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TechFounder
10
Aug 29, 2020
What are the other 3?
Bobraz
2631
Aug 29, 2020
TechFounder
10
Aug 29, 2020
BobrazNice, is the reason you're sticking to mostly Rolex because they appreciate in value? I wonder how many people would even own one if not for that fact?
Bobraz
2631
Aug 30, 2020
TechFounderIn 1999, in my early thirties, I got a bonus that was way bigger than I thought. My (then new) wife (we’re still married) encouraged me to get myself a gift, why not buy that James Bond Omega you have been ogling for many years she said? Well, I found one lightly preowned in Louisiana (I think I paid $800), and it started my infatuation with watches, and got me in the rabbit hole. Through the years I bought and traded (often traded *up*) many expensive and affordable watches, 'learning the tropes' of horology if you will, and experiencing the hobby. Besides one Weiss, one Omega and my recent Rolex OP39 and Explorer, all - bar none - were bought or traded pre-owned - however many were in LNIB condition. So basically since 1999, I have went through many many trades, and have probably worn around a 120 watches, both low-end (Swatch, Casio, Citizen, Seiko, Bulova, Vostok, Zeno, and untold more!), mid-range (Mido, MKII, Sinn, Damasko, Epos, Oris, Weiss, Tissot, Hamilton, and scores more!) and high-end (Omega, Tag Heuer, Breitling, Rolex, Tudor). Small, big, tall, thick, thin, on bracelets or on leather, even on NATO a few times, I’ve tried them all. Three hands, chronographs, quartz, auto, manual wind, GMT, done it all. Swiss, Japanese, Chinese, French, German, Russian, I’ve slept with them all. I was interested in exploring it all. I've had many, many Omega - even at some point three concurrent James Bond Seamaster in different versions! It was my absolute favorite brand, until they made their movements very complex, started using exotic materials, and subsequently jacked up their prices trying to run after the Rolex demographics (I digress, but in my opinion, this will come back and bite them later, when the inevitable slowdown of the market happens, since they have practically abandoned the simplicity and timelessness that initially made them highly desirable and a heirloom level brand. I recently looked at their new offerings, but they basically lost me as one of their hard core brand fans; the new models that could interest me I find either have dials that are too busy, and/or cases that are too large or too thick, or way above my budget). Then a few years ago I felt like many of my watches were just sitting in the watch box, and I had reached a point where the incremental joy each watch was bringing me was diminishing, as if I had I experienced what I needed to experience. So I woke up wanting only two or three watches, and I decided to do a downsizing, with the intention of having one regular wearer watch in the 38mm or 39mm size, and maybe one or two for special occasions. I decided I would get an iconic diver, so I got a Submariner by trading six of my watches (the Submariner was LNIB and its trade value was put at 75% retail, which is unheard of today). I liked the Submariner not for the recent value shenanigans, but because it was an iconic design and had neither loupe nor date. The downsizing continued and was underway fairly quickly; I only had a real hard time of letting go of one watch, the Speedmaster Sapphire Sandwich. With the funds, I bought the OP39. I decided on getting an OP as a more discrete everyday watch. Again, my choice was based on design and nothing else (I initially wanted a Black Bay 58 but could not find one, and I became infatuated with the OP when I saw it). No loupe and no date too. I continued to sell the rest of the collection, and suddenly out of the blue I got an occasion to get the BB58 from an AD I had dropped by to visit, and I took it on the spot, knowing that I'd not get a second chance at it later on. I really love the vintage vibe that it has, and the Submariner is harder to pull off discreetly. Before I bought the Explorer, the Rolex OP39 got most of my wrist time, followed by the Tudor for special occasion (restaurant, wedding, etc.) and the Rolex Submariner I wore very rarely, in the summer mostly. Since I had downsized drastically, I started selling other watch accessories I had accumulated over the years ; Omega straps, several Omega bracelets, Omega deployant, etc. I put the funds aside, in order to one day buy a fourth and last watch, ideally midway between sporty and dressy. I continued casually looking at many watches, but the ones that I liked were mostly unattainable (e.g. Royal Oak) or too large (most newer Omega models), or too busy details wise (most newer Omega watches). Then out of the blue I saw the Explorer in a post, and fell on love with it and decided it would be my last one. And that basically bring us to that last purchase... Thanks for reading!
(Edited)
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