By Roland Gloekler, G11
A Dying Hobby
With smartwatches and Apple Watches becoming more and more popular in the 21st century, a lot of people are slowly beginning to forget about traditional timepieces such as mechanical, quartz, and automatic wristwatches. Timekeeping goes much farther back than just the ‘tick-tock’ that we associate with relatively modern watches: it is encompassed in the study of horology – the study and measurement of time. This goes as far back as measuring time with the sun, a stick and its shadow.
There seems to be a misconception among new watch fans and the general public that an expensive watch is a good watch and that more is better. You may very well have heard of big luxury watch brands such as Rolex, Omega, Patek Phillipe, Jacob & Co. and Richard Mille at least once in your lifetime. But there is so much more to horology and timepieces than just glamour, valuable materials and hefty price tags. A more enlightened view of watchmaking is one where balance is respected, and ingenuity takes the place of excess.
How I Discovered Watches
When I was 6 years old, I received my first wristwatch from my father. It was a simple Casio with a military design that he had brought back for me from Singapore. I still remember how thrilled I was when I opened the neatly packaged black and red gift box and found a watch. I was intrigued by watches from a young age, particularly the functional aspect of being able to play with and stare at something on my wrist.
After buying and losing several cheap watches throughout my early teens, I remember receiving my first “proper” watch from my grandfather at the age of 10. The memory is engraved quite strongly in the back of my mind as it was during the time when my grandmother had passed away and my grandfather was sifting through all of their joint belongings – giving away items to family and friends. He came to me and presented me with a compelling watch that had a dark platinum grey coloured dial and red hands which instantly grabbed my attention. It was a racing watch from Mercedes with a chronograph (stopwatch) and a tachymeter. At first I was speechless, giggling from excitement on the inside like any 10 year old would when asked if he or she would like to own such a valuable item. Eventually I had to ask my mom whether I could accept something like that from him. After a bit of pleading with my mom, however, my grandfather pressed it into my hand and said: “I would like you to have this.” It fit quite snugly around my wrist and ever since that day, I never left it out of my sight. That watch and I have been through a lot together. I wore it on every occasion I had to dress up and cleaned it every day so that it would not get scratched. That was the watch that sparked my interest and love for watches, putting me on a quest to explore the world of watches and horology.
For two years now, I have been educating myself about watches and horology more seriously – reading books, encyclopedias, magazines, and following podcasts and YouTube channels that discuss watch collecting and horology. I have also saved up money for months on end to to purchase my favorite watches after extensive research and hours of trying on different models that I enjoyed having on my wrist. I now own over 12 different watches, lead a small watch business, and consider myself an avid watch collector. For me, watches are not only an accessory or fashion item, they are marvels of engineering, rich history, and amazing stories that lead to the most interesting conversations. Watch collecting is unfortunately a dying hobby – one that I have really enjoyed and would now love to share with as many people as possible.
Understanding Watches
Before we get into the details of watches and watch collecting, let us discuss some basic concepts behind watchmaking. A watch is typically comprised of a movement, a case, a dial, a crown, a strap, a crystal, lugs, and a case-back (see figure 2). Often labeled as the heart of a watch, the movement or caliber is what makes a watch tick.
Figure 2: Image courtesy of bespokeunit.com
Essentially, there are three types of watch movements:
1. Mechanical manual-wind – The watch requires manual winding to operate and the movement will cause the second hand to move in a smooth sweeping motion. The first timepieces were all mechanical. The intricate mechanism in these watches can often be described as art. A brief overview of the insides of a mechanical watch can be observed in figure 3.
2. Automatic – Similar mechanics to manual wind watches but powered by kinetic energy from the wearer’s wrist that is transferred automatically to drive the mechanism inside the watch.
3. Quartz – In 1969, Seiko, the Japanese watchmakers introduced the quartz movement. Powered by a battery, the movement causes the second hand to move in individual ticks. The launch of this new technology challenged the traditional timepiece houses who relied on mechanical movement to power their watches. Several watch connoisseurs argue, however, that quartz watches do not come to life and hence have a soul in the same way that mechanical watches do.
If you are interested in finding out more on how automatic, hand-wind, and Quartz watches work, check out these articles:
Automatic: https://www.initium.ch/en/news/how-automatic-watch-movement-works/
Hand-wind: https://animagraffs.com/mechanical-watch/
Quartz: https://www.explainthatstuff.com/quartzclockwatch.html
Aspects To Enjoy About Watches
The first thing that may appeal to anyone about watch collecting is that there are innumerable aspects to it that can be enjoyed by almost anyone! From the fascinating mechanics to the history of each timepiece, there is a never-ending list of aspects that each and every person can tailor for themselves when asking themselves: why do I enjoy timepieces and watch collecting? Here are just some of the aspects explained:
Stories Behind Timepieces
Like it or not, each and every timepiece (even the cheap $10 Casio) has a unique story that can be told; a story that is attached to each and every watch is the personal experiences that the owner will have with his or her watch. For instance, I have a deep connection with my first trekking watch. Not because it is the shiniest or most expensive in my watch box, but because it was given to me by my parents on my 12th birthday and hence is of a considerable sentimental value to me. It was my first “tough” functional watch which could tell temperature, altitude, and air pressure. It reminds me of the simple days before I started collecting watches – the days where I would wear that battery powered plastic watch as my most proud possession. I remember taking it everywhere I went and sharing my best and worst memories with it on my wrist: on hikes, to school, through pools, mud, through bike accidents, through lakes, rivers, seas and so many more places and life events. You don’t have to own an expensive or fancy watch to enjoy it. A watch is not worth anything more than the personal connection that the owner shares with it.
Revolutionary Concepts and Designs
There are so many watches and watch brands that one cannot help but get lost in this rather overwhelming world of horology. This can, however, also be seen as one of the things which makes watch collecting so fun: the journey never truly ends. While on this journey, there are so many interesting revolutionary designs and concepts that one can stumble across. Let’s take the Audemars Piguet (AP) Royal Oak as an example. In 1970, the world was “groovy”, and people were trading in classic mechanical watches for ones with light-up displays. Radical! Of course, things were less radical for Swiss watch brand Audemars Piguet, which was scrambling to figure out a comeback before the new quartz watches put them out of business. Executives made a cry for help to Gerald Genta, a watch designer who was about to cement his status as a legend. An AP executive went to Genta with a brief one day: “Mr. Genta, I need a steel sports watch that has never been done before, I want it to be something totally new and waterproof,” (gq.com). The subtext: come up with a watch that will save the company. That night, drawing inspiration from deep-sea diving helmets, Genta sketched and designed the stop-sign-shaped Royal Oak. It turned Audemars Piguet into one of the most successful watch brands in the world. The unique octagonal design behind this watch revolutionised the product and in many ways, saved the Swiss mechanical watch industry from losing out completely to the strength of the Japanese quartz revolution. This is just one example out of millions of stories of how watches changed the world, inspired revolutionary ideas in fashion and paved the path to success for several brands.
Enjoyed by All
It is a common misconception that wristwatches are a more masculine accessory that were originally designed for men to wear. On the contrary, watches were worn only by women before the 20th century and more for decoration than anything as practical as punctuality. Back then, men would only be found wearing pocket watches. Although it is not easy to pinpoint this exactly, the first wristwatch made for a woman was for Countess Koscowicz of Hungary by the Swiss watch manufacturer Patek Philippe in 1868 (see figure 4). It was only towards the beginning of the twentieth century that wrist watches were created for men as a practical tool used for pilots in the air force. I believe it is very important to realise that it is yet another feature that makes this hobby so unique: it should not matter whether you are a man, woman or belong to a non-binary gender, watches are a hobby that can be shared and discussed by all. In fact, another myth that must be terminated is that smaller wristwatches make gentlemen look “less masculine”. This is complete rubbish! In reality, smaller watches are actually considered much more tasteful as they do not blare out the words: “look at my flashy big watch”. Although oversized watches are becoming a trend for men around the world these days, please do me a favour and do not put on one of those obnoxious hunks of metal! The same can be said for women’s fashion watches: although you do not want to be overdoing it with heavy clunks of metal watches on your wrist, bigger watches are not wrong or bad on women’s wrists. In the end, none of these stereotypes or standards should matter. Regardless of your gender, race, or age, watches enable you to express your style in any way that you please!
There is a Kind of Watch for Everyone and Every Occasion
There are never-ending possibilities for every individual to find their own watch of choice that suits their lifestyle, fashion and price range. Without going into too much detail, the different kinds of watches that exist are as follows:
- Dive watches
- Dress Watches
- Aviation Watches
- Grand complication watches and Haute Horlogerie
- Sports/field watches
- Luxury watches
- Racing/ Chronograph watches
- Digital watches
- GMT/ dual time watches
- Vintage watches
Figure 6: Image courtesy of Monochrome Watches
Differentiating Fashion Watches and Truly Significant Timepieces With a Rich Horological Background
Before I recommend some of my favourite entry level watch brands that you can explore when diving into this hobby, I must warn you about a disease that has infected the world of watches in recent years: FASHION WATCHES! You may have heard all of these brands before: MVMT, Daniel Wellington, Diesel, Fossil, Michael Kors, Swarovski. Yes! That’s right, they are all rubbish brands that are ripping you off. Now, I know that everyone reading this will be saying: that’s a very strong opinion! But the truth is that these brands, although aesthetically appealing at times, are almost always covering up a cheap $10 mass produced movement with some glamour on the outside that is promoted and sold to you through influencers, brand ambassadors and viral trends that hit the market for 4 to 5 times the production cost.
Now you may ask: what are some good entry level timepieces that offer good variety and have earned themselves respect in the watch collecting circles? Here are some amazing affordable options of brands with rich history to explore:
- Seiko
- Tissot
- Victorinox
- Timex
- Orient
- Citizen
- Hamilton
- Frederique Constant
,For more options and guidance, I would recommend checking out YouTube channels such as “The Urban Gentry” and reading blogs such as ‘Hodinkee’ and ‘Watchbox’.
To finish up this composition of mine, I would like to put forward one of the biggest advantages of getting into watches: meeting new people that share the same passion as you and having a conversation starter up your sleeve at all times. Despite all the great aspects of watch collecting, I would also like to briefly mention that it can turn into a serious addiction and lead to greater financial problems if you are not careful. My biggest tip to anyone interested in watch collecting would be to learn about watches first, educate yourself and always think and consider all options before pulling the trigger. Whatever you choose to do with a hobby like watch collecting, know your limits, don’t overdo anything, realise when it becomes an addiction or a stressful process of having to check boxes to impress others, and most importantly: don’t forget to enjoy yourself in the process! The choice is always yours and no one should ever force you to do anything. I hope I was able to tell you about something new today, maybe even distract your mind for a bit and let you wander off into the crazy, intriguing, and unique world of watch collecting.