I see in the classified section that there is a Rolex for sale for $12,000. It just had a $2,000 cleaning. I have an iPhone that costs less and keeps better time. A Ferrari costs more but really a watch?

I love the fact they are amazingly intricate mechanical marvels. 8 sweeps per second. I'm sure you have possessions or interests that others don't understand as well. Too each their own.......and it isn't electronic.

It's a luxury, mechanical watch. They're not for everyone. But, they're a marvel of engineering and manufacturing, and possess a certain prestige.

Personally, I like watches. I like the look and feel of a nice watch and derive satisfaction from wearing a nice watch. Yeah, my cell phone tells better time, and I always have it at hand. But, when I want to know the time or check the day's date (my watches all give a numerical date), I check my watch.

You either have an appreciation for these type of luxury items or you don't. No one will be able to provide an explanation that helps you rationalize such a purchase. And your opinion will likely vary from category to category. You may not understand a $12,000 watch over the accurate time on your phone but a $5,000 custom made 1911 over a standard Glock might make perfect sense to you.

I have two and paid nowhere near that for each of them.

Both combined is under $9000.

quote:

Originally posted by ShneaSIG:
It's a luxury, mechanical watch. They're not for everyone. But, they're a marvel of engineering and manufacturing, and possess a certain prestige.

Personally, I like watches. I like the look and feel of a nice watch and derive satisfaction from wearing a nice watch. Yeah, my cell phone tells better time, and I always have it at hand. But, when I want to know the time or check the day's date (my watches all give a numerical date), I check my watch.

+1 - Well said! I would love a Rolex watch. One day I will get one.

Rolex’s are status symbols. But hey, if you have the means, this is America after all.

I have three of them, although the last one was a thank you goodbye gift from the company I had worked for.

My usual daily wear watches are usually my Breitling 806 Navitimer from 1972, or an Omega Flightmaster had bought the previous year on my first promotion. I have about forty watches at the moment, including Ebel and IWC, a couple of other Omegas and a Cartier for Ferrari. I have four other Breitling that I wear from time to time [pun there somewhere] and none of them are pretty. I have no gold or fancy dress watches - I don't do fancy dress, and I don't have a suit, or anything like one, let alone a set of cuff-links.

But I DO like my watches. My Seiko's get outings, too, so I'm not a watch snob. I'm currently debating my next watch, and have yet to make up my mind to go for mechanical or quartz. My Marathon J-SAR has been a good friend, and the same model in PVD looks good.

One thing for sure is that I won't be buying another Rolex of any kind. Not one of them is as accurate a timekeeper as a 1978 Seiko divers 150 I bought in the Dutch PX in Rheindahlen for DM148.

quote:

Originally posted by TXJIM:
You either have an appreciation for these type of luxury items or you don't. No one will be able to provide an explanation that helps you rationalize such a purchase.

Why buy a Krieghoff shotgun when a Remington will do the job?

I generally find them to be a weird mix of Gaudy and Pedestrian, design wise, and typically appealing to the Neuvo Riche or aspirational sorts, for what are essentially Average Timekeepers in Fancy Packages.

Beyond one or two classic models, I can't for the life of me understand their broad appeal.

Then again, I would never in a million years buy diamond or gold jewelry in the first place. So many EWs.

(shrug)

To each their own. I have friends and loves ones who swear by them.

Dudes and Watches are like Women and Handbags or Shoes, in my experience. Frilly collectables, mostly.

Pride of ownership?

Why have a Mercedes-Benz when a Toyota will do?

But I'm telling you that I sure do I feel better driving my fifteenth Mercedes-Benz right now than I ever would driving my fifteenth Toyota.

I have a Breitling Aquaracer that I wear. Just a plain stainless case and bracelet, blue face. Not really fancy. But I like it. Its my second - my dad commented on my first one that he liked it, so I gave it to him. Went without a watch for about 6 months and ended up getting the second one.

Yes, the cellphone has accurate time, but this keeps as accurate a time as I need, its easy to set up and easy to read in a cockpit with vibrations making things unsteady. All in all, its a good watch.

One of these days I will get a Rolex.

Mine was my grandfather's. One day, it'll be my son's. I don't think any Apple product will become an heirloom.

My maternal grandmother passed away in 1969 and left me $300 in her will. I wanted to buy something I would keep for a long time and remember her every time I looked at it. So a Corvette was out of the running.

During 1968 - 1971 I was a college student in L.A. and knew where a lot of high end stores were located; Wilshire Blvd. I ended up in a jewelry store and told a salesman that I wanted a long lasting item to remember my Nana. He said I should get a Rolex. I was not 'up' on that brand but did like the Bulova my folks bought me for high school graduation. He showed me how nice the Rolexes he currently had in stock were.

I walked out of the store with a new Sea Dweller. Price: $300 (plus tax). I wore that watch for 16 years, night & day. I sold it to a friend who wanted to give it to his son as a gift for joining the Navy. I doubled my money.

quote:

Originally posted by George43:
I see in the classified section that there is a Rolex for sale for $12,000. It just had a $2,000 cleaning. I have an iPhone that costs less and keeps better time. A Ferrari costs more but really a watch?

They're every bit as much jewelry as they are a watch. The jeweled cuts on the bezel, the machining on all of the surfaces, etc. But they're very rugged and use top quality materials. They don't keep time worth a sh@t compared to a good quartz movement, most all mechanical watches don't, but they don't need batteries either.

I always wore TAG's and without fail, every 2 years my daily worn TAG would break. Don't ever try sending it to TAG, their estimate is always as much as you could buy a working used one for. Then I'd replace the TAG's every 5-6 years...….. Needless to say I walked into the local Rolex AD in 2012 to get my TAG fixed for the third time and mentioned I always wanted a S/S/platinum yachtmaster but was too cheap to buy myself one. He offered to sell me a brand new one for 30% off MSRP. I did the math and it was 10% above a 10 year old used one was selling for......I bought it, wear it almost daily and it looks new and works and hasn't broken and is worth what I paid for it 8 years later.

Just think of a custom 1911 but it keeps time.

You can buy a really nice Rolex for only $5000 or $6000. The model you see is a collector edition. RolexForum would give better exposure but potential buyers are few, regardless. They are a savvy lot; everyone wants to buy low and flip for a profit.

A decade ago before Supercase models came out was the time to buy.

I’d like an early ‘00 34mm black stick Date model. In pristine unpolished condition it might be $4000 but honest wear is fine by me as long as it is unpolished. $2600-$3200

Polishing off the factory chamfering diminishes value IMHO. In time the lugs would get thinner and thinner as progressive refurbishments try to erase nicks on the case edge.

In ‘09 or so Murphy’s by the Cabela’s off I-78 had a NIB leftover salmon stick AirKing. $2950 out the door, full Rolex warranty. Maybe an F serial. Stick dial, not the 3-6-9 dial. Minimalistic 34mm perfection. The one which got away ...

It’s a piece of jewelry.

quote:

Originally posted by tacfoley:
Pride of ownership?

Exactly, and there are countless examples of that motive that explains why people own things from Beanie Babies to Bentleys.

I’d hate to see what you think about a Patek Philippe:

https://www.patek.com/en/home