I came to this forum for speedmasters, but others have infected me with the finding joy in much less valuable things, and my hunt for these watches has provided me with perhaps more pleasure in the finding - I have found it satisfying to buy a watch (all off the net) with a poor photo, or in a small lot, or even just languishing unloved on a lackluster auction. So I have bought what I liked, as long as the price was that which I could afford to loose should it turn out to be a total turkey. Actually, so far only a couple or turkeys. All of which I sold on at .99 no reserve. These are the keepers, I think the most expensive was $350 apart from the Constellation.

Lets start with this:





It came with a full set, with papers and box, but they are tucked away, ill find them another time. It was so tempting to buy as it has the full set of papers with matching name on the back:
View attachment 663285

Next is this, I was tempted by the online photos that looked brown - as it turned out rather decayed to one side. Never mind I thought, I will just wear it...it worked after all. Until one night in Bangkok, the hand dryer blew the crystal right out of it. (It was a mechanical hand dryer...)



The back is quite nice,



These next two came off Ebay, ( no surprises ) and they were offered for a couple of hundred dollars each reserve on a bidding auction - I have no idea why I was the only bidder, its not usually a good sign, rather a sure sign something is off. Comments always welcome, you will never upset me at this price point!



Maybe a re done dial? I have not opened this one, and it is a bit small



and the next sub $300 from the same seller, even smaller.



Now this is interesting. I was crusing OF before all the WUS refuges found us and there was a Noob asking the Connie-Gods if he should buy a Constellation for $800. Someone, I cant remember who, said dont but that, buy this...and I watched the link, and after two days no one bought it so I did. It has a problem but its pretty.





Another really cheap one, in a 14k case. arrived with the second hand floating in the case:



And now a nice mottled dial:



Lets see some colour:


And another, again bought solely because I like the colour.





This one I know even less about, except as you can see it lives with a strap and gets worn.




So there you have my little non speedmaster collection, bought on whims and without any real knowledge, and still they give me pleasure.

So if anyone else has a watch they bought, without knowledge and yet gives pleasure, lets see it.

Lets flood this forum with fun threads, lets see watches that make you smile.

 

Lovely selection of vintage Omegas! Thanks for sharing. I have a piece or two that I bought for no reason other than I liked it!

 

Nice!

I certainly agree, it's always fun to buy under-appreciated watches on a whim at bargain prices...

Most of my 'whim' buys were before I was comfortable spending more on those that I researched... but I still have most of these 'bargain' beauties...

Two orange beauties (bought for the color, too!) from my first foray into watches on eBay.
Spent less than $200 for the two:




Saw this little over-polished CNG jewel hiding in the bottom of a display case on 42nd St., Manhattan... $100. Loved the indices!



This one I loved the dial. I wasn't sure if it was just speckle-patina, or an intentional 'marble-effect'; in real life it appears to be the latter:




A few others from eBay I found for a song 3-4 years ago:

...and I loved the lugs on this Juvenia from a private UK collector I somehow ran across 3-4 years ago:

 

Another 'affordable' from the same UK guy. Just 33mm, but a real looker of a Cyma:




Lastly, I got a great deal from @Alpha on this Alpina sweetie:

 

Hey dougie, I just bought a Mido Multifort! It doesn't have such handsome patina as yours but I like the arrowheads:

 

Oh, yeah, that's a great one, congratulations!

Makes me wanna hunt another one down...

 

Bought from my local antiques market here in Devon for £25..

 

I will stick to Omega, given the location of the OP.

Many have come and gone as my interests & focus continue to evolve. These remain...

and finally... my oldest by 50 years or more...
What the future holds, who can say?

 

Wonderful and extensive collection of three-handers @Spacefruit!

Here are my only current three-hand Omegas. I will refrain from posting non-Omegas in this thread. Interestingly they all have 30mm movements (30T2 or 265) from the late 1940s or early 1950s. While I appreciate the Seamasters and Constellations, the automatics and later time-only pieces, none have so far stuck in my collection.

 

Most of my early purchases and even now are made without a lot of knowledge, just an attraction to the design and price. I buy watches to wear and I am actually discovering I don't like finding a watch too precious to wear.

Here's a few that were bargains for me:

I love the elegance of this piece, IIRC it was about $200US:


I paid $100 for this lovely hand wind Bulova:

I paid $80 for this Unitas by Auguste Reynard and $250 for the service. I am now the proud owner of a great running $90 watch:

Now I paid a bit more for this old cal. 354 bumper, but well south of $500. The hands may or may not be the original ones but I don't care and I love how lively the hammer in this one is; plus the creamy patina really gets me:

 

You may have found the ideal avatar when you expand into Seafruit:

 

Those few words are the very embodiment of this hobby.

Every watch I own has spoken to me. Every watch I've brought back to life has thanked me. Every watch I've sold has been a loss I've physically felt. That said, I've been excited for the last three days at just the thought of buying a broken watch that's being auctioned later this week. It is an addiction.

Here's the latest watch I bought and by far one of the cheapest, but still so cute .... I hope to be able to post a photo of the one that's keeping me awake by the weekend.

 

three handers... it is really the only way to go...




and then there's




or 2 hands?

 

These two make me smile

My only Seiko ($120) and a Omega Geneve (£300)

Its always the little things that bring joy

 

I wanted a Record watch with an example of the swan logo on its dial. Well, I got one for well under $100 in an Ebay auction.


For those "alarming" occasions. Another Ebay auction when no one else was paying attention to a quite nice Favre Leuba Sea Bird. Surprisingly useful in the suitcase when traveling.


Not too many in Texas do the MuDu.


Not too many in Texas do Smiths either.


A late 1940s Longines with 27M movement in its 18kt rose gold case. A memorable purchase at a car boot sale in Wakefield West Yorkshire. Under £100 it was ... in the late 1990s.


This tired ol' 1954 vintage wheezer of a 344 introduced me to the whimsy of Omega bumper movements. Picked up on Ebay for cheap, it cleaned up to be quite elegant and an accurate watch as well.










One good bumper deserves another. A late '40s 351 for a "real deal" on Ebay. I've hit a homer with Omega bumpers and extreme accuracy as this one's also very accurate.


This 1944 Omega Jumbo with 30T2 was a victim of unfortunate photography and description in its Ebay auction. Picked up for $180-something, it makes me happy each time it is worn. Really nice mechanically.

Auction Photo




It's all happy now.

 

One of my favourites out of the cal.30 flock

 

A bunch still not in the picture

 

I love these threads with the express purpose of showing even more watches!

I have also ended up with several simple 3-handers since joining OF.

None are particularly valuable, I didn’t get any of them for a great price, but I enjoy them all.

The one I actively pursued, paid far too much for, and absolutely love.. (could not get my phone to focus on the dial or hands... no matter how hard I tried)


A similar dial that was beautifully reluminated.

The nicest Patina in my collection.


The best value (I’m shocked these aren’t more popular)... and I think they would be if everyone saw the incredible photos @Jwit shared on IG!


My special 666 diver meticulously restored by @Archer , love this dial!


And a wine-induced Ebay purchase I blame on the in-flight Wi-Fi ... I love the look of it but it’s really too small for me to wear.

 

Thank you for the kind words! I suppose I can share it here as well... this is @R3D9 ‘s UG FS I played with during lunch a few weeks ago