Episode 118 - Collecting Vintage Rolex, Seiko, AP, Heuer

Hey Watch Fans,

Vintages are fun! They are great way to get into some luxury brands, collect history, and boost your collection.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
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Speaker 2 (00:26):
Hi everyone, welcome back, and today I want to talk
about vintage watches. I have one, I plan on getting
a few more. I really love them. And you might
not be into vintage watches, but give it some thought
because I think there is something there for all collectors.

(00:47):
And nowadays, with the help of the Internet, you can
buy old vintage watches, not just luxury ones, but even
like old digital, old low end watches, older micro brand watches.
There's always something for everyone. And if you're not already

(01:10):
a vintage watch collector, after today, I hope to have
converted you in some way. So let's start off with
the big why. One of them whys or vintage collecting
is because these are pieces that have a history and

(01:32):
they have character. They have history, they have a story
to tell behind every dent, every scratch, the patina. These
are watches that have been for the most part now
all the time worn, and they've been worn through several decades,
and they've been worn through boardrooms, through parties, through different events,

(01:59):
different environments, even hiking, possibly the ocean. Who knows, if
you're lucky one that's been in outer space. And I
think watch collectors we can all agree there's something about
buying a new watch. It's that thrill of the hunt,

(02:22):
the research and the pros and con lists that go
through your head and balancing out budgets and definitely that
thrill of the hunt feeling when you're looking for that
perfect vintage timepiece, and some people might question it's worth

(02:45):
What makes a vintage watch valuable? Value can mean anything
to anyone. So one thing is the brand and model.
Some brands like Omega pedectively hold their value better than others.

(03:05):
There's demand for some of these that you know that
demand puts value on your watch. Some people will also
look at the condition to determine value or to get
a sense of value. Original pieces are always desired. Some
have replacement parts, some have after market parts, so those

(03:30):
can influence what you find valuable in the vintage watch,
but also adds to the thrill of the hunt. I
think with vintage watches, it's sometimes not the watch that
is being hunted, so the value could be in its movement.
It's the movement that you're looking for, and that's one

(03:51):
of the things I do like about Omega was the
coaxial movement. So people might be just interested in older
movement and there's strong value in that too. Then there's
value in provenance. Was this a historical piece? Was this
a watch that was in headlines? Was this a watch

(04:11):
that was worn by celebrities for example, Bruce Lee, Steve McQueen,
Paul Newman name a few. And also there's value in rarity.
So when you're looking for a piece, some pieces were
mass produced somewhere limited, so you're going to find value there.
And I think all those put together make vintage watch

(04:34):
collecting a valuable proposition, something worth pursuing if that's what
you want. And as I was mentioning earlier with the
condition of watch original versus replacement parts, that is a
pitfall that is something you have to be aware of

(04:56):
because if you are someone who's looking for original pieces,
you got to be careful. There's going to be sellers
who number one might be the third owner. Don't know
if they're all original, and there are people, I'm sure
who have snuck in unoriginal parts and are trying to

(05:17):
sell it as original. So you know, that's one thing
you have to be aware of with vintage watches. I
also found that with looking for vintage watches it's maintenance.
Some aren't well maintained, so when you do buy one
or off the bat, you're going to have to pay
for maintenance. That can be expensive. Third thing is you

(05:41):
have to keep your emotions in check, because sometimes these
vintage pieces are full of nostalgia, emotions are high, and
that's one of the mistakes I bought with my vintage
was I was a little too rush to buy it.
And another thing you have to worry about, some reason

(06:02):
I don't see people talking about, is the condition of
the strap. Some of these metal bracelets are so loose
that you have to replace every single pin on the bracelet,
so keep that in mind. If you're planning to even
keep the pins original, be aware that the bracelet is
going to be very loose, very fragile too. And if

(06:26):
you're one of those people that want original pins even,
just be aware. It's not watch that you might want
to wear out. Often it's for select occasions. Now, I
know there's a lot of content creators out there giving
out tips and about their own collection and what to
do as a collector or a new collector, But I

(06:49):
want to say that number one, choose a price point,
set a budget, and try to keep in that budget
because it can quickly get al hand, you know. But
you don't need thousands of dollars to start. There are
many affordable vintage watches like Saiko or Tisso, and they

(07:10):
are great entry level pieces. Also, you might want to
find a vintage watch that also matches another passion. For example,
if you like the military, there are a lot of
military issued vintage watches. If you like sporting events, for example,
there are a lot of automatic chronographs. If you want

(07:33):
like dining out, there are many vintage dress watches. If
you like cars, there's vintage watches connected to our automobile history.
So that's something you want to think about when you're collecting.
And the good thing about collecting these days is that
there are blogs, There are YouTube videos, there are podcasts,

(07:57):
there are forums, and just simple search engines like Google
that can really help you find locate a vintage watch,
which makes starting your vintage watch collection a little bit
risk free because you could do a lot of your research,
a lot of due diligence before getting into a piece.

(08:18):
One thing I do want to emphasize that I love
about vintage watches. It's not just owning another watch. It's
it's also an opportunity to learn more about watches. And
that's something I definitely did. Each time I looked at
a vintage piece, I kind of learned more about a brand,

(08:42):
about a watch, and in many ways I found that
it was a way of holding a piece of history
or preserving some history. And I feel like when you
do own a vintage watch, I feel like it I
hate to say this, but it elevates your collection a little.

(09:06):
If that interests you like that. That sounds horrible, but
it shows me as a collector that you are interested
in not just a brand, but also history, engineering, craftsmanship.
And what I love about watches today is that there's

(09:27):
a personal connection. It's not necessarily a device to tell
you time. It's a piece that reflects who you are.
The vintage piece that I have is actually a digital watch.
It's made by Texas Instruments. I also plan on adding

(09:47):
other mechanical or automatic to my collection, and two I
have an eye on whether I get them or not.
It's a different story because I always get sidetracked and
I might find some thing more my budget. Let me
share one with you. I think that will fit more
people's budget. When it comes to high end vintages. That's

(10:09):
the Ooyeur Carera and as I look around, the price
varies based on its condition and originality. Of course, as
of this year, I've seen them anywhere from about fifteen
hundred to twenty five hundred, and that's just a rough
ballpark off the top of my head. What I like

(10:31):
about it. The design is timeless, it's a nice clean
dial layout. It's the Caliber nine automatic, which is a
reliable movement, steelcase, scratch resistance, sapphire crystal, which lends to
its durability. Each year I find that there's less and
less of them, so the rarity is increasing. And you know,

(10:55):
water resistance one hundred meter. It's not something I would
wear in the water. I hope none of you do.
But that's just a smack that that I see. I
would buy it just because it's history to automobiles. Now,
the problem with them, it's hard to find a good
one it's also a smaller diameter for my wrist, I

(11:16):
prefer larger, but you insects something I could share with
my partner. And another thing that worries me about it,
which I want people to be aware of, is it's servicing.
Trying to find a good working piece out there is tricky,
and if you don't find one that's working well, be
prepared to spend some time and some money with a

(11:40):
trusted watch repair person. Overall, the O your carera It's
nice for everyone out there. It's a really nice time
piece before tag joined up with oil has historical significance
that way, it's connected to the automotive world. I think

(12:00):
it's a still a beautiful looking watch and like for me,
like I said, it could be unisex one of my
favorites and not in my budget. Last episode I talked
about cinema watches. Well, this is one of my favorite
Rolexes and I remember seeing it in Pretty Women on
Richard Gears wrist. It's to roll thattt's two tone date

(12:23):
just reference one six zero one to three. It's at
thirty six millimeters stainless steel. It also has eighteen car
yellow goal. The bezels fluted now here it gets tricky.
You can find them in sapphire or acrylic, depending on
the year. The caliber is three zero three five automatic

(12:46):
with a forty eight hour power reserve. I like the
two tone Jubilee. Again. Water resistance I think is one
hundred meters, but I hope you're not going in the
water with it. Now. The budget again, this is for
this year twenty twenty five, and this is ballpark and
where from four thousand to ten thousand dollars, you know,

(13:10):
depending on the condition. Caliber thirty thirty five is known
for great accuracy, and all Rolexes seem to hold their value,
if not also go up in value. So that's something
interests you. This is a great piece for you. And
I also find that it's got a nice look. It

(13:32):
can be very dressy, very formal and casual, whereas I
feel like the whole year I was talking about earlier
is more casual than formal. But any vintage watch can
be Formal's that's another good thing about vintage watches. Right again,
with Rolex maintenance, if you're not getting a very good

(13:55):
working Rolex a maintenance, expect high maintenance after the purchase.
And since we're talking about high maintenance. Let's talk about
this other vintage watch. I found interesting because I don't
seem when I go to watch meets, I don't see
too many people with Ottoman pige especially Automen PGA A vintage,

(14:19):
so this is something I don't know. I started looking
up and found interesting. The Ottoman PGE Royal Oak five
four zero two st. It was introduced nineteen seventy two
and designed by Gerard Genta, and that is the name
with these royal oaks that make them desirable. Its size

(14:43):
is even back then, was at thirty nine milimeters, much
better suit for my wrist today, stainless steel. It still
has the octagonal basil well. The design is classic. The
movement Ottoman PGE caliber two to one two to one
automatic with a forty hour power reserve. It's really cool.

(15:05):
Great stainless steel, integrated bracelet, but again be wary of
the bracelet water resistance. I think they were at fifty meters,
but again not something you go in the water with.
Back then, it was the first with that octagonal design
and it's still used today with the roll oak, so

(15:27):
it's instantly recognizable. That's great for this vintage. Some people
call it one of the first luxuries steel sport watch
in the wild. I don't see many of them, so
rather rare, which makes them highly desirable. Now. The only
downfall with these vintages I heard the two to one

(15:48):
two one movement is a delicate one. So most likely
if you find a working one, you're paying a premium,
but if you don't, you're paying a premium on its repair.
Right now, my nephew and I are particularly looking for
one particular vintage watch. We're thinking of buying two, but

(16:09):
we're not too worried about its condition because we do
have a watchmaker and he gives us good prices on repairs.
But we are looking for identical that fits his budget
and my budget, and that's the Saikoh six one three
nine six zero one zero, particularly the Bruce Lee dial.

(16:30):
And this is a watch that is often referred as
the Bruce Lee watch. But I say this with a
strong emphasis because if it's a gold dial, you probably
have heard of this as the Pogue And that's what
makes this watch I think a value hitter, because it
has a following as a Bruce Lee watch, a very

(16:53):
strong following, and of course a very strong following as
the Pogue and it's the same watch, just different dial.
So this watch is noted for being one of the
first automatic pronographs, and for that there's another group of

(17:14):
collectors that want this. Being the first automatic chronograph has
a strong historical significance and it'd be cool to have
that in your collection. Again, the price. Like I said,
I'm looking for two pieces, one that would match my
budget and my nephew's budget, and it all depends on

(17:35):
again the condition and boxes, papers, et cetera, et cetera.
But I've seen them anywhere from about six hundred dollars
American six hundred dollars to about two thousand dollars, So
there's a lot of flexibility in our budget. And one
thing I do like about this watch, besides the personal

(17:56):
reasons for me and my nephew only one is at
each year they get more and more in demand, so
I feel like this watch will be something that will
not fade away, but will be remembered. And here's a
few specs. Diameter three nine milimeters lug with nineteen it's

(18:21):
the Caliber six one three nine mineral crystal stainless steel.
I seen Bruce Lee with the Rally stainless steel bracelet,
if I can find that one, or if I can
find that bracelet and that watch, I mean, that's my dream.

(18:42):
But anyways, that's just a little quick tidbit on vintage
watches for you guys. Uh and a few of my
I think favorites, the Oyer, Rolex, Seiko and the ap
I'm curious to know if you guys have alar vintage
in mind. I gotta say, I don't know if it's

(19:04):
my algorithm. I'm seeing more digital vintage watches come up,
and as an owner of a vintage digital, they're very
cool and it's a great conversation starter. So that's maybe
I'll talk about vintage digital watches one day, because I

(19:26):
tell you my Texas instrument there's stories there. Yeah, maybe
I'll do that one day. Again, let me know what
you think. Hope you find this entertaining at the very least,
and we'll talk to you all soon. Okay, take care
of good Bye.