Originally Posted by
mrpgkennedy
guys
so i've been here almost 4 years, i don;t post that much not knowing much about watches. I'd always assumed I kept watches for ages, that i hardly ever bought or sold them, but then one weekend bored at work i decided to go through what i had bought and sold in the past just shy of 4 years. The result was kind of shocking, but anyway here's the list, I've tried to explain a little were possible about them.
Just before i start, a little background, 5 years ago i had no interest in watches, i had an old tag 200 auto which i hadn't worn in 5 years, i didn't wear a watch. I was on a flight to Italy waiting to get off and the guy next to me, when he got his bag, was wearing this really cool watch. It was stainless steel with a black face and bezel but strangely was made by Rolex. Rolex in my mind had always been associated with the all gold jewellery models, this things was so clean, so functional. Well i looked into it and discovered it was a submariner but was £2.5k (those were the days) and had a waiting list, so i kept looking for one in stock and started to get interested in watches...
Phase 1 vintage.
Strangely i went the other way to most people, went to ebay and a couple of dealers and started with vintage breitling and Omega
1960's seamster with the pie face
Breitling over and under chrono with a venus movement and silver and blue face
Breitling chrono with cream and copper face- i wish i'd kept photos of that one as it was stunning
1930s gold omega tank
1930 steel omega tank
now these were all beautiful but small watches that looked like toys on my frame, so they ended up on ebay, some sold on SC
Phase 2 ultra modern
Lotus type 1 chrono ( x2) - i ended up with 2 because surprise, surprise being lotus the first one didn't properly, spoke to a guy at the factory who explained how they'd got sued by lotus watches, so there wouldn't be any more. Anyway sold one of them, gave the other one away to the guy who sold me the sag as he'd been looking for one for years.
Oakley timebomb, love the concept of an automatic quartz, i tend to like the oakley stuff and this was all titanium ionised and polished. Although it looked stunning it was too small for my wrists, i gave it to my god son
Phase 3 the start of proper watches
Fortis pilot automatic- at the time this was a bargain, 40mm got it off ebay, sold on SC
Sinn 356 flieger with copper face- just stunning, i only sold it in the end because it was too small, but i have always loved this model.
Rolex sub with date- bought in the Rolex store Bangkok, it was amazing to see one in stock after searching for a couple of years, i even managed to get 10% off. The reality was i never wore it, i was always too scared, it stayed in it's box, i really think it was a case of never meeting your heroes, it had looked amazing on the guy on the plane, but not me, i traded it on SC just before the prices started the crazy climb :roll:
Planet ocean chrono 45.5- i was actually looking for the plain planet ocean, bought this off the SC, but got annoyed by the fact the main second hand did nothing apart from when it was used in chrono mode, so eventually traded it
Planet ocean 45.5 black with orange numbers- used to swap straps, bracelets and bezels, loved how you could change the look of the watch, sold on the SC
Breitling superocean heritage 46- I love this watch so much, was stunned the first time i saw it, under light it just looks amazing. It's hard to take a really good photo, but in bright light the bronze and the markers sparkle. If you ever get chance to handle one take it into the light. I still have this, i have to say i can never see myself getting rid of it. It also has a really cool minimal lume.
IWC Portuguese chrono gold with blue hands- bought from a second hand dealer, it was stunning, sold on SC
Bell and Ross 01-94- loved the chunkiness of it, the unusual shape, it was the first decent watch i bought brand new, sold recently on SC
IWC Portuguese chrono stainless with a black face, stunning, but with owning both portuguese it was just stupid, i took it in exchange on SC sold it again on SC
Panerai 177- bought secondhand from a dealer, stupidly sold it, really liked it but it wasn't the trigger to the disease, put it this was i was pronouncing it pan-air-eee... sold on SC
Phase 4 Panerai
I blame shadowman entirely for this, he advertised a PAM 212 chrono which was the most stunning watch i had seen but at the time an eye watering 5k, along with a PAM 89. I wanted both but couldn't afford it, so the deal didn't happen, but it got me looking at at Panerai, I hand;t been able to understand how there were some models i liked and others that left me cold, until i learnt about luminors and radiomirs, which is why i had loved the two models shadowman had. So off i went hunting. Panerai has been my mainstay for the past couple of years.
Panerai 88 - it took me 3 months to find one, i'd seen the photos of the watch with the brown gator strap and wanted one just so badly. I drove to Bristol, saw it wanted it bought it. I learnt the lesson about examining what you buy properly as the guy was a plumber and the watch had a deep scratch to the face and the crystal, arghhhh, having wanted it too badly to check i just felt really let down and kicking myself for looking at it in his dark dinning room, lesson learnt. It went to a dealer in trade.
Panerai 250 - I wanted a panerai chrono, the 250 was the only one with a date, figured i needed a date, although a good looking watch, the scale on the outside doesn't fit the panerai design brief, traded it on SC
Panerai 270 - i wanted an in-house movement, i liked this was an automatic with a 10 day reserve rather then the manual 8 day reserve of the 233 which in restrocspect would have been the better buy, sold it to partially fun buying a tvr tuscan on SC ( the watch, not the car)
Panerai 305 - 47mm of titanium sub, in house movement, simple dial, the first panerai i bought new, i can so clearly remember the excitement of them bringing out this huge box, i've had it now for 2.5 years, can't see myself ever getting rid of it, it is my main day to day watch ( and it has a date which is useful for work)
Panerai 359 - Bought new, the all polished 1950s case was stunning but looked too small after my 305 sold on SC
Panerai 287 - Taken in trade for my 250, i could't get on with the cyclops over the date, sold on SC
Panerai 232 - Bought off shadowman, a beautiful watch, the only problem was i never wore it which seemed kind of silly, so i sold it back to him.
Panerai 339 - wanted one when they were announced, could't get one, the worry about corrosion put people off, i did have a deposit on a 375 when it become more and more apparent that wasn't coming the dealer said they had this 339 for sale, was I interested ? how could i say no?
Panerai 372 - bought new, just so perfect that when i'm browsing through dealers websites i still stop and look at it wondering what it is until i realise it's a 372 and i already have one.
Panerai 368 - 47mm titanium, destro, in house 8 day movement, tobacco dial, 1950s case, need i say more
Non panerai in the past couple of years
1969 910 flight master really early model, almost my birth year, loved it, but it looked stupid on me, sold it on SC to help pay for the 339.
Android transocean big chunky quartz, i tend to wear this when i'm doing physical things
Benarus moray PVD with dart dial - loved the photos, found the quality disappointing in the flesh, sold SC
Various panerai homages, some sold, some i still have, the copper one is amazing
Steinhart aviation GMT love the mix of colours and the gmt hand, i use this when i travel
Steinhart ocean 44, bought this to see if i wanted a rolex deep sea, i suspect the answer is yes
Seiko marinemaster 200m direct drive. I wanted a seiko diver, i've always loved the kinetic watches since i saw the first advert, here was finally a chance to own both, all titanium but ion coated and polished it's a true tool watch. I saw the non coated version and was wowed by it but missed it off SC as i was broke at the time :cry:
Glycine blue face x 2 one tank one round face, both bought off SC and sold there, loved the blue faces, but the reality was i never worse them.
The short answer to this very long dull post is i've got through over 40 watches, in 4 years, almost one a month, so yes i confess i am a flipper.
Future wise i suspect i'm going to end up trying the deep sea, i've always admired the IWC perpetual movements so a big pilot or portuguese would be a bit of a grail for me, as for panerai well this years lot left me cold, would like a 373 in stainless steel, the 426 has the pig which ruins it, i don't like the hands on the 449 or the word vintage on the case and of coarse because we don't have a boutique in the UK, we're not allowed any... but we'll see next year
sorry for the length of this, i'm off to see if i can dig out any photos
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