After the last two years, where my watch collection jumped from consisting of just six pieces to erm.... twenty eight, I didn't really expect this year to be anything like as 'busy'. And to start with it was deathly quiet, I didn't buy anything in January, February or March and I was beginning to wonder what was wrong with me. Actually, it's not strictly true that I didn't buy anything, I did in fact buy a rubber strap for my Aquagraph which improved its wearability no end... and I bought a TAG Heuer watchwinder in March, but that ended up being my birthday present from my wife, so really she bought that.
And then Covid happened and I had my right tonsil out... life wasn't fun and work went south quickly; this was clearly not the time to be spending my savings. Bicester Village and TAG Heuer closed down too and annoyingly three of my watches were stuck in the service centre for quite a while...
In May I bought a couple of TAG Heuer catalogues and some old watch magazines and then come the end of the month I made my first watch purchase, except it wasn't for me. So again, I didn't really buy it at all.
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My wife decided, after three months stuck working from home, that she needed something to cheer herself up. So she found this orange and grey classic F1 on eBay and after a degree of faffing about, I managed to secure it for her at a fairly decent price.
Feeling slightly left out, I too started to peruse eBay with an eye on the classic F1s. After all with prices for most of them below £200 they seemed like a safe way to inject some fun into an otherwise depressing year without feeling guilty about spending too much of my hard earned savings. So in July I too added a classic Formula 1 to my collection.
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I'd always like the red/red/black Formula 1s, but those always seemed rather more expensive than the rest and once I'd realised that the only difference between this and that was the red strap (available direct from TAG Heuer for £32, DO NOT pay £70 on eBay people!) I developed a keen interest.
The watch keeps incredible time, in fact as I found out writing another post for the blog, this is one of my most accurate watches - not bad for 30+ years old! It has, unfortunately one small issue though; there are three days when the date wheel doesn't change over. It's annoying, especially as I didn't discover the problem for quite a while, well after I'd left feedback on eBay...
Still, it's not worth repairing unless it needs a service as it will probably cost more than the watch itself. It's not a massive problem anyway, the quick set date still works perfectly, so...
A week later.... ahem, I added another classic F1 to my stable.
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This one came on a black strap (incorrect, but admittedly more practical) which broke a few days after I received it. Not that it really mattered as I fully intended to restore it with a yellow strap anyway. This one did have some marks to the glass, but they aren't noticeable unless you really study it. This one has had a lot of wrist time over the last five months and cost me almost exactly the same amount as the one above (just over £170).
I snagged another catalogue at the start of August and then my wife brought out the big guns. For a long time she had wanted an Omega Constellation, and particularly one she had tried on a couple of years back.
Omega Orbis Constellation
I have to say, I'm not a big fan of Omega, but this watch is absolutely stunning. It appeared on Watchfinder one day and I knew she would regret it if she didn't buy it, so she threw caution to the wind and went for it. I even managed to get her a decent discount.
I made do with another catalogue (a really cool 1988 one at that) and then at the start of September I bought a nice blue leather strap for my Pilot watch. But the next watch was also for my wife, this time for our wedding anniversary.
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And, surprise surprise... it was another classic Formula 1!
A really nice one this, in superb condition as well. Again I picked this up for way under £200 (actually £149), and even though it did come with a dead battery, once I'd fitted a new one it was as good as new.
By the end of September I had caved in to my craving for Kiriums and added a lovely blue dial three hander on a blue leather strap. The strap was well worn and the seller accepted my offer of £375 (it was up for £450).
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I really like this one, even though at 36mm it is a little on the small side. It's probably the closest thing I have to a 'dress' watch I guess. The leather strap gives it a completely different look to the bracelet and I really like it. It's comfortable to wear too, I was worried about the clasp but it's absolutely fine.
At around the same time I also added another classic Formula 1 to my growing collection, this time from Japan. It took two weeks to arrive, but it was well worth the wait.
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I really love this one, the dial is absolutely fantastic, easily the best classic Formula 1 dial for me. Again I picked this up for silly money (£145) although it did cost £24 for shipping.
About a week (!) later... I tried to buy a watch that I used to have previously, but when it arrived I realised that it was somewhat different and not in a good way. The WK1110-1 is quite different to the WK1110-0, for a start it has a shiny dial rather than a cool matt black one, and it has a polished 12 instead of a lumed one.
WK1110-1
Very disappointing. Fortunately the seller accepted returns, which was just as well because I really didn't want it, especially since it wasn't at all like the one I was trying to replace and also the crown had barely a third of a turn of thread left on it!
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Yep, you guessed it, another classic Formula 1, this time with a plain steel case and, well, to be honest this one I'm not overly enthused about. I think if the green was a bit brighter I might like it a lot more, but in any case I definitely prefer the coated cases on the old F1s. This one came on a dreadful bracelet that I couldn't wait to get off, it also came incredibly quickly - 48 hours from Japan. Impressive!
https://tagheuerenthusiast.blogspot.com/2020/10/buying-experience-tag-heuer-formula-1.htmlI feel like this one is at the 'bottom' of my collection right now and I wouldn't be at all surprised if I didn't end up putting it up for sale at some point...
Still the madness continued and, searching for a Christmas present for myself, I came across this lovely black and blue Formula 1. This colour combination is one of the more difficult to find it seems, but again Japan came up trumps with this one at £149 (+£21 postage).
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I'm not sure yet whether this will prove to be one Formula 1 too many, I hope not, but once I receive this for Christmas (from my wife) I feel it will only ramp up the pressure on the previous watch even more.
Speaking of Christmas presents, this one took some getting, but it was worth it in the end. Originally listed with a ludicrous shipping price of over £100 (from the USA) I eventually managed to get it for a much more reasonable rate. It cost me a pretty penny in import taxes, but when I opened the box it did not disappoint.
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NOS, or at the very least A+ Minty in the original box and complete with a booklet (no card, but stamped inside - I think this is pre-card) it is a classic raspberry ladies Formula 1. My wife hasn't seen it yet but by the time you read this she will have it on her wrist.
That one came late November and I really thought that was it for the year, but I was wrong. I picked up a couple more straps from Bicester Village (black leather for my black S/EL chrono, green sharkskin for my grey dial 4000 Series) and then, just by chance, I happened to come across a watch I've been looking for for years.
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I could not believe it when I found this plum-dial Kirium chronograph in Watchfinder's 'pre-sale' section and I thought they were bound to over price it, but actually it was fairly priced and when it arrived I could not get over the condition. It was like it just came from the factory, and yet the warranty card said 1998. Probably the most gorgeous watch in my collection and one I can't imagine ever selling.
WF1112.BA0511
Admittedly on this stretched out bracelet it's a bit underwhelming, but once I get it on that bright blue sharkskin strap I'm sure it's going to look a million bucks!
Well, it was a very slow start, but things really picked up in the second half of the year didn't they? Honestly though, I think this will probably be the last 'crazy' year for me. I've amassed so many watches now in a relatively short time that I've kinda 'got' most of what I want. There are things, obviously, that I would still like if they come up at reasonable prices; I'd love a 3000 Series chrono or perhaps a Super Professional and if a full size Tristar came available for sensible money I'd be up for that too. Sometimes I even look longingly at Executives, but usually the bracelets are too short and I'm willing to bet spare links for those are like hen's teeth!
Perhaps it's time to slow down and put a bit more thought into what I actually want, I can see that I've bought a couple of things this year that maybe I didn't really 'need' (if that's not too ridiculous a word to use in this context!) and I can see where I might decide to thin out the collection a bit in the not too distant future, because it's definitely getting a little out of hand.
I still don't have a Monaco though, and I wouldn't mind dipping my toe back in to the Grand Carrera if I can find the right one and given that there's a new Aquaracer coming out next year Bicester Village are sure to get an influx of outgoing stock. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what 2021 brings....
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