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Canuck
·There is a difference between use and ABuse. Your grandfather obviously used the watch, but it is apparent he did not ABUSE it! Good looking watch. He knew to spare it when the going got rough.
Vintage watch wearing
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noelekal
··Home For Wayward WatchesUntil I bought a new Seiko this year the newest watch on hand was a 24 year old Seiko quartz that I am sentimental about, but scarcely ever wear. Everything else here is 35 to 90 years old and those are the ones I rely on.
I have good luck with vintage watches. I'm not hard on them, except for one vintage Glycine beater which I still give due respect, but once serviced they all give trouble free service.
I have good luck with vintage watches. I'm not hard on them, except for one vintage Glycine beater which I still give due respect, but once serviced they all give trouble free service.
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Flip
·Mostly I wear vintage, certainly so in the last handful of years and have used screw back cases as a rule of thumb for regular wearers. Snap back cases are for occasional wear only.
I always try to avoid rain, which here in the U.K. isn’t always an easy thing to do ! I’ve often taken my watch off and pocketed it when rain starts or looked like some loon in the street with my arm stuck up my polo shirt in a desperate attempt to keep my watch dry !! 😁
I always try to avoid rain, which here in the U.K. isn’t always an easy thing to do ! I’ve often taken my watch off and pocketed it when rain starts or looked like some loon in the street with my arm stuck up my polo shirt in a desperate attempt to keep my watch dry !! 😁
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Rochete
·I only wear vintage. Everyday.
This today:
This today:
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Seaborg
·Vintage = Patina = Unique
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Davidt
·I don't check the weather if I'm wearing vintage, I check what I'm doing. My colllection has more modern pieces right now than ever, but for a good while I had only vintage and still wore a watch 14 hours a day 9 days out of ten.
Nowadays, if I'm in the office I'll often wear vintage. If I get caught in the rain when walking to lunch I'll make sure my watch is under my cuff. Every now and again I'll pop it in my pocked if it's torrential.
If I'm working in the garden, having a day at the beach, meeting contractors on site where I might end up getting my hands dirty etc, I'm wearing modern.
Nowadays, if I'm in the office I'll often wear vintage. If I get caught in the rain when walking to lunch I'll make sure my watch is under my cuff. Every now and again I'll pop it in my pocked if it's torrential.
If I'm working in the garden, having a day at the beach, meeting contractors on site where I might end up getting my hands dirty etc, I'm wearing modern.
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airansun
·When I started wearing the watches that I’m still wearing, they weren’t vintage. 😀
And they weren’t particularly valuable either. 👍
(With me for over 30 years. $425 invested. I wore this for years, including most of the time I accumulated 200,000 motorcycle miles. It was in more than one m/c accident with me; unlike me, it was never injured.)
I’m not gonna stop wearing them just because a new adjective has been affixed to them. 📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖 😒
And, I’m trying not to treat them as precious, even though some people are willing to pay serious money for some of them. 😲
I’ll leave it to my children to worry about whether to wear them or not. 😉
Confession: I do wear this one at night, a newbie with active lume. 🥰
But that’s it. Other than this IWC, I don’t think a new watch (post 2000) has been on my wrist in over twelve months. 😁
Most of the watches I wear are from the 60’s and 70’s. If I have to do work outside or I’m cooking, I wear this. 😝
Watches are a consumable item, maybe not as rapidly and totally as wine, but we are consuming them, make no mistake. 🤔
It’s bad enough that these changes make my safe deposit box a necessity. I won’t stop wearing them. 🤦
Because, I buy watches to wear them. The same way I bought vintage fountain pens to use. My daily fountain pen is from around 1895 or so. 😜
Imprints are the name of the game in very early, hard rubber, eyedropper fill Watermans. 🤪
I looked for one of these, a Waterman 26, for over twenty years. Finally found this on eBay a couple of years ago.
(And, oh yeah - some of the clothing that I wear has turned into vintage too, also while I’ve been wearing it. But, I’m pretty sure all my underwear is post-vintage. 😟)
😗
[That was fun!]
And they weren’t particularly valuable either. 👍
(With me for over 30 years. $425 invested. I wore this for years, including most of the time I accumulated 200,000 motorcycle miles. It was in more than one m/c accident with me; unlike me, it was never injured.)
I’m not gonna stop wearing them just because a new adjective has been affixed to them. 📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖 😒
And, I’m trying not to treat them as precious, even though some people are willing to pay serious money for some of them. 😲
I’ll leave it to my children to worry about whether to wear them or not. 😉
Confession: I do wear this one at night, a newbie with active lume. 🥰
But that’s it. Other than this IWC, I don’t think a new watch (post 2000) has been on my wrist in over twelve months. 😁
Most of the watches I wear are from the 60’s and 70’s. If I have to do work outside or I’m cooking, I wear this. 😝
Watches are a consumable item, maybe not as rapidly and totally as wine, but we are consuming them, make no mistake. 🤔
It’s bad enough that these changes make my safe deposit box a necessity. I won’t stop wearing them. 🤦
Because, I buy watches to wear them. The same way I bought vintage fountain pens to use. My daily fountain pen is from around 1895 or so. 😜
Imprints are the name of the game in very early, hard rubber, eyedropper fill Watermans. 🤪
I looked for one of these, a Waterman 26, for over twenty years. Finally found this on eBay a couple of years ago.
(And, oh yeah - some of the clothing that I wear has turned into vintage too, also while I’ve been wearing it. But, I’m pretty sure all my underwear is post-vintage. 😟)
😗
[That was fun!]
Edited:
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vintage hab
·
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SkunkPrince
·Like many, I don't treat my vintage any differently. I have no issue wearing 100-year old wristwatches and that they are not shockproof worries me not at all. I did break a glass crystal once but I'm half-blind and flail about sometimes. Replaced it with plastic.
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nicks
·Only vintage except a Swiss Army quartz beater for the beach. Rain has never bothered any of them. I take off my watch doing dishes.
The only damage I've ever done was to a 1920s watch, built before Incabloc shock protection was invented. Balance staff.... Can't imagine how many zillions in watch repair costs were saved by Incabloc.
The only damage I've ever done was to a 1920s watch, built before Incabloc shock protection was invented. Balance staff.... Can't imagine how many zillions in watch repair costs were saved by Incabloc.
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JwRosenthal
·Vintage = Patina = Unique
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DanT
·I always wear my vintage watches - the biggest danger in my experience isn't water ingress from rain or water splashes but putting it in a pocket and then accidentally dropping it. So keep it on your wrist, that's what it was designed for!
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DanT
·My grandfather wore this Seamaster every day for over 50 years.
He spent half his year in suburban Ohio, and the other half of the year on the family farm.
So he would wear it while, yes, chopping wood and cutting down pine trees. Working on the tractor. Herding the cattle on the 4-wheeler.
Anything. And from what he says, it never had a service lol.
The man worked till he was about 88 before my family literally forced him to stop.
He will be 94 in May. And his watch (now belonging to me), has been retired to desk diving a couple times a month.
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tgeekb
·I'mim ad
I have a collection of fountain pens also. Don't use them as much as I should but certainly enjoy them!
When I started wearing the watches that I’m still wearing, they weren’t vintage. 😀
And they weren’t particularly valuable either. 👍
(With me for over 30 years. $425 invested. I wore this for years, including most of the time I accumulated 200,000 motorcycle miles. It was in more than one m/c accident with me; unlike me, it was never injured.)
I’m not gonna stop wearing them just because a new adjective has been affixed to them. 📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖 😒
And, I’m trying not to treat them as precious, even though some people are willing to pay serious money for some of them. 😲
I’ll leave it to my children to worry about whether to wear them or not. 😉
Confession: I do wear this one at night, a newbie with active lume. 🥰
But that’s it. Other than this IWC, I don’t think a new watch (post 2000) has been on my wrist in over twelve months. 😁
Most of the watches I wear are from the 60’s and 70’s. If I have to do work outside or I’m cooking, I wear this. 😝
Watches are a consumable item, maybe not as rapidly and totally as wine, but we are consuming them, make no mistake. 🤔
It’s bad enough that these changes make my safe deposit box a necessity. I won’t stop wearing them. 🤦
Because, I buy watches to wear them. The same way I bought vintage fountain pens to use. My daily fountain pen is from around 1895 or so. 😜
Imprints are the name of the game in very early, hard rubber, eyedropper fill Watermans. 🤪
I looked for one of these, a Waterman 26, for over twenty years. Finally found this on eBay a couple of years ago.
(And, oh yeah - some of the clothing that I wear has turned into vintage too, also while I’ve been wearing it. But, I’m pretty sure all my underwear is post-vintage. 😟)
😗
[That was fun!]
I have a collection of fountain pens also. Don't use them as much as I should but certainly enjoy them!
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François Pépin
·I only wear vintages, even when I bike. But I take off my watch when I swimm or cook as mine are not water proof.
I think the issue concerning water and moisture is not really the vintage thing, but rather the actual water resistance of the watch. Obviously, vintages are often less water resistant, some watches (most of the clip cases for instance) being absolutely not water proof. But if you have an old watch designed to be water proof, if is the case is in good condition, AND if you have it maintainened and tested for water resistance, I do not see any issue.
I also think many watch enthousiasts give too much importance to the lack of anti-shock systems. It really depends on what you are doing, but unless you practice sports or have a physical job, I do not see any issue wearing your old watches without anti-shock protection. I do it all the time - but I am a teacher... I only brocke one balance pivot, and that was when I droped a pocket watch!
I think there is another point to consider: is your watch glod plated? The plating of an old watch cas easily be dammaged. In the first place, I try to avoid glod plated watch as the plating usually wear too quickly, but I do own a few 80 microns and gold filled watches. I am a little more carefull with these watches.
I think the issue concerning water and moisture is not really the vintage thing, but rather the actual water resistance of the watch. Obviously, vintages are often less water resistant, some watches (most of the clip cases for instance) being absolutely not water proof. But if you have an old watch designed to be water proof, if is the case is in good condition, AND if you have it maintainened and tested for water resistance, I do not see any issue.
I also think many watch enthousiasts give too much importance to the lack of anti-shock systems. It really depends on what you are doing, but unless you practice sports or have a physical job, I do not see any issue wearing your old watches without anti-shock protection. I do it all the time - but I am a teacher... I only brocke one balance pivot, and that was when I droped a pocket watch!
I think there is another point to consider: is your watch glod plated? The plating of an old watch cas easily be dammaged. In the first place, I try to avoid glod plated watch as the plating usually wear too quickly, but I do own a few 80 microns and gold filled watches. I am a little more carefull with these watches.
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JwRosenthal
·But if you have an old watch designed to be water proof, if is the case is in good condition, AND if you have it maintained and tested for water resistance, I do not see any issue.
Most people think because it was waterproof when it left the factory, it still is. We see this constantly with vintage pieces that have damaged dials and moldy lume- the seals degraded and the owner didn’t have it serviced- they got sweaty or wet and moisture got in.
Even if you have the seals replaced, the caseback can have corrosion around the seal (some people have low ph and their sweat can be very corrosive to some stainless) and the back won’t make a firm seal.
Without an actual pressure test by a watchmaker, I would assume any watch over 20+/- years old isn’t waterproof anymore.
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Ascalon
·I asked this very question recently.
I had a 70s Mark II fully serviced.
The horologist said that the gasket seats in all cases were clean with no pitting or corrosion. With properly installed gaskets there is no reason to believe it is any less water resistant than it was originally, he reckoned.
In fact, the materials on use in the gaskets are a damn sight better than they were 50 years ago, so it may well be a wee bit better.
While I'm not going swimming with it, I shan't be precious about it either.
I had a 70s Mark II fully serviced.
The horologist said that the gasket seats in all cases were clean with no pitting or corrosion. With properly installed gaskets there is no reason to believe it is any less water resistant than it was originally, he reckoned.
In fact, the materials on use in the gaskets are a damn sight better than they were 50 years ago, so it may well be a wee bit better.
While I'm not going swimming with it, I shan't be precious about it either.
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Dan S
·I asked this very question recently.
I had a 70s Mark II fully serviced.
The horologist said that the gasket seats in all cases were clean with no pitting or corrosion. With properly installed gaskets there is no reason to believe it is any less water resistant than it was originally, he reckoned.
In fact, the materials on use in the gaskets are a damn sight better than they were 50 years ago, so it may well be a wee bit better.
While I'm not going swimming with it, I shan't be precious about it either.
It may be perfectly fine, but "reckoning" isn't as good as an actual pressure test. The water-resistance depends on more than new gaskets, including the condition of the sealing surfaces, and also whether the crown and pushers were replaced.
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JwRosenthal
·It may be perfectly fine, but "reckoning" isn't as good as an actual pressure test. The water-resistance depends on more than new gaskets, including the condition of the sealing surfaces, and also whether the crown and pushers were replaced.
Just be smart about it- this is like taking a 60’s Porsche on a cross country rally- sure, you can haul out of your garage and probably make it- but I would want a full service and inspection before it left.
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Franco
·I wear my vintage watches in all occasions, almost. I do not use them on a beach or boat, and do not use them when I travel. I have a trusty ORIS Worldtimer for that
