Ace Jewelers


Always Popular – A Watch From Your Year Of Birth

If you are into collecting watches, it seems to be some kind of quest or grail to – at some point – get a watch from your year of birth. Just recently, I paid attention to some topics on TimeZone and the UK based TZ-UK watch portal about getting a watch from your birth year. It seems that Omega, Rolex and Breitling are very sought-after brands for the birth year purpose, as they are when it comes to watch collecting in general as well.

Earlier this year, I had the same goal, getting a nice watch from my year of birth, 1977. Since Omega is the brand that started this watch madness for me, I was always on the lookout for a Speedmaster Professional ref.145.022 that dates back to 1977, but it seemed that I was only to find models from either 1976 or 1978.

Last March, I found this Rolex Submariner at SubGMT.com that dates back to my birth year. A ref.1680, which means it is a chronometer certified Submariner with a date window (and cyclops), a model of which I always thought it was one the nicest Submariner models around.

Always Popular   A Watch From Your Year Of Birth

In some cases it is good to be old Always Popular   A Watch From Your Year Of Birth , as the 1940s and 1950s was an era of beautiful and classic timepieces from Omega, Patek Philippe, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Vacheron Constantin and so on. If you are ready to jump and start searching for your birth year watch, make sure to have enough proof that it is indeed a watch produced in your year of birth and that it as original as possible. Especially the last remark is important, especially with brands like Rolex. If there is a replacement dial, hands or the slightest doubt on originality of other parts, the value of the watch will drop significantly.

Since I got it, I wear it regularly and like it very much, but it doesn’t give me the sentimental ‘birth year’-feel that I thought it would give me.  Since I am born in 1977, the first watches I can recall being interested in, are those of the 1980s. Think digital Casio and Seiko models. I still have my first watch, a Casio digital black sports watch from 1986 or 1987.

As it seems that I am not the guy that needs to have a ‘year of birth’ watch, I decided to put my Rolex Submariner ref.1680 for sale. Click here when you are born in 1977.

11 comments
Rob
Rob

Aazing watch . Better than putting money in the bank !

Alex
Alex

This watch will look as good in 50 years as is looks today . Fantastic.

chris
chris

1680 is a fantastic submariner and a nice idea to have a watch from birth date .

Anth
Anth

The all time classic Rolex . Wish I had one ... one day .

Rolex repairs
Rolex repairs

The submariner is indeed a fine watch . I recently sold a 1977 sub , it was in a lovely condition . Starting to regret it now .

Little Bill
Little Bill

Aww. I was indeed born in '77 and thought about that as well. However to me, at least, I'm not quite ready to jump on the Submariner bandwagon. Not that I don't love them -- they're the watch that got me into collecting -- but I'm not sure that will (or should be) my "birth year" watch. Sad to see it go though...

Boris
Boris

Very nice. The 1680 is, to me the most beautiful Sub model Rolex ever produced.

Mine is from 1978...but don't tell anyone I was born in 1970 (I'd have to get a Red Sub, which is considerably more expensive).

One thing: I'm not sure the folded bracelet on that watch would be the original one. By 1977, Roled had already transitioned from folded to solid links.

John
John

Hey RJ! I did the same exact thing with a 1970 1680 "Red" Submariner. I owned it a good while, but it never seemed like a special birth year watch for me. Sold.

-John from www.watchtalkforums.info

Robert-Jan
Robert-Jan

Hi John,

Good to see you here again! I noticed your ref.1680 indeed, great looking watch. Like I wrote in my post, I am a kid of the 1980s and early 1990s and have more 'sentiment' with my old Casios and Swatches then this 1977 Rolex.

RJ

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