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FlyingSnoopy
·Yes.
Certain models will sell easier than other though
Cheers
Certain models will sell easier than other though
Cheers
Will vintage wrist watches lose value in the next 10, 20, 30 years ?
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CaptainWinsor
·My 12 year old is currently working on a presentation for school and has chosen watches as his subject so hopefully he’ll continue the interest as he gets older
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hungdangnguyen23
·Yes, the internet has brought newbies like myself into the hobby. But I don't see prices going much higher, especially with the economy set to decline (a separate discussion entirely).
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Evitzee
·As the old saw goes, "If you want to make a small fortune collecting watches, start with a large fortune". 99% of watches will not increase in value, and those that do may be hot one year/decade and out of favor the next. Most of us aren't that smart or lucky.
Buy what you like, wear it, enjoy it and if you can sell it in the future for somewhat close to what you paid for it consider yourself a winner. I've made money on a few watches, lost some on others, and overall I'm negative. So what, my watch collection is not the basis of my retirement assets. I keep impeccable records of my watches and in the many years of my collecting the total cost runs to about $13 per DAY. That sounds like a lot but when you figure what people spend on Starbucks, booze, cigarettes and other daily non-necessities it is a reasonable number for me. It's my hobby and my enjoyment. It's all relative.
eBay is not where real collectors go to buy and sell collectible and desirable watches. Much of the vintage stuff there is suspect. I wouldn't use that as much of a true guide.
Buy what you like, wear it, enjoy it and if you can sell it in the future for somewhat close to what you paid for it consider yourself a winner. I've made money on a few watches, lost some on others, and overall I'm negative. So what, my watch collection is not the basis of my retirement assets. I keep impeccable records of my watches and in the many years of my collecting the total cost runs to about $13 per DAY. That sounds like a lot but when you figure what people spend on Starbucks, booze, cigarettes and other daily non-necessities it is a reasonable number for me. It's my hobby and my enjoyment. It's all relative.
eBay is not where real collectors go to buy and sell collectible and desirable watches. Much of the vintage stuff there is suspect. I wouldn't use that as much of a true guide.
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rolokr
·my father purchased a three story factory for £4000.00 in 1968. It is now on the market for 4.5 Million. I have 4K ready for when comes down to the good old day price that my father paid back in 1968. I figure it would make a great buy ... Do you guys thimk it will be a long wait ? 😀
I love vintage watch collecting as much as anyone on this site with over 50 pieces , so let's just be realistic about the future of vintage watches ? Paying 10k for an SAS Polerouter may not be as good as buying 10k of gold bullion as future investment ? I vote on the bullion IMHO.
If you have no children and like to sink money into vintage watches I understand. I have a son so I'm trying to leave him $$$ for him and my future grandchildren.
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citizenrich
·Well do your children or younger people you know care about a vintage watch ? Cell phones have the time, and Apple watches are getting pretty cool these days. I feel that watches are more like jewelry now and there function is getting passed up ? Would it be better to sell you watch collection and buy a kilo of gold bullion for 42k to leave you children or and obsolete vintage watch collection that may be worth little in 20-30 years ? I just starting this discussion because I have over 50 vintage watches many valuable ones, and of course I am an avid collector for 40 years ! My father purchased rare collectable postage stamps in the 1960s for 4k. In the 1970s it was worth up to 50k.
Now it's worth maybe 10k at most. If my father would have just bought gold bullion or coins in the 1960s it would be worth a fortune now ! Gold was $20 an ounce. I'll take the gold over the collectable over time for sure !
Solution: buy SG watches
I wouldn’t worry too much. 25 years ago, you could’ve purchased a nice collection of Barnett Newman’s for 50 or 100 grand.
Blackfire 1 recently sold for 85 million.
I’ll give you good advice: if you notice that the major auction houses stop listing vintage watches, then run for the hills. Until then, you’re good to go.
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rolokr
·Solution: buy SG watches
I wouldn’t worry too much. 25 years ago, you could’ve purchased a nice collection of Barnett Newman’s for 50 or 100 grand.
Blackfire 1 recently sold for 85 million.
I’ll give you good advice: if you notice that the major auction houses stop listing vintage watches, then run for the hills. Until then, you’re good to go.
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DaveK
·Yes, I enjoy my over 50 watch vintage collection ! I have 20 UG with 7 Tricompax and many nice other examples. When is it time to sell them so I can leave $$$ to my son who is 9 years old ?
Not sure that value is going to hold over time ,and it might be wise for me to start liquidation and put the proceeds into something more stable like ( gold bullion ) for my son's future ?
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rolokr
·I now have three vintage watches. Because no one left me gold bullion, I wonder how those with large collections approach servicing so many watches. Many watches in large collections likely do not get worn all that frequently. Do you service everything every 5 years to keep in in great shape, or just service a watch when it starts to misbehave? If all the watches are not serviced regularly, how does that affect resale? So many questions....
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ChrisN
·Good point ! I wind my watches on a regular basis, but finding a and affording upkeep is another issue. It is VERY difficult to find a watch service person who has the ability to work on complicated watches and can be very costly ! I dont know a single person who is diving into the field of watch repair. Could be a factor in 10, 20, and or 30 years !
For example, would you rather service a recent ETA 2892 and a 7750 or a single vintage? Nine times out of ten, the 2892 and 7750 go back together and run correctly but (for example) an Omega 330 series can take the same time as both of those put together. And then you're searching for parts, if required and that also takes time. UG are often harder to find parts for...
Don't wind them regularly unless you're wearing them - it's not necessary as they will be fine left alone if not worn.
Enjoy your watches, Chris
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Reddy_Kilowatt
·Do your children care about your vintage watches ? I'm just saying !
No kids!
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Avav1
·I have spoken to several people about this. The consensus is that they will stay for a while, and also rise and fall with the economy, not just USA, but also China. I hear that the crazy price doubling in the last few years has been due to Chinese watch collectors - their economy has had a pretty good run over the last 10 years...
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WristScout
·Yes, I enjoy my over 50 watch vintage collection ! I have 20 UG with 7 Tricompax and many nice other examples. When is it time to sell them so I can leave $$$ to my son who is 9 years old ?
Not sure that value is going to hold over time ,and it might be wise for me to start liquidation and put the proceeds into something more stable like ( gold bullion ) for my son's future ?
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queriver
·Comparing the performance of vintage watches with gold bullion as assets is interesting but I don't think it is possible to say which makes the better investment, let alone forecast future performance.
Looking backwards, measuring the performance of gold bullion over time is straightforward: compare historical prices or your purchase cost with the current bullion price in your local currency and account for cost of ownership such as bank storage. I won't even talk about forecasting the price of gold in 10-20-30 years time, even central banks are unable to do that.
On the other hand, each vintage watch needs to be valued on its own merits - it is somewhat like a market of one. I think it would be difficult for most people to accurately value a watch without selling it which makes determining its historical investment performance over a period of time problematic. Valuing your unsold watch requires making some assumptions about how patient a seller you would be and the method of sale. If sold, the profit or loss needs to take into account the cost of ownership, such as service/repair costs and probably insurance if worn. As many have said, forecasting the future value of a particular make/model of watch is crystal balling.
None of this takes into account pleasure gained along the way from owning bullion vs watches. Other than the fictional Goldfinger, who would derive pleasure from spending hours looking at a gold bar? The liquidity of vintage watches versus gold bullion is also a consideration, particularly for estate purposes. Gold is easy to sell any day of the week but a vintage watch requires perhaps months and much more knowledge to achieve a fair price.
Looking backwards, measuring the performance of gold bullion over time is straightforward: compare historical prices or your purchase cost with the current bullion price in your local currency and account for cost of ownership such as bank storage. I won't even talk about forecasting the price of gold in 10-20-30 years time, even central banks are unable to do that.
On the other hand, each vintage watch needs to be valued on its own merits - it is somewhat like a market of one. I think it would be difficult for most people to accurately value a watch without selling it which makes determining its historical investment performance over a period of time problematic. Valuing your unsold watch requires making some assumptions about how patient a seller you would be and the method of sale. If sold, the profit or loss needs to take into account the cost of ownership, such as service/repair costs and probably insurance if worn. As many have said, forecasting the future value of a particular make/model of watch is crystal balling.
None of this takes into account pleasure gained along the way from owning bullion vs watches. Other than the fictional Goldfinger, who would derive pleasure from spending hours looking at a gold bar? The liquidity of vintage watches versus gold bullion is also a consideration, particularly for estate purposes. Gold is easy to sell any day of the week but a vintage watch requires perhaps months and much more knowledge to achieve a fair price.
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dantheman3u4i
·Followed a nice looking original dial 18k UG Compax hammered at only $ 1,325 on eBay.
Might be time to sell my UG collection before the decline ? Ebay item 223250524151. Very nice example makes me wonder what my examples may be worth ? Is it time to sell ?
I am under 30 (although approaching it), and honestly, I don't think it has much to do with age. My generation is certainly getting into vintage watches, just look at Hodinkee. The people running Hodinkee are not in their 50s, but most likely in their early 30s to mid-30s. That alone is another 30 years of collecting.
In my humble opinion, I think it all has to do with the market/economy. If (and when) we're in another recession, which I think will be very very soon, vintage watches certainly will feel it, and feel it the most, as they are luxury goods.
I think the biggest question most of should be asking is will vintage watches recover after a recession. Will people get interested in them again? I don't think that's all that easy of an answer. Some people mentioned stamps, but I personally saw it from a distance with sports memorabilia. Growing up sports memorabilia was the craze for me and my friends. After the market crashed in 2008, sports memorabilia never really recovered.
But I don't think sports memorabilia is all that good of an indicator when it comes to vintage watches. I think a better indicator would be vintage cars. I would assume collecting and prices took a hit back in 2008, but then recovered as the economy did. But maybe some of the older gents could tell us for certain.
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MrJKLFoams
·Buy and enjoy them unless you collect watch for investment which is a bad idea. 😉
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rolokr
·Comparing the performance of vintage watches with gold bullion as assets is interesting but I don't think it is possible to say which makes the better investment, let alone forecast future performance.
Looking backwards, measuring the performance of gold bullion over time is straightforward: compare historical prices or your purchase cost with the current bullion price in your local currency and account for cost of ownership such as bank storage. I won't even talk about forecasting the price of gold in 10-20-30 years time, even central banks are unable to do that.
On the other hand, each vintage watch needs to be valued on its own merits - it is somewhat like a market of one. I think it would be difficult for most people to accurately value a watch without selling it which makes determining its historical investment performance over a period of time problematic. Valuing your unsold watch requires making some assumptions about how patient a seller you would be and the method of sale. If sold, the profit or loss needs to take into account the cost of ownership, such as service/repair costs and probably insurance if worn. As many have said, forecasting the future value of a particular make/model of watch is crystal balling.
None of this takes into account pleasure gained along the way from owning bullion vs watches. Other than the fictional Goldfinger, who would derive pleasure from spending hours looking at a gold bar? The liquidity of vintage watches versus gold bullion is also a consideration, particularly for estate purposes. Gold is easy to sell any day of the week but a vintage watch requires perhaps months and much more knowledge to achieve a fair price.
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dougiedude
·When is it time to sell them so I can leave $$$ to my son who is 9 years old ?
As it was already said, there are far better, safer investments than vintage watches. Keep only the ones you enjoy the most.
I never buy for 'resell value', since I already do that with my better modes of investment. Watches are for fun. If they appreciate in value, then all the better!
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vujen
·Very interesting discussion BTW, with a lot of ideas to think about.
