Ryan Chong, watchmaking specialist at Christie's Auction House, explains that you need to ask yourself three main questions when you want to buy a vintage watch.
The most important question is to know in what state the watch is, especially if it has all its original parts, as well as its box and papers.
You should also ask to see the service history to see if original parts have been modified.
And finally, says Chong, you should be wondering if you really like the watch or if you just want to buy it in the hope of making money later.
The prestigious auction house Christie's is renowned for selecting some of the world's finest art, jewelry, wine and spirits and, of course, watches.
I recently visited Christie's at Rockefeller Center in New York and met with one of the watchmaking specialists of the auction house, Ryan Chong.
The Christie's watches department includes a global team of 30 people spread across auction sites in Dubai, Geneva, Hong Kong and New York. The team annually sells around $ 100 million worth of luxury brand watches like Patek Philippe, Rolex, Vacheron Constantin, Omega and Audemars Piguet, said Chong.
However, the specialty of the auction house is the vintage watches.
"Our products at Christie's, as an auction house, are vintage watches," said Chong at a press conference at Christie's. "These three brands are Patek Philippe, Rolex and Audemars Piguet."
Anything older than 20 years is considered a vintage watch, he said.
Read more: The Top 10 Most Expensive Watches Sold by Christie's in 2018, Ranked
If you are looking for a vintage watch, the first thing to do is to find a dealer or store that has a good reputation, says Chong. Many dealers specialize in a certain brand.
"Working with a specialist, someone who knows vintage watches and what to look for," he said. "Because otherwise, it's a bit like the Wild West."
Ryan Chong is a watchmaking specialist at Christie's Auction House. Katie Warren / Business Insider
Once you've determined a vintage watch, you need to ask yourself three main questions before you buy it, Chong tells me.
1. What kind of condition is it?
"Vintage watches, the main thing to look for when buying, is the condition," said Chong. "The condition overrides everything, that would mean unpolished, all original, with a box and papers if possible."
This means that the watch should ideally be delivered with its original box and its documents, which could include the manual, warranty information and any certificate of authenticity.
Having this is important "as it helps to save where [the watch] comes from – where he was born, one could say, "said Chong.
2. Is there a service history?
If there is a service history, you will definitely want to see it, said Chong.
"You want to see if anything has ever been changed in terms of parts, if displacement work has been done," said Chong. "Because, as I mentioned, the most important factor in terms of the value of vintage watches is the condition, and this applies primarily to originality. So, if the case does not Is not polite, if the hands are original, if the dial has been refitted, it could affect the value. "
3. And finally, do you really like it?
Vintage watches can be a great investment.
But Chong says that you should always buy what you like rather than just buy for investment purposes.
"Because if you buy for investment purposes and it goes down and you do not like it, then you're stuck with an badet whose value is reduced and you do not like it. , "said Chong. "So you have to make sure you like it."
Buyers are willing to deposit large sums of money on the watches they like at Christie's.
In 2018, the 10 most expensive watches sold at auction house ranged from 566,000 to $ 3.2 million. The most expensive sale of the year was a Patek Philippe chronograph watch in 18k gold, signed by Philippe and featuring a perpetual calendar and moon phases in the amount of $ 3,234,905.
