Watch Collecting
A watch is a very personal piece of accessory. It is not only an instrument that tells time, but it is a work of art that defines its wearer. Sherlock Holmes once deduced a man’s occupation and social class by looking at him from head to toe. Well, just by looking at a person’s watch alone, one can see a reflection of his or her personality. The most famous watch that does so is probably the Omega Seamaster of Bond… James Bond. The Seamaster is a dive watch that stands pressure mirroring Bond’s status as a naval commander and as a spy placed in dangerous situations. Having the color blue also reflects Bond’s noble plight and sadness that he cannot settle down like a normal person because of his occupation. Coming from our grandparents or parents, a vintage watch is also as personal as one accessory can get.
How do you set out to choose the watches that could make-up your collection? The information below will provide you with a reasonable idea on the terminology of watches as well as the several categories in watches, the suitable time and energy each category of watch requires as well as what it takes to start collecting new watches and vintage watches. Additionally it gives sufficient idea about where to buy such and in consequence it provides you with a clear cut idea on which has a variety of the ideal watches available for you.
Basics of Watches
To become a good watch collector, the very first point that you should have in your mind is what it should look like, followed by what it should do for you. If all you want to do is collect classic time pieces do yourself a favour and find out what everybody else is buying or selling. Auction sites should be able to give you a fair idea of exactly what you have, when raving about it among fans and fellow collectors. You don’t want to come off sounding like an amateur. You should know as much as you can about the different parts of any watch.
Watch terminology
Crown: A small metal protrusion from the watch’s case, typically found at the three o’clock mark, which is used to wind the watch as well as set the time.
Dial: Commonly referred to as the face, the dial sits inside the watchcase and acts as the main focal point of the watch. The watch’s name, hour markers and depth rating are typically printed or applied directly to the dial.
Bezel: Most bezels reside on the outside of the case and circle the dial of the watch. The purpose of this metal gauge is to allow the wearer to read elapsed time quickly, and many watches feature no bezel or one located inside the crystal.
Movement: The mechanical device that powers the watch, the movement consists of a winding mechanism, a balance wheel, mainspring, and escapement. These combine to create power and then accurately release it to push the hands of the watch around the face.
Case: The case is the house of the watch and is often made of stainless steel; although, gold, platinum and titanium are also used.
Watch complications
Chronograph: A chronograph allows the watch to display elapsed time, in addition to the time of day, in an organised manner. This includes a second hand that may be started and stopped at will as well as sub-dials to make for easy viewing. A prime example of a chronograph is the Tag Heuer Carrera, originally used to time professional races on the F1 circuit.
Power reserve: A power reserve is a visual indication of how much power remains in the watch’s movement. These are very useful in manually wound watches, as no rotor exists to automatically wind the movement. Many watches now have power reserve displays, but Panerai’s Luminor 150 is perhaps one of the best examples.
GMT: Named after the global time zone scale, a GMT complication is now known as a tool that displays a second time zone or a 24-hour scale on a mechanical wristwatch. The GMT watch was invented by Rolex in the 1950s when Pan American Airlines needed a watch for its international pilots. The Rolex GMT still sets the bar to this day, but there are many other GMT options out there.
Watch Categories
This is the next step that is to be followed while trying to start a watch collection. There are four main categories of watches, which a watch collector should definitely know about. One thing to be noted is that there are only very few watches that can be worn for every occasion. If you are not aware of this fact, you may wear a rubber strapped watch with a Tuxedo, which would be a weird combination!
The Dress Watch: These types of watches are very thin and they come with a leather strap and a less complicated design. You can wear such watches on any formal occasions like an interview, or for weddings. Such type of watches does not go well with a jeans or a T-shirt. The Piaget Altiplano is one of the best examples among the Dress watches available.
The Sports Watch: these types of watches are very chunky with rubber or metal straps. They are suited for casual occasions and they usually come with some complicated features like the chronographs. They are best suited for the casual dress you wear and even if some of them look good with suits, it is better not to try out wild combinations! The IWC Aquatimer is one of the best in this category. It is a watch used by divers, and has a chronograph on it.
The Everyday Watch: such watches do not fall into the category of sports watches or dress watches and they can be considered to be the most useful of the watches available. They come with either a metal strap or a leather strap, and are moderately thick watches that can be used on any occasion. These types of watches will sometimes have some complications on them, but they mostly go unnoticed. The Rolex Datejust, the IWC Portuguese, the Rolex Submariner etc are some of the most popular names in this category, and they are referred to as all-purpose watches. The Submariner is actually diving watch by design, but the sleek look of the watch is now a favourite among men and most men use them along with suits also. All these can be worn along with any outfit, may it be for a beach party or for a very formal gathering.
The Complicated Watch: This type of watches have a movement that provides great features to the user. For example, a tourbillon in the watch can remove the gravitational force and a perpetual calendar in the watch can give you accurate timing and dates until 2100, so that you do not have to reset your watch till then! Such watches are very costly and they are meant for the top class people in the society. They are actually same as dress watches, but with exclusive features that make them way expensive, and something to be taken care of and used on special occasions only.
Some collectors buy certain brands of watches such as the Bulova collector, the Seiko collector, the Rolex collector, or the Omega collector. Some people buy certain types or styles of watches, such as the dive watch collector, the chronograph collector, and the military watch collector. There are collectors who collect nothing but watches with mechanical, or automatic, or quartz movements. There are so many varieties, do not get overwhelmed, just start slow. Remember, there are no rules. And in fact, many collectors change their tastes over time and end up collecting something entirely different than they started with. One of the good things about collecting watches is, they hold their value if taken good care of. They can easily be resold. Many collectors spend a lot of time buying watches, keeping them for a time and reselling them. This process is often called "flipping",
Its not a long or hard process, and you WILL find what suits you. There is one danger however. Watches will start following you home, their young will appear in your watch box. You will find new watches where there was none before. Sometimes you find yourself wearing two, three, or four watches a day just so that each gets some wrist time occasionally. No matter what a significant other may say, this is not abnormal, this is quite normal and reasonable behavior.