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scottran
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Joined:	Thu Jan 24th, 2008
Location:	Southwestern Pa, Pennsylvania USA
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Well these couple vintage watches I have been given has got me wanting to start looking while I am at antique shops. I dont know why I didnt start with the old one to begin with as I am a nut for anything old. Are there any certain brands to stay away from (And Ken, I dont want to hear Invicta

) due to expensive or hard to find parts? Not looking to collect anything high dollar, unless I find a hell of a deal. Tom, maybe you have some advice?

Paxman
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Joined:	Sun Apr 23rd, 2006
Location:	NorthEastern, Wisconsin USA
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My advice... look for old watches!

Seriously, I think Tom can give you some good pointers if he's around.:D

scottran
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Joined:	Thu Jan 24th, 2008
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Yes, I hope Tom chimes in. I have a ? I have been looking at some old watches on the net and many of them say the case is gold filled. What is this? Many are also rolled gold plated. Which would be better to have?

Nabco
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Joined:	Sat Dec 2nd, 2006
Location:	Ohio, N. Carolina & Delta Seat 1C
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Scott, i had a pretty substantial vintage collection that I have been selling off for the last year or so, at one time it consited of about 250 watches all pre 1960, it's down to less than 25 now.

To answer your question, a case that is gold filled has a layer of gold applied over a base metal, usually brass, sometimes copper, that's why you will sometimes see the term "this case shows no brassing", this basically means there is no wear through the gold showing any of the brass base metal. You will see them labeled 20 Year GF, 25 Year GF, etc. The more years the thicker the layer of gold and the longer it will last.

Rolled Gold Plated (RGP), is just another way of applying gold to a base metal and is less desirable than GF, it is a less expensive way of doing it. IMO the color and finish of a GF case looks much more like solid gold than RGP.

Hope that helps.

pacifichrono
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Joined:	Thu Sep 8th, 2005
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Hey, Scott, glad you've joined the "team" I got hooked about three years ago and that's practically all I buy now (and I buy a LOT!).

My vintage interests lie mostly with watches made in the USA, or watches sold here in numbers (Omega, Longines, etc.).

The pecking order of vintage American watches is generally considered to be:

1) Hamilton (& Illinois)

2) Gruen

3) Bulova

4) Elgin

5) Benrus

6) All others (like Helbros)

Waltham would be 2) in pocket watches and 5) in wristwatches, IMO.

Some advice I would offer:

Get a copy of "The Complete Price Guide to Watches." This is the "bible" for vintage collectors and has thousands of models illustrated and priced (a guideline). The 2009 edition is available on Amazon for pre-sale at $19.77 (33% off).
Buy solid gold when possible. It's hard to go wrong buying solid gold as a collector. Kinda like collecting old Mercedes.
By law, the cases of vintage gold filled watches consisted of at least 1/20 by weight of gold. This equates to roughly 80 microns thick.
I buy mostly on eBay. As they say..."buy the seller." Look at his feedback. The more expensive the watch the more you need to rely on the rep of the seller. I almost always buy from auctions, not Buy It Now, where prices are generally inflated. I always use eSnipe to enter my bid with only five seconds remaining. Make sure you thoroughly read all auction copy and closely examine photos before bidding.
You may need to have a vintage watch serviced (C/O/A), so be prepared to spend $50-$100 for that.
Some of the more desirable vintage watches (e.g., Gruen Curvex) are subject to fakery or are 'frankenwatches.' Look for the name on the dial to match the name engraved on the case and the movement. (Some purported Gruen "Curvex" models have Gruen movements, but not one of the four "Curvex" caliber movements.)

There are myriad other things to think about and consider, but way too many for discussion here. There are a lot of books that cover vintage watch collecting, and at least two serious vintage watch forums (WUS and TZ).

Feel free to PM or email me if you have any specific questions.

Good luck!

Tom

P.S. I will now unashamedly give you my vintages watch listing for the two vintage I am selling this week - - not to buy but just to admire the art of the watches:

http://shop.ebay.com/merchant/pacifichrono

wcbartlett
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Joined:	Fri Nov 17th, 2006
Location:	Brooklyn, NY
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There are a number of makes that are not being mentioned, for example:

Aquastar Benthos

500M

1000M

Glassstar (composite material)

Eterna Super Kon Tiki

Nivada Grenchen

Omega

Shom 200m

Ploprof

Scbapro Tuna 500m

I have listed vintage watches that I currently own. Mind you, the list of vintage is vast and expensive. Good luck.

scottran
3T WIS

Joined:	Thu Jan 24th, 2008
Location:	Southwestern Pa, Pennsylvania USA
Posts:	2230
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Thanks for all the great info guys. Tom, I will be sure to check out your store. I will be sure to get that book also. I will have to do lots of reading so I know what I am looking at when in the antique stores. I have come across some shops that had a good selection of watches. I will have to pay them a second visit after I get a little education. If it were an antique John Deere or an antique radio, I would know everything i need. Guess that why I am here so I can learn from you fellows. :)