Was just wondering what watches you guys have gotten on special occasions or maybe what has been passed down to you through family? I know that my watches definitely hold some serious sentimental value far beyond the monetary worth of the pieces.
Only (2) out of (xxx) would fit your description: The 1603 my wife gave me as a wedding gift and my dads retirement watch. I care about the rest of them the same way they care about me...
I got my Air King for my 21st, 19 years ago. I've also just got my dad's old Datejust that he's had since the early 80`s. I'm about to send it off for a service and a replacement crown & crystal (to Simon Freese, not Rolex don't worry. )
Well, I bought my Speedy to celebrate my 30th birthday as well as the birth of my first child less than a month later. It was a gift from my wife but we all know who really bought it . The Hamilton Khaki Auto I'm wearing today was a gift from my Dad as a late getting a job after graduating college gift. I also have a Seiko chrono. of some sort that was given to me by my wife's parents for Christmas which was a few days before our wedding. So I wore that on my wedding day.
I had to buy my first "proper"watch myself but constantly dropping hints what I'd like for my 40th, to give my wife time to save up!
I got my Grandfather's Seiko when he died 20yrs ago. I can't remember him not wearing this thing, whether it was golfing, working on cars, working around the house, this watch has been through it all. It may be a cheap watch, but it took a crazy amount of beating yet still works like a champ, there's 2 watches in my collection that I will never get rid of, this is one of them. I set it to the day and time that he passed and pulled the battery out, I wear it 1 day a year, his Birthday. When I wear it, it makes me feel connected to him and that is something I can't put a value on.
Among the many, this Accutron 214 from 1964 (54 years old) was a gift from my late father. Wore it on our wedding day in 1966. Got caught in a cloudburst while waiting in line to get into the Czech pavilion, at Expo in Montreal in 1967. If you guessed that it got quite wet, your are right. It was my full time watch until I started collecting watches in 1976. Worn only sporadically since then. Has had major work, an identical replacement dial, and many parts to preserve it. Looks and runs like new.