Horological Meandering

So I just sold a watch I have never worn and which has sat in the lockbox for more than three years. (Note, it was not posted for sale here or anywhere else).  

when I sold my Moritz Grossmann piece unique after having won it at an auction with the help of a fellow purist who had decided not to outbid me!  I did not wear the watch throughout my ownership period of four and a half years (apart from to take this one photo!) but wound it daily. It was exceedingly attractive but because it was a piece unique I had decided that it was too precious to be worn.  The watch has since gone to a fellow purist who has told me that he too has not worn it yet!  But sometimes prized possessions need to be sold to make way for others so I do not have any regrets and am grateful for the privilege of having owned this piece unique.

I had seen it at the preview.
While the watch I refer to in my post was nowhere near as special as your MG the feelings were the same.
I didn’t wear this specific watch more as a result of the environment changing. And then after perhaps a year of not wearing it the decision to wear it became more difficult as I was caught between enjoying the watch and ultimately thinking it would be sacrificed for something greater down the line. Which ultimately it has been.
I’m sorry to let it go though.

that we are actually fortunate that we cannot afford to buy all the watches that we want.  I truly think that we would appreciate each purchase more if we had made sacrifices to secure the timepiece.

the reluctance to wear a special/precious piece even though the initial motivation was the chance to wear it. This actually may be where my “issue” is specific to me, since I am starting to understand that some collectors pursue certain pieces for ownership and occasional viewing, but not necessarily for wearing. I give you credit for ultimately letting it go.

The ownership of certain pieces to me is possibly more important than wearing the watch. The only other watch I have not worn although it has only been 18 months of ownership is my Murakumo by Kikuchi Nakagawa. I rate this watch terribly highly and although not a piece unique, I see this as the closest thing to the perfect watch in terms of dimensions, height, strap comfort, the smoothness of the winding crown, the level of black polishing, the colour of the dial, the magnificent hands and even the raised Breguet numerals.

I can completely understand your position on this one.

I love the level of attention to aesthetic detail that many Japanese watchmakers bring to their art. this is a great example.

The high end Japanese watches are really a work of art which is quite understandable if one understands the Japanese culture.

from the website, could this be bad translation?
Delivery time:
From 132 to 144 months

I was fortunate as my watch arrived after 13 months upon order before the craze began. The brand produces eight watches a year only hence the long waiting list. I have spoken to Mr Yusuke Kikuchi of Kikuchi Nakagawa who expressed that this wait list was not acceptable and he plans to hire another watchmaker to assist. But even if this waiting list is reduced by half, I know of not many people who would be willing to wait 6 years for a watch. I would but I always feel waiting for a watch makes me appreciate it that much more!

I had to sell a few that had some limited sentimental value but even those, I do not regret 

And for sure the other side of the coin for me is the energy wasted in debating to sell it or hold it over the last few years.
Ultimately the catalyst was (as it often is) a desire for something else and therefore the prudent decision to fund that something else with items not being used or enjoyed.
It remains to be seen if that something new materializes, however the first step is to have liquidity.

I did trade one, looking back I should have kept it and just bought

What tends to happen with me are larger macro shifts in collecting and so rather than continuous buying and selling my selling activity happens in chunks.
For example, in the 2000s I owned a lot of Panerai and towards the end of that decade my tastes were changing and evolving and that really dictated a wholesale revision for me. So I sold many watches over maybe two to three years (not just Panerai but other watches which were larger in diameter) as I rotated to different things.
I don’t regret those changes. And I don’t think I regretted any watch I’ve sold to date. Except this curious case my post today is about !

Like the rest of us

Every watch that I traded or sold I wish I still had. I try to keep my cost basis in the same neighborhood. Every time I see something I like I struggle with how do I make it "fit" in that scenario. The plus side is that when I do part with something, is that hopefully it finds a nice home where someone else can enjoy it. Particularly easier if it's not getting much wrist time.  A sickness we have indeed!

That is, as years go by and I buy and sell, the number of EXCELLENT watches that I did own but no longer do gets longer and longer... so the opportunities for thinking, "Damn, I should never have sold that, what a mistake, maybe I ought to reacquire?" just increase. ESPECIALLY because, for a while there I was trying to go 'up the ladder', work my way into more and more expensive and rare things, but for a several years now, it hasn't been like that anymore... so that means I no longer look at prior watches I've owned and miss and console myself with the (unreasonable!) thought that they are LESSER than what I now own instead. I know that they aren't lesser watches, they are merely different watches, and thus, just as worthy of my desire as they were when I first acquired them. It's bad!

Regretted selling my first Breguet Tradition and my Oris Pro Pilot X.

First thing I do when I get something new is strap it on my wrist 😁
But yes … watches I did sell … well some of them I regret

I wasn’t going anywhere, not to the office, not out to eat. Because of that it sat unworn for probably a year before somewhat normal life crept back. If the timing had of been different the watch would have been worn.

One example: The Rolex Yacht Master. 

There’s a chance I move on and forget too, we’ll see.
The curious aspect is that I didn’t wear it for three years and yet have this potential regret.

-- Joni Mitchell