STOP Wasting Your Hard-earned Money on These Timepieces!

In the world of watch collecting, knowing what not to buy can be just as important as finding the perfect piece. In this video, I’m breaking down the most common mistakes new collectors make and the watches that will drain your wallet without giving you the value you deserve.
🕰️ In this video I go over:
- The dangers of impulsive watch purchases and how to avoid them.
Why buying brand new watches without proper research is a recipe for regret.
- The truth about fashion brand watches and why they’re not worth the hype.
My personal experiences with watches that looked good on paper but ended up being huge disappointments.
- The pitfalls of buying fake and homage watches, and why they never measure up to the real deal.
- Why smartwatches and certain high-priced brands might not be the best investment for serious collectors.
- Whether you’re just starting your watch collection or you’ve been at it for years, this video is packed with insights to help you make smarter buying decisions and avoid costly mistakes.
💬 Let’s keep the conversation going! Drop a comment below with your biggest watch regret or your best purchase ever. I’d love to hear your stories.
Don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe for more honest advice from a passionate watch collector and dealer!
CHAPTERS
01:15 The pressure to buy new isn’t always worth the cost
06:27 Fake watches might look good, but they’re never a good idea
10:00 Fashion brand watches leave you paying for the name, not the quality
15:47 Homage watches blur the line between fun modifications and fooling yourself
20:30 Skeleton watches may look cool, but they’re rarely worth the hype
23:45 Smart Watches…just don’t
25:12 Hublot: Why the Hate in the Watch Community Might Be Justified
28:49 Project watches can quickly become a bigger headache than anticipated
32:30 Project watches can quickly become a bigger headache than anticipated
V I D E O S T O W A T C H N E X T :
Best Luxury Watches in the World • The Economics Behind t...
All the watches I buy on a weekly basis • I Bought a Rolex Bart ...
What to know when buying and selling vintage watches
• Vintage vs New Watches...
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⌚ Buy Vintage Luxury Watches - www.timemercha...
📷 Follow Us on Instagram - / timemerchants
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Inquiries: [e-mail]
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[@davidcrandall4958]

As youTake your time to get to your point ,I must point out that there is no right or wrong !Buy what you like,Do your research and enjoy this wonderfull hobby!

[@KennethLivingston-q9i]

That Guess watch should be your favorite and worth the most to you,it was given to you with real love and that is worth more then any amount of money or watch you bought for yourself☺️ Your a lucky guy and never be embarrassed by a gift from your parents,it should be your most treasured items. I wish I grew up with parents who bought me a guess watch 😉 Nice video and thanks for the advice.

[@1999zrx1100]

Your exactly right about the old Seiko Automatic’s, I have a POOR MAN'S 62 MAS 1977 Ref. 7025-8099 Cal. 7025 that I bought when I was 20 or so. Still runs great and never been serviced. It’s not a daily wearer anymore but one shake and it starts right up. 🙏

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@1999zrx1100 exactly. They are sturdy like no other.

[@rolandlickert2904]

Im 75 years old 5years lifespan is fine with me.Beside Eco-drive/solar is fine last long time

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@rolandlickert2904 I agree, a lot of watches have their purpose and a lot of them do their jobs for the intended 5-10 years. In this video I address the collector side of things, from a purely long term and quality vision. A Eco-Drive will be hard to be called a heirloom versus a quality watch or a mechanical watch that can last decades.

[@davidcrandall4958]

10:21 I've made the same decision,I am turning 70!

[@larryhand5892]

Really enjoy your channel. Keep up the good work. My grail was a 6263 Big Red. After collecting for 20+ years I decided to make that happen. It was a while ago when I found one from a well known dealer and I worked on a trade for 5 great vintage pieces of mine. It was about $40K at the time. I sold it for $60K about a year and a half later. Just wasn’t comfortable having a watch that was worth that much and wearing it out and about.

[@jackominty3633]

Well done man. I watch various Comics (Archie Luxury), Liars (Paul Thorpe) and Posers (Oisin O'Malley) and you have offered more reality, truth and good advice in the couple of videos I have seen from you than all of those charletans combined. You deserve to get noticed, but when that happens ...don't change. Subscribed, and notification bell hit!

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@jackominty3633 Thanks 🙏🙏🙏. I don't do this for fame, took me 3 years to have the courage to film. Change? No, will remain true to myself. Improvement? Yes, there is a lot that can be improved about the videos. 🙏🙏🙏

[@DonnaIsabella]

Great video Cris! Thankfully, I haven't done too many mistakes so far. I would have to say, my biggest mistake as a beginner was to be afraid to buy a pre-owned piece and also not knowing you at TimeMerchants from the start! Happy to know you now and get the best pieces and the best advice 😁

[@estatesla]

Thank you for sharing your experience with us.

[@oweng7987]

Homage watches have a place. 1. You love the look of a particular design but you'll never have the money to buy the real thing. 2. You do have the money to buy the real thing, but you get a homage first to 'try before you buy' to see if the size / weight / balance / comfort / looks works for you. Just like you said for the Nautilus.

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@oweng7987 I agree with the statement, but from a collector's point of view, spending hundreds to modify a 200$ watch is maybe not a great choice as I have purchased collections from people in the past which were worth nothing due to the accumulation of such watches.

[@oweng7987]

@@timemerchantsmtl Yes I agree with you n that point for sure 👍

[@marcob.7801]

Great video. I have watched several of your probative, logical and honest "talks" and I couldn't agree more!

[@ameeral-shammaa9012]

I own and love that 5167A. I like rubber straps in general. It can be dressed up or down very well.

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@ameeral-shammaa9012 I do toi but doesn't mean that it is something that I can wear due to the fit on my wrist. I love the watch.

[@redneck4528]

If you are new to watches start out with a Seiko automatic, you need to see if you even like the idea of a mechanical watch. As far as smart watches go I think people that are into watches look at them the same way as a mechanical watch whereas the general public sees a smart watch as a piece of technology like a phone or tablet that will be obsolete, disposed or upgraded every few years. As far as brands with weak resale and fashion watches shop around and buy preowned. You want a Baume Mercier, Hamilton, Raymond Weil, Oris, Mido, Maurice LaCroix or Hublot buy pre owned let someone else take that depreciation hit. You also might just find that for a dress watch you might wear three times a year a swiss quartz that retails for $1,600 and you can buy pre owned for $250 might be the bargain for you.

[@islamnumaer]

Brother this is what ive been searching for a while. Please also make vids about matching straps. Keep it up

[@biniamtekle5911]

The more we watch, the more we learn truly appreciate your honesty 🙏 trying to make Honda into a Ferrari or trying to make a dollar out of 15 cents 😉 love your videos

[@Chiller11]

Good advice.

[@gzill47]

Wow, great video, I hope others find it useful that you put the chapters, but I certainly did! It’s definitely given me a lot to think about especially with regards to a skeleton watch… I agree a skeleton watch with an ordinary movement is useless, a good skeleton watch should have one that is made to be seen… and that can be expensive

[@el_puma_real]

I’ve never understood the people who knowingly buy fake watches for the “flex” of having an expensive watch on your wrist. Nowadays with micro brands, you can get yourself a great looking, respectably spec’d watch without spending a fortune or looking foolish.

[@jeffreyalbarandorivera8595]

As a watch repair enthusiasts your statement is so funny.

[@el_puma_real]

@@jeffreyalbarandorivera8595 as a watch enthusiast, it’s only funny because you don’t understand my statement.

[@nwest6451]

Really good video that covered a lot of interesting points. I would tend to disagree with your Seiko mods point, because it is a useful way to get deeper into watches. I started with mods and then moved on to my own repairs and restoration. This was after being a watch collector for 30 years. Your comment about project watches was intriguing because i bought a NOS case for an ETA 7733/4 movement but cannot get my hands on a movement for love nor money.

[@notDonaldFagen]

I think Seiko mods are cool, to an extent. Basically, the extend of customizing/uograding an SKX. Sapphire, movement, unique bezel, cooler dial, handsets, colour match date wheels; all 3rd party. It's fun to tinker and make something 'yours' But I draw a hard line at 'Seiko mods' that are 1/1 copies of a Nautilus, or a Sub or a Yachty. With aftermarket cases and afternarket everything. Where the watch basically becomes a shitter rep ans the only seiko part left isnthe movement. That's no longer a Seiko at that point.

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@notDonaldFagen I agree with the statement 100%. Just keep in mind that the mods are worthless similar to a car.

[@notDonaldFagen]

@@timemerchantsmtl totally worthless for sure. But playing around with a 500$ is something one should do for themselves.

[@Greektourguide]

I had a Guess watch too which my mom bought me brand new. The indices kept falling off and the battery would stop working a few times per year. A jeweller told me to stop repairing it and just throw it in the garbage which is what I finally did lol

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@Greektourguide yes some are really terrible, early 2000s they had more respect for themselves!

[@LouisGiliberto]

Great video - subbed!

[@tonygu2958]

Also you don't mention vintage pocket watches. You should address this topic. They are the classical timepiece for men. When I wear one of my pocket watch,all eyes are on me trying too seek what is on the end of that chain. 😂😂😂❤❤

[@FightonSC97]

Do you ever get the Breitling colt military in stock?

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@FightonSC97 I never know what will be next in inventory. I will talk about that in a next video

[@JohnM.-oy4rn]

Great information...cheers .

[@steve10ten37]

why do you take so long to get to the point

[@nach8998]

Take your adhd meds. Life isn’t a 60 second tik tok

[@mahmoudghoneim8004]

He wants to make a case , because some heavy headed takes time to understand, may be you are not intended for that video.

[@biniamtekle5911]

Your welcome to leave 😮

[@timemerchantsmtl]

​@@steve10ten37 don't be mean everyone. I take my time to explain my points as there is a ton of experience from me and all my customers that kicks in. I tried over the years to share and no one listens. If you do want to listen take the time to do so, if not it's okay too. I am not here to please everyone but you are welcome to comment. I will do shorter videos also in the future, just that at the moment we realized that shorter videos have minimal to no effect on our reach as a small channel. I much prefer putting in the time to record and post produce to reach more people and gain subscribers that like what I do. If you don't, pass on these longer videos and maybe later you will come back to the channel and find my advices/ experience of value to you.

[@Craig-yb1ln]

@@timemerchantsmtl I loved the content and the time and consideration that you took, it was intelligent and I found your experience and opinions highly valuable. Please don't feel the need to rush. This is my visit visit to your channel and have just subscribed.

[@ivansmith4242]

The market dictates price. All luxury watch MSRP is over priced and way over blown. Even Laurent Ferrier and Richard Mille and ALS. If they aren’t marking it up 1000 percent they aren’t making money.

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@ivansmith4242 Usually luxury is 8-20x the producing cost. Then marketing and distribution channels kick in and blow the price to what it is.

[@ivansmith4242]

@@timemerchantsmtl so then in most cases except “hype” pieces you could say that the secondary and grey market is resetting the price to what it actually should be. And in most cases probably much lower.

[@jithoshbabu3985]

what about rado watches, are they worth spending....?

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@jithoshbabu3985 honestly a brand to avoid from the reselling point. Did they ever make a few interesting pieces? Yes for sure but in general the new watches including the Bold line are to run away from.

[@MCMTL]

Can a Seiko movement run fast because it's magnetized? How do you demagnetize a watch?

[@notDonaldFagen]

How much faster? Magnetized will often suddenly start running 30-60+ seconds faster from one day to the next. If you have a traditional compass (not on your phone, but a real one), please tour watch near it and see if it is drawn to it. That will tell confirm if it's magnetized. I have an old handheld cassette tape demagnetizer (tape eraser), and used it on a watch. That worked. Check youtube, there are some instruction vids on some methods to do it.

[@MCMTL]

@@notDonaldFagen Bought a Pitzmann III Chronograph. It has a modified Seiko movement. 3-4 weeks in, it started running wildly fast, like 2 hours a day fast. They want me to send it back to Korea for service. This is my first mechanical watch. My lesson here: no matter how gorgeous it is, don't buy a watch from a company that can't service the watch in your country.

[@notDonaldFagen]

@@MCMTL looked it up. Nice looking and it's a good movement. Check the vids here for some DIY methods. Or try with a local watchmaker. I don't think demagnitizing requires anything invasive. Might not even need to open it. Sounds like the brand is willing to work with you. But see what you can do without having to send it back as a last resort.

[@MCMTL]

Omega now offers 5 years warranty and has an AD here in Montreal. I'm leaning that way for my first real purchase.

[@notDonaldFagen]

@@MCMTL yeah on Island you got Chateau and Bijouterie Dominic. There might be more around. Not sure, I'm not shopping atm.

[@adityadheerajkalabarigi1260]

Hi there, appreciate you sharing your knowledge! I have a question. Just an intro about me. I am in this hobby to collect general watches which I like and not for any investment purpose as I know Seiko, Tissot, Heuer, Casio etc.are gonna appreciate like a crazy stock. I recently purchased a Maurice Lacroix Aikon as I loved the dial. My picks are limited by my budget of max $2500 for any watch. My question is with a $2000 swiss watch, what might be cost break up? For instance Aikon uses a Sellita movement which costs may be $300, apart from this, there is the dial, case and of course the sunk cost for all the machinery. What is the break up for these? Could you throw some light on this?

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@adityadheerajkalabarigi1260 You have to understand that the cost of a watch can be up to 6-12x lower than the retail to produce/make. A Rolex that costs 10k should not cost more than 800$ to produce but as a customer you pay the distribution, publicity, retailer, import fees, real estate etc etc etc.... The retail often doesn't represent the quality: AKA Hublot. Also you can imagine that if a movement bought individually is 300$, the same movement bought in 10-50-200k examples would cost much much less, probably up to 60-70% less than an individual one would cost if you buy it from a parts distributor/retailer. That being said every company tries to stretch the consumer's spending according to what they think they can get away with. LV sells bags costing them 50-100$ 20-50x their production costs. That's why LVMH is so powerful and they get away with legal theft. Their products are stretching your spending capabilities to the max and they calculate all of those based on expensive studies.

[@adityadheerajkalabarigi1260]

@timemerchantsmtl Yeah, I agree, that real estate, marketing costs, etc. are all borne by us. But little did I know that the watches are marked up by 15X. O mean I was thinking since they are luxury goods, it might be 5X. So my AIKON from a pure material cost perspective would cost may be $200. Yes, of course I do appreciate the cost of craftsmanship, in modifying movements albeit sometimes it is a mere stamp on the rotor but at times, the finishing of the case, the dial texture etc..involve cost. That is why I got a 30% discount on retail for my Aikon, which was retailing at roughly $2800 along with additional strap. Still, they are making truck loads of money 💰 🤑. Great clarification. And Hublot yaa..I mean they are on some of the best psychedelics out there! So next time, if a Patek or AP snob who just talks about how expensive they are, I can just say, bro, you bought it for 20 grand, but they make it for 1 grand or 2

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@adityadheerajkalabarigi1260 that might be an oversimplification but you get the point. Production vs Retail are so different

[@adityadheerajkalabarigi1260]

Also, brands like Rolex, Heuer and Richard Mille spend truck loads of money on marketing and sponsorship, be it in Tennis or Formula 1. However, brands like Seiko and Baume do not. So their 10x might actually be 15x when it comes to retail/pure cost. What do you think?

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@adityadheerajkalabarigi1260 again we don't know the exact numbers but some companies are abusing their position more than others.

[@johndobbs300]

Nice video - to each their own but the fashion brand watches are trash cash grabs with no soul

[@robk.9862]

If anyone cares to try and see if they can spot a fake between two watches. Let me know. I guarantee you’ll get it wrong. Or you’ll get it right purely by chance. And if you need a real watch side by side to tell if a watch is fake or not, at what point does it matter anymore? Reps are too good now. Ask bezel. They just had to send out refunds for watches they sold that ended up being faked. If they can be finessed you can too.

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@robk.9862 honestly I buy a lot of watches on blurry pictures and I never failed to spot the fakes. Most fakes are missing key elements and if we have a doubt we open and spot them in 5 seconds. The reality also is that most people do not spend 1000+ on fakes and buy the cheapest ones that I can spot from 2-3 meters away without ever fooling me. The crystal/shape/band/colours never lie.

[@UNLISTEDWEB]

Haha Every watch dealer hates smart watches.... They KILLING YOUR BUSINES😂 right?

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@UNLISTEDWEB Never had anything to do with my business. I have a ton of customers that wear their Apple watch on their right hand and their high end watch as usual. Both are different applications. 👍👍👍

[@UNLISTEDWEB]

@@timemerchantsmtl Thats just "STUPID" both your comment and wearing 2 watches. You are well aware that 20 years ago more people were wearing traditional watches. The watches were considered "an investment"... Today the cellphone and smart watch had replaced the need for traditional watch. The watch industry is on the decline. So dont say stupid things as technology and smart watches affect traditional watch industry and your business within it.

[@thaumaturgeishere331]

Not sure that you confirmed which Nautilus is fake. I believe that it is the one on the left because the lume application to the hour markers is untidy.