My small CW collection dwindling

Discuss Christopher Ward watches
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nigelb001
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My small CW collection dwindling

Post by nigelb001 »

It all started in December 2015 when my son pointed me towards the Christopher Ward website when I was looking for a watch to replace two tatty, unreliable cheapies. I liked what I saw and by the end of the New Year sale I was in possession of a C3 Chrono and a C5 which I liked very much. Unfortunately things didn't end there and fast forward three months, I ended up with seven Christopher Ward watches, all bought at sale prices and was a very happy man.

But after a while something changed. As I did more research into watches and became more familiar with other brands in general, I found that I was loosing some love and a number of watches stayed in the watch case pretty much unused. A couple of new non-CW purchases found their way into my little collection which meant a few of my little used watches had to go. This went further than I expected.

C3 sold to my son at mates rates
C5 given to my mate for his 60th
C8 Pilot vintage given to my son for Xmas 2016
C60 PRO 600 38 sold here recently as deemed too small for me according to my current taste
C70 VW4 sold here recently due to lack of use.

This leaves my C11 MSL Vintage and a C60 300 quartz and after several new diver additions, the C60 300 is now in severe danger of finding a new home. The C11 is my only CW keeper.

So what has caused this. Firstly I think I got caught up in CW's sale scenario. They were very good value and well made but I think I finished up with watches I 'liked' rather than 'loved'. Secondly the more I found out about other brands and styles the more I realised that for me the CW watches were 'safe', nice watches but somewhat unchallenging. My taste was changing. There is nothing in the current line-up that makes me go WOW! I must have that. Thirdly I find that CW's increasing prices and introduction of supposedly more upmarket watches goes against my current ethos of excellent but truly affordable watches. I can't see me ever spending large sums on single watches. So soon I will be down to one CW watch, one I really love but I doubt that any other CW watches will grace my watch case in future.

Sorry for the long waffling post, just giving my experience and wondering whether others have gone through it.
CW C7 Rapide / Breitling Top Time + Superocean / Laco Memmingen
Tissot PRS516 Auto + PRS516 Chrono / Seiko Padi Turtle
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TigerChris
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Re: My small CW collection dwindling

Post by TigerChris »

‘All part of life’s rich tapestry’ as my Dad would say. You’ve bought a few, sold a few, and ultimately ended up with one that you truly love. Nothing wrong with that at all. It sounds like you’ve had enjoyment over the last couple of years doing it, including giving a couple of nice gifts to your lad and your mate. Everyone’s a winner! You never know what the future holds, CW may come out with something that makes you go ‘WOW’ but then again they may not. Whichever watches you buy enjoy the ride, its fun ain’t it! :D
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Thermexman
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Re: My small CW collection dwindling

Post by Thermexman »

Sounds so, so familiar to my journey. I started with one CW Trident which was my daily wearer for two years. A spate of extended forced overtime at work gave me some extra funds and, as you found, the sales were so tempting. I ended up with six. I'm back down to 3 CWs now but am happy with these three, as they meet my current tastes exactly. I'm holding out a hope that the forthcoming 'vintage' or 'heritage' diver may strike a chord but, other than that, I'm sticking to VFM Seiko divers for now. But... that could change :lol:
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Tyke
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Re: My small CW collection dwindling

Post by Tyke »

As above, sounds familiar and having had a lot of them I'm now CW free, my only current wearer being an Alpina Seastong.
statto
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Re: My small CW collection dwindling

Post by statto »

This made me have a review of my CW collection. Thanks to the various sales (and ebay/forum) over the last 5 years I've actually owned 21 of their watches but now the collection stands at 10, and of those not many get worn so perhaps the New Year will see further reductions. One of the main reasons is that I have discovered other brands that take my interest and money, and the other being that from the current range I'm not a fan of the ones I can afford and can't afford the ones that I do like. C'est la vie.
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Re: My small CW collection dwindling

Post by Watchamacallit »

I think this is not an uncommon experience with watch buying/collecting regardless of brand. That as the collection expands and tastes evolve, that watches start to sit unworn for too long and demand that decisions get made.

I have too many watches to give them all enough wrist time, but I do not have plans to get rid of my C3 or C5 among others. I also have gifted a few watches over the years and plan to take that approach with a couple more; especially after seeing how the recipient was wearing that watch (an inexpensive watch) every day since it had been given. I may eventually sell a few but that is harder to do.
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Re: My small CW collection dwindling

Post by Bahnstormer_vRS »

The CWL element of my collection has been subject to fluctuation, ebb and flow over the years.

It got as high as seven at one stage, contracted to three last year and currently stands at five.

Guy

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nbg
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Re: My small CW collection dwindling

Post by nbg »

nigelb001 wrote: {snip}
So what has caused this. Firstly I think I got caught up in CW's sale scenario. They were very good value and well made but I think I finished up with watches I 'liked' rather than 'loved'. Secondly the more I found out about other brands and styles the more I realised that for me the CW watches were 'safe', nice watches but somewhat unchallenging.
{snip}
Sorry for the long waffling post, just giving my experience and wondering whether others have gone through it.
The 8 of my CWs were bought between November 2013 and July 2015 and only one with a 50% discount. It became almost like choosing pick and mix in a sweet shop, when a child!

On reflection there is no way I would have bought more than a couple of CWs had I not been an active member of the forum.

It's not even as if I had the excuse of using CW as part of a "watch journey" or gateway to better brands - I already had better watches when I joined the forum and carried on adding, at the same time as I was buying the CWs.

Bonkers really! :)

Whilst I am confident that I will not buy any more new CWs (something that I have managed to stick to since adding the 2015 FLE [well with one exception!]), I still like most of the ones I have, as I never get around to selling any!

Neil
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johnnysharp2
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Re: My small CW collection dwindling

Post by johnnysharp2 »

I have had 7 but sold 3 to leave me currently with 4, C4 Peregrine, C8 Mark 2 Flyer, FLE 2013 and a C70 Ascari.

They are just a small part of my collection, I have been thinking of adding a C60 Pro Orange but just can't quite pull the trigger , I guess been spoilt by so many half price bargains, which applies not just to CW but most of the watches I own.
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Re: My small CW collection dwindling

Post by lastman99 »

I have had 12 CW watches and brought four for women. Clearing out quite a few now,
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nigelb001
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....now just one

Post by nigelb001 »

Further to my original post, I sold my C60 300 quartz this afternoon to make way for an incoming Dan Henry. So that's me down to just one - the C11 MSL Vintage which is definitely staying....







.....unless I decide otherwise :lol:
CW C7 Rapide / Breitling Top Time + Superocean / Laco Memmingen
Tissot PRS516 Auto + PRS516 Chrono / Seiko Padi Turtle
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