Watch advice requested.

obrut · 04-14-2005, 10:53 PM

Hi all,

Any watch collectors out there? Are these as collectable as stated? Is the Orfina "porsche design" thing for real?

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=3943&item=4985056633&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW

I've been after a nice old watch for a while. What do you think? What would this go for in the US of A (auction is in Aussie dollars).

mudman · 04-15-2005, 03:52 AM

Not going to be as tradeable as baseball cards, but....

Isabo · 04-15-2005, 02:22 PM

Orfina is nothing special. As far as I know their only claim to fame was manufacturing the first Porsche Design chronograph. An Orfina Porsche design Chrono in reasonable condition go for about 1000 euros, probably less if one shopped around a bit. I saw three or four of them at a watch fair a few weeks ago.

pwd72s · 04-15-2005, 06:47 PM

A watch...you look at it, it tells you what time it is, right? Isabo? You need to forget about watches...and find somebody who knows how to make your little man in the boat happy. If that happened often enough, you might find yourself shopping for a Timex!

Isabo · 04-16-2005, 12:26 AM

You mean that watches can tell the time AS WELL?

Love and poverty is very romantic (but miserable) at 20. When you're approaching the big five O, the ability to collect a few trinkets and pay the bills doesn't hurt a romance at all. I'm happily married (27yrs). When Armando and I got married money was very tight. Not because our families didn't help and because we weren't earning but because we also had to invest in an image. That is hard to explain to people who don't live and work in Italy, the easiest way would be to say "to be succesful you have to look succesful". That means renting an apartment in the right part of town, wearing genuine designer labels, wearing the right accessories - Not necessarilly being able to afford it. As a young wife none of the "flash" was important to me, but my husband and my mother in law assured me it was necessary. Today Armando has a succesful legal consultancy, this is due to his skill but it was also necessary to invest in image, I think this is more applicable to Milan and the environment we were in than other places but it's the reality we worked in. Money is not everything, but being able to pay bills without worrying about next week is real freedom and it also makes it easier to have a happy marriage. After all what are most marital disagreements ultimately about: sex and money! (if the sex is good then money can solve most of the other problems

)

Milu · 04-16-2005, 01:05 AM

What a romantic image!

A young couple struggling to buy Rolexes and original artwork

Isabo · 04-16-2005, 01:13 AM

Clown

Stop goofing off on the internet and finish your work! You have deadlines to meet.
See you tonight

Isabo · 04-16-2005, 01:16 AM

Surreal moment: Dressing up and going to buy his and hers Cartier watches and struggling to pay the phone bill all on the same day. Happy memories!

BlueSkyJaunte · 04-16-2005, 07:07 AM

Isa, I need you to talk to my wife. We're both engineers and our wardrobes consist mostly of jeans and corporate-logo polo shirts.

pwd72s · 08:04 AM

God bless the USA west! Function over "image". Years ago, I still in my teens, a small power equipment salesman was in our store...he explaining to my dad the a power take off feature the small tractor had. Bill Long, a local farmer, now deceased, was there. Bill in his usual attire of rubber boots, striped coveralls, puffing on a broken down cheap pipe full of half & half tobacco. Bill commented that "Massey" tried the same set-up back in the 40's, and it caused problems because.... Salesman, aggravated, snapped: "Well, if you're so smart, why aren't you a millionaire?"
Bill: "Son, who the hell says I'm not?" All that said, I wasn't fair here to Isabo...every area has an"image"...it's just that in this rural town the millionaires don't flaunt it...quite the opposite in fact. Ostentatious flash is frowned upon. In a small town there is no need to flaunt it...people know who's "doing okay" and who isn't.
(edit) Obrut? I was around when those black Porsche design watches were new, Porsche Panorama full of ads selling them. Some guys bought 'em, I didn't. I did notice that the black seemed to wear off rather quickly.

Isabo · 11:20 AM

Blue:
No way am I getting involved in something like that

Just throwaway the corporate polos, buy some from Valentino, buy coordinated leather accessories, avoid trainers and manmade fabrics and you'll both be fine

PWD:
There's an apparently true story about an English Duke, dishevelled as only a traditional English aristocrat can be without being arrested for vagrancy. His sister called him a disgrace and that he ought to dress in a manner more befitting his position. He replied: "what ever for? Everyone knows me in the village so it does not matter. No one knows me in London, so it does not matter!"

Image? Armando now sports a goatee and a long ponytail (I'm not convinced about either) and sometimes sees important corporate clients in motorcycle leathers. Nowadays he can get away with it. I can shop in via Spiga with a clear concience

pwd72s · 04-16-2005, 06:07 PM

You got it! Everybody knows me here in this small pond...Nobody "important" knows me in Portland, Oregon's power structure city. I should give a flying French kiss about what people up there think? Small & big ponds to be sure...But the biggest fish in the biggest pond of Orygun recently confessed to having an "affair" with a 14 year old while he was mayor of that "fine" city. Imagine his "status" now. Social climbing sucks, so does political power. Since it's all about money, sex, or power...Well, as I age, I find myself caring less and less about all three. Yep, I look at my watch to see what time it is.

obrut · 04-17-2005, 02:00 AM

so, does the watch get a yay or a nay?

i think it has a nice older look and a minor point of interest with the link (albeit minor) to f. porsche - without having the words porsche emblazoned across the face.

Isabo · 03:11 AM

It's your wrist it's going on and your wallet that's paying for it.

If you're looking for opinions, mine is nay.
I don't think it looks that good, as I've already said their only claim to fame is the original Porsche chrono. Spend a little more and get that if you must have an Orfina watch.
The high spots on the black of mine, give it a "worn in" used and loved look that is in keeping with my 911.
(although mine is a favourite I haven't had mine checked out to find if it's Orfina or a later manufacturer, it's value for me is mostly sentimental as it was a present from my husband)

jyl · jyl's Garage

If I were spending that range of $ on a chrono, I would consider

http://www.westcoastime.com/ow77chronpil.html

which is modeled after a Heuer bundeswehr pilots' chrono.

If spending more, I would lean toward an actual vintage Heuer

http://www.vintageheuer.com/heuerwatchesframeset.htm

But watches are all about personal taste - heck, $20 at Target will get you a perfectly good timekeeper - so buy what you want.