Patek Philippe

This question was put to me by a collector yesterday evening. As a collector of Patek Philippe, what other manufacturers do you also collect and why? Are you mainly a vintage Patek collector, modern or both? Do you see Patek as fulfilling a specific role ...  

But I think you have presented a great topic of discussion. I look forward to some insight into the minds of the Patek collectors on this forum. I\'ll be enthusiastically following this post for sure!

....yes, I think it is an insightful question....one posed by a collector to me last night. It will be fascinating to see responses

And to be honest, if I had the money I would probably buy one of each. Or at least almost one of each There are brands I simply don\'t like but this is personal taste. For example, but once again.... nothing wrong with the brand , it\'s just not my style.... 

.....interesting synopsis. I think for each collector thereis no right or wrong. It is certainly true for me that i have tried a very wide range of manufacturers...like you...and in the end they have just been sold. Panerai. Blancpain. Tudor. I have owned... 

I started collecting mainly vintage Rolex but meanwhile I have owned and do still own quite a number of other brands, mainly old chronographs, like Heuer, Lemania, Vetta, Omega etc. I love the cool and used look of the watches showing its traces of a long...  

.....very interesting...the allure of vintage Rolex is very strong. Some beautiful watches in your collection.... but just to be clear, do you own a Patek or would you say you owned multiple Rolex but no Patek Philippe? The drive of the title question was... 

and in 2011 I´ve got my first PP with a Nautilus 5712. At that time I assumed this purchase would be an exceptional event in order to amend a new style of watch to my collection. But it turned out that with this Nautilus I´ve got infected with the PP-Viru... 

.....and yes, i understand the logic and process. Thanks F...english is just fine!

......but yes, for me, that would also make some sense. I do have exceptions to my own rules though....overlaps if you like. On vintage time only, i am basically just PP. On rugged sports models, I am Rolex. But what about the 6239 Chrono.....and Patek 50... 

Interesting subject, Baron and I think the responses are going to be as wide as this community is. For me, when I started into watches, I typically slowly "graduated", after a Breitling, a GP and an IWC, I finally got my first Patek and I though that's it... 

.....interesting to see how your's started!

I only have one Patek. A 5205R. Do I count as a Patek collector? Probably not But I seriously cannot find another Patek within my budget to buy. So I will answer the question in reverse. I collect mainly APs only. I have 6 of them in various ROs and ROOs....  

.....would be that you are an AP collector who has satelite watches in Rolex and Patek?

When I started collecting watches about 30 years ago, I only was interested in vintage - sports model Rolexes and time only Pateks. Then around 1995 Philippe Stern in the most brilliant way set Patek on a new and daring venture with the introduction of th...  

....the thanks should be from me for your inspiration. I think I share some ideology with you on the process.

why do YOU collect JLC? You said modern pieces, and you said emotional and historical. Why, for you? For me, it's knowing JLC was THE watchmaker's watchmaker, and that they currently, like Patek, pretty much do everything "in-house." After visiting both f... 

....my Dad wore JLC. He died when i was 13. I inherited that watch. The first watch I bought when i could afford a nice watch was a JLC. ...  

11 years ago I bought my first fine time piece IWC Mark XVI. I still wear it everyday. Last year I bought a Patek 5140g. Next watch, perhaps in couple of years from now, will be a Rolex sub no date. I buy my watches new and plan to keep them forever.

First of all, I do not "collect" watches but always buy watches to wear. And I also wear all of my watches. At the moment I have watches from +10 brands other than Patek. However, if checking the numbers, Patek represent over 50% of my watches. The reason... 

....interesting response. Any Rolex in that box at all? I guess i don't make a distinction between buying a watch and collecting. Maybe just semantic. I collect watches...but I also wear every single one of them too. I don't buy to keep in a box.....I con... 

It is funny that if I wear a Submariner, it attracts attention while e.g. Patek 5550P does not. I love AP's 2121 based calibres. It is a beautiful historical and slim calibre. I do not think that Patek's cal. 324 can compete with the beauty of 2121. Final... 

....he siad if you went up to the average person on the street and asked them if they had heard of Rolex, he thought 75% would say yes. he thought only 5% would say yes to Patek. We debated what "average" meant and what specific "street" one might be on!!... 

May I ask why you prefer platinum over e.g white gold? I don't have any experince with platinum myself. Is it more scratch resistant or do you just think it looks better? Regards M

and in professional hands it can always be re-furbished. White gold tend to turn yellowish with age or it needs rhodium plating. Platinum is always 95% pure platinum. Best, Kari

my Impression is that scratch resistance of PP is pretty low and not better than WG. Refurbishment of PT is very difficult, even for professionals and I didn´t like the results that I have seen so far. E.g.: on a polished PT clasp of a Daytona the surface... 

.....i like most metals, but the extra weight from platinum is often something quite special to feel. I am not sure I would use scratch resistance as a factor......but the feel of that extra heft in a platinum watch ....yes, I like that

but that Patek can repair their platinum watches in a perfect way, I have placed a platinum PP and a white gold PP side-by-side. The colour of platinum is so much nicer and purer in my eyes. But it might be just my imagination. Best, Kari

Scratch and repair unlike others.

Although I do not see myself as a Patek collector, rather a watch collector, here are my perspectives: 1. I like Pateks in two specific instances a) Nautilus as the most elegant luxury sports option and b) World timers as the most elegant and compatible o... 

.....exactly what i was looking for. Would you say that your ownership is spread equally across all manufacturers or is there a focus?

I think the sports focus is Blancpain, while the more classic lines are spread among the other manufacturers. Maybe an additional focus will emerge in the class lines as well, but not sure yet. Thanks again Joe for the great post, Alex

and it is very interesting reading about purists' feelings. I'm not a Patek collector as I have only one and that my goal is to be able to wear the watches I like most. Hence, all watches I get must be worn, otherwise, they go. I realised that even if I h... 

Aside from owning a highly desired complicated Patek, you are the extremely knowledgeable moderator of this Forum, you collect and dispense lots of extremely valuable information about Patek, you write illuminating and scholarly articles about Patek - see... 

Indeed, there is something in common between learning about watches in general and collectors. Best, Mark

Not least because I happen to have the same brands as you. My sole Patek - a grey dial 6000g - is the crown jewel of my little brood. The automotive inspired dial works for casual and work occasions. But for more formal events, I opt for my... JLC Reverso... 

I think most collectors go through an evolution. Mine still is. Normal process. Thank you for sharing

Though not strictly a Patek collector, I\'ve got a Jaeger LeCoultre Master Perpetual 8 Days in rose gold which I bought because Jaeger\'s attention to detail is fantastic and I consider their pieces great value for what they are. I love its busy yet symme... 

.....basically JLC, Rolex and Patek are your dominant brands? And you presumably use the JLC for the more formal (less sporty) occasions?

If I\'m wearing a suit to work, I\'ll wear either JLC although I\'ve worn the 16610 which goes ok. I\'m toying with the idea of buying a deployant compatible brown crocodile strap for the new 5167R so I can dress this up for suited occasions.