The Watch Appreciation Thread - Part two (Rolex, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Jaeger LeCoultre,

[clee1982]

My advice is to keep saving. Don't settle.

+1

 

[mimo]

@Jmm722 I agree with the Brains Trust above that the Speedy is probably the pick of your selection for versatility - no dive bezel, medium size, iconic identity. If you can pick up a good used one and take care of any depreciation, that's better still, but there are new ones in your budget from grey sellers like Jomashop, so you won't take much of a bath if you have to sell it later.

But. Belligero's suggestion is a tiny bit better. $3500 is clearly a chunk of money in your life (mine too), and it should feel like it. Sure, Omega is a prestigious brand, but a Rolex is a Rolex and your grandson will love it. Personally I chose the 116000 - partly because I dislike 3 o'clock date functions, and partly because the "cyclops" magnifier on the DateJust shouts "ROLEX" from half a mile away. I find the base Oyster just subtle enough, and it's good for any use from beach to boardroom. $4k will get you a new one, and you'll never let it go. I like AT's suggestion of the Explorer too, for pretty much all the same reasons. It's a shade more sporty than the Oyster, with the black dial and Arabic numbers, and is one of the few Rolexes that (imho) also looks good on a leather strap should the mood take you.

@pmeis The real world really sucks, doesn't it? I can empathise. If you had a more versatile Rolex (as above!), I'd say get rid of everything else before you sell it - a pair of Nomoses is something, after all. But the Hulk is so distinctively sport and, er, green, that I can see how it perhaps is not earning its keep. It's awesome, don't get me wrong, but as "the one" major watch investment, it's maybe too much of an outlier. Maybe lose the Hulk and one Nomos, and treat yourself to a used DJ or similar? You might find then that your most worn watch is also your most expensive, which I find to be a satisfying situation.

 

[BLAUGRANA]

Looking to move into nicer watches. Currently have a Raymond Weil small second, SARB 033, and Jean Richard Terrascope. I will likely keep them, as they don't have much resale value.

I'm looking for a versatile "one watch." Budget is about $3,500. My firm is business casual if I am not going to court or a deposition that day. I'd like a watch that I can wear with a suit and with jeans on weekends. Also, I'd like something with ok resale value (70% retained value). Fine with going used/pre-owned.

Current thoughts are:
-Omega Speedmaster Professional
-Omega Aqua Terra
-Tudor Black Bay
-Omega Seamaster
-Breitling Superocean Heritage

I cannot think of any other versatile watches within my price point (I'd obviously add Rolex if I went higher in budget). Any opinions/glaring omissions?

I'm a bit late to the party here, but I would echo some of what you've already heard.

Speedy Pro from that list is your best bet. I don't mind the Black Bay, but they are a bit thick looking due to the midcase. While the Speedy Pro is available on the grey market (including unworn though likely without papers but it's a possibility) within your budget, @Ambulance Chaser made a good suggestion with the First Omega in Space Speedmaster. I have it and I preferred it due to it's slightly smaller size and the design changes. For you though what I think it offers is a Speedy you can dress up a bit more. It has sapphire crystal instead of hesalite and the hands are metal which give it a slightly dressier look. I chose a strap to dress mine down, but I recently saw a photo of one on a black alligator strap with deployant clasp and it looked fantastic.

As @DLJr mentioned you might consider a Nomos.

As @Belligero mentioned a Datejust would be an excellent choice. You can go back to the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, etc and find great options in your price range. Older Datejusts are very underrated.

Explorer I is an alright option too, but make sure you get a 36mm model if you go that route. Still I'd go Datejust or OP before Explorer I.

Of course you could always save more and look at something else, but a Speedmaster or Datejust would be an excellent choice and are nothing to sneeze at.

One more watch I'd throw into the mix based on what you posted, I would add the Omega Seamaster 300m Master Co-axial. You can get it on a bracelet for ~$4000 albeit without papers. Another well underrated piece.

 

[Jmm722]

I appreciate all of the advice. I'm definitely not settling, as I plan on getting more watches, probably in the next year or so. I'm only 28, so I have a lot of watch collecting ahead of me. I also don't want the partners seeing me with a nicer watch than they wear. I've already heard comments about other people's clothing and have caught **** for wearing nice shoes and ties. Makes negotiating my raise a real *****.

I can realistically spend up to $10k+ on a watch right now, but I'm not quite ready to. I've never had a watch over $1k, so this is essentially a test run to see how much I care for and enjoy an expensive watch. I truly like all of the watches I listed (except for the Seamaster).

 

[mimo]

Now that is an interesting problem, and I can see why you were leaning to a Tudor: if your partners are all wearing Rolexes and whatnot, I understand why you're not wanting them to think you're waving your neophyte dick, so to speak.

As I said above, the Oyster is the way to go for an undercover Rolex, but you'll be noticed eventually. Perhaps the Omega will too. What we need, perhaps, is a watch that meets your tennis court to courtroom criterion, that won't depreciate too much, but isn't such a well known brand among the masses. No Rolex, Omega, IWC, Panerai, Breitling, JLC or anything else you see on billboards at the airport. Hmm.

Logically, one would think that the bigger the brand, the better the residual value, but it's not always true. If you want a new watch, actually some of the less heavily-marketed makers stand up quite well in depreciation. The one that comes to mind is Sinn: outside the watch-nerd world, it's not very well known internationally. But in Germany it's as solid and respectable as Mercedes Benz. A new one with a discount is not much more than a used one.

If you're not familiar with the brand, take a look: they're very well made, have a range of mostly pilots and chronos that might fit your taste quite well, and your partners will probably never have heard of them. Best place to find deals is probably Chrono24, as it's originally a German site and has a lot of dealers (grey and official) from that country. I'd go for a used full set, get the depreciation out of the way, and sit there smugly under the radar knowing how cool you really are.

 

[TheWraith]

You all know what I'm gonna say...get the Tudor Heritage Black Bay 36. I did, and I don't regret doing so.

 

[mimo]

There is that! I'd point to the Sinn 6000 as nearest aesthetically to the Speedy, though the 356 is the value call. 756 is neat and splits the difference.

 

[Belligero]

To me, the Aqua Terra is a similar enough style to not warrant buying a used Datejust. I really like the teak dial of the AT as well. I guess I'll take my time with some research before jumping in. I really like all of the watches I listed, except maybe the Seamaster.

I'd probably add a Cartier Santos 100 to my list as well, but I don't know how versatile it is and the resale doesn't appear to be great. My grails are VC Overseas and JLC Reverso (maybe in a few more years).

Definitely worth taking the time; a big part of the watch thing is in the process of learning and finding.

Though personally, I'd skip the substitute and get the real deal no matter what you decide. Instead of an AT, something with an identity of its own — the Speedmaster that others have mentioned, as well as pretty much anything from Nomos — would complement later watches instead of being the budget version of what you really wanted.

You mention resale: if you're not set on buying new, you can try almost any decent watch out and not lose much (if any) if it's not to your liking. And I'll just throw it out there that you can still get a nice Explorer II at your planned budget on the secondary market.

Anyway, I think steel Rolex is the best place to start, and I wish I'd done that myself instead of waiting.

 

[mimo]

^^I love that. Arguably the best buy of all used Rolexes? That one, specifically!

But as the OP was worried about looking flash in front of his seniors...maybe it's a little too identifiable as "luxury": the downside with a bargain Rolex is that it looks a lot more expensive than it is!

And I KNOW you're on board with a Sinn...

 

[Belligero]

^
Indeed — on the wrist, it's one of the best-looking watches that I've yet seen out there.

I don't get the "flashy" thing when it comes to Rolex, though, particularly when it comes to the 5-digit references and earlier. And if I was worried about the look of conspicuous consumption, wearing a bulkier and shinier imitation from a costly near-luxury company that spends heaps on tacky high-profile marketing that tries painfully hard to ride Big Green's coattails wouldn't be my first choice.

For me, something like a discreet 16570, 14270/114270 or 116000 has nothing to do with trying to look flash, and simply says that the wearer appreciates quality.

Sinn's all right, but for what they cost new these days, there's not much from them that would interest me compared to what it'll get you from Nomos or non-new Rolex. I still have a soft spot for my 356, though.

 

[TheWraith]

Not my favourite Rolex. Prefer the Explorer 1 personally, the 36 over the 39.

 

[Krish the Fish]

Has anyone mentioned an IWC mark XVIII? Seems like a good pilot’s watch that, if purchased via secondary markets, would fulfill the depreciation requirement and would look good with jeans or a suit.

I would initially recommend the 2254/sword hands Seamaster due to my personal bias (and I know I’m not the only one on SF who has one or likes the model) but iirc OP wasn’t a fan of seamasters

 

[culverwood]

^
I don't get the "flashy" thing when it comes to Rolex, though, particularly when it comes to the 5-digit references and earlier. And if I was worried about the look of conspicuous consumption, wearing a bulkier and shinier imitation from a costly near-luxury company that spends heaps on tacky high-profile marketing that tries painfully hard to ride Big Green's coattails wouldn't be my first choice.

I would have to disagree. Dissing Omega because it is not Rolex is similar to dissing Rolex because many people think Rolex wearers are douches. Both are wrong.

Omega pays a lot of money on marketing but are you telling me that Rolex and Patek do not?

 

[Kaplan]

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[DLJr]

I'm going to go against the Rolex group here, and not because you shouldn't get one, but I don't think you should get one now (even though I'm a huge fan of the previous gen Ex II). If funds aren't an issue for you, and you'll have the money for one in the future, why buy a Rolex now at this budget if those models aren't singing to you outside of the fact that "it's a Rolex". Wait and spend money on the Rolex when you feel more comfortable spending more money on a watch. Just my two pennies on that issue.