches you aren't sure about. Be particular. Is the thickness bothering you after 60 seconds on the wrist? If so, how often are you really going to wear it if you buy it? What is it about Omega that you are drawn to? The Bond connection? If so, what about Rolex?

The dilemma I'm in right now is that I am really interested in the original Speedy Tuesday. I am also strongly drawn to certain vintage Speedmasters (something about the applied logo). There's a pretty significant difference between those two even though they are the same model line. This is something I will be thinking about a lot before making my next purchase.

Finally, have fun. I only have three watches at this point and want about 20 more. But the journey to this point (over the last 18 months) has been amazing between this forum, certain watch websites and the local collector community.