A Casio 'Duro' Marlin Diver, Seiko Grand Twin Quartz 9943-8030, and NOMOS Ludwig 38 Datum
My Seiko Grand Twin Quartz 9943-8030 ref. QGB040
Everyone collects watches differently, but one of my main constraints when it comes to collecting watches is that each has to have a 'use'. There are a few classic 'uses' like the beater or the weekender. Some people might consider things like 'diver' a ‘use’ but to me it’s more of a ‘type’, I think more along the lines of sports/workout, travel, formal, casual, driving etc. When it comes to a three-watch collection, I think it is these uses that it is most critical to assess, to be sure that you cover all the bases. And, of course, which uses are prioritized depends on the individual.
Among the different uses for watches that I'd see as most critical are sports, travel, and formal. And then within formal I usually tend to divide the more casual wristwatches, like a NOMOS Ludwig, from the more traditionally formal watches, like a Cartier Tank. I also like to keep a nice 'weekender', much like a car collector might, that may not exactly conform to any of these categories and is special in its own right. Something like a King Seiko Superior Chronometer, for example. While the typical three watch collection might look more like: sports, casual, formal; mine is configured a bit differently...
When it comes to travel watches, I think of them in one of two ways: either it's the kind of vacation where you want a certain level of brand recognition when you order drinks at the bar or the kind where you want the exact opposite, you plan on hiking through the jungle to see a waterfall or something of the sort. That brings me to the first watch in my three-watch collection. As someone who collected watches through my teenage years and early twenties, I've, to an extent, lost interest in timepieces solely for brand recognition. There was a time when I bought a Girard-Perregaux just because it was a Girard-Perregaux. That is no longer my style, as it were. Moreover, being of Colombian heritage, and typically traveling to that country more than I have in recent years, there is negative value in having brand recognition in a timepiece when walking the streets of Cali or Medellin. Even Seiko is a bit too much. So my first watch, that would cover the sports and travel categories, would be the Casio 'Duro' Marlin Diver ref. MDV-106-1AVCF.
The Casio 'Duro' Marlin Diver ref. MDV-106-1AVCF
I love that it has an entire collecting community surrounding it, its classic dive watch design, and that it is not only relatively rugged and water resistant, but also that it costs only about $50. Easily replaceable were I to be mugged while vacationing on some tropical island or other.
Impermeability and versatility are important for me when I think of a sports or travel watch, including the bracelet. While not especially versatile, the rubber bracelet on the Casio 'Duro' Marlin Diver ref. MDV-106-1AVCF is at least water resistant and also does well in cold weather, as opposed to steel. Sailcloth would be ideal in my mind, however, as it can be both dressy (for dinner after a day at the beach) and obviously has very high tensile strength with the impermeability. Rubber has the downside of becoming uncomfortable in heat, especially the quality of rubber that comes with a Casio. Alas, I have yet to find a sports/travel watch that covers impermeability, versatility, and cost, that is to my liking. So Casio it is.
My next two watches are both dress watches, it fits my needs more than having a casual watch in the place of one of these. I like to have a black and brown leather strap dress watch, with brown being the casual one. My choices in this case are the Seiko Grand Twin Quartz 9943-8030 ref. QGB040 and the NOMOS Glashütte Ludwig 38 Datum ref. 231. The Seiko Grand Twin Quartz to me is the perfect dress watch and also my beater watch as it is my favourite. It has the cachet of being a 'Grand Seiko', while at the same time…not exactly being a Grand Seiko. Were I somewhat less vain, I may prefer the Superior Twin Quartz, but to me having a ‘Grand Seiko’, and more so one that has the Twin Quartz technology, is the perfect combination. And no, I would not consider this to have the same kind of ‘brand recognition’ I described in the case of the sports/travel watch. In this case ‘cachet’ refers more so to collectability, to the fact that it was such a luxurious watch when it was released in the late 1978 - and that Grand Quartz ‘replaced’ mechanical Grand Seikos briefly between 1975 and 1981. I love that the Grand Quartz is something apart from Grand Seiko but still part of it. The 'Twin' emblem at 6 o'clock and the signed crown top it off. Then, within the Grand Quartz series, I love the 8030 case and dial. Not too flashy of a dial, but still a beautiful textured ‘silver snow’ design and a round, almost traditionally shaped case. But one that still follows Seiko's Grammar of Design, with sharp edges and a sleek feel. I probably spend an hour a day just staring at it in different lighting. I think the Grand Quartz almost perfectly encapsulates Seiko as a brand - from the high-end quartz movement that is often associated with technological innovation. To the more widely regarded high-end finishing that is related to the Grand Seiko/Grand Quartz lines.
My NOMOS Glashütte Ludwig 38 Datum ref. 231, now on a brown leather strap
Next is the 'brown leather' dress watch, my NOMOS Glashütte Ludwig 38 Datum. While my passion is currently directed at vintage Seiko, I still need something that represents what I'll refer to as the wider 'European' watchmaking style. Of course, a Swiss watch could be ideal here, but NOMOS fits better as the more casual 'brown leather' watch, as I prefer the Seiko Grand Twin Quartz to take center stage, which would be impossible in the face of a vintage Jaeger Reverso or Cartier Tank. NOMOS is also more casual in the face of something like Glashütte Original or A. Lange & Söhne, its East German cousins. Still the NOMOS has a beautiful in-house Cal. DUW 4101, with a see-through caseback. And in my opinion comes with almost all of the important hallmarks that a modern dress watch from a legitimate European brand is expected to have. Effectively, in terms of what I care about as a collector, these three watches are meant to represent either the classic sports watch, Seiko/Japanese watch design, and what is traditionally considered high-end, European, watchmaking.
Together these three, in my mind, make the perfect combination of watches; a sports/travel watch, a formal/beater watch, and a more casual dress watch.
As a bonus, I'll also add my fourth choice, my weekender that is still in the mail and I recently decided to add to my collection replacing what was previously my more formal dress watch, my 1970s Zenith Tank ref. 20.1700.355 and, what was my old weekender, my Seiko Lord Matic 5606-7000 ref. 56LMW 040 from 1969. The new ‘weekender’ is the Seiko V.F.A. Quartz 3823-7040 ref. 38SQW 040.
Now, while the Seiko VFA Quartz might be the more dressy - actually made to be a dress watch back in 1974. The Grand Quartz is perfectly suited to the job in my opinion, by today's standards. The VFA is the King Seiko Superior Chronometer of my collection, a high-end Seiko but not the typical Grand Seiko, instead a 'Very Fine Adjusted' Seiko Cal. 3823 from 1974 - a model that only appeared in that year's JDM catalogue with an almost hexagonal Seiko 7040 case. A truly beautiful design. To me the perfect weekender as it does not have the cachet of the daily 'Grand Seiko/Grand Quartz', but is easily recognizable to those that matter - other watch collectors. Moreover, I love the V.F.A. writing, I think it will become even more sought after as the 61GS VFA goes mainstream and people slowly start to learn about vintage Seiko Quartz.
Old Seiko Lord Matic ad
In my mind, that is the essence of a weekender, something is not a 'statement' for its brand recognition but more so for its unique design and remarkable 3823 VFA quartz movement. Not to mention its remarkable case design - again a good representation of Seiko’s Grammar of Design and Seiko/Japanese watchmaking - what I have the greatest affinity for when it comes to vintage watches.
These four watches make up my current collection. Every time I reach some kind of climax with my collection, I do earnestly believe this is it. The perfect combination. We all know that's not true. Perhaps in a mere matter of months I'll have a whole new lineup. At times I've sought to collect Omega Seamasters, Rolex Day-Dates, Oysterquartzes, Jaeger-LeCoultres, and many other brands for my collection. Ultimately this is the direction my passion has taken me, a collection centered on design, on simple and symmetrical light-coloured dials, with small but important details that distinguish each timepiece. I’ve purposely sought to exclude Swiss brands and focus solely on the two other major players - Germany and Japan.
Now I may be very OCD when it comes to collecting, there are many factors I haven't even mentioned that come into play when I think of adding a watch to my collection: matching dial configurations, reference numbers, brand names - even the length of the brand or model's name or how it looks in alphabetical order alongside the other brands and models on my Excel spreadsheet. It's these details and more that still keep me up late at night, flipping through 1970s Seiko catalogues before going to bed. For now though, I'm just anxiously awaiting the arrival of my Seiko V.F.A. Quartz 3823-7040!
By: Andres Ibarguen
A Seiko Lord Matic 5606-7000 for sale on Toronto Vintage Watches.