What a Watch Is Worth Isn't What It Costs
The man who handed me a $40 Timex was more nervous than any Rolex client I've ever had.
It was a gift from someone who's no longer here.
When I'm at the bench, I'm not looking at the dial. I'm looking at the movement, the wear pattern, the condition of the parts I'm about to touch. A worn pivot is a worn pivot. A dry mainspring is a dry mainspring. The work is the work.
The care I give doesn't scale with the retail price. It scales with what's in front of me, and what it means to the person who brought it in.
The most expensive watch I've ever serviced wasn't the most meaningful job I've ever done. Some of the most satisfying work came in a scratch-worn case worth nothing to anyone but its owner.
What watch do you own that means the most to you? Not the most expensive. The most meaningful. Drop it in the comments.
—FZ
