Steve Duke Presents Tradio Gems: Timepieces and Watches
(Excerpted from Tradio)
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[audio:https://westchestergold.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/01-watches.mp3|titles=Timepieces and Watches]Steve Duke:
When we were buying wristwatches back around in the ‘50s and ‘60s, different Swiss companies came out with 18 carat gold wristwatches. They were actually a fairly large size for that particular time. At that time most of the wristwatches were a smaller size for most of the men. They had some different shapes and things like that, but in general most of those watches were not real large American-made watches.
The Swiss came out with a larger watch and usually it was some sort of a chronograph, which I’ll get into in a minute with you, so they could keep the cost of the watch down but still market it as an 18 carat gold watch. The gold cases were made very, very thin. Actually, a term that’s used by a lot of people in the trade who deal in watches, when we pick that watch up a lot of times we’ll sort of squeeze a case without looking at it to see whether it’s marked gold or not. You’d actually have to pop the back of the watch off and the gold mark was on the inside of that case. By squeezing a case if it has a little bit of give to it, that tells us basically that it’s made out of gold.
CeCe:
Does it chirp?
Steve:
Well, these cases actually will bend and they will sort of…
CeCe:
Like a little chirp.
Steve:
Almost like a chirp.
CeCe:
Interesting.
Steve:
This is why we use the term a ‘cricket case’. You used to be able to get those little clickers and these were almost the same thing. Now, if you squeeze it too much it doesn’t give you that cricket it just crushes.
CeCe:
Yeah, you don’t want to do that.
Steve:
So you have to be a little bit more gentle with it, but when we talk about the very thin 18 carat gold Swiss watches made usually from the ‘40s, ‘50s and ‘60s, they were very, very thin and this is what we refer to as a cricket case.
CeCe:
That is really interesting.
Steve:
Okay, I’m out of here. No, I’m only kidding.
CeCe:
All right. Let’s go out to the air conditioner.
Steve:
All right. So I mentioned the word ‘chronograph’. There’s also another word that you’ll see on some of the higher-end luxury watches, which is the word ‘chronometer’. A lot of times people will call me up and they’ll say “You know I’ve got a chronograph. I’ve got a chronometer.” What they’re doing is they’re reading off the dial of their watch.
When we talk about a chronometer, a chronometer is a higher-end watch. It’s a very good timepiece and it’s put through a lot of stringent tests as far as its ability to be able to keep time in various positions. What I’m talking about ‘in positions’, no, it’s not like it’s doing yoga or something like that. Your timepiece is not there meditating, but if you lay it down face down or if you lay it on its back or if you stood it on its side.
Generally what they’ll do is they will time a chronometer in six different positions and they will also time it according to whether it will keep time in various types of temperatures. So we can see when a watch gets the word ‘chronometer’ written on it, it’s an extremely accurate timepiece.
Now, I used the word ‘chronograph’, most chronographs are chronometers. They’re usually a very fine highly-tuned timepiece, but a chronograph has the ability to do various functions. Like when you look at the dial it could have two or three other little dials on it. Now, a lot of your wristwatches will have what we call a sweep second hand. That’s the large hand that goes around and keeps track of time or sometimes down on the bottom it will have a little circle with a second hand in it. That’s what we refer to as a subsidiary second hand.
Now, a chronograph will have two or three extra dials. It might have that one little subsidiary dial on the bottom, but it also might have something that tells you the elapsed time, how much time has gone by, almost like a stopwatch function. It could also have what we refer to as a power reserve. That dial indicates how much tension there is in the main spring left. Most of them are 12 to 24 hour power reserve on a chronograph, which means after 12 hours it will show that your watch is starting to wear down. It’s time that you need to wind it up again. So this is the difference between a chronograph and chronometer.
Now, why do I talk about this? Right now the watch market has been sort of dead, but all of a sudden it’s starting to heat up again. The market in Japan and China has jumped back into high gear, which means a lot of the watches you may have lying around in your drawers, in your jewelry boxes and things like that, watches that you may have inherited or back when you were working up north full time and you were a manager or a CEO and things like that, you treated yourself to some of the finer watches. You come down here and you go you know what? I’m putting that Lauris on. I’m putting that Armitron on. I’ve got my Citizen or my Bulova and I’m happy with that. I don’t need this high-end watch anymore.
Some of the companies that made high-end watches, Patek Philippe is probably number one. Vacheron Constantin is another one, LeCoultre, Longine. A lot of these are Swiss companies. Rolex is another one. Now, we find that some of the American companies also did some finer watches, chronographs and things like that, not as much as the Swiss. The American market, rather than a luxury watch it was a good timepiece. It did what it had to do, but we find that most of the finer watches were Swiss.
I had someone come in the other day with a Cardia, which was a nice watch. Again, they did a lot of chronographs and chronometers, fine timepieces. I also had a fellow come in with a Tiffany chronograph the other day. We had a conversation and he was telling me how fine Tiffany was and this and that. I had to explain to him that Tiffany was never really set up to do their own timepieces.
Tiffany never ever did a watch of their own. They didn’t have watch makers they had jewelry makers, which means they would do what we call a contract case. They would get the movement from another company and lots of times they would do Patek or they would do Vacheron. They would do Audemars Piguet and there were three or four other companies that they would use for their movements and put it in a case and then put the name Tiffany on it. As a matter of fact, Tiffany used to distribute Rolex in all their stores and they would put the name Tiffany & Company on the dial of the Rolex watches. They were a big distributor of Rolex watches.
Now Rolex has gotten a little more snooty. They’ve gotten a lot more discerning. They don’t like to have their watches discounted very often and we find that low and behold they took away the distributorship for Tiffany. They said if you’re going to put your name on our product you can’t sell it anymore. As a businessman and I’m sure there are some other businessmen out there who occasionally will listen to Tradio, by accident I’m sure, but when you look at a heavy-hitter like Tiffany and the amount of watches that they would sell and a company can say you know what, you can’t sell our watches anymore because you’re putting your name on our timepiece and we don’t really want to have that association with you, that’s pretty impressive for a company to be able to kick out a supplier or a distributor as big as Tiffany.
Now, what are some of the things you should look for in your drawer when you open it up and you go “Steve, I don’t any of those Pateks or those Cartiers and them Rolexes and stuff like that, but I got some neat looking watches here.” What should you look for? Well, number one, look for the size. If it’s a really large wristwatch and it’s an older model, that’s going to have a lot of desirability right now.
I know back in the ‘70s a lot of the women’s fashion watches were really big and monstrous-looking. We’re not talking about that so much as the men’s wristwatches. We find that with the European market and the Asian market, because the majority of their population is slighter-built people, a really big watch looks huge on them, which they like, and the mid-size watches, which is something that Rolex did when they first came out with their Rolexes. A lot of the models were too large and they came out with what they called a mid-size for the Asian market.
Now the Asian market has returned to a lot of the stuff from the ‘50s and ‘60s that were actually that smaller-size watch, but the American market still likes the really big stuff. Again, in the ‘70s we had Seiko and we had some of the other companies, Doxa. We had some of the other companies making larger watches. Omega did a lot of stuff in the ‘50s where they made an oversized watch.
These watches are desirable, number one, because of their size. Number two, we have to look at the maker on them again. Seiko did make a couple of collectable watches right now and they were the large sizes, some of the divers’ watches and they did do a couple of chronographs, which are desirable and collectable.
The other thing we want to look at, does it have multiple functions. When you look at that dial does it have more than just the hour and the minute hand and a sweep second hand? Does it have those extra little dials on the face of that watch? If it does then you have a chronograph and that’s going to be desirable in itself. If it’s not running, fine. It’s lost a lot of its value. If it’s been wet and it’s rusted, it’s lost 99% of its value. If the dial is all screwed up, if it got rusty on the dial or the paint is starting to flake off of it, it’s lost a lot of its value.
The dials on a watch are extremely important. I mean very, very important. That watch could not be running, it could be destroyed on the inside, but if it has a really good dial and it happens to be a rare watch, that dial could be worth anywhere from $100 to $1,000 depending on what it is.
CeCe:
Now, Steve, what are some of the differences in different types of dials that change their value?
Steve:
Well, there were a lot of different styles that were made. I’m going to go back to Rolex because this is something that I deal in quite extensively. Back in the ‘70s Paul Newman wore a watch in one of his movies. It was a Rolex Daytona and the dial on it was a very specific dial that he happened to like and Rolex made. Well, that watch with the original dial in pristine condition could be afforded to a $60,000 watch.
A friend of mine over in Punta Gorda had one that got wet. Really got it all screwed up, but the dial was still immaculate. The dial was worth $3,000…
CeCe:
Wow!
Steve:
…because if someone had a good Rolex and it was that particular model and their dial had been what we call refinished. Lots of times people will have a watch and when you buy a watch you’re really not thinking of it as a collectable. You’re buying a watch. It’s a wristwatch. I’m going to wear it all these years. It’s going to tell me the time. Hopefully it’s going to be right more than twice a day, so you wear the watch.
Now, over a period of time a dial will discolor because of moisture, because of the conditions around it and a lot of times people will send that in and get it redone. What they actually do, they’ve got stencils that they will sand everything off of that dial, put that stencil over the top and repaint it. Well, the problem is when it’s done down at the bottom there’s a little thing that says Swiss and there’s a T on either side of that. That ‘T’ generally stands for tritium, which is an element that was used to make that dial glow.
At one point in time they used to use radium. We find that back in the ’20s and ‘30s when they were doing that to make dials glow, a lot of the women would use a very, very fine paintbrush to do that. They would actually lick it to get a real sharp point. Well, the next thing you know we had all these women dying from radiation poisoning…
CeCe:
Oh my!
Steve:
…because radium was toxic. They would do a great job of painting those dials, but it didn’t hold up and they would die, so they went to different metals that wouldn’t do that. When they refinish a dial you won’t find the word Swiss and you won’t find those little Ts on it.
So when we look at a dial that’s one of the things that we look for to see that it hasn’t been refinished and if it’s a genuine original dial, depending on what that dial is and what particular model of watch it goes to. Like I said that watch could be destroyed, but if it’s a good dial the dial will be worth a lot of money. Conversely, I’ve had watches that were $5,000 watches with a redone dial that turned them into a $2,000 watch.
What you need to look for is size. You look for multiple functions. We look for the condition of the dial. If you find one with multiple functions and the dial is destroyed don’t just sit there and say “Well, Steve said it’s not going to be worth anything.” That’s not what I’m saying to you. It’s going to be worth less, but a lot of times forget the dial.
We may need the mechanisms from the inside to redo another watch. So, lots of times I’ve bought watches for parts and I have them laying all over the place, but when we get the right watch and we’ve bought that watch parts four, five, six, 10 years ago and we filed it away waiting for that one watch to come in some that we could transfer pieces and make it run and make it a saleable watch.
The other thing you want to look for right now is what is it made out of. This is a big factor also. Is it made out of gold? Is it gold plated? Is it gold filled? Is it stainless steel? Is it gold filled on the front and has a stainless steel back? All these are items that are going to affect the value of it. Lots of times the more common watches that are made out of 14 or 18 or 10 carat gold, with gold being at $1,500 an ounce right now, the metal value itself is worth more than the watch.
Unfortunately, a lot of watches over the years lately have been scrapped. They’re beat up with hammers and destroyed by a lot of people who don’t deal in them. I make this analogy. They were selling shoes last week and now they’re buying gold this week and they’re authorities. I’ve had people in town here who are jewelers and have $100,000 watches in their drawers that people have left with them because they wanted them to find out what they were worth.
The jeweler said you know I don’t have time to mess with this and gave it back or they could have bought that watch for $5,000. Later the same watch was sold after it was picked up that day for $125,000. So you need to deal with somebody who deals with that particular item. You can always scrap it, but if you happen to have a rare watch you can sell it as a rare watch and really cash in on the deal.
Another thing you want to look at is the shape of the watch. I don’t mean the condition. I mean is it irregular shaped? Is it funky looking? You know is it triangular? Is it cushion shaped? Does it just look different than what you would normally think?
Another thing we want to look at is what we refer to as the lugs. The lugs are the four little posts that stick off of the watch that you put your watchband on. If they’re unusual, if they were different shapes, if they’re funky looking, if they’re just unusual and not just straight little things that you see on everybody’s watches, this adds to the desirability of that watch.
So if you have wristwatches that are hanging around doing nothing, right now they could be worth a lot of money. I’m Steve Duke the owner of Westchester Gold & Diamonds and if you’ve got watches that you want to be worth a lot of money or find out if they’re worth a lot of money, please stop by and see us. We’re in the Bear Plaza behind ABC Liquors.
I’ve been doing this for 37 years. Sorry, I never sold shoes, but I do know an awful lot about watches. Stop by and see us. With that we’re going to take a quick break and return to Tradio.
Hi, I’m Steve Duke the owner of Westchester Gold. You’re good at what you do. You know it and you deserve the rewards that come with your success. At Westchester Gold we can help you with the largest selection of pre-owned Rolex watches in Charlotte County and diamond accessories to upgrade any model.
Why Rolex? Rolex is recognized and respected around the world. Isn’t that what you deserve? At Westchester Gold we make it easy. Come in and purchase your Rolex or put it on layaway. Westchester Gold Fine Jewelry an Antiques, we make it easy. Behind ABC Liquors, US 41, Port Charlotte.
Steve:
We are back with Tradio and CeCe, can you give us a time check?
CeCe:
Let’s see. It is almost 9:47 in just a few seconds here.
Steve:
Ready and…now.
CeCe:
There we go.
Steve:
Nine forty-seven. All righty.
CeCe:
Okay. Now, Steve?
Steve:
Yeah.
CeCe:
I’m aware of this because I’m all excited because Mother’s Day is right around the corner.
Steve:
Yes?
CeCe:
Usually, and I’m pretty sure it’s going to happen again this year, May means your big Mother’s Day Sale, your Birthday Sale. What I was wondering, since we’re talking about watches, is during this sale are there going to be other watches besides like Rolex like vintage watches available?
Steve:
Well, you know, I’m glad you asked me that CeCe. Number one, we’ve got Rolexes in stock. We have a large selection of Rolex watches and people thought they could never afford a Rolex watch.
CeCe:
But you make that possible for people.
Steve:
Not only can you put it on layaway, but if you really wanted to walk out of the store you’re talking about a brand new watch that would sell anywhere from $5,000 to $35,000 new. You can wind up buying a watch like that right now for anywhere from $2,700 to $8,000, $9,000.
CeCe:
Wow! Big savings.
Steve:
It’s like buying a brand new car; some people want to be the first person to drive off that parking lot. That’s why there are so many used cars sold. After they’re driven off the parking lot that car has lost a lot of value. Same thing on luxury watches, they’ve lost a lot of value if they’re no longer new. It doesn’t make them less of a timepiece. When you buy a brand new Rolex it comes with a one-year warranty. You buy a watch from us it comes with a one-year warranty.
If it needs to be service we do service. If it needs to be polished up some time while you’re wearing it, you’ve beat it up and you’ve gotten it from us, you bring it in and we’re more than happy to re-polish that watch for you so it looks brand new again. We want you to enjoy it, so we stand behind whatever we sell.
Now, we also have a lot of vintage watches that I buy, everything from Patek Philippe to Vacheron Constantin. I have a fantastic-looking Tiffany piece in there for men who like really big watches. Rose gold chronographs that just scream man, look at me. I have one that sells for $19,500 brand new. This has never been worn, brand new in the box.
CeCe:
Wow.
Steve:
A watch like that is $12,000. We also have a line of Bulova watches. All brand new Bulova watches.
CeCe:
That’s a good brand.
Steve:
It’s a great brand. They’ve been around forever. We have ladies’ watches from like $99. We have men’s from $100 to $200. Bulova has also come out with what they call their Marine Star Line, which is a nautical line. I have a lot of them that look just like the Rolex Submariner for a whole lot less money.
CeCe:
Wow!
Steve:
Now Bulova has even come out with a new line that they call their Precision Watch. We talk about a chronometer; these watches are the most accurate watch in the world. I know that’s a wild statement to make, but Bulova stands behind it. They are the most accurate watch available.
You’re talking watches in the $600 to $800 price range, some really cool styles. We got them in for Mother’s Day and I don’t know what I have left. I’ve gone through a bunch of them, but you can certainly look in one of our catalogues and we’re happy to order that in for you too.
CeCe:
And it’s a nice change. You know mom has probably gotten a lot of necklaces, bracelets, earrings, flowers, candy for Mother’s Day.
Steve:
Yeah. One thing you don’t have to worry about, it won’t melt and it won’t wilt.
CeCe:
A nice new watch that will last her years and years to come will make a nice gift.
Steve:
Yup. For a lot of the girls in town here who are nurses, a lot of them have to have that second hand so they can take pulses and stuff. I made sure that we have a lot of watches with second hands. A lot of them are waterproof so, yeah, you can wear them as a work watch because lots of times people will get a luxury item for a gift and they’re afraid to wear it.
CeCe:
Yeah.
Steve:
I don’t know how many people I see they’ve gotten a gorgeous piece of jewelry and went “I’m not going to wear that.” Well, that’s what it’s for and the same thing especially with watches. You get this piece, it’s a timepiece. Wear it, enjoy it. If you have to wear it for work, wear it for work.
So, yeah, we have a whole line of watches and a lot of neat vintage stuff too if people are interested in it. So we’re always happy to have them come in and take a look around.
CeCe:
That is neat. I want to come down and check out some of those vintage watches.
Stop by and see us. We are in the Baer Plaza behind ABC Liquors. Westchester Gold and Diamonds is located at 4200F Tamiami Trail, Port Charlotte, FL 33952.
Call (941) 625-0666.
Westchester Gold and Diamonds provides services including custom jewelry design, repairs, appraisals and other jewelry and antiques related services. Westchester Gold and Diamonds is open 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Monday through Friday; 10:30 a.m.-4 p.m., Saturday and by appointment at your home or bank.