Watches As A Hobby
With the exception of being required to learn how to tell time on an analog watch as a kid, I've always been interested in analog watches. In my teens and young adulthood I always looked for the watches with the 3 miniature dials on them. I went through a sun/moon phase and a Roman numerals-only phase. Thankfully, over time my tastes have changed. It's grown up a little and I have even, in my opinion, avoided the trappings of flash over substance (Invicta watches anyone?).
With getting into watches and especially wanting to collect them, it's difficult knowing where to start and when to stop. Right now, I'm drawn to tool watches. But I'm a novice in this world and there's so much variety to explore. What I do know is that you don't need an expensive or vast watch collection to appreciate watches or to be considered a collector.
Full disclosure, I don't have a huge watch collection and I don't plan to have one. Technically, even one watch can be considered a collection. I want watches that I enjoy wearing and plan to keep long term. I have no interest in displaying them like museum pieces or buying them now for the purpose of trading or selling later. As with most things that you want to aquire and that will take up a lot of your time and/or money, one of the main questions to ask is why do you want to get into this in the first place? For me, watches have always represented a sense of order, attention to detail and precision - even beauty. I felt this even before I knew what these concepts were. Combined with the artistic expression in the creative designs of the watch faces and the complications built in, and it's like watching the Aston Martin DB5 or the Concord SST in motion. It's a perfect union of form and function.
Watch collecting can be expensive. Many hobbies typically require some money to be spent, but watches can really wreck a bank account - if you let it. Even entry-level with brands like Seiko, Citizen, Hamilton and Orient who offer a wide range of products and prices can start you at a price point that you wouldn't normally consider for other items. I can shake my head in approval at someone wanting to charge me $300 or more for a watch but nearly slap someone across the face for trying to charge me the same amount for a pair of jeans?!? Where's the logic?!? There are many things that some people would easily pay $50 for that for others wouldn't pay $.50. Once you've handed over your first $100 or $300 or $1000 on a watch, it's shocking how spending a little more for another seems perfectly reasonable - especially for something that only requires one of to be useful.
I've watched a lot of Youtube videos and read a few articles and the recurring theme to the advice given is: buy what you can afford and take your time with your purchases. I at least stuck to one of those - buy what you can afford. Mainly because I'm cheap. But I did snatch up more than a couple of watches pretty quickly - more quickly than I probably should have.
I've slowed down considerably. My criteria now for purchasing watches are anything over $1000 is a one watch (or less) purchase per year. Anything over $300 is at most a twice per year purchase if at all. There are other requirements such as all bills and financial obligations must be managed first, no financing - save up for the watch and pay with money I have. Make sure my partner is ok with it (she has never said no, probably due to the previously mentioned criteria) and lastly, have a limit as to the number of watches I can have in my collection at any time. I haven't determined what that number is yet but I'm thinking 8 (at most 10). Like I mentioned earlier, I want to wear and enjoy ALL of my watches. Having a "smaller" collection makes that easier to accomplish. After all, this money could be going towards more noble pursuits such as retirement, investments, a rainy-day fund - just about anything else that could benefit us in the short or long term.
Watch collecting and appreciation can be a rewarding and engaging pastime that can be enjoyed for a lifetime. There are a plethora of online forums ranging from the general to the very specialized. Many friendships have been formed as a result of this hobby. Collecting isn't only about the watch or its heritage or its movement or components, and at the same time it is. It's also about the stories behind the watch, what it took to get the watch, a memorable experience had while wearing the watch. The only real cost of admission is appreciation.