Great initiative and organization efforts from @Jonatan, a Swiss GTG happened in Lausanne last saturday. A great location - Brasserie de Montbenon - to meet, have some beers and enjoy a fine lunch. Nothing better then a draft Hoegaarden while waiting for all the guys to join From the very first minute I got killed by that ridiculously nice IWC, that patina on the dial is amazing At the very beginning, we didn't really know how to start - whether we should put all the watches on the table and start talking or take them out one by one, pass over and tell stories if there are any to share. The Ultimate Speedmaster Exhibition book from Davidoff Brothers was a way to start conversations about rare watches and suddenly different Speedmasters arrived on the table. Who would have expected to see and touch a 2915? Well... it happened very quickly. The level was set very high from the early beginning on. Lunch ordered, we had to make some space on the tables to allow a room for the dishes. Right after lunch I was personally very excited to see one of my grail watches popping up, especially in that condition and on a Gay Frères steel bracelet - wow And a bunch of other vintage Zenith watches : Than a very nice collection of vintage Universal Geneve's General surprise : the one and the only Rolex of the GTG - that gorgeous vintage Sea Dweller : Great collections out there : Back to Omegas I've had in my hands and took time to shoot and - you know my bias - yeah there have been a lot of Speedmasters I tried to make as many pictures as possible but there have been simple too many watches there - no time to make closer shots of all of them, sorry for the owners, all watches would have deserved a portrait and a space here. Taking pictures was nice but networking, sharing, listening, learning were priority So, we've spent four hours together around the table. Personally I didn't notice the time flying by - it was simply too short Before we leave we took time to put the pile together for a quick group shot, look at that : Besides watches, this has been a perfect opportunity to meet forum members and I've been really surprised how open-minded our small committee was. I've had great time that last saturday and will for sure make everything possible to join the next SwissGTG - again, @Jonatan thanks for the initiative and thanks to others for all the stories shared
Amazing GTG, the photos are top notch Kov! That 2915 and UG is out of this world! Looks like a lot of fun!
Thanks KOV for the pics and thanks Jon for making it happened! It is a very good description of the GTG, which was the first for me as for many others around the table! We had great fun around all those watches and everyone shared a little of his interest and collection which was great! Hopefully we will have another chance to meet!
Many thanks to Jonatan for making it happen and to Kov for the very nice pics. It has been a pleasure to meet all of you guys and discuss watches. I am looking forward to the next meeting! Cheers to all !!
Thanks everyone for coming out and for @kov for the journalism. As mentioned, it was a first for many of us, and I think we were all a little shy at the beginning, but the ice was broken rapidly. We attracted a lot of attention from the staff at the restaurant but luckily no connaisseurs! I've added a few lower quality pictures. It was nice meeting everyone and putting a face to the screen names.
Thanks Jonatan for organizing, and everyone for showing up This was the first such session I attended, people were friendly, the watches were varied and gorgeous, and I've learnt a ton. Everyone was sharing anecdotes, and was happy to learn from fellow watch enthusiasts. Thanks also for making my dad, who was a bit of a surprise guest, feel welcome. We don't have many father/son moments, and he was delighted that his sometimes neglecting son invited him to this, as he does share an interest for watches with us. Thanks Tony for entertaining him most of the time Most of us had collections centered around different things, we had the LE speedmaster Guru, a Zenith afficionado, a UG hoarder (but for good reasons etc... I've seen pictures of Panerai-focused GTG and they were so boring, whereas these few hours were fantastic! I snapped a couple of pics but they don't hold a candle to the ones above, thanks Kov Thanks for everything, and take care y'all! Paul (Jr. and Sr.)
Nice pics, great story and of course, awesome watches! Congratulations, guys. What was that Gallet with the white dial & black hands? What reference is it?
You mean this one, @aapalileo? However I have no clue of the exact reference, it should be from the early sixties and is powered by a Valjoux 7733. An unworn NOS piece I took out from the safe for this GTG.
Yes, it is very nice. Unfortunately, though, I put it on my wrist at the GTG, so it is now technically "near-NOS". Seriously, though. it was a fun GTG, and there were plenty of superb watches on display. Of all of the Speedmasters (and there were many), I liked the limited edition, all white dial Italian one that @kov owns. Outstanding! Cheers, Tony C.
Absolutely beautiful pieces. To have all those in one place is definitely a special moment in time. But among all the Speedmasters, one watch grabbed my attention right away. First photo, Gold Universal Genve UNI-COMPAX. Was hoping for more shoots of that one. While this forum has instilled in me a want for a Speedmaster, I am more drawn to the design shown in the UG. Wonderful GTG. I would have fell totally inadequate in such a group with my tiny fledgling collection. But maybe one day.
Just for the heck of it: anybody care to venture a guess on the $$$ of the collective old iron on the table? A kings random. ..
... and as my mother in law says way too often (it's a bit of a mantra, if you see what I mean) "and it isn't what it used to be"
