Incoming Potential Cure for “Is it Safe.” PSA

[cdmorenot]

I am the first to admit that I baby my watches. I dislike dings, dents, scratches, and scuffs.

Because of that, I did a little experiment. I picked up a 19-year-old Explorer II which has never been polished. Included in the sale were all of the “patina” and the “memories”.

Since I got it, I have been wearing it the same way I wear a G-Shock. Without a care in the world and without any regard for dings, dents, bumps.

I got my first Rolex a decade ago and this is the first time I’m wearing one the way it is meant to be worn. Quite a liberating experience to be honest!

Will I stop babying the other watches? No. Is it safe? I don’t know… don’t care.

But if you’re like me and you’re still worried about destroying your grail, please treat yourself to a 5-digit and enjoy it. You may come back to this thread and thank me at some point.

Here is a pic of the new (to me) Polar which wears and feels like a dream.

[omar-rye]

I can vouch that wearing any watch without worry is a pretty nice feeling. I started my collection with medium to heavily used watches, so luckily, I got used to scratches, dings, and stretched bracelets.

[996marty]

They are made to be worn and if they get a few dings or scratches along the way then so be it.

[sgt10p]

My view is that I paid a lot of money for my watch, I'm going to wear it as much as possible! Otherwise I've bought an ornament or investment.

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[av1atic]

Congrats, one of my favorites for daily wear. Looks to be in fantastic shape.

[Kevin of Larchmont]

This is genius. I own such a watch, a 14060m that I bought at a favorable price with a fresh service from an AD in 2016. Ridden hard and overpolished and still with the remnants of deep dings visible, the bracelet was so stretched that I sent it to Michael Young in HK for a good tightening. Still, although it’s a freeing watch to wear without worry I can’t help but dream of having it restored by Rolex. Last week I even got a quote from my local AD watchmaker to have it done at the RSC including a new middle case and serial number. Based on what I have into it the price to do this is quite reasonable. Still I’m torn between the story it tells now and the erasure of that story by returning it to pristine condition.

[Bill2e]

Originally Posted by 996marty

They are made to be worn and if they get a few dings or scratches along the way then so be it.

Yes they are. Wear and enjoy.

[peptide45]

I love this! Have often thought I’d like to have a rough and tumble Rolex for adventure. Cheers!!


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[Lesnerelli23]

I got my first Rolex in 2019. A 116610LN from an AD (super lucky). I wore it next to a braided leather “bracelet” and when I realized that would leave marks on the polishing, I realized trying to keep it “perfect” was futile!

I wear all my watches now with reckless abandon lol. They can take it :)


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[stark1]

I'm all about cost per use. If the darn thing costs me $10k to purchase, the goal is to whittle it down to $1 per wear, so 10,000 days. Things might happen during that period, but isn't that life?

[BNA/LION]

congratulations! I like your style.

[Watchdog]

I like this thread and the sentiment. When I was younger and had my first Rolex, I swear I treated that thing as if looking at it would disintegrate the steel and gold. Honestly, Padi (whom I have always respected over the years for his contributions and knowledge) would have ripped me apart. Heck, I practically put diapers on that thing. Now with my BLRO I'm middle-aged and know I need to enjoy each and every day and scratches matter zero. It's scratches on me that will matter more. No use babying the watch. It's tougher than I am; now I just wear 24/7 and enjoy. Congrats to you and keep wearing well.

[KatGirl]

Kat


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[Gerardus]

Originally Posted by cdmorenot

I am the first to admit that I baby my watches. I dislike dings, dents, scratches, and scuffs.

Because of that, I did a little experiment. I picked up a 19-year-old Explorer II which has never been polished. Included in the sale were all of the “patina” and the “memories”.

Since I got it, I have been wearing it the same way I wear a G-Shock. Without a care in the world and without any regard for dings, dents, bumps.

I got my first Rolex a decade ago and this is the first time I’m wearing one the way it is meant to be worn. Quite a liberating experience to be honest!

Will I stop babying the other watches? No. Is it safe? I don’t know… don’t care.

But if you’re like me and you’re still worried about destroying your grail, please treat yourself to a 5-digit and enjoy it. You may come back to this thread and thank me at some point.

Here is a pic of the new (to me) Polar which wears and feels like a dream.

Good and honest post!
Personally I wear all my 3 watches in rotation and accept dings and scratches due wearing them.

[Chiboy]

When I got my platinum Daytona seven years ago, I wore it carefully (but all day) the first several days. There were very visible hairline scratches especially on the clasp in short order. I realized that it wasn't going to stay looking new, and continued to wear it every day, but didn't worry about little nicks and scratches. The only time I don't wear it is when running/working out/playing tennis. I just had it serviced because it was losing 30 seconds a day and had it "lightly polished." It came back looking new, and after wearing it for three weeks, I noticed the clasp still looks brand new, which surprised me. Maybe I'm more careful now? I doubt it. I think it's that I don't really wear long sleeves very much and perhaps that tended to be a bit abrasive on the clasp. Whatever. I know it will get nicked up, but I paid way too much for this watch to just bring it out for special occasions.

I can't imagine having a watch I was afraid to wear. To me, that doesn't sound like fun. And then paying $1,000 or $2,000 to service a watch that's been sitting in a safe? Not for me. Not to mention if you pay for insurance and then don't wear it.

Glad OP found a way to enjoy wearing a beautiful watch!

[1William]

Great watch and perspective OP.

[Calatrava r]

Omar-Rye hit on a great approach. Start out with a well-worn beater and just wear away and forget about it.

[JimSnyder]

Great choice. It’s never going to lose it’s value

[fishingbear]

Very nice! The 16570 polar is perfect for this.

[JSolution]

I had the same exact Same experience with my sd43 :)

[kegan]

Nice watch! 16570 is to me the most underrated reference ever produced. But I must say it makes no sense to me that somehow there is some kind of benefit from wearing a watch that was previously beat by someone else as opposed to one that you have exacted the same scars of use. Also I think buying a 5 digit to abuse is worse than buying a new model and doing the same. My theory is that the six digit models could actually benefit from a little lug thinning.

[joli160]

You don’t need an old 5 digit for a daily, arguably a modern reference will handle daily use even better.

[AF_Rob]

I do everything with my watches, except certain sports.

The only time I broke a watch, was playing an impromptu basketball game.

I did have a watch break itself once while I set the date. I blame it because I wasn’t doing anything out of the ordinary and Rolex covered it.


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[~JJ]

Seems like a mental hurdle you may want to jump since you can see the liberation from truly wearing your watches. Is there really any difference between freely wearing an older $7-9k piece vs a new $8-12k piece? It’s like the guy who buys a Tudor as a beater instead of actually wearing their Sub. Rolex value proposition is a robust mechanical timepiece that can take a beating, continues to maintain good time and can easily be restored to like new condition. It’s not a HH company that’s value is hand polishing and small nuances. My advice is stop treating these as collectible investments for your children and wear them.

[Njkdog]

If you can buy a $7000 watch as an experiment, more power to you