Affordable Watches For Your Collection | Reacting To Underappreciated Watches FT. Teddy Baldassarre

This is the gateway drug. It is, I mean, this is it, so be careful. What if I told you this watch is around 300 bucks? Can't be! You know, you instead of going out for dinner, buy a watch. Okay, Mr. Wonderful here, you know I'm doing a very special edition for the channel today because people ask me all the time about my collection of watches, and some of them are crazy expensive pieces. But I buy them as an investor, so I'm okay with that. It's an asset class for me.

But what about watches that you can approach in terms of a price point that makes sense? And I also have watches like that. So I asked my great buddy Teddy over here. He's a legend; he really knows how to root out. He's like a truffle pig on watches. He knows how to go find them—great dials, beautiful pieces, at affordable prices. So I asked him to bring his very best to walk us together through what you could look at today that's affordable, it's beautiful, almost collectible in the sense that they're different from each other and look spectacular on your wrist or your significant other's.

You got to think about gifting too! Let's go at it, Teddy. What do you got here for me?

So in terms of love to set the record straight, some of these are not what I would classify as affordable. But in terms of what is affordable to you, it's all relative, right? I mean, for these are probably affordable for you, but there are going to be some people out there where these are still some very aspirational pieces and are cool. So I just want to provide that context. But all of these, for I would say, we should discuss price point, right? We should discuss price point.

All of these are going to be $10,000. Okay, so I agree that's not cheap. When I'm talking about really affordable, I set a $1,200 down kind of thing. We do have some of those as well, and I guess we could start with those.

Now, start with those? We'll start with the ones that some of these are, I would say if I get the question all the time: I need my first quality watch. Yeah, where should I go?

Okay, so let's talk about that. From this, let's choose the first quality watch somebody should or could get. I'm going to pick two, but then I'm also going to mention a third, just as like a kind of a little bit more out there but a kind of a cult classic. So these two right here, you're probably familiar with—both these brands: Tissot and Hamilton. One of my very first gifts was a Tissot, a classic Swiss Tissot.

This is the gateway drug. This is the gateway drug. It is, I mean, this is it. So be careful. Do not get too involved with this if you just know what you're getting into, that's all I'm saying. So this is the new PRX. Clearly, we see some inspiration. It's got a little bit of like some Rolex Oyster Quartz kind of DNA. This is a model that was kind of recreated from one of their archives. We were talking on pricing—$650! There's also a quartz version as well for even less than that, sub $400.

So it's just a great watch. The bracelet finishing—we'll get some close-ups of this and just show that—this thing is a fantastic entry-level price and a beautiful piece that has even some of the Rolex Explorer elements to it. You know, with the best you can see with the bezel as well; you know it's got that, I would say like Oyster Quartz kind of DNA with its case silhouette. But certainly, you could mistake this for Rolex across the aisle. You could—you know, it looks the part for 650 bucks and also this interesting dial texture with the bluish kind of spotting. It's very, very good. That is a great find, okay? That one's doing incredibly well.

So, the other watch that I have here, and if you're talking about entry-level Swiss watch—500 bucks. Yeah, I just say look at Hamilton. Just look at Hamilton Watch. The Hamilton brand in the last two years has suddenly woken up. It's got a real buzz going on for sort of a hot watch at a great price. What's the price point? 500, 575 bucks for this retail.

Let me see that. And this is the thing that I like about—also right on trend with a smaller dial. It's 38 mm, very wearable, 100 m of water resistance. That is your one and only watch. That's why I love that watch. I mean, the Tissot is a little bit more sporty. That's right on that fence—dress, that automatic—exactly! You can wear it with jeans, you can wear it with a suit. I mean, it would work with a light strap.

It could totally, and you could put a red band on this. You could. That's not where I was going with it, but you certainly could. But it's got a little sparkle of red on there that you could call your “autal.” Right on the second hand, the tip is red. That's very, very nice. Hamilton has the history; they have lineage; quite a quality on the wrist. You feel that beautiful grind. They have some of the best movements in the price range.

So these, I mean, they're SWATCH group brands, so you have some perks with that 80-hour power reserve. So far from what you showed me, this is my top pick. It's really nice for an entry-level. It's a great deal and there's so many different options. It's a little overwhelming the amount of Khakis that you have at your disposal but that's fantastic.

Okay, so we have that one. Let's look at some other things. So actually, I want to diverge and look at something a little bit different now. This is a micro brand. Now, why I wanted to show you this, though, is this is a brand based out of Scotland. It's called An óran. Now what they are known for is their dials, and because they don't make their own caliber of movement—right? No? Okay. And that's why these are under $2,000. But this dial is handmade enamel, and in terms of enameling of this quality at this price range, I have yet to find something.

And these seem like really good down-to-earth guys; they're true artisans. This is called their Plum dial, and I liked it because it did have a little bit of some red to it, and it was a bit different. If you get close to it, you can see that texture. Texture! Look at that texture! Wow! These guys, it's crazy because the amount of time they put into the watch dials, and that is spectacular. They're just sold out of these all the time, so it's hard to get production on these—price point, right?

Two grand? Pretty cool though, right? I mean, for that dial, it's very unique. You would not see anybody else with this watch on. It's not like—this is going to catch some eyes because it's this Plum with this kind of burnt gold. Mhmm, really nice! I’m blown away by this dial; I mean, that's just—that's a great find, Teddy. It's cool; that's a winner!

Now this is my number one. That's your number one? Yeah, well you're talking four times the price. I got it, but the dial is—you know I'm a dial guy; that is amazing! That's cool.

Okay, now we're going to jump back to the most affordable watch on the table. Now this is a little funky. This is called the Seagull 1963. Now this watch, really, the thing behind this is if you're trying to get into chronographs, mechanical chronographs, you're spending four figures at least. It just is; it's the name of the game.

What if I told you this watch is around 300 bucks? It can't be! It is. The movements made in China. It is. So this is the backstory of this: there was a producer called Venus, the Swiss brand. They sold off a lot of their technology and their parts and their actual machining to China. And now there are these, and this was actually used by, you know, military as well.

But if you're trying to get into the world of mechanicals and you're just trying to see something, I mean a column wheel chronograph at $300? The most affordable Swiss-made column wheel, I think, is with Longines—yeah, talking three, four grand! Yeah, so that's the compelling thing about this.

Now in terms of, you know, what it's going for compared to like a Tissot and Hamilton, mass market, very different. But, I mean, that's a $300 watch? That's incredible! Does it actually function? Here, I'll show you. Let me wind it up. It's a manual wind, and why that's, I think, so awesome for a chronograph is you can actually see the mechanism work. I mean, you can see the center wheel, you know?

Think about that: if it ever breaks, you might as well just throw it out and get another one. Yup, that's right! These are kind of disposable when you're talking—because if you try to get one of these serviced, talking about a column wheel chronograph, I mean, it's way more expensive than this watch. So just get another one.

But, you know, it's seen as a more of a disposable object, but if you're just trying to have some fun and to see—going find this on the wrist of a Chinese military, yes, you would actually. The movement feels pretty snappy, right? Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah! It's pretty cool. It's a very interesting dial too, this kind of pale green, military kind of vibe. Great find, Teddy! Very, very, very interesting for 300 bucks! I mean, come on, you're just talking money there!

We're just talking $300 for that! You know, you instead of going out for dinner, buy a watch! Yeah, you really could! You got to budget for food! But I mean, that is amazing. That's amazing!

Okay, so now I want to show a few different things here. One that I want to show is, you know, these are kind of some fun dials. Let's do some fun funky dials. We'll show two of them. Now one of them is Zodiac. Now Zodiac is a brand—know the brand? Yeah! 1953! We know about the dive watches that came out—Submariner, Blancpain, Fifty Fathoms—that debate; there's no debate over those! But what if I told you that there was another dive watch that came out at that same period? The Zodiac Seawolf doesn't get much love.

Now this is technically more the aerospace GMT type of architecture, but Zodiac, they were beloved by military personnel. These were available at PXs during the Vietnam War, and they're really known for their, you know, $2,000 price range. They now have different ownership; they’ve kind of relaunched the brand. But just more eye-catching dial colors. And it's eye-catching! It's controversial too; that is not going to please—this is an acquired taste, 100%. I mean, it's really funky-chic! You got this green thing going on, you know? I don't know; I'm not loving it, Teddy!

And two grand? Is that what you're saying? 1700? 1700! Sorry—I need to specify for you; I'm not used to that. Yeah, it's also—I don’t know. I think I don't love it. Okay! Yeah, next one!

Yeah, this is a little bit funky as well. Now this is a polarizing watch—no question about it. These are known as the Cotton Candy Collection from Oris. Bronze case! Bronze case! This is more of a unisex watch. But this got people talking. When we started posting about these, people were like either, “I love these!” or “Burn it with fire!” So, I mean, that was the only way people had an opinion on these.

I think they're fun! When I wear one, it's a little bit tougher. You have to have a certain lifestyle and circumstance. But the bronze case with those type of dials—there's also a pastel green and a pink. But what are your thoughts on that?

So bronze is interesting. You're not going to see a lot of that. That's seeing it more now. It's definitely a bit trendy! What's the price point on this? That's $2700. 2700 on the bracelet? Yeah! I mean, cause you've got some really interesting—and that's patina, so I do want to specify when that comes straight out of the box, it's going to look a little bit different! But that's kind of the inry with bronze, right? It gets—you know—shows its wear.

So I actually like it because it's a crazy chicken piece! And in every collection, there should be—even if you only have a few watches—you want something really out there just to start a conversation. This is out there, first of all, you know? Bronze plus this candy blue! I mean, it's really, really crazy! And yellow, you know?

I like it! I think that’s interesting! And you know, it's not my first go-to piece! But you give that a thumbs up? I'm surprised! There you go! Well, I think the dial is really interesting! I mean, I really appreciate a good dial. That's not—anyways, that's good! You know, I think that's all right for what it is!

Okay, so now I got two different approaches when it comes to watches. One of them is going to be material; the other one's going to be how they display the time. First is this R. So, this is a brand that is known mostly for their use of material. Now they’re known for their use of ceramic. Now, as far as I know, from a full ceramic case and bracelet, this is one of the most attainable ways you’re going to get that, and they’re masters of it. They made all of these links from ceramic—high-tech ceramic! Lightweight!

It's an interesting model—it's as opposed to spending a fortune with Hublot. Is that what you think? I mean, any brand, honestly, you're paying a big premium no matter who the maker is in most cases, and they're one of the best at producing it! So, they're just known for their ceramics! Masters of that material!

Price point? Dealing with $3,800 bucks for that one. Yeah, for ceramic, that's a heck of a deal! I like it! I think it’s, you know, it's in the diver genre, and you can add to your collection with ceramic—which costs a fortune! And so, they've done a great job! The bracelet's nice—nothing wrong with it! And the brand is known; I mean, it's not like it's an unknown micro brand. It's just it's a well-known brand.

It's got some heritage! Yeah, worldwide, they're very well known! Us? Not as much, but I mean, they're growing in terms of popularity. So, cool brand! I like how they mix a little bit more of a vintage style with—thumbs up on this! I mean, if you don’t have a dive watch and you want to go right into something with ceramic, which is really cool? This is it! Very lightweight too!

Yeah, yeah! That’s beautiful! It's beautiful! Now, you might be familiar with this—just brand, Accutron! You might have seen this in the past. So, this is kind of a recreation of their very iconic Spaceview from a modern perspective. Now, this isn't going to be mechanical, but it's a pretty cool watch. Now, what you're seeing here—and you're seeing a lot of movement going on here, a lot of stuff, very busy. So this is using electrostatic energy.

You have two different generators here that are providing power to this movement. Now there's two different ways in which this is actually driving it. You have a motor here that's visible, and that's that thing that's just kind of spinning—that's driving that second hand. There's another one that is not visible that is also going to drive your minute and your hour hand, and it has three different engines—two different engines.

These are your different generators that are going to create that energy, kind of work like a traditional rotor on an automatic watch. Ultra precision on this—talking, you know, seconds a month in terms of accuracy! And it's just cool! It has a resting position as well, so after 5 minutes, we let this sit here; it's going to go into power save mode. So after 5 minutes, it remembers its position, and the minute and the hour hand are going to continue to tell the time for up to 10 days!

That's up to 10 days! Up to 10 days! So, you know, the Elegance from FP Jan can go for years! Remember the time? It's crazy but that's interesting! It's pretty cool!

Yeah, so let's talk price—around 3,300 bucks? 3,400? You know, I think you're going to get a lot of conversation out of this piece. I mean, all this crazy stuff going on with the—it's pretty fun! I think it's just a fun watch! Plus, the green is interesting!

Yeah, no, I get it. That would be a good buy; there's no question about it! You're going to get a lot of mileage with this! I mean, people are going to look at it and say, “What is it? How does it work?” You know, you've got a—that's the great thing about a watch; it starts a conversation! You never know where it's going to go, and this is a kind of watch that would do that. I agree!

Good member of this collection, that's for sure! All right, cool! Cool! All right, let’s look at a couple more! Look at a couple watches from Germany. I have one final watch on my wrist that you asked about, and I didn't want to tell you what it's all about until this video. So these are two watches from Germany. I know we've had some discussion around Germany before in terms of their production of watches. I think it presents great value.

Now, Nomos—We've looked at in the past. I think in a previous video, this is called their Autobahn. They're a little bit more Germanic and minimalist in terms of their approach—they have a lot of Bauhaus influence. What I see that I see the architectural influence of the Bauhaus. I mean, I get it. What is the price on this? That is going to be just south of four.

So, it's getting up there! It's getting up there! But flip that—I mean, flip that watch around for—that's an in-house caliber! Proprietary escapement! They're making that all in-house! And that's, I think, I mean from a finishing standpoint too, very beautiful for that price range!

If you put that up against some other brands in that price range, I'm sorry. Yeah, I think people are going to say, “What is that?” I thought they're a little minimalists on the—on the bracelet or lack of—This is a very, very inexpensive band! This would look better probably with a good leather band, frankly!

Mhmm, you know, yeah, it would look good on that too, yeah! It's—but I like it! I think it’s—I think for $4,000, it's not crazy! It’s certainly different than anything else here. Mhmm, you went and grabbed for it right away, so that's very telling!

Now that is the Glashütte Original CQ. Now where these watches kind of span from is these 1950s, 60s dive watches from Germany. Yeah, kind of like a Tudor kind of look—yeah! It's got a little bit of that. But really where this one has become very popularized is more in the larger case variant—one because that has a 38, that is a 39 mm. But they also have a larger one. It’s a Pano date, and it looks a bit more dramatic and also has an open case back.

Now this one does not, which is the biggest sin of this brand in this watch because it is a beautifully finished movement! Now I know. So why did they—why did they do that? It’s a dive watch! Most people think that you should have a dive watch with an open case back! But I mean, screw down crown, screw down crown, suitable water resistance, ceramic bezel—I mean, you know, I mean, it's just another dive watch! I mean it's not—it’s okay; it’s not crazy!

And what's the price? 10 grand! Oh! Oh yeah, it's not going to work! Yeah, I mean you got a lot of optionality at 10 grand! You do! I mean, the movement is the number one selling point! It’s such a shame that they didn't show it because honestly, it's JLC level in terms of finishing!

Go to Omega if I was going to spend 10,000; I might even go into Rolex! I mean, it's sort of a—it’s up there! Pretty watch! But just the competition in the price range is tough! I think it's very tough! I don’t see this as a, you know, a go-to for 10,000. It's just you can get into some major, major maon—10,000, you can—okay.

But this watch here, yeah, I wanted to show you this watch you asked about it; why I'm wearing it! So this is a Zenith El Primero! I mean really, I thought it was a vintage Rolex! Zenith El Primero!

So this watch in terms of what it represents in 1969, the first integrated automatic chronograph movement. Yeah! And probably the most underrated—I mean I would say movement of all time, the El Primero! Yeah, it's an icon! And this case is known as the A386! Now there's been some reissues and limited editions that they've done in the past, but now they've brought this into standardized production! That’s a production watch today!

This is a production watch! Finally, yeah! 8386! And very wearable! 38 mm movement in terms of what this was! I mean this was inside the—not this particular one but the El Primero was housed within the Daytona for 12 years! Really? So, there's just a ton of connection between this brand and—I mean if Rolex is willing to put your movement inside their watch, what does that tell you about—you know what this is, right? So it's cool! Tenth of a second central.

I mean, I think it's fun; I mean, does it have the most utility on a day-to-day basis? Maybe not, but it’s cool to kind of just see that flow! I just love the look on it! There's—I must say it’s got a beautiful look! I mean it is—that one's a bit more muted!

There’s also the traditional El Primero tricolor registers, so those three subdials will have, you know, different colors there, which is kind of more true to the DNA! It's a beautiful piece! It's 38. 38! Yeah, so, price point—just over 8 grand? 8 grand? Well, see, that is a good use of $8,000!

You've got the heritage of the movement; you’ve got the look and feel of a classic Rolex Daytona with a vintage vibe to it! Great functionality on the—you know, go ahead click it!

Yeah, yeah! Snappy! Look at that! It's tenths of a second; it’s kind of cool! I mean, you got a chronograph on! So, I mean, you know, it’s a little different there, but not many watches are—you know—have that central seconds! It's great!

Yeah! No, I think, you know, for the upper-priced offerings that you tabled today, this is probably the best deal, I would think, for the 8,000! You can't go wrong with that! It's going to look great; it's going to be very sporty; it’s also going to look great with a suit on, and it's got a very interesting dial! It’s a winner! And that’s—so if you’re going to spend 8,000, this is the one right here! No question!

So let me go! Let me tell you! So this is—yeah! What are some standouts here? The standouts on the top three, I'm going with—this is right! So I'm going to do, you know, three stars! Yeah, three stars! I like this! Yeah! So number one, this piece is really, really something else! Hamilton! I love it! The Hamilton is just a standout at the price! You know, so hard to beat! You start talking about a collection!

And then lastly on the hit parade here—it’s tough! There are a few that you could probably put in here! I know! I know! But I’m only choosing three! I’m doing three stars! So this Plum is just too crazy! I love it too much! That’s a great deal for the price! Also, just under two grand! Yeah, that is really—so that's a collection right there! That is a collection! That’s a collection right there!

You got everything here! You got everything! That is really, really spectacular! That’s cool! Yeah, there they are! Teddy, it was fantastic! Thank you! You always bring in some—you know, the great thing is you’re digging and finding all these micro brands and great, great value. We got to do this again! We got to get another set and do it again! Because I think what's terrific about this is you're finding pieces for people that want to go down the rabbit hole, but they don't want to spend a lot of money, so they want to get something of great value!

All of these are great value with the exception of this for 10,000, which I’m sorry there’s always one casualty, isn’t there? Yeah, exactly! But Teddy, thanks! That was fantastic! A pleasure! Great! Well, we’ll see you again soon! Don’t forget to click! I want you to follow and just hammer that like button all day long! Take care!