What Was The Watch That First Caught Your Attention?

[hookoo]

The Bond Seamaster.

[baltic]

My father was a fine art dealer but he had a private passion for watches and clocks - I remember him bringing me home a '74 Omega Speedy when I was a wee boy, telling me it had been worn by an astronaut and that was me hooked for life

Omega Speedmaster for me too. Loved the Apollo moon landings as a lad and when I found about the watch's connections that was it, I had to have one.

First 'windy up' watch was a USSR made Sekonda for me 16th - still got it and it's still running well!

[KB]

For me it wasn't a watch but a watch shop, I was about 4 or 5 years old and we lived in Wollongong NSW and my Father used to take the family in to Sydney on shopping trips.

One shop they frequented was next to a watch shop (a Rolex AD if I remember corectly) and in the window was one of those large complex perspex models of a watch movement, I remember my parents used to leave me with my nose pressed to the glass window (you could do this in those days) and go shopping next door.

I would stand there watching all those cogs a watch hands going around all the time my parents were next door and when they came out they would still have to drag me away.

Ken

[eunomians]

I remember my parents used to leave me with my nose pressed to the glass window (you could do this in those days).

Great anecdote, Ken.

And I do recall those days when kids were allowed to just be kids.

Cheers

[Linder]

Was flipping through a Robb Report one day in 2001 and came across the most beautiful Ulysse Nardin Aqua Perpetual full page ad.

Gorgeous!

[Estaban]

My first nice watch was a gold Seiko moonphase with a Hirsh reptile strap that I got for my bar mitzvah back in 1979. I still have it somewhere.

Got an Omega SMP from my first wife.

Have a gen Piaget Polo in solid 14k that is sitting in a safety deposit box. Would never wear it. Came from my dad who decided it was too gaudy (he's right).

As for reps, I'm a Pam guy. I knew about Panerai watches for quite some time. Saw my first in about 2000. Knew I wanted one, and then I came across this place. Good thing. I saved a lot of money by getting rep Pams instead of gen.

[jamesg]

I love watches

For me I think the watch habit started when my father won a solid 24k gold Day Date for deal of the year at work. I was simply in awe at the fact I was looking at a watch that cost £10,000!! Interestingly enough he has only worn the watch once in ten years (to a function with his old boss to not upset him) as a solid gold Rollie is far too bling for my dad. His daily beater now is a gen IWC Flieger chrono and his dream watch is a Blancpain huntsman. I remember going to the Swiss Watch Co (watches.co.uk) in Chiswick when he bought the IWC... it's just a plain office upstairs from the street but then they opened one of many vaults and inside was a huge treasure trove of watches! Again I was in awe and in love with what I could see.

Finally I was given a Breitling Colt Chrono (quartz) for my 21st bday and there was my first and only genuine prestige watch. I would still wear it as I have a fond affection for it and it's been around the world with me many times but it just seems microscopic after the PAMs.

My first foray into reps (and PAMs) started after picking up a very very dodgy PAM in Thailand which died about a month after I got home. From then it was a very controlled search on the web to find a replacement. After nearly dicing with the likes of ioffer I found cqout which provided me with a pretty decent PAM but my appetite was still big and my search continued.... until I found RWG and TRC Now I have 10 reps and a smaller bank account!!

JG

[docblackrock]

For me I think the watch habit started when my father won a solid 24k gold Day Date for deal of the year at work. I was simply in awe at the fact I was looking at a watch that cost £10,000!!

Hmmm, I betting you also love Jacob & Co. watches, maybe even a Franck Muller or two. C'mon admit it man, it all makes perfect sense

[crystalcranium]

Just musing a bit more...

There's a picture on my parent's mantle of me and bro at 3 and 1 1/2. I've got a Timex on. It started early!

[Dario33]

Pam 1950

That 47mm beast jumped out at me and caught my attention from the get-go. Been addicted to rep's ever since.

[chubbchubb]

Whow...I'm reading this... and I love it... and I realize.... I have no recollection of my first ever watch! Well, a couple of decades have passed since then but still - amazing - because I've been fascinated by watches as long as I can remember...

.... I have to take a picture of that Lego watch I gave to my son yesterday....

[pollux1]

I remember my first watch, a little timex which was ok for a while ( i was six ) and forever more after, it had to be better, not in a monetary sense, but the quality of the engineering, as long as the watch could do what it was supposed to without fail, i'd be happy, i wasn't happy until i got my first genuine Omega seamaster professional.

After that the obsession started To date, i own a gen smp, a lovely luminox which i consider to be a fantastic watch, a genuine tissot seastar from the early seventies, and three reps, which up until i joined TRC ( before here ) were just poor imitations, having bought my first PAM from a fellow member, I finally realised that a good rep can be had, which may not be " genuine" but is a fine timepiece in it's own right.

[jfischman]

PAM 025 Submersible. I was awestruck

JF

[PAMman]

The '64 Heuer Carrera and I bought one of the re-editions. I suppose it was my first 'replica'. It is still one of my favourite watches but so small that it gets little wrist time. It has the same Lemania based chrono movement as my original Moonwatch.

[Usil]

Early on it was Casio. Never changed the battery - just let it run it's course and get another one since they were always coming out with new ones. Had a Walthan a few times and had a few pocket watches.

But now, it was Feb. of this year when a friend of mine brought me back a 20 dollar Breitling white faced Navitimer from Bangkok. I loved that watch even though it was quartz driven. This got me thinking and I started searching the internet for an on-line solution. Thank god I found RWG before I bought anything. Now, since Feb of this year and 27 reps later, well, what can I say... I never have any desire to go into a watch store EXCEPT the ADs to see all the pretties.

Do I ever think I will move up to the Gen? I have absolutely no desire to purchase one.

Usil

[kingkitesurf]

Nice question,

My first watch that I remember was a casio with a calculator. I loved the digital stuff back then... I used it often thats why I can still not calculate from the head...

But the real passion started with the Porsche prototype by IWC from around 1983. I have worn this watch for over 10 years nonstop.

http://www.rwg.cc/members/index.php?showto...7881&hl=who

[chango]

I was always fascinated with these old Seiko 6309 divers:

 

 

 

In 1987 I was in a sporting goods store in Seattle and bought one of these because I couldn't afford a Seiko diver.  My first "serious" watch:

 

 

[devilseam]