That was a hell of a ride. I got to the point that the CEO was slapping a table and screeching at a dude in public and thought surely that was as batshit as things were going to get. By the time we got to the Wikipedia talk page and doxxing a youtuber all bets were off on the level of batshit possible here.
You know… I don’t agree with it, but I totally get it. For people outside of the community, many people have INTENSE relationships with their watches. I think they tie part of their identity with certain milestones, and when a watch is also so tightly bound to said milestone - certain jobs, certain incomes, certain life events - any perceived cheapening is seen as a direct assault to their identify.
It’s like… your dad handed down his Speedy when you got married. You bought your first Speedy when you made partner at your law firm. Whatever it is, now there’s this perceived slight that some 15 year old now owns a bastardised version of something you achieved and they didn’t.
All of it’s made up. It’s jewellery. I’m sure the Hayeks are sitting in Biel/Bienne laughing their asses off. But still… my dream watch is the VC 222, and when they did the rerelease, I was kinda like - wtf, guys. Even though I have zero affiliation with the original 222 and will never own one, I tricked myself into an emotional attachment with it.
I see shit like this in EVERY community. Cars. Dogs. Guitars. Coffee. PC Parts. Booze. If there’s any thing where the core components of the hobby have variable pricing and scarcity of the “best” stuff, the most dedicated to that hobby will find a way to invent hierarchy. Humanity is beautiful and gross.
I’ve never liked communities based around buying certain products. So much gatekeeping and drama… and for what, to spend money? It’s a marketer’s wet dream.
I don’t see any value in celebrating the fact that someone went out and spent money to get something, or stood in line to get something.
The community is based around the objects… For enthusiasts, watches are neat. It’s an interesting thing because they are functional jewelry, and you can’t actually own that many cause they are expensive, and you can use even fewer at a time cause you only have two wrists (and even watch people will make fun of you if you wear two watches at once).
So the real community is talking about new things, what’s coming up, what you like and dislike, surprising history, a lot of stuff. In my group, we absolutely celebrate when someone gets a new watch, but not cause they’ve passed some kind of gate, but because they now have something they can enjoy and build memories with.
The truth is, marketers will take advantage of any hobby
Also, watches are frequently a guy hobby. It’s better than it used to be but men don’t have as many jewelry choices or ways to accessorize their style especially when dressed up or for work.
My experience has been the complete opposite over on the watch subreddit. I never saw any gatekeeping and if you posted a picture of your new $10 watch there absolutely were plenty of comments on how awesome it is and how happy everyone is for you to get something you like. Also a lot of talk about the history and inner workings of watches not just circlejerking over brand names. Overall a pretty positive and encouraging group in my experience.
Consumerism at it’s finest. We get so worked up for things that should never get much emotions out of us. Watches, cars, console wars, fashion brands, mobile OS 🤮🤮🤮 We should make the effort not to care so much about brands, and just buy less. No one needs a watch
Not buying a watch is not going to solve consumerism. As someone who owns a (non luxury) watch I think that they’re really useful, and that more people should give them a chance
My comment was mostly about brand loyalty and the madness that ensues. As for the usefulness of watches, i realized they were redundant when i broke mine over 10 years ago and never bought another one again. We can all tell time from a phone, a computer, a train, car, microwave etc… Spend a week without one and see. Fine if you prefer to have one, but it isn’t a necessity or even a tool anymore, more of a fashion accessory.
You didn’t mention about how they said all the MoonSwatch models would be available for purchase online and then later pulled that back and none of them are available online.
Also, many of those who were pissed about the MoonSwatch ripping off Omega were also pissed about not being able to buy one.
I might have gotten one, if you could have just easily ordered one online. Even though it’s overpriced for what it is. Because I like the speedy, but I’m not spending thousands on a watch, personally.
So instead, I didn’t feel bad at all about getting a $20 fake one from DHGate
I wouldn’t say that I’m a watch collector. But a watch enthusiast? Definitely. I love watches of all types even though I have my own personal taste.
So what was it about the whole Omega x Swatch debacle that upset me? The fact they were basically gatekeeping a plastic watch that was a homage to the moon watch.
I stand by the fact that the price of a watch doesn’t really matter in terms of true value. Which is why budget timepieces have a high place on the list of many watch enthusiasts (see Timex or Casio).
This watch should have joined that list. It should have been a catalyst to introduce more people into the hobby of collecting or simply admiring these wrist worn works of art (occasionally lol). Instead, it’s another case of fomo and splintering of a community of people who already find ridiculous reasons to gatekeep each other (the write up points to this fact very clearly).
Ah, I missed these. Thanks for reposting, it was a fun read. Odd that Swatch Group still doesn't sell the MoonSwatch online, given it's supposed to be the affordable version ($260 USD) of the Speedy. Maybe they like the hype, but you'd think they prefer money.
Ebay. I just have a saved search for “watch” and look for something interesting. The best deals are from estate sales where the seller isn’t an expert and just posts pictures and lists the item “as-is”. Of course you’re taking a risk, but a good percentage of time you get something nice that has just been collecting dust on a shelf or in a drawer somewhere.
Fair enough. I live in Japan and there’s a massive second hand market for mostly Japanese watches (most of which are Seikos lol). Nobody uses eBay here, it’s Mercari, and only knowledgeable people sell stuff. It’s still definitely cheap, but not ‘I have no idea what this is actually worth’ cheap.
I never understood the watch thing. Mechanical watches are a Rube Goldberg way of timekeeping in the age of electronics. I was always hell on watches, so kept to cheap Timex or Casio watches. After I started carrying a mobile phone, I stopped wearing them entirely.
I do get cars and motorcycles though, at least to a point. Even something as simple as accelerating onto the highway is a vastly different experience in a Mitsubishi Mirage compared to doing the same in a V6 Camry, Z06 Corvette, or Tesla Model S.
After a certain point though, you're well into rapidly diminishing returns in terms of performance /dollar, and it just becomes another financial dick swinging contest.
Seconding this sentiment. HobbyDrama is one of the very few communities I missed from Reddit. I couldn’t start it myself because I’m not well versed in hobbies and they’re dramas myself, so I couldn’t have contributed. I’m so happy to have these to read again, and I’m ok with them being cross-posted from Reddit to get the ball rolling.
TIL there are people that take the collecting of expensive, single-purpose watches more seriously than any hardcore gamer takes their favorite game. Now I want to see somebody to bombard their community with ads for the cheapest shit-tier kids’ wristwatches and Chinese knockoff brands available.
Go to reddit.com/r/watchescirclejerk for the people who realize how ridiculous it is to take collecting jewelry so seriously. They’re watch enthusiasts who realize how stupid it is to be a serious watch enthusiast.
It’s hilarious. Because watch culture is filled with some of the most pretentious and self-aggrandizing people you’ll ever meet.
I own basically the cheapest mechanical chronograph watch in existence and I love it. For 250 bucks you can get a "Seagull 1963" watch from China on Amazon.
It's actually a really nice looking watch with a glass case back so you can see all the gears in the movement. It was designed by the Swiss company Venus a long time ago and they sold it to a Chinese company at some point where it got copied by a bunch of other Chinese companies.
You might find it under a different brand name. Mine is the "Seakoss" variant. They come in a bunch of different styles and sizes so pick whichever you prefer.
Sure maybe it's not great to be supporting China but so much stuff we buy comes from China anyway so I don't think about it too much.
I wanted a mechanical watch so I could admire the gears but I wasn't about to drop many thousands of dollars on one so this thing fits the bill.
That's just how it is with luxury brands. Either someone just knows all the specifics, from type of leather used, to specific types of metals, from being in the industry or being brought up with it, or someone doesn't care and can just afford it. You could do the same not just with watches, but plates, or wallpaper.
So this was super interesting and I went to check out the watches… why why why why why is every watch a variation of the color of the associated planet and goddamn Venus is pink?! Because clearly they needed a lady watch and us ladies always want pink? Grrrrr pointlessly gendered. Sorry I got carried away, anyway nice writeup.
Thank you, OP, for an interesting and great write-up. I love this stuff, because even though I'm not an audiophile, it was written well and engaging enough to keep me interested. So thanks!
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