My watch history & brands I've had most of

[andy tims]

I first got into watches as a young kid in secondary school when the quartz revolution started. I saved my Saturday job money & bought several LED watches that were in truth not all that accurate & because I kept pressing the buttons, chewed through batteries.

Then my Dad got an LCD Seiko which I thought was very cool & made me determined to get something similar.
Just after leaving school I got an Seiko analogue / digital which I loved, but have no idea what happened to it. I then got another quartz Seiko - this time the analogue Sports 100 bi-metal (well partly gold plated) which I still have even though it hasn't worked for years.

When I became Chartered I treated myself to a TAG Heuer 2000 series auto & after a few years I got another TAG Heuer 2000, this time a quartz chronograph. Then I sold both of those & bought a Carrera Re-edition. This was my first £1,000 watch & I was very nervous buying the watch off eBay & sending all that money via the internet.

In 2008 I discovered watch forum's & it started getting pretty silly very quickly.

I currently have 29 watches of which 26 get worn. I've bought & sold a further 146. I think at peak I might have had 40 watches.

I had a bit of time at the weekend to play with Pic Collage and decided to create collages of the brands I've had / still have the most of, so here we go

Heuer / Tag Heuer - the Tag pictures were stolen off the net.



Seiko are the brand I've had most of. Just brilliant value for money & a true manufacturer.



I love Sinn - Yes there are 2 different 757's and a 757 UTC in the picture



Rolex - I've had 2 16600 SD's - should never have sold the first, 2 BLNR's & 3 LV's including one Flat 4



Omega - I now only have the dress watch I inherited from my Great Grandfather



Damasko are a brand I instantly fell in love with when I saw then on TZ-UK. Time Factors had a franchise at the time.



I got a DC 56 first. Then I bought DA 37 # 37 brand new via Time Factors. About that time Damasko stopped making watches, but I really wanted "the holy trinity" of full lume models. I picked up a DC 57, then a DC 66. I placed an order directly with Damasko for a DC 67 in the hope that they'd re-start production at some point. I then picked up DC 67 # 15 from a TZ-UK member & my trio was complete.

A good while later I got an email from Damasko saying my new DC 67 would soon be available. It was # 28, so still a very low number & would be one of the first made after the recommenced manufacture. Maybe I should have kept # 15 but I didn't. I've had # 28 twice now having bought it back from the person I sold it to.

Other brands I've had

5 Tudors
4 Precista, IWC, Casio & Fortis
3 Orfina, Doxa, & O&W
2 Anonimo, Blancpain, Breitling, Bremont, Broadarrow, Cerina, JLC, Marina Militare & Nordgreen

and lot's of others that I've only had one of including the Dornbleuth & Zenith I still own & the PP 5712 I sold just before the prices went nuts.

At times since 2008 this "hobby" has become an obsession, with 30 + watches coming in / going out in a year.

These day's I'm less prolific & am trying to reduce the overall value tied up in the collection hence the recent sale on my BP Fifty Fathoms & the Sinn's I currently have for sale, but am I cured? No at all.

I hope you've enjoyed this post & feel inspired to share your story.

Edited by andy tims on Monday 27th February 13:50

[T6 vanman]

Phaah .... A mere amateur amongst us

[hyper jay]

Very interesting read Andy ,fantastic collection over the years .

[Wildfire]

My first nice watch was a Tag 2000, wish I hadn't sold it.

Lovey history.

[gregs656]

Interesting post and excellent pictures.

[Mezzanine]

Love this.

You have/have had some wonderful watches Andy.

[Ed T]

Love this thank you for sharing. I find this interesting for a few reasons.

I also bought a Tag Link when I got my first accounting job, an omega PO (when became chartered), now have a few rolexes and a Yema.

I’ve always had a strange pull to Sinn as I love the hardcore utility of them. But I stop short when I ask, on any given day why would I strap it on over my PO or Sub?

Damasko just looks cool, esp your recent purchase (green), again same story as above

Heuer - I currently really hunger for a Heuer Carrera as a daily wear at work or a solid gold one as something for an evening. Loved the latest Hodinkee article

Would love to know your opinion of Heuer and the others as you also owned other brands at the same time

[andy tims]

Thanks for all the nice comments

Ed T said:

I’ve always had a strange pull to Sinn as I love the hardcore utility of them. But I stop short when I ask, on any given day why would I strap it on over my PO or Sub?

Damasko just looks cool, esp your recent purchase (green), again same story as above

Heuer - I currently really hunger for a Heuer Carrera as a daily wear at work or a solid gold one as something for an evening. Loved the latest Hodinkee article

Would love to know your opinion of Heuer and the others as you also owned other brands at the same time

I like lots of different watches as is clear, so can get just as much enjoyment from modestly priced pieces as the premium ones.

As for Heuer, I love the design of the vintage Autavia and the Carrera think the quality is on a par with most of their contemporaries.