Nicko
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Post by Nicko on Feb 13, 2014 4:04:10 GMT -6
The reason I like vintage pieces is a bit difficult to explain and if you don't appreciate them it will also be hard to understand. When I look at the face of the watch I think of everything that watch has seen and everything the previous owner or owners have been through whilst wearing the watch. Was the previous owner sitting in his living room listening to the events unfold during the Cuban missile crisis? Were they reading the newspaper the morning after the Kennedy assassination? How about the assassination of Martin Luther King? Did they watch the moon landing? These are some of the things that I think about, and some of the things I love about wearing a vintage piece. Have a listen to Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire" and then picture the watch witnessing all those events with its owner. It's something that simply cannot be duplicated with modern pieces. Again, if you don't understand then you're probably not one for vintage pieces. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Post by iceman on Feb 13, 2014 9:59:10 GMT -6
Totally understand what you mean, but the flip side with buying a new model and seeing it become a vintage is you've created the history of the watch
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Post by ianmedium on Feb 13, 2014 10:20:25 GMT -6
Steve. I know exactly what you mean. When I look at my Omega made in 1916 I think that it saw the Great War, was built in the midst of it even, was carried across wartime oceans to Canada and then was destined for a railroad man. The watch then saw the building of Canada, it saw the roaring twenties, the great depression and then another World War!
It saw the birth of Jazz, swing, rock and roll and punk rock. It saw man travel in fabric covered Biplanes right through to people being able to fly across the Atlantic at twice the speed of sound. It saw the invention of the computer and many other technological marvels. Vintage watches truly are time machines and I swear one can feel all of that history on ones wrist or pocket.
To think this delicate mechanical device survived all of that and still keeps good time and serves the purpose it was made for all these years later is something I think about every time I look at it. To think all the people who built and designed it are all long gone but what they did still lives on, gives great pleasure and does what they intended it to do long after they have slipped this mortal coil is amazing i think.
I can understand the other perspective as well of owning something new, something of quality and then imbibing it with a whole new story. To think, in a hundred years time all those new watches will have stories to tell, though I truly hope they will have witnessed a more peaceful and stable history than our old timers did.
I have the Fusee arriving any day now. That one was made 120 years ago, I am British so use this as a marker of time but Queen Victoria was on the throne. To think soon in my pocket will be something made in Victorias London, not far from where she was alive and ruling is rather exciting I think.
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Nicko
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Post by Nicko on Feb 13, 2014 12:56:09 GMT -6
Well said Ian, a true wordsmith, much better than I was able to do. It is difficult to describe the feeling you get from a vintage piece, the newest piece I ever owned was a 16610 and honestly I didn't feel anything for that watch. I have a tendency to hold on to them for very little time but when I finally find that piece that calls to me, it will never leave my wrist.
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Post by ianmedium on Feb 13, 2014 13:08:53 GMT -6
Steve, I think one of the main reasons I am so looking forward to moving back to Europe is the tangible history there. North America as wonderful as it is does not have roads built by Romans that one still drives on to this day as is the case in Europe.
I think many from Europe travel to North America for a fresh start unencumbered by the history that surrounds them on a daily basis. I know I did and it worked and every minute here has been wonderful but as I get older I yearn to be able to lean against a wall the romans built or sit in a room that the great European explorers would have sat in planning their adventures such as the British library.
I also have some vintage fountain pens and as much as I love my new ones my best writer is a 1927 Parker Duofold that is written with on a daily basis.
Another thing vintage does for me is to not obsess about the last second or minute. I am a pretty punctilious person but sometimes I have to remember that not everything has to be done to the last second or minute. Vintage gives more leeway that way. It allows me to slow down more and savour the moment.
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Post by vincent65 on Feb 13, 2014 16:50:54 GMT -6
Ahhh… the romanticism of lumps of moving metal! Just kidding. I agree. I get it. Well said, chaps. I shan't attempt to also put into words my irrational passion for these old tool-watch beauties, but the new ones do very little for me at all, beyond the appreciation for the engineering, materials, design etc. of course. It's all about history, nostalgia, and old-world values.
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Nicko
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Post by Nicko on Feb 13, 2014 17:20:50 GMT -6
Ahhh… the romanticism of lumps of moving metal! Just kidding. I agree. I get it. Well said, chaps. I shan't attempt to also put into words my irrational passion for these old tool-watch beauties, but the new ones do very little for me at all, beyond the appreciation for the engineering, materials, design etc. of course. It's all about history, nostalgia, and old-world values. Agreed Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
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Baco Noir
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Post by Baco Noir on Feb 13, 2014 17:53:24 GMT -6
I may try vintage again one day, but the feel of my Tudor Date Day when winding was rough (and that was after a complete service) and then a few months later a piece of lume fell out of the minute hand. While I appreciated it's beauty, the engineer in me said "enough" and sold it. Now, looking at my great grandfather's Elgin that I have, it winds rough, but I could care less because the history is that of MY family, not just any watch. I'll cherish it and take good care of it until it's time to pass on to the next generation.
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Nicko
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Post by Nicko on Feb 14, 2014 9:07:22 GMT -6
I'll bet if you got hold of a nice recently serviced vintage matte 5513 you would fall in love. Sorry buy a Tudor's engine just isn't the same a a nice 1520, smooth as butter. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Post by rw16610 on Feb 14, 2014 16:49:25 GMT -6
A watch with a story behind it and some character is hard difficult to not appreciate. For me the cool part of vintage watches (Rolex especially) is what they started and represent for the brand. Although things have changed a lot over the years they managed to keeps aspects of the originals alive in the new designs. This is no substitute for the actual vintage pieces by any means and I can see what you mean!
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Post by pawnshopkiller on Feb 15, 2014 20:05:18 GMT -6
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Post by rw16610 on Feb 16, 2014 19:18:25 GMT -6
Nice shot, Roscoe! Man that piece sure has some character in the best of ways! Spider dial?
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Nicko
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Post by Nicko on Feb 17, 2014 1:30:25 GMT -6
Beautiful NCG Roscoe, is that a 5508? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Post by ianmedium on Feb 17, 2014 10:26:24 GMT -6
Roscoe, I love the patina on that dial, collectors go nuts for dials like that!
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Nicko
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Post by Nicko on Feb 17, 2014 10:57:01 GMT -6
Agreed, how bout a little photo shoot and review? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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