How have you damaged your watch?

[Cotty]

There is a bit of a discussion about wearing a nice watch when there is risk of damaging it on a thread
I think this is the right page https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

In over 40 years of wearing a watch I have damaged one. When I was really young I fell of my BMX on a steep road and when sliding to a stop manged to scrape the glass so badly you couldn't see the face. It was only a cheap watch so was a write off. Later when I was working on cars I would remove my watch because it would usually get caught on something. Other than that nothing.

Im thinking its pretty rare so interested to see if and how people have damaged a watch.

[Hoofy]

It's all relative to how much you have/earn/how much you care, I suppose. I have seen people rock climbing with Rolex subs. Given how scratched up a G-shock I wear when I climb is, I can't imagine how damaged a Rolex would get. Bit like cars I suppose. Some people only take their P&J to car shows. I like to live dangerously and park my P&J in Tesco and Aldi car parks... which is why the bodywork is no longer pristine like when I first bought it.

[worsy]

Scraped my sub on a brick wall doing some diy. Cost me a new glass crystal.

Still don't treat it like a precious heirloom. Watches are to be worn.

[Ed.Neumann]

I wear my Datejust working on the car, properly working on it too, in fact I wear it for everything.

Mind you, it is a 41mm on an Oyster and smooth bezel, if it was on one of those girlie Jubilee bracelets with a fluted bezel it might be different!

Being serious though, I bought a jubilee bracelet so I could have a bit of a change, and to be honest, it makes the watch go from feeling like a proper solid bit of kit to something far more delicate. On the oyster it feels like it will take anything, not so on the jubilee.

[toon10]

I was wearing my Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch (Hesalite) to a friend's father's funeral. We were outside and his mother got faint and looked like she was about to collapse so I managed to catch her but unfortunately, my watch ended up scraping down the church stone wall. I have a couple of large deep scratches which polywatch won't buff out. I only wear the watch on occasions now. The Sapphire sandwich would have been a better option, but I prefer the looks of mine.

[Merch131]

My brother had this a month before dropping it from a bedside cabinet onto a tiled floor.. needed new crystal, hands, dial and a full service.. £995. Thankfully it was insured.

[Cotty]

Merch131 said:

My brother had this a month before dropping it from a bedside cabinet onto a tiled floor.. needed new crystal, hands, dial and a full service.. £995. Thankfully it was insured.

I wouldn't expect that from a few feet fall

[BrokenSkunk]

I used to wear cheappies, I'd pay around £20 that was the 1990s, so inflation adjustment is needed. Generally they'd last about three months before I killed them. I eventually got fed up and splunked £250 in 1996 for a titanium Tissot T660 which refused to even show a scratch.

[alangla]

My (not very PH, but it’s got sentimental value) Citizen EcoDrive is a bit like Trigger’s Broom. Scraped the face by wearing it while moving various large bits of furniture & catching it on various rough surfaces. Replaced the glass, then a couple of months later forgot to take it off before going into a hotel spa. “It’ll be fine”, thinks me, “it’s waterproof” It wasn’t resistant to a jacuzzi , sauna and steam room unfortunately, so ended up replacing the entire movement. Been wearing it almost daily since 2008 and no intention of changing.

[Hoofy]

Cotty said:

Merch131 said:

My brother had this a month before dropping it from a bedside cabinet onto a tiled floor.. needed new crystal, hands, dial and a full service.. £995. Thankfully it was insured.

I wouldn't expect that from a few feet fall

Today I learnt that Rolex is a subsidiary of Apple.

[Hoofy]

toon10 said:

I was wearing my Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch (Hesalite) to a friend's father's funeral. We were outside and his mother got faint and looked like she was about to collapse so I managed to catch her but unfortunately, my watch ended up scraping down the church stone wall. I have a couple of large deep scratches which polywatch won't buff out. I only wear the watch on occasions now.

You might as well wear it all the time now that it's no longer pristine.

Since my "P&J" started collecting nicks and scratches from just parking it on my drive and occasionally at Tesco, I'm now treating it like some people treat their sheds (note the difference between shed and banger!) - I'll park it wherever now. At least I'm less precious about it.

[2 sMoKiN bArReLs]

There was a row of ten bollards about four feet high outside the front of our Poly. On the way home from the pub it was a challenge to run atop each bollard to bollard. Ten was achievable, but not after ten pints.

I once fell off bollard two and thought nothing of it (it wasn't unusual). A bit later I glanced at my watch and all that was left was the strap and and empty base plate.

[Hoofy]

2 sMoKiN bArReLs said:

There was a row of ten bollards about four feet high outside the front of our Poly. On the way home from the pub it was a challenge to run atop each bollard to bollard. Ten was achievable, but not after ten pints.

I once fell off bollard two and thought nothing of it (it wasn't unusual). A bit later I glanced at my watch and all that was left was the strap and and empty base plate.

And that was the last time you wore your Nautilus Moonphase on a big night out.

[HocusPocus]

Hoofy said:

2 sMoKiN bArReLs said:

There was a row of ten bollards about four feet high outside the front of our Poly. On the way home from the pub it was a challenge to run atop each bollard to bollard. Ten was achievable, but not after ten pints.

I once fell off bollard two and thought nothing of it (it wasn't unusual). A bit later I glanced at my watch and all that was left was the strap and and empty base plate.

And that was the last time you wore your Nautilus Moonphase on a big night out.

So remove the watch at 9 pints.

[Hoofy]

HocusPocus said:

Hoofy said:

2 sMoKiN bArReLs said:

There was a row of ten bollards about four feet high outside the front of our Poly. On the way home from the pub it was a challenge to run atop each bollard to bollard. Ten was achievable, but not after ten pints.

I once fell off bollard two and thought nothing of it (it wasn't unusual). A bit later I glanced at my watch and all that was left was the strap and and empty base plate.

And that was the last time you wore your Nautilus Moonphase on a big night out.

So remove the watch at 9 pints.

Reminds me of this:

[thebraketester]

Hoofy said:

Cotty said:

Merch131 said:

My brother had this a month before dropping it from a bedside cabinet onto a tiled floor.. needed new crystal, hands, dial and a full service.. £995. Thankfully it was insured.

I wouldn't expect that from a few feet fall

Today I learnt that Rolex is a subsidiary of Apple.

Except the Rolex still has some value. :-)

[2 sMoKiN bArReLs]

HocusPocus said:

Hoofy said:

2 sMoKiN bArReLs said:

There was a row of ten bollards about four feet high outside the front of our Poly. On the way home from the pub it was a challenge to run atop each bollard to bollard. Ten was achievable, but not after ten pints.

I once fell off bollard two and thought nothing of it (it wasn't unusual). A bit later I glanced at my watch and all that was left was the strap and and empty base plate.

And that was the last time you wore your Nautilus Moonphase on a big night out.

So remove the watch at 9 pints.

I'll try and remember.

[Mick Dastardly]

Knocked my watch off a bedside cabinet onto the tiled floor of a villa in Fuertaventura, less than 3 months after I got it.

Fortunately it was named on my home insurance so it went back to Rolex to be fixed, all for a 50 quid excess, although the insurance cost was c.£1700.

I’ve always worn it in bed since then.

Edited by Mick Dastardly on Thursday 16th January 19:11

[Nigel_O]

I touched the bracelet of my Sub against the back of the ignition switch on my Westfield.

Lots of sparks, a very warm bracelet and scuffed knuckles from pulling my hand out from under the dash.

Oh, and some hefty marks on a couple of links that I’ve never bothered to have sorted…

[Tango13]

Managed to smash the crystal on my GMT II quite a few years back, it was covered on my contents insurance but I insisted on paying for the new bezel and insert myself as they were damaged from 'wear & tear' not me being a clumsy tit.