What drives your collection?

[173rdabn]

What I like and can afford without giving up a firstborn.

[prnceofpersia23]

Versatility for me. I like watches I can use and wear in any scenario. Not a fan of spending big dollars on a product that gets worn on occasion. Steel Rolex fits that bill well. Robust, reliable, handsome, appropriate in any setting or dress style. Value retention is always a nice feature of Rolex as well, but these days the sky is falling if your watch is trading less than 2x MSRP.

[t65tampa]

I am essentially 90% Rolex in my watch collection makeup these days. Don't really have much of a direction on what I get, but I tend to like the sport models mostly. No Datejusts, only a Sky-Dweller and a DD40 now as far as "dressy" models go. The only non-Rolex watches I have would be a new Co-Axial Speedmaster and an AP Royal Oak.
My Apple iWatch doesn't count as a watch.

[inadeje]

Great thread OP. My tastes and reasons for collecting have evolved with age and over these +30 years collecting. In the beginning it started with wanting a few different watches for varied occasions. Later I switched to welcoming brands outside of Rolex. Over the past 10-15 years I’ve realized (by accident) that my hobby has been a rather astute financial decision.

That’s really where I am today. All watches bought and paid for over a very long and extended period using disposable income throughout my life. All insured, bank safe with a mobile mini collection at home I rotate occasionally. I maxed out all my other investments in the stock market and real estate, so this hobby is a nice and enjoyable sideline really.

[JParm]

Originally Posted by inadeje

That’s really where I am today. All watches bought and paid for over a very long and extended period using disposable income throughout my life. All insured, bank safe with a mobile mini collection at home I rotate occasionally. I maxed out all my other investments in the stock market and real estate, so this hobby is a nice and enjoyable sideline really.

That's pretty much where I'm at as well; all paid for, never carry debt to fund this wild hobby. Only difference is I can't keep these at the bank - I need to see each one of them almost daily!