Living with a vintage watch

From the Encore Luxe journal · October 2026

A new watch arrives perfect and anonymous. A vintage watch arrives with a past. Its dial may have warmed to a soft cream; its case may carry the faint marks of someone else's life. Living with one is a little different from living with a modern watch, and for many people a great deal more rewarding.

The rituals

A vintage mechanical watch asks for attention. A manual-wind watch must be wound each morning, a few turns of the crown, a small moment to begin the day. An automatic winds itself as you move but may need a few turns if it has rested overnight. Setting the date on many older watches means first moving the hands past the hours around midnight, so the mechanism is not strained. These are not chores. They are the small rituals that make a watch feel like yours.

Accuracy, in perspective

A vintage watch in good order keeps good time, but not the near-perfect time of a quartz watch or a modern chronometer. A few seconds a day either way is normal for many older movements. If you want to know exactly, check it against a reliable clock for a week. If it begins to stray significantly, it may need servicing or demagnetising. Our watch care guide explains both.

Patina

The greatest pleasure of a vintage watch is often its dial. Luminous material ages to cream or ochre; sunburst dials soften; gilt printing warms. Each watch ages a little differently. Collectors prefer honest, even ageing far more than restoration. When we describe a vintage watch, we describe its dial and hands carefully, so you know what you are seeing.

Straps

Changing the strap is the simplest way to make a vintage watch feel new without altering it. A soft leather strap in a colour that suits the dial, or a fine mesh bracelet, can change its character completely. Keep the original strap or bracelet if it comes with the watch.

Water and wear

Older watches were often less water resistant than modern ones, and seals age. Unless a vintage watch has been recently tested, keep it away from water. Wear it with care during sport and heavy work. These are practical habits, not anxieties; a vintage watch in good order is perfectly happy on the wrist every day.

Servicing

A vintage watch should be serviced by a watchmaker who knows older movements and who will preserve original parts where possible. Ask for minimal case polishing, so the case keeps its original lines. Keep any paperwork from the service with the watch. Over years, that paperwork becomes part of its story.

Knowing its story

The reference and serial tell you when and how a watch was made. Sometimes the rest of its story is known: a first owner, a gift, an inscription. Often it is not. Either way, a vintage watch rewards curiosity. Our guides to Datejust references and vintage Rolex show what a watch can tell you.

Size and proportion

Vintage watches are often smaller than modern ones. A gentleman's watch of the 1960s might measure 34 or 36 mm; a lady's watch, under 25 mm. On the wrist they can feel delicate and elegant, and they slip easily beneath a cuff. If you are used to a larger modern watch, try a vintage one before deciding; many people find they prefer the proportions.

A first vintage watch

A good first vintage watch is a simple one: time only, perhaps a date, in steel or gold, from a house with good servicing support. The Omega Genève automatic, c. 1972 in our shop is that kind of watch: a champagne dial, an automatic movement and the proportions of its era. Read our pre-owned watch checklist before you buy any watch, ours included.

Browse watches in the shop, or return to the Journal.