Watch treasure hunting report

JwRosenthal · Feb 21, 2023

janice&fred
Time I paid more attention to this thread and hopefully others will post finds as well. Here's a piece out of our latest box from the South Pacific. This is a rather forlorn looking chronograph that our team of fast females got from another unsuspecting neighbor in Guadalupe Cebu City. Well, typical of the suburban neighborhoods in that area the accurate name would be Guadalupe Heights Village, Barangay Banawa, Guadalupe, Cebu City 😁

Anyways here she is in all it's grungy glory...

As one can see, the grunge is deposited in every crevice. The watch has been long-forgotten and according to the owner he had problems with the center second hand falling off so he eventually had it removed then promptly forgot where he put it along with the bracelet. The pushers don't push but a couple cranks of the crown and she's happily ticking away. Aside from the scratched crystal the dial is damage-free so she is worth a sympathetic restoration. 👍

You can still smell the F. Marcos era on that one.

Duracuir1 · Feb 27, 2023

A neighbour called this morning. « I have boxes and boxes of watches… are you interested? »

Six minutes later…

He had about ten boxes like the ones pictured above. This guy is in his 80s but he does sell at local auctions at times.

I went through the lot. It took me about 90 minutes. I made him some auction piles of decent Timex Expeditions, mechanicals, Guccis and Mickey Mouse.

The majority of the watches were the type you find in malls or on cruise ships.

He will auction them in lots.

I still grabbed a few to make sure he feels good about showing me what he gets in the future, so I bought these from him.

This one for the strap.

This one for the old strap and buckle.

This one because it feels solid and runs since I gave it a few winds almost 2 hours ago.

This one because I have always been intrigued by the calculator watches.

And finally, the one with the multicolour strap because if it works, my wife will like it.

I probably overpaid but I like that World Timer and Casio and for $50, I consider it an investment because he will call me when he finds more.

Engee · Feb 27, 2023

Duracuir1
I probably overpaid but I like that World Timer and Casio and for $50, I consider it an investment because he will call me when he finds more.

I like the World Timer too. You don't often see Tel Aviv as one of the cities on WTs.

RevZMan123 · Feb 27, 2023

Casio is God tier. Worth the price alone. 😀

JwRosenthal · Feb 27, 2023

Duracuir1
A neighbour called this morning. « I have boxes and boxes of watches… are you interested? »

Six minutes later…

He had about ten boxes like the ones pictured above. This guy is in his 80s but he does sell at local auctions at times.

I went through the lot. It took me about 90 minutes. I made him some auction piles of decent Timex Expeditions, mechanicals, Guccis and Mickey Mouse.

The majority of the watches were the type you find in malls or on cruise ships.

He will auction them in lots.

I still grabbed a few to make sure he feels good about showing me what he gets in the future, so I bought these from him.

This one for the strap.

This one for the old strap and buckle.

This one because it feels solid and runs since I gave it a few winds almost 2 hours ago.

This one because I have always been intrigued by the calculator watches.

And finally, the one with the multicolour strap because if it works, my wife will like it.

I probably overpaid but I like that World Timer and Casio and for $50, I consider it an investment because he will call me when he finds more.

I met a guy who used to clean out homes that were being foreclosed, auctioned or abandoned and he would call me with stereo equipment he would find. He knew enough to know what was garbage and what wasn’t. The first few times we did business he had stacks of lower to mid-grade stuff, nothing incredibly valuable but I still bought it knowing I could turn a small profit even if half the stuff was bound for the junkyard, but like you it was for him to keep me in mind when he came across good stuff.

On more than one occasion, keeping that relationship really paid off- particularly when he cleaned out a hoarder’s house who apparently had an affinity for hi-fi once upon a time. That was the score of a lifetime.

janice&fred · Feb 27, 2023

JwRosenthal
The first few times we did business he had stacks of lower to mid-grade stuff, nothing incredibly valuable but I still bought it knowing I could turn a small profit even if half the stuff was bound for the junkyard- but like you, it was for him
keep me in mind when he came across good stuff.

"Never Cherry-pick". This was a priceless lesson I was taught by some of my Russian Jew pals in NYC when I started treasure hunting for watches. If a person wants to unload a bunch of stuff, take it all if possible. Cherry picking can backfire in a few ways, even if one doesn't expect to ever see or do biz with the seller again. I should start a thread discussing the "Fredn's Do's and Don'ts helpful hints to buying". Would be a fun thread and surely plenty will contribute their own hints. 😁

JwRosenthal · Feb 27, 2023

janice&fred
"Never Cherry-pick". This was a priceless lesson I was taught by some of my Russian Jew pals in NYC when I started treasure hunting for watches. If a person wants to unload a bunch of stuff, take it all if possible. Cherry picking can backfire in a few ways, even if one doesn't expect to ever see or do biz with the seller again. I should start a thread discussing the "Fredn's Do's and Don'ts helpful hints to buying". Would be a fun thread and surely plenty will contribute their own hints. 😁

Yup. Price the lot based on the pieces you want and their values (and do the mental math on the spot)- throw in a couple more bucks to grease the skids, but don’t nickel and dime over pieces in a larger lot and don’t show your hand about which pieces those are, they might take those out seeing your tell- just offer to take the lot for X price. If their counter offer is unrealistic and they don’t seem to want to haggle, just thank them for their time and move along. I would rather them either remember me as polite and congenial or not remember me at all- but I don’t want to be remembered as the asshole who tried to “educate” them…that reputation gets around.

Duracuir1 · Feb 27, 2023

janice&fred
"Never Cherry-pick". This was a priceless lesson I was taught by some of my Russian Jew pals in NYC when I started treasure hunting for watches. If a person wants to unload a bunch of stuff, take it all if possible. Cherry picking can backfire in a few ways, even if one doesn't expect to ever see or do biz with the seller again. I should start a thread discussing the "Fredn's Do's and Don'ts helpful hints to buying". Would be a fun thread and surely plenty will contribute their own hints. 😁

Forever learning.

MTROIS · Feb 27, 2023

Duracuir1
A neighbour called this morning. « I have boxes and boxes of watches… are you interested? »

Six minutes later…

He had about ten boxes like the ones pictured above. This guy is in his 80s but he does sell at local auctions at times.

I went through the lot. It took me about 90 minutes. I made him some auction piles of decent Timex Expeditions, mechanicals, Guccis and Mickey Mouse.

The majority of the watches were the type you find in malls or on cruise ships.

He will auction them in lots.

I still grabbed a few to make sure he feels good about showing me what he gets in the future, so I bought these from him.

This one for the strap.

This one for the old strap and buckle.

This one because it feels solid and runs since I gave it a few winds almost 2 hours ago.

This one because I have always been intrigued by the calculator watches.

And finally, the one with the multicolour strap because if it works, my wife will like it.

I probably overpaid but I like that World Timer and Casio and for $50, I consider it an investment because he will call me when he finds more.

…and you didn’t take that little LeCoultre diver in the corner of the box!?!? 😲 :whipped:

MTROIS · Feb 27, 2023

janice&fred · Mar 1, 2023

Picked up some cool pieces (I think) at the Brewster Flea Market last week. First is this nifty and not often seen 1018 that is a good runner but will give it to our guy for a service. Also needs a tube as the crown locks down with only like a 1/4 turn.

Next is what I think is the most interesting find in the group. This is a 50's Movado Kingmatic Sub Sea that has obviously been put to work on the wrist. Busted acrylic, evenly weathered dial with what appears to be radium burns(?) is tough-guy cool, and the engraving on the back is even cooler. Original crown to boot.

This is the coolest find so far this year for us. I'm gonna get her a lube job and crystal, and it's gonna live again. Did a cursory google search for Harry F. Cranfield and actually found a post on find a grave which matches pretty well. Also close by in Sarasota. Gonna reach out to other Cranfields in the area and see what additional info they might be able to contribute to what is a piece of great American history 👍

JwRosenthal · Mar 1, 2023

Finding that 1018 (or any vintage Rolex) at a flea market is the thing we all hope for- nice find!

rendo · Mar 1, 2023

JwRosenthal
Finding that 1018 (or any vintage Rolex) at a flea market is the thing we all hope for- nice find!

I assumed these are "invitation only" flea markets.

janice&fred · Mar 1, 2023

The Brewster flea market is about an hour and a half from us but is supposed to be the biggest in the state. Believe it or not it's held on Mondays. The absolute best time to hit it is on a national holiday as the place is almost twice as big with vendors filling up the fields across the street. It's those don't-come-so-often out of state vendors that seem to produce the good stuff. Usually plenty of higher end watches but gotta work on the price with them to get decent buys. The Rolex was bought for $850 and the Movado for $12. Wasn't an easy day for those deals 😁

janice&fred · Mar 1, 2023

rendo
I assumed these are "invitation only" flea markets.

Open to the public but in the middle of freakin nowhere inland Florida. You know...where there ain't much in the area but agriculture, biker bars and prisons. 😁

ketchj · Mar 14, 2023

The Watch Game is strong in Qatar. Some beauties from a reseller in the Old Gold Souq (these are not fakes):

JwRosenthal · Mar 14, 2023

ketchj
The Watch Game is strong in Qatar. Some beauties from a reseller in the Old Gold Souq (these are not fakes):

Now we know where they have all gone.

ketchj · Mar 14, 2023

JwRosenthal
Now we know where they have all gone.

For sure. The Patek store at the AD only has cuff links to sell.

I took a British friend to the Souq this weekend who has been on a 5 year wait for a Submariner. He was amazed at how many are in the market. Of note, they are at market prices, and not at MSRP, but there are deals to be had. I picked up this yachtmaster for around $8k usd.

JwRosenthal · Mar 14, 2023

ketchj
For sure. The Patek store at the AD only has cuff links to sell.

I took a British friend to the Souq this weekend who has been on a 5 year wait for a Submariner. He was amazed at how many are in the market. Of note, they are at market prices, and not at MSRP, but there are deals to be had. I picked up this yachtmaster for around $8k usd.

I posted in another thread that a I was in the Bucherer store in King of Prussia, PA this weekend and although the Rolex annex was sparse, they had plenty of nice offerings in their pre-owned section- at eye watering prices I am sure.

Losi11 · Apr 15, 2023

Bought this Seiko Lord Matic at a flea market earlier today. Serial number dates it to 1968. Just cleaned up the bracelet and case, then polished the crystal. Came out pretty well I think. Thought I would share it in the official treasure hunting thread.

Watch treasure hunting report

JwRosenthal

Duracuir1

Engee

RevZMan123

JwRosenthal

janice&fred

JwRosenthal

Duracuir1

MTROIS

MTROIS

janice&fred

JwRosenthal

rendo

janice&fred

janice&fred

ketchj

JwRosenthal

ketchj

JwRosenthal

Losi11

Similar threads

Will will the age of watch treasure hunting end?