The following are some admissions of guilt and lessons learned after my busy first year in this hobby. There will be some pointed comments about several of the watches. If you own one of them and do not agree, I apologize. Remember - this is my perspective and my wrist I'm talking about. Your mileage may vary.
A bit about me -
- I'm a collector by nature but I tend to lose interest in things after some time. The only thing that has remained an obsession since the age of 4 is cycling. Mountain biking specifically, is my true passion - and the one thing that I can say I genuinely excel at. Everything else is a means to keep me learning. I love finding new hobbies and soaking up as much info as I can - the history of things, how they are made, etc. But that doesn't mean I don't make rash decisions sometimes.
- Prior to fall 2011, I kept telling my wife I wanted a Tag Carrera (the easy choice, I know). A few years ago it was the brown one (thank god she didn't pull the trigger), then the standard black. Along the way I had several quartz watches she bought me that I liked quite a bit - a bulova acutron tahoe for work and a Nixon 42-20 for casual. Both well made and still kicking, although they live in a drawer now.
- Around christmas 2010 I walked into a little shop in philly called Martin Pulli Jewelers, looking for a cool vintage ring or something for my wife. I found a sweet 30's vintage ring with beautiful engraving and a moonstone for a centerpiece. What I also found was a selection of cool watches I'd never laid eyes on before. From that moment on I was hooked. And I knew the Tag I saw every time I was in macy's wasn't going to work for me.
- In early fall 2011 I decided to part out one of my mountain bikes that wasn't getting any use - so I had money to make purchase #1 without dipping into the bank account. Here's what happened : :-!
Watch #1 - Ball engineer hydrocarbon magnate. Purchased from a local guy I found on TZ.
This was one of the watches I tried on in martin's shop and fell in love with. When I parted out that bike and counted up the money, it wasn't enough to get a new one. I joined TZ and WUS and discovered that other collectors were selling watches in great shape for great prices. This was a revelation - and the beginning of the sickness.
While I initially loved it, I started getting annoyed by the presence of the cyclops. I even ended up removing it and sold the watch that way. Then a friend of mine said it was a copy of a rolex that his uncle wears (explorer II) and that it looked like an "old man's watch". I really wasn't too phased by that BS, but then Ball released some pics of an upcoming watch... (see #3.)
Lesson - Sometimes you don't know what you don't like until it's in front of your face every day. I'll never buy another watch with a cyclops. My sense of design and layout feels that it's very distracting and unnecessary. The other thing about this watch was the bracelet clasp was very irritating to me.
Cost to own after sale - $250.
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Number 2 : Anonimo wayfarer II.
I came into some more play money and this was pretty much purely a "deal I couldn't refuse" from a member that was selling it on here. I wanted something more rugged looking and was really digging the way Anonimo makes their cases. I had also seen this watch at Martin's. This watch looked and felt great on an Isofrane, no complaints from a wearability standpoint.
Lesson - Buckle straps and alcohol don't mix. Literally 2 days after this watch arrived to me in mint condition, i was at a resort in jamaica with my wife. While getting ready for dinner, after drinking at the pool all day, the strap slipped out of my hand and the watch fell on to the tile floor of the room. I thought it broke the tile it was so loud. That bonehead move left it with several dents in the case and the hands hitting each other. After a ridiculous runaround at a local watch repair place, Stoll and Co. fixed the hands and checked the movement. After that I just lost interest but I did wear it for a few more months.
(Bonus lesson - when you walk into a watchmaker and he says "I've never seen one of these before", Just walk out, buck up, and pay to send the watch to whatever authorized service center handles the brand.)
Cost to own after sale (and repair) - $500
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#3 - Ball Ceramic XV
A case of pure lust, plain and simple. My biggest mistake to date. After buying two used watches that I had seen at Martin's, I decided to liquidate some more of my other collectibles and the magnate, and buy this watch brand new. Martin got the watch in, stayed late for me to arrive one night, and did a great deal. Problem was, I didn't try it with the bracelet sized and I ignored the fact that the one oclock lug dug into my wrist a little bit. I didn't care - this was the coolest watch I'd ever seen and I had to have it.
I made it about 6 weeks. The last straw was a business trip to florida that included 2 nights of heavy drinking with the sales reps of my company. The 2 days sitting in the meetings, all dehydrated and swollen, with this torture device digging into my wrist in 3 different ways, was driving me crazy. There was the lug digging into my wrist bone, the sharp corners on the clasp (Which I had already experienced with the magnate. Really ? How dumb am I ?), and a razor sharp edge on the case back around the design in the center. As soon as I got home I put it up for sale. I think I actually walked in from the airport and went straight to taking photos for my ad on here.
Lesson - Lust will make you crazy. Don't ignore comfort issues for the sake of bling and the coolest blue lume this side of pluto. Looking back now, I also don't know how I could ignore that horrid white date wheel, sitting there all crooked between 4 and 5. Ugh...
Cost to own after sale - $500. I actually think I got off easy.
![Image]()
#4 - Omega PO 2500 XL
With XV money burning a hole in my pocket I decided to take advice of a friend who said "Just get a PO and shut the F up, you won't find a better quality, more comfortable watch for the money". So I did. But...
Lesson - Don't look at a watch with your arm in front of your face. Find a full length mirror, take a step back and THEN see what the watch looks like on your arm. With my 7-1/4" wrist, many people would say the XL looked fine on me. But the more I wore it, the more it kept nagging me that it looked silly. The real kiss of death was the opening of the omega boutique in king of prussia. Damn 8500 PO's were calling to me every time I walked in there...
Bonus lesson - When a watch comes on a bracelet, DON'T sell the bracelet. Even though the watch was being sold with the expensive curved end stitched rubber and deployant - guess what almost every single person who inquired about this watch said ? yep... "I'd pay closer to your asking price if it had the bracelet". o|
Problem was, no matter what combinations of half links I tried, i couldn't get a good fit.
Cost to own after sale - $600 or so.
![Image]()
#5 - Hamilton Pilot auto chrono
Got this one after I sold the anonimo from a forum sponsor AD. Its a great watch for the money, and while the white date wheel bothers me a little teeny tiny bit, it's so comfy and gets so many compliments. It's been my "almost daily" watch since august. No urges to sell it.... yet. Ha
Lesson - Why do I have a chronograph ? I never use it. (Uh oh...) :-d
![Image]()
And finally, #6 - PO 8500 42mm.
Got the bracelet and the strap with this, from a forum member. A little more comfy than the 2500 IMO, due to the smooth case back. And of course, even though this is still a sizeable piece, the 42 is a much better fit for me. I've even gotten lucky with the bracelet - perfect fit with one half link. A little loose but it can't spin around. I am in lust and in love with it. I think it has a little bit of the bling that I loved about the XV, but still keeps enough of the classic "tool" look of the PO.
(bad cel phone pic. Still haven't taken any shots with the good camera)
![Image]()
Hope you enjoyed !
A bit about me -
- I'm a collector by nature but I tend to lose interest in things after some time. The only thing that has remained an obsession since the age of 4 is cycling. Mountain biking specifically, is my true passion - and the one thing that I can say I genuinely excel at. Everything else is a means to keep me learning. I love finding new hobbies and soaking up as much info as I can - the history of things, how they are made, etc. But that doesn't mean I don't make rash decisions sometimes.
- Prior to fall 2011, I kept telling my wife I wanted a Tag Carrera (the easy choice, I know). A few years ago it was the brown one (thank god she didn't pull the trigger), then the standard black. Along the way I had several quartz watches she bought me that I liked quite a bit - a bulova acutron tahoe for work and a Nixon 42-20 for casual. Both well made and still kicking, although they live in a drawer now.
- Around christmas 2010 I walked into a little shop in philly called Martin Pulli Jewelers, looking for a cool vintage ring or something for my wife. I found a sweet 30's vintage ring with beautiful engraving and a moonstone for a centerpiece. What I also found was a selection of cool watches I'd never laid eyes on before. From that moment on I was hooked. And I knew the Tag I saw every time I was in macy's wasn't going to work for me.
- In early fall 2011 I decided to part out one of my mountain bikes that wasn't getting any use - so I had money to make purchase #1 without dipping into the bank account. Here's what happened : :-!
Watch #1 - Ball engineer hydrocarbon magnate. Purchased from a local guy I found on TZ.
This was one of the watches I tried on in martin's shop and fell in love with. When I parted out that bike and counted up the money, it wasn't enough to get a new one. I joined TZ and WUS and discovered that other collectors were selling watches in great shape for great prices. This was a revelation - and the beginning of the sickness.
While I initially loved it, I started getting annoyed by the presence of the cyclops. I even ended up removing it and sold the watch that way. Then a friend of mine said it was a copy of a rolex that his uncle wears (explorer II) and that it looked like an "old man's watch". I really wasn't too phased by that BS, but then Ball released some pics of an upcoming watch... (see #3.)
Lesson - Sometimes you don't know what you don't like until it's in front of your face every day. I'll never buy another watch with a cyclops. My sense of design and layout feels that it's very distracting and unnecessary. The other thing about this watch was the bracelet clasp was very irritating to me.
Cost to own after sale - $250.
Number 2 : Anonimo wayfarer II.
I came into some more play money and this was pretty much purely a "deal I couldn't refuse" from a member that was selling it on here. I wanted something more rugged looking and was really digging the way Anonimo makes their cases. I had also seen this watch at Martin's. This watch looked and felt great on an Isofrane, no complaints from a wearability standpoint.
Lesson - Buckle straps and alcohol don't mix. Literally 2 days after this watch arrived to me in mint condition, i was at a resort in jamaica with my wife. While getting ready for dinner, after drinking at the pool all day, the strap slipped out of my hand and the watch fell on to the tile floor of the room. I thought it broke the tile it was so loud. That bonehead move left it with several dents in the case and the hands hitting each other. After a ridiculous runaround at a local watch repair place, Stoll and Co. fixed the hands and checked the movement. After that I just lost interest but I did wear it for a few more months.
(Bonus lesson - when you walk into a watchmaker and he says "I've never seen one of these before", Just walk out, buck up, and pay to send the watch to whatever authorized service center handles the brand.)
Cost to own after sale (and repair) - $500
#3 - Ball Ceramic XV
A case of pure lust, plain and simple. My biggest mistake to date. After buying two used watches that I had seen at Martin's, I decided to liquidate some more of my other collectibles and the magnate, and buy this watch brand new. Martin got the watch in, stayed late for me to arrive one night, and did a great deal. Problem was, I didn't try it with the bracelet sized and I ignored the fact that the one oclock lug dug into my wrist a little bit. I didn't care - this was the coolest watch I'd ever seen and I had to have it.
I made it about 6 weeks. The last straw was a business trip to florida that included 2 nights of heavy drinking with the sales reps of my company. The 2 days sitting in the meetings, all dehydrated and swollen, with this torture device digging into my wrist in 3 different ways, was driving me crazy. There was the lug digging into my wrist bone, the sharp corners on the clasp (Which I had already experienced with the magnate. Really ? How dumb am I ?), and a razor sharp edge on the case back around the design in the center. As soon as I got home I put it up for sale. I think I actually walked in from the airport and went straight to taking photos for my ad on here.
Lesson - Lust will make you crazy. Don't ignore comfort issues for the sake of bling and the coolest blue lume this side of pluto. Looking back now, I also don't know how I could ignore that horrid white date wheel, sitting there all crooked between 4 and 5. Ugh...
Cost to own after sale - $500. I actually think I got off easy.
#4 - Omega PO 2500 XL
With XV money burning a hole in my pocket I decided to take advice of a friend who said "Just get a PO and shut the F up, you won't find a better quality, more comfortable watch for the money". So I did. But...
Lesson - Don't look at a watch with your arm in front of your face. Find a full length mirror, take a step back and THEN see what the watch looks like on your arm. With my 7-1/4" wrist, many people would say the XL looked fine on me. But the more I wore it, the more it kept nagging me that it looked silly. The real kiss of death was the opening of the omega boutique in king of prussia. Damn 8500 PO's were calling to me every time I walked in there...
Bonus lesson - When a watch comes on a bracelet, DON'T sell the bracelet. Even though the watch was being sold with the expensive curved end stitched rubber and deployant - guess what almost every single person who inquired about this watch said ? yep... "I'd pay closer to your asking price if it had the bracelet". o|
Problem was, no matter what combinations of half links I tried, i couldn't get a good fit.
Cost to own after sale - $600 or so.
#5 - Hamilton Pilot auto chrono
Got this one after I sold the anonimo from a forum sponsor AD. Its a great watch for the money, and while the white date wheel bothers me a little teeny tiny bit, it's so comfy and gets so many compliments. It's been my "almost daily" watch since august. No urges to sell it.... yet. Ha
Lesson - Why do I have a chronograph ? I never use it. (Uh oh...) :-d
And finally, #6 - PO 8500 42mm.
Got the bracelet and the strap with this, from a forum member. A little more comfy than the 2500 IMO, due to the smooth case back. And of course, even though this is still a sizeable piece, the 42 is a much better fit for me. I've even gotten lucky with the bracelet - perfect fit with one half link. A little loose but it can't spin around. I am in lust and in love with it. I think it has a little bit of the bling that I loved about the XV, but still keeps enough of the classic "tool" look of the PO.
(bad cel phone pic. Still haven't taken any shots with the good camera)
Hope you enjoyed !
