Horological Meandering

I always had an interest in mechanical objects, small and large. Mechanical watches were included in that, but it took my fortieth birthday in 2004 for me to start researching a nice modern watch to mark the occasion. A JLC Reverso was already on my mind,...  

And at the time, the only worthy platform anywhere on the "world wide web" was thePuristS, founded of course by the infamous-around-these-parts Dr. Thomas Mao. From the very beginning, I was captivated by the friendliness of the members and the substantia... 

Hi Michael, I think 'first watches' will be the perfect ongoing series for the NMF. Particularly from the more seasoned collectors. It is interesting for all of us to not only hear about where we started, but also about what it has been like to live with ... 

. . . that told me about The Purists. At the time, there was only one dedicated forum catering to the English-speaking world - ours. I devoured it daily, and esteemed Marcus as a sort of demi-god (I hope he doesn't read this!). I don't think I even looked... 

afterall, we don't show off here, we share! :-)

. . . 'nuf! Funny . . . . . . I still have that Hawaiian shirt hanging in my closet ;-) . . . ...  

Andrew, Im also a lucky owner of a JLC Reverso grande date...and as much as I rarely wear it, it is my favorite of the non-super complication reversos! Cheers, Palmasea

ThePurist178? Glad to read you! TM

but I do remember reading most entries in regards to anything Audemars Piguet! You have come a long way…..congratulations, Im sure you have many wonderful surprises for us in store :) Best Regards, Palmasea

... still a wonderfully practical watch with the 8 day movement, seconds and large date (miraculously squeezed into a rectangular movement) and while fashion has moved to thinner watches I still love it too. And it holds great memories of early PuristS an... 

When I decided to try to understand a little more about watches I landed on the old Purists site. At that time I had a bookmark folder and every morning I opened the forums that I was tracking and read and read. Never posted. Just reading. The Purists (th... 

"The Purists (the old one) was some kind of 90's forum that I believed was some sort of private club dedicated to very rich (now Thomas go to kill me) and pompous people." You were wrong. I don't kill people for being wrong. But when they are wrong, and d... 

It was the perception (wrong) of a newbie. Cheers, Nilo

Just kidding. It was several years ago, back during my undergrad days. I always had a thing for watches and kept on running into Southern Californian watch lovers. I think I ran into Dr. No and some other fellows first; Kurt, Mitch, DRMW, Anthony, first c... 

I was surfing in the FRM (mechanical watches forum in Brazil) and I saw a Puristpro link posted there.. After that I discovered some old friends here... Tks!

The absolutely non-commercial Brazilian (in Portuguese) watch forum Relógios Mecânicos , from time to time links articles here on the PuristSPro. Nice !!! Cheers, Nilo

On google using search terms like "Patek Calatrava vs Vacheron Patrimony vs Breguet Classique vs Lange Saxonia" and read some posts here. I hadn't joined as a member then just lurking around. Read a fantastic post by Bob on how he chose his Breguet classi... 

when I got my Montblanc Star World-timer and wanted to share my joy with other Montblanc lovers. After searching on the internet, I found " the biggest Montblanc loving crowd " here on PuristS. Friends who actively participate in the Montblanc forum shoul... 

I couldn't agree more, Luis. It's a special place and I'm pleased you found it and stayed. Andrew

and google sent me to here a few years ago. the rest is history, I began surfing around the forums: JLC, PP, Rolex etc. Although I'm an active user in a Brazilian forum and been a registered user for a while I never posted here until this year. Likemac196... 

One of the things that was very obvious to me was the multicultural nature of PuristS. Many Internet sites seem to be focused on one continent, or at least a large proportion of their readership come from one place. But PuristS membership has always been ... 

nowadays Brazil receives a much more attention from brands than years ago. I live at São Paulo and spend some of my weekend in Rio de Janeiro which are big cities here. Every year I see new manufactures opening boutiques around: JLC, IWC, Panerai, Omega, ... 

... the observations of PuristS in different parts of the world. We have also seen an increase in brand boutiques such as IWC, Breitling, Omega and TAG in Australia, but most of the high end action still happens within authorised dealers. And there has al... 

It gives an interesting overview of what people are looking for in this huge watchmaking world. I've been into watches for something like 4 years now. But when I got cought I needed frenetically to learn more and more. I surfed and learned some basis on F... 

Thanks for putting it into words, Mark. PuristS has attracted people from all corners of the collecting world and all interact here with respect and support. And as our tastes change there are knowledgable people to guide and share their experiences. And ... 

...is where I live and we are really lucky; maybe even spoilt here! The density of the place means that this is watch heaven because you are never more than an hour away from a mind-boggling selection from G-Shocks to independent esoteria and everything i... 

... is definitely one of THE watch mecca's of the world. Fantastic variety and some truly special retail spaces. For several years I would go to view the F.P.Journe tourbillon at the local AD whenever I transited through. I promised myself I would own one...