Is it just me?

I find it odd that many who post on this board are of the opinion that a watch was meant to be worn, so full speed ahead, and damn the torpedoes. In many cases, after years of neglect and abuse, the owner has fallen in love with the watch, and ,too late, has decided they want it “restored”. They have succeeded it beating the watch down to the point that it is likely cannot be repaired, or is not worth repair, or otherwise would not interest a discerning buyer were it to be offered for sale. I believe that a “restored” watch is not likely ever going to be as “perfect” as one that has just been unwrapped. So we are left with our choices.......somewhere between right out of the box, and what it left of a used one after it has suffered years of neglect and abuse. In a recent submission to this message board, a proud owner of a 100 year old wrist watch tells of how he had to accumulate parts out of three or four donor watches, in order to end up with the really nice watch that he now enjoys. Not a lot of folks have that kind of dedication.

Unless a person is buying a new watch, how much less than perfect must a watch be before we decide whether to buy or not, is a personal decision. Perfect or otherwise, my main focus is whether a watch is interesting or not. I am happy with one that is less than perfect if I find it interesting, but I won’t buy abused watches. However, there are exceptions there, too. An Omega that I enjoy today, was acquired as a basket case. The difference between the Omega that I originally acquired, and the Omega I enjoy today, is night and day.

There’s folks out there who just want their daily companion restored. Rolex probably gets dozens back per day for this purpose. VC, JLC, PP and some others offer restoration services. We have examples on OF and they are stunning.