Hi All

Apologies if this already exists as a thread elsewhere, but I thought it would be interesting to start a thread on undervalued / under appreciated watches. I know we have threads for overpriced and overpolished watches, but not, as far as I can see, for undervalued ones.

The only stipulations for posts are:
- it should be a brand or species, and not about a single watch
- you should say why you think it’s undervalued
- there is a blanket ban on Invicta

Heres my contribution:

Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Air Command GMT
These seem to languish on eBay for around £3.5-4K. Identical mechanics to the “normal” Fifty Fathoms
which sell for double. This has a GMT and silver bezel, which is reminiscent of the Rolex Yachtmaster... so a lot of bang for the buck but perhaps it’s the looks that put people off? Example below

 

Oh, Hema for sure! Good movements, lots of case/dial/hand choices. Very under-rated. Going stratospheric RSN.






Heh, Heh, Heh. When it's quintupled in price I sell and then that's another Carrera for me

 

In fact (as opposed to my pump & dump fiction) Hema had a wide range of watches, but their speciality seems to have been chronos. There are zillions of "brands" and I'd never heard of Hema until looking at this one in a cafe in London and handing over a very reasonable number of banknotes. You want a real dark horse? Go to Mikrolisk, stick a pin in (not literally you'll ruin your computer screen) and you've made a better bet than a lottery ticket.


If I had the money I'd be putting it into 1960s Carreras. I still have the invoice for this one at GBP31+change (yes, I've owned it from new ) and what is it worth now?

 

Some food for thought:
https://omegaforums.net/threads/underrated.15672/
https://omegaforums.net/threads/underestimated-brands.23378/
https://omegaforums.net/threads/vintage-iwc-undervalued-dress-watches.93397/
https://omegaforums.net/threads/zenith-and-girard-perregaux-are-underrated.64682/
https://omegaforums.net/threads/most-underrated-high-end-brand-girard-perregaux.83416/
https://omegaforums.net/threads/post-your-most-underrated-or-unpopular-watch-from-any-maker.49577/

 

So you're saying this is a new topic?

 

Yet you start out with a specific watch. Or is this a “do as I say, not as I do” type thread.

 

Err... sorry if I was unclear - I posted the photo as an example - there are others on eBay... I was suggesting that the whole range of Blancpain Air Command GMTs as a whole are undervalued.

What I meant was not to post any one individual specific watch being undervalued.

A few years ago I might have also added the Nivada Chronomaster and Seiko Pogue to the list..

 

Vintage Grand Seikos and Jumbo Memovoxes

 

Hands down...Bucherer Chronometers...typically under $200.

 

+1 for 60s manual wins carreras after the big fall post Heuer parade

 

I’ll take it off you for £310 - see you’ve made your money back ten times over. How can you say no?

 

RODANIA made some very attractive high quality watches... These watches are rare, but not very sought after so far. Maybe the Geometer is one of the exceptions, but this, most likely because of its visible relationship to the Speedmaster.

If I should ever decide to go for a second brand, that might be RODANIA. I like many of the styles and the rarity.

 

Include 70’s Carreras…



And 90’s Universal Geneve…

 

This is not a high-end example, but I think that vintage Certina is a hugely under-appreciated brand. Some of their dive-watches on are collectors' radar, but even those are arguably undervalued. Their vintage offerings were very well-made, and even included some in-house movements.

 

Doxa dive watches. Don't see much of it on wrists but they can do anything a Rolex tool watch can at a lot less. The Searambler is a personal favourite with a dial reminiscent of the Tudor Monte Carlo.

 

This fella says hello...

And you're right about the quality. These things are built like sea-going tanks and beautifully finished to boot. Looks like the company has recently changed hands but very happy with mine, super legible and comfy despite the weight.

 

I guess Triton watches especially the spirotechnique are undervalued. I love the interesting design with the parmentier crown at 12, hinged upper lug and the cool looking bezel. The watch has a rich heritage associated with captain Cousteau and has been issued to the Marine Nationale and even to the US navy i believe.
The watch used to cost more than a rolex sub back in the sixties and seems to be scarcer too. Maybe one day it'll see a huge surge in prices just like the Rodania Geometer did.. who knows...


Photo credits : Analogshift.com

 

Girard Perregaux from the late 90's and early 2000's
Can be found for $3K upwards.
Excellent cases and dials , plus reliable Eta or GP movements.