Rolex vs High End Knives

[Charlie Mike]

There really is something to watching the second hand glide smoothly around it's hub.

 

[joejeweler]

You are patient zero in this pandemic. It's a beautiful thing, though. You have obviously thought out what you wanted and needed out of a watch. You need to know what time it is right now with the minimum of maintenance on your timepiece. The Citizen does that job better than my Timex. Fair enough. You don't like the countdown timers and alarms, but that's what I need my watch to do. Our difference of opinion is on the money. You prefer this, I prefer that.

As far as retaining value, Rolexes have done so in the past. So have Harleys, and Beanie Babies, and Magic: The Gathering cards, and bootleg CDs, and Cabbage Patch Kids, and tulips, and salt, and all kinds of other things. There is no guarantee that past returns will be repeated.

I agree with you that my purchase of a Timex is bad for you. It's good for me. We have different needs. I agree completely with your last paragraph as well, with the exception that I am very interested in their thoughts as they went through their purchasing decision tree.

I think you may be confusing your purchase of a "Watch" with your understandable need for a split "Timer". Nothing wrong with that, but I think we have to remember the main purpose of a watch is to tell you the TIME in a reasonably accurate manner.

And no, a mechanical wheel and geared Rolex cannot be as accurate as most any quartz watch, and it wasn't meant to be. But really, is a FEW SECONDS A DAY going to mess up anyone's schedule? Really???? I think not.

Informally time a friendly race or event, and human error is much more relevant than being "off" 1/100th of a second over several minutes or more. In your case a hand held or pocket-able timer would serve your needs as well. It would allow any watch you wear to be easier to read and serve it's main function,.....to tell TIME.

For all practical purposes in telling TIME you will be well served by a Rolex. Purchase a nice example USED and probably a fine long term investment also. Much better to cut out the depreciation right off the top!

One thing you seem to miss is the appreciation of a very fine "mechanical" design and execution,....and where pride of ownership comes into play. This is not a small point! There have been many a stressful day at work where no matter what, I would immediately feel a bit better just checking the time. Hard to get that feeling with quartz........and I've owned some (even some high end ones), so have a basis to compare.

A fine watch is one of the FEW accepted pieces of jewelry a man can wear and not get looked at as a bit weird. Start wearing lots of gold chains, earrings, bracelets, and pendents,.......and not only are you becoming more of a target, but even your friends might start thinking you've "switched teams", so to speak.

A Rolex "opened up" seems almost alive, and certainly there is much activity present which cannot go unnoticed or unappreciated. Very TINY parts are moving, and do so constantly over many years between oil changes and cleanings as long as you wear the watch daily to keep it wound.

Hold a Rolex to your ear and you hear it's "heartbeat", and you immediately sense a connection to life and man's ability to create mechanical wonders,.....no battery (or solar power) required.

......I've opened up many thousands of quartz watches over the 35 years I spent as a bench jeweler needing to change the battery, and I can tell you it was a rare case indeed where there was anything much to appreciate!

 

[joejeweler]

What's a thread without pics. Some people have an appreciation for finely crafted objects, whether knives, watches, or cars, and others base their decisions on low cost or mere function. Each to their own.

Agreed,..oh Green One!

This one I rarely wear, and it resides in a safe deposit box mostly as a long term "investment", bought USED of course but looks mint!

The quite heavy (over 7.5 troy ounces) and rarely seen Platinum Rolex "Masterpiece" with Tahitian Roman Diamond Dial and bezel. It "looks" like Stainless Steel,.....UNTIL you heft it in hand! H E A V Y!!!





The day I bought the above, I also bought for the Lady of the house from the same gentleman a Rolex 18K Masterpiece with mother of pearl diamond dial and bezel.

This watch is interesting in that it once belonged to Denise Richards (Charlie Sheen's Ex-Wife). She had traded it in almost immediately for a Platinum version. My girl has worn it 24 hours a day, EVERYDAY (even in the shower), for over 8 years.

It still has yet to need any service,.....but that's her problem! I did my part! lol (bought used for $19K as an early Xmas present late 2005, and new ones about double that now)






I'm basically retired now, so those high flying days are long gone. (even the high stakes Casino Blackjack which allowed such things)

C'est la vie.........

 

[Clang!]

High end watches, like a lot of mens' jewelry, are tools as well as jewelery. The other men's jewlery that are almost always accepteable are knives, pens, and lighters. Bracelets, necklaces, earrings, cufflinks, and other pure objects d'art vary with fashion.

As an example: Under $100 will get you a nice pen (Zebra, Parker, Cross, Monteverde), watch (Casio, Timex, Pulsar, Seiko), knife (Buck, Victorinox, Kershaw), or lighter (Zippo, Colibri, Ronson). They will all get the job done and are nice enough for formal occasions.

But, to impress, there are $400 Mont Blanc pens, $2,000 Ball, $4,000 Rolex,and $80,000 Patek Phllips watches, $4,000 William Henry knives, and $1,000 Dupont and Dunhill lighters. Make no mistake that these will get the job done, but they're primary function is as jewlery. You can walk around with enough hardware to pay off my mortgage, but nobody will think you the fop or dandy.