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How to Assess a Watch’s Condition
Rarity and complication have their appeal – but when it comes to collecting luxury watches, nothing matters quite as much as condition.
I f you ask 10 collectors what to look for in watches, you’ll likely get 10 different answers. But regardless of personal preferences, collecting habits and budgets, most collectors agree on one thing: condition is king. Whether it’s your first watch or the grail you’ve been hunting for decades, a good rule of thumb is to buy the highest quality example of the watch you want.
But what does that mean in a community that prizes patina, character and other tasteful signs of wear? When we say “good condition,” what we really mean is a watch that is close to how it appeared when it was first sold, with all its original parts and, ideally, the paperwork and accessories that accompanied it, too. This can range from a superlative new old stock (or NOS) watch that looks like it’s never been worn to something collectors refer to as “honest,” meaning it shows light signs of wear appropriate for its age, but without any damage.
When it comes to watch collecting, the practical calculus around quality is relatively straightforward: there are a finite number of watches out there, and the supply of high-quality examples is constantly shrinking. As watches are lost, damaged and poorly restored, the pool of original watches in good condition gets smaller and smaller, making those watches rarer and more collectible. There will never be more intact 1970s Rolex Submariners or 1960s Cartier Tanks than there are right now – and as the supply shrinks, you’ll want to be one of the people holding something special.
But there’s also a more emotional side of things. Collecting vintage watches is a link to the past. It’s an opportunity to live your life with an object from another time, and to be a custodian of something that had a life before you and will continue to have a life after you. That feeling is amplified when you’re wearing a mint-condition A-Series Audemars Piguet Royal Oak that still has its original parts and finishes from 1972, and it’s diminished when your chronograph is essentially a compilation of beat-up components from different times and places. The former is captivating; the latter less so.
This dynamic can be seen at all levels of the market, from near-perfect examples of more common watches up to once-in-a-lifetime versions of already vaunted references. Watches like this early reference 6105 Rolex Datejust fetch large premiums because they combine rarely seen references with show-stopping quality, while this Patek Philippe reference 1463 chronograph commanded triple its low estimate because its honest condition and Tiffany & Co. stamp made it a special time capsule of a watch. These are two different versions of what good condition can mean, with each offering helpful guidance for collectors looking to find special watches of their own.
There is also a certain level of confidence that is projected when collecting for quality versus collecting for rarity. A pristine example of a relatively commonplace watch shows that you trust your eye and that you have refined your taste over time; it shows that you care about the smallest details, have read the scholarship and are invested in preserving horological history – and aren’t just trying to flex at a meet-up with a rarely seen reference.
Regardless of what watch you’re looking at, the best way to get a sense of its condition is to start by looking at the watch’s overall appearance and quality before examining the details for confirmation. You don’t want to zoom in too quickly, or you might miss something obvious staring you straight in the face.
“Don’t start with a loupe,” says Jonathon Burford, Senior Vice President and Senior Specialist in Watches and Clocks at Sotheby’s. “Just take the watch, hold it and try to assess it as a whole, rather than breaking it down. The watch should make sense. If it has a saggy bracelet with a beat-up case but the dial looks brand new – well, that doesn’t make much sense, now does it?”
If something feels off or too good to be true, it probably is. Do your research and then trust your gut. It’s only once the watch passes an initial sniff test that minutiae comes into play.
“If a watch has a saggy bracelet with a beat-up case but the dial looks brand new – well, that doesn’t make much sense, now does it?”
- Jonathon Burford, SVP Senior Specialist, Watches & Clocks
Be Careful with Polishing
Every watch has its own unique elements to look out for, but polishing is one of the most universal. “Proportions are always the first detail I look for,” says Burford, cautioning that a poor polishing job can alter the fundamental shape of a watch’s design. “The lugs are usually the giveaway. It’s very difficult to polish a watch and not change the proportions of the lugs.”
When a watch is polished, a thin layer of metal is removed in order to eliminate nicks and scratches, and if done improperly that can wear down the watch quickly or over time. With vintage Rolex sport watches, for example, the sharp bevels become muddy or completely disappear. That’s not what you want. On precious-metal watches, the hallmarks might appear shallow or be polished out altogether. Again, that’s a bad sign.
Dials, Redials and Service Dials
Dials probably offer the most variation from watch to watch, and there are whole books dedicated to the proper fonts, lume plots and hands found on individual models. Complicating things further is the fact that many watches are redialed or given replacement service dials when they’re sent in for regular maintenance – and, as you can imagine, collectors hold some very strong opinions about that. But simple things like consistency are easy to judge without a PhD or 20 years of experience.
Does all of the printing look like it was applied at the same time? It should. If the watch is older than 20-30 years, does its lume still light up brightly in the dark? It shouldn’t. Does the piece look like it was damaged by water or other elements at any point? That can be a sign of a much bigger problem.
Ultimately, this all comes back to trusting your instincts and the advice of a professional. When you see a truly exceptional example of something, you’ll definitely know it. But remember, a watch doesn’t need to look perfect to be desirable. This Rolex reference 8171 Padellone certainly shows some wear, but in a graceful way that is consistent with the watch’s age and overall quality. For many collectors, a find like this is even better than something that looks brand new.
“A watchmaker’s tools very rarely lie.”
- Jonathon Burford, SVP Senior Specialist, Watches & Clocks
A Properly Serviced Movement
The inside of the watch matters every bit as much as the outside. And you don’t need to be a trained watchmaker to give a movement a quick inspection. “I always look at the screw heads,” suggests Burford. “A watchmaker’s tools very rarely lie. If you see scratches or marks, you can tell a lot about if a watch was serviced and the level of care with which it was treated.”
If you’re buying a small, 60-year-old machine, you definitely want to make sure it’s in good working order and has been properly looked after throughout its life. Otherwise you’re just buying the future problems that come with a poorly maintained watch.
Restoration is a controversial topic in watch-collecting circles. Unlike in the car world, where restoration is commonplace and admired, it’s typically frowned upon by watch collectors. Quality and originality are inextricably linked in many collectors’ minds, with a vintage watch losing much of its value the moment the case or dial are touched in any significant way.
But times are changing. Restoration is increasingly commonplaces and even appreciated in certain situations. As the supply of excellent, original watches dwindles, there are plenty of watches that, with a little love, could become excellent once again. Even brands are getting in on the action, with the likes of Rolex, Vacheron Constantin and others offering outstanding certified preowned (CPO) programs in which the watches are restored in-house and offered to clients with documentation of the work done, high-resolution photographs and even new warranties in some situations.
Sotheby’s Watch Services
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Sotheby’s has partnered with WatchCheck in a program that gives US collectors access to watch-servicing professionals for over 30,000 models. Watches from a workhorse time-only Rolex to a Patek Philippe Grand Complication receive bespoke service from a master watchmaker, all backed by a two-year warranty.
It’s important to note that restoration, which remains contentious, is distinct from regular servicing, which everyone agrees is integral to caring for your timepiece. While some collectors look down their noses at restored watches, nobody wants to take on the burden of a mechanical object that hasn’t been properly maintained over the years – and which, in extreme cases, leaves restoration no choice.
Still, a growing number of aficionados see restored watches as a new avenue for collecting and an opportunity to experience vintage watches in a different way. They offer a different sort of charm than an example that’s spent decades in someone’s sock drawer or an honest old tool watch bearing the scars of past adventures.
The key is honesty, which is where a trusted auction house like Sotheby’s comes in. You want to know exactly what you’re buying, what parts of it are original, what parts of it are new and how it came to be the watch that is sitting in front of you. A combination of trust, consulting experts and doing your own due diligence is key to making sure you end up building the collection that’s right for you, with watches that make you happy.
