I haven’t done one of these in at least a couple of years and with a recent trade it’s a good opportunity to document what’s in the watch box right now.
There will likely be a shakeup early 2023 as I have 5 more incoming between pre-orders and a kickstarter, and I know I won’t be keeping all of them. Unfortunately I’m always looking at what’s new coming out from both established brands as well as micros, and there’s always a lot I like. I’ve reached the point where an expensive watch must be sold before another one comes in, but I’m not placing this rule on affordable watches yet.
Having said that I’d really love to downsize to 7 plus a couple of beaters/affordables, but it’s getting more and more difficult as I really like mostly everything I’ve got at the moment. Maybe I’ll get there some day, and I’m open to suggestions on what to cull and what to maybe upgrade to if I did downsize and reallocate the proceeds.
This may get to be a little long, so apologies in advance.
First up is the Certina DS-4 Small Seconds. I’d have to look at receipts to confirm for sure, but I believe this is the watch I’ve owned the longest from what has made it through several consolidations. I love the wave pattern on the dial, and it’s the only one that made the cut from a one time high of 5 Certinas I owned at the same time.
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Next up are my two grab-and-go quartz Vratislavia Conceptum Heritage Chronographs. One of these gets worn pretty much every weekend as I run errands or take my son to the horse farm for therapeutic horseback riding.
The blue dial has a great shade of blue, and the panda dial is a nice homage to the Sieffert Autavia.
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Next up are three compressor style micro brand watches. The first two are from NTH, and the third from Direnzo. All three are super, and I find myself reaching for one often. The Cointreau was the first, and fit the need nicely when I wanted an orange or yellow dial, but not just a flat color. This led to the Hpnotiq when I wanted another blue dial that was different to the Vratislavia, and the Direnzo was actually purchased to go with the B&S Degrade Chili strap I already had. As it turns out it’s a perfect match, and I owe Sergio some decent photos of the combo.
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I’ve had the Oris 65 for quite some time, and I love the nod to the original version with the unique 3,6,9,12 markers. Although I’m not a fan of fauxtina, it works on this watch, especially with the rubber strap.
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The Hamilton Intramatic Chrono is probably my favorite panda dial out there. The proportions are just right, the black ring around the circumference of the dial ties the look together, and the creamy shade of white makes the dial warm.
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Next up is the Speedy. It took me a long time to warm up to the Speedy, and I always thought I’d get the Sinn 103 instead. But between coming around that the Sinn was too thick for my taste and realizing what a strap monster the Omega is, I succumbed and made the purchase. I’m very glad I did, as the watch changes “looks” with each new strap. I opted for the hesalite crystal, and have never worn it on the steel bracelet. I did purchase an original deployant clasp for it though.
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I wanted a Zenith Classic Skeleton since I first saw one online. It took me over a year to pull the trigger, and I went back and forth on the variations but really wanted the titanium bracelet, and although I liked the blue, didn’t think it would be a keeper for me. I love this watch as its both comfortable and still a little unique.
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The Tudor Black Bay was my first expensive watch. I fell in love with the burgundy bezel insert and the snowflake hands. I went through a period where I wasn’t wearing it but an adjustment to the bracelet got me wearing it again.
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Next up are two watches that could be considered GADAs - the OP39s. I was lucky to buy the rhodium dial used for a great price, and managed to get the white dial new at a discount. I was actually considering buying the black dial as well when they got discontinued and prices jumped up. These are the perfect size, weight and symmetry for my taste, and I’ve often thought if I ever have to go down to one watch, it will likely be one of these two.
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Continuing the Rolex trend, the next two are among my favorites for different reasons.
The Polar Explorer was purchased right before the current version was announced. I went back and forth between the 40mm and 42mm versions, and wanted something newer. Since I wasn’t sure what the new Polar would end up looking like, I went ahead and picked this one up with a brand new 2 year service warranty from Rolex. I honestly wasn’t sure if I’d want to keep it, but knew I’d make my money back if I ended up selling. Once I put it on my wrist it was instant love. I enjoy wearing this watch so much that it would also be a candidate for being the one and only.
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The Pepsi. I suppose I’ve always wanted one, but never allowed myself to think about spending this much on a watch. Then the ceramic bezels came out and I really wanted one. I tried a couple of other watches with Pepsi bezels (from the inexpensive Lip to the very well made micro brand Lorier), but they never hit the spot. With a couple of good years bonus-wise, and a decision to sell some stock, I went ahead with the purchase. I got a 2 month old model in mint condition for close to the lowest price at the time, and a couple of months later these were already going for a few thousand more. I absolutely love this watch - although the jury is still out on the jubilee bracelet…..what can I say, I enjoy the oyster. The size is perfect, the colors on the bezel are perfect, and I really enjoy wearing it.
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The final 3 are my dress watches, all by JLC.
I purchased the white/silver MUT Moon used at what would now be considered a great price. I previously had the Frédérique Constant Classic Moonphase, and although a great watch in its own right, it didn’t scratch the itch (notice a theme here?).
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The next one is another MUT Moon - this time the Petrol blue dial. I previously had the Nomos Orion Timeless Midnight Edition, and sold it. I’m not quite sure what it was, but I had fallen out of love with it despite its great dimensions, thinness, and it was a manual wind which I liked. I thought I wanted this JLC, but took my time with it. I also had a 114060 that wasn’t getting a lot of wrist time that I decided to sell, and one of my favorite trusted dealers had this for sale, so we made a trade + some cash to me. I love the dial and color, but I’m not a big fan of the ceramic ball bearings JLC has decided to use. I just got this a couple of days ago, so I haven’t had a chance to wear it out yet, and I want to see if the noise bothers me or if I can get used to it like with the Miyota 9015. Worse case scenario I sell it for the blue Reverso tribute, but I hope it works out as I love the dial.
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Speaking of the Reverso Tribute, this brings me to the final watch, well, at least in the box. I wanted a Reverso but wanted something different. The burgundy dial is special (notice another trend here with the red/burgundy?). I was quoted a 6 month wait by the boutique, and got word 5 months and 2 days later that it had arrived at the boutique. Great experience buying from the now closed Las Vegas boutique, with very nice customer service. This has me wanting another Reverso, so we will see what happens.
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Ok, so what’s not in the box, and what’s on order?
Well, I got in on the Kurono Grand Hagane. I was hoping the 37mm would be ok on my wrist, but I’m not sure. I think 38mm is my limit but I’m taking my time to see if the size grows on me. The dial itself is spectacular.
I’ve also preordered 4 Mings, both the blue and burgundy 17.09s, the 37.05 Moonphase, and the 22.01 GMT Kyoto. I do like what Ming is doing and I want a guilloche (or similar) dial before it’s all said and done, and that Moonphase looks spectacular.
Other than these, I did get in on the Selten Kickstarter and am waiting for a blue aventurine dial with day/night indicator. It should be a fun addition.
Oh, and I am looking at a salmon dial that will go on sale next week…….I don’t think I’m ever going to downsize the collection, am I?
If you made it this far, thanks for looking!
There will likely be a shakeup early 2023 as I have 5 more incoming between pre-orders and a kickstarter, and I know I won’t be keeping all of them. Unfortunately I’m always looking at what’s new coming out from both established brands as well as micros, and there’s always a lot I like. I’ve reached the point where an expensive watch must be sold before another one comes in, but I’m not placing this rule on affordable watches yet.
Having said that I’d really love to downsize to 7 plus a couple of beaters/affordables, but it’s getting more and more difficult as I really like mostly everything I’ve got at the moment. Maybe I’ll get there some day, and I’m open to suggestions on what to cull and what to maybe upgrade to if I did downsize and reallocate the proceeds.
This may get to be a little long, so apologies in advance.
First up is the Certina DS-4 Small Seconds. I’d have to look at receipts to confirm for sure, but I believe this is the watch I’ve owned the longest from what has made it through several consolidations. I love the wave pattern on the dial, and it’s the only one that made the cut from a one time high of 5 Certinas I owned at the same time.
Next up are my two grab-and-go quartz Vratislavia Conceptum Heritage Chronographs. One of these gets worn pretty much every weekend as I run errands or take my son to the horse farm for therapeutic horseback riding.
The blue dial has a great shade of blue, and the panda dial is a nice homage to the Sieffert Autavia.
Next up are three compressor style micro brand watches. The first two are from NTH, and the third from Direnzo. All three are super, and I find myself reaching for one often. The Cointreau was the first, and fit the need nicely when I wanted an orange or yellow dial, but not just a flat color. This led to the Hpnotiq when I wanted another blue dial that was different to the Vratislavia, and the Direnzo was actually purchased to go with the B&S Degrade Chili strap I already had. As it turns out it’s a perfect match, and I owe Sergio some decent photos of the combo.
I’ve had the Oris 65 for quite some time, and I love the nod to the original version with the unique 3,6,9,12 markers. Although I’m not a fan of fauxtina, it works on this watch, especially with the rubber strap.
The Hamilton Intramatic Chrono is probably my favorite panda dial out there. The proportions are just right, the black ring around the circumference of the dial ties the look together, and the creamy shade of white makes the dial warm.
Next up is the Speedy. It took me a long time to warm up to the Speedy, and I always thought I’d get the Sinn 103 instead. But between coming around that the Sinn was too thick for my taste and realizing what a strap monster the Omega is, I succumbed and made the purchase. I’m very glad I did, as the watch changes “looks” with each new strap. I opted for the hesalite crystal, and have never worn it on the steel bracelet. I did purchase an original deployant clasp for it though.
I wanted a Zenith Classic Skeleton since I first saw one online. It took me over a year to pull the trigger, and I went back and forth on the variations but really wanted the titanium bracelet, and although I liked the blue, didn’t think it would be a keeper for me. I love this watch as its both comfortable and still a little unique.
The Tudor Black Bay was my first expensive watch. I fell in love with the burgundy bezel insert and the snowflake hands. I went through a period where I wasn’t wearing it but an adjustment to the bracelet got me wearing it again.
Next up are two watches that could be considered GADAs - the OP39s. I was lucky to buy the rhodium dial used for a great price, and managed to get the white dial new at a discount. I was actually considering buying the black dial as well when they got discontinued and prices jumped up. These are the perfect size, weight and symmetry for my taste, and I’ve often thought if I ever have to go down to one watch, it will likely be one of these two.
Continuing the Rolex trend, the next two are among my favorites for different reasons.
The Polar Explorer was purchased right before the current version was announced. I went back and forth between the 40mm and 42mm versions, and wanted something newer. Since I wasn’t sure what the new Polar would end up looking like, I went ahead and picked this one up with a brand new 2 year service warranty from Rolex. I honestly wasn’t sure if I’d want to keep it, but knew I’d make my money back if I ended up selling. Once I put it on my wrist it was instant love. I enjoy wearing this watch so much that it would also be a candidate for being the one and only.
The Pepsi. I suppose I’ve always wanted one, but never allowed myself to think about spending this much on a watch. Then the ceramic bezels came out and I really wanted one. I tried a couple of other watches with Pepsi bezels (from the inexpensive Lip to the very well made micro brand Lorier), but they never hit the spot. With a couple of good years bonus-wise, and a decision to sell some stock, I went ahead with the purchase. I got a 2 month old model in mint condition for close to the lowest price at the time, and a couple of months later these were already going for a few thousand more. I absolutely love this watch - although the jury is still out on the jubilee bracelet…..what can I say, I enjoy the oyster. The size is perfect, the colors on the bezel are perfect, and I really enjoy wearing it.
The final 3 are my dress watches, all by JLC.
I purchased the white/silver MUT Moon used at what would now be considered a great price. I previously had the Frédérique Constant Classic Moonphase, and although a great watch in its own right, it didn’t scratch the itch (notice a theme here?).
The next one is another MUT Moon - this time the Petrol blue dial. I previously had the Nomos Orion Timeless Midnight Edition, and sold it. I’m not quite sure what it was, but I had fallen out of love with it despite its great dimensions, thinness, and it was a manual wind which I liked. I thought I wanted this JLC, but took my time with it. I also had a 114060 that wasn’t getting a lot of wrist time that I decided to sell, and one of my favorite trusted dealers had this for sale, so we made a trade + some cash to me. I love the dial and color, but I’m not a big fan of the ceramic ball bearings JLC has decided to use. I just got this a couple of days ago, so I haven’t had a chance to wear it out yet, and I want to see if the noise bothers me or if I can get used to it like with the Miyota 9015. Worse case scenario I sell it for the blue Reverso tribute, but I hope it works out as I love the dial.
Speaking of the Reverso Tribute, this brings me to the final watch, well, at least in the box. I wanted a Reverso but wanted something different. The burgundy dial is special (notice another trend here with the red/burgundy?). I was quoted a 6 month wait by the boutique, and got word 5 months and 2 days later that it had arrived at the boutique. Great experience buying from the now closed Las Vegas boutique, with very nice customer service. This has me wanting another Reverso, so we will see what happens.
Ok, so what’s not in the box, and what’s on order?
Well, I got in on the Kurono Grand Hagane. I was hoping the 37mm would be ok on my wrist, but I’m not sure. I think 38mm is my limit but I’m taking my time to see if the size grows on me. The dial itself is spectacular.
I’ve also preordered 4 Mings, both the blue and burgundy 17.09s, the 37.05 Moonphase, and the 22.01 GMT Kyoto. I do like what Ming is doing and I want a guilloche (or similar) dial before it’s all said and done, and that Moonphase looks spectacular.
Other than these, I did get in on the Selten Kickstarter and am waiting for a blue aventurine dial with day/night indicator. It should be a fun addition.
Oh, and I am looking at a salmon dial that will go on sale next week…….I don’t think I’m ever going to downsize the collection, am I?
If you made it this far, thanks for looking!
