The Cost of Collecting

I thought everyone was sick and tired of seeing my 2254, but here it is.

I just really, really like this watch even after owning it for 5 or 6 years I still stop and look at it and think " damn that is a beautiful watch!". If I buy another watch it has to be an Omega under 800-1000 dollars, and those don`t grow on trees, because I simply don`t need another watch. Only time I miss another watch is when I post a picture of the same watch again and again.

Ah very nice! I had my sights set on one of those but then I fell for the Gen 3. If you’re only going to have one watch it’s hard to choose something better than a 2254. I can see why you don’t want to take it off!

I had never thought I was a collector, but then when I looked back and went through a thorough analysis, I realized it all started some 50 years ago when a close friend of my parents helped me get my first watch : one of the first ss quartz Seiko : must have been 13 yo then... he was one of the top executives of WEMPE, one of the biggest luxury watch distributors in Europe; he then helped me get my engagement present some years later, a 18k dressie Tank from Chopard : at that point, I gently acquired some milestone watch models : a legendary straight ss Reverso GT, an iconic Tritium Speedy, but also a lovely T18 Churchill which has just been restored (the first movement that went in space, well before the Speedy... check Y. Gagarin), a gorgeous NOS Seiko diver's Pepsi SKX09 ... and last but not least, a few pocket watches : a Broad Arrow my grand-father had in 1916 when he fought on the WW1 front near Reims, the stunning 1965 ultra-thin Tissot my father attached every morning to his vest before going to his office... I love them all, for distinct reasons, wear them all on regular basis.
And I strongly suspect that there will soon be a couple of Connies added to my tiny but varied collection and why not also a Suverän and a Seamaster ! But Connies will come first.
The common point to all these : there must be a historical background, would it be linked to the history of watch production, or just family related. And I have now become an Omega addict since I first spotted the Constellation a year ago.

I don't see myself as a "collector". I buy what I like and that's it. My perspective on price has changed a bit but I doubt I'd own a watch over 20K. I love using my money for other things like vacations and other hobbies.

I enjoy musing on what these objects can mean to us. I think you've hit on a strong part of the allure of vintage collecting. For me, it also intersects with simply being very mindful of the passage of time, how I choose to spend it, and also the watch becomes a keepsake of all the times I've worn it. Sometimes, I'll go to try and offload a watch for sale, but when I pick it up, I get a rush of memories of all the stuff I did while wearing it, while also wondering about all the adventures it went on before I acquired it... after which the silly contraption goes back into the watch box.

So, perhaps it's part nostalgia for times that we never lived, but also nostalgia for times that we have experienced, and a reminder to use our time wisely as we build new memories.

I hope this doesn't sound too much like ad copywriting for Patek or something. I like thinking about this stuff, but it may all just come complex rationalization for conspicuous consumption. 😁

Turns out to be a really interesting thread.

My perspective is slightly different - although my collection is extremely small - the cost is mostly around time, rather than money (also because I haven’t spent big tickets… yet).

The reality is that hunting down watches takes a serious amount of daily time to follow auctions, sales, do some research etc. Between a fairly demanding job and kids, I find it hard to spend more than a few minutes a day on this, although I would happily spend more money than my current budget for watches.

Depending on your targets, one may say that watch hunting would probably require more time than cash for most hunters.

My wife and I make decent, but not extravagant, money. We live frugally otherwise. This is my one indulgence. I limit myself to two piece a year. This is how I could collect watches over the years.