Originally published by Benjamin Clymer on Hodinkee.

We’ve all been there. Some of us are still there. You’re new to watches, you’re excited to learn as much as you can and to buy a few nice things, but you don’t really know where to start. Or maybe you know where to start, but you’re not sure where to go from there. Or, even worse, you think you know what you’re doing, but you’re woefully mistaken. It’s tough. Watch collecting is a passion that’s all about the details and there’s quite a lot of misinformation out there. But even beyond studying the minutiae, memorizing reference numbers, and knowing your way around a complicated movement, there’s a lot you can do to raise your chances of success and to get even more out of this fun little hobby of ours.

This is a story I’ve had in the back of my mind for a long time now – a quick reference guide on a few things I often see young or new watch guys get wrong. I am writing this because I was there once (not all that long ago), and I wish something like this had been there when I was just getting going. Now this isn’t a complete list of mistakes commonly made by new watch guys, and not everyone falls prey to every one of these, but I think many of you might pick up a thing or two that you may not have fully understood before. Here are 12 mistakes that new watch guys often make, and how to avoid them, from someone who has made many of them himself.

1. Believing That a Movement Makes a Watch

Let’s be clear about one thing: a movement is a vital part of any watch, but it does not make a watch. Consider many of the Lemania calibers, or the Valjoux 72 or 7750. Consider the ETA 2892, or the Peseux 260 caliber – these movements have been used for decades, in watches spanning myriad price ranges. Don’t get caught up in the movement comparison game that so many watch fans love to play. There is much more to a watch than just the movement, and experts look just as carefully at case construction, dial design, and exterior finishing as they do at movement characteristics (not to mention movement finishing) in determining the quality of any watch. Movements matter, but so do other things.

2. Not Respecting Rolex Enough

I tend to believe there is something of an inverted bell curve with any real watch guy or gal’s understanding of, and appreciation for Rolex. When you know nothing about watches – like you don’t know that there is anything else out there – you believe Rolex to be the best watch company in the world. I can’t tell you how many friends are shocked to learn that there are, in fact, watches from other companies that cost even more than a Rolex! Then, when you begin go a bit deeper, you learn about Omega, and Jaeger, and IWC, and later, Patek, Lange, Vacheron, etc. It’s at this point that people tend to start looking down on Rolex, and extol the benefits of hand-finishing, and rarity, and limited editions.

Then, after they’ve been burned a few times by exorbitantly expensive, time consuming, or far-too-often-needed service (or a resale return of pennies on the dollar) people tend to say “Hmm, maybe a Rolex ain’t so bad.” And they’re right – Rolex watches are among the most reliable, no-fuss mechanical watches in the world. Oh, and many forget that indeed, Rolex is Rolex for a reason, and it was at the forefront of several world firsts in watchmaking. Yeah, it’s a behemoth, and everywhere, and certainly not what I’d call haute horlogerie, but you can’t fault Rolex for succeeding in making a high-end, high-quality product that sells well, can you? We should all be so lucky.

3. Believing That a High Price, or a Lot of Complications, Automatically Equals Quality (or Bragging Rights)

An obvious one, right? Not so. There seems to be a misconception among new watch fans that an expensive watch is a good watch, and that more is better. A more enlightened view of watchmaking is one where balance is respected, and ingenuity takes the the place of excess. For example, the idea of a grand complication is only as interesting as an owner’s tolerance for service bills – and many of the biggest collectors in the world often retreat from the world of multi-complication watches quicker than you’d think. Also, the propensity for Swiss brands to advertise a watch’s parts count is something that we all fall for, until we realize all they are saying is that it is taking them more components to produce the same result. Grand Complications, with the exception of a small handful, are nothing more than halo projects and should be treated as such. Experienced watch collectors are far more impressed by thin, elegant watches that do something in a thoughtful way, rather than ones which throw more parts into a large case for the sake of bragging rights. And pricing? Well, I’ve seen how it’s done, and it’s no science. Get over being impressed by the number of complications in a watch and the price paid for it and you’ll be much happier. Oh, and nobody wants to hear how much you paid for your watch. Seriously. Nobody.

4. Not Owning (or Never Owning) an Omega Speedmaster

Come on, how can you call yourself a watch guy and not own a Speedmaster? I’m not saying you have to keep it, but I really think each man or woman that loves watches, owes it to themselves to own a manually-wound, three-register Speedmaster at some point in their lives. It may not be for everybody, but I’d venture to say it is pretty much the most satisfying watch in the world.

5. Mistaking a Simple Calendar for an Annual Calendar

This one really gets me, because it happens all the time. And the guilty parties? Let’s see – off the top of my head, I can recall two otherwise intelligent watch journalists from old-school trade publications, a few bloggers, far too many dealers, several collectors, and even a Swiss watch expert for a top-tier auction house calling what was a simple calendar an annual calendar. It drives me crazy. Let’s be clear here – the annual calendar was invented in 1996 by Patek Philippe. It did not exist before that. Full stop. That means all those calendar watches you see from the middle and early part of the 20th century, if not a perpetual calendar, are simple calendars requiring advancing in February, April, June, September, and November. An annual calendar is something else, and manual advances are only required at the end of February. Get it right, people, otherwise you’ll really look silly in front of serious watch folks.

6. Assuming Anyone Who Spends More Than You on a Watch Is Buying for Investment Only and Will Never Wear It

This is one I’ve noticed a lot in our comments section, on Instagram, at local meetups, and among the larger forums – some assume that anyone who buys a watch that’s more expensive than they can afford, is buying it solely as an investment. In other words, they’re saying “this person couldn’t possibly be a realwatch guy!” Why? Because he or she happens to be able to afford a more expensive watch than you can? And this seems to be a sliding scale. As those folks move from time-only military watches, up to the matte dial Rolex, then gilt dials, and to vintage Pateks – as long as they can afford something similar, then the watch is going to a true enthusiast. Right. It doesn’t work this way. The number of people who use watches purely as investment vehicles is minuscule, and anyone with half a brain about ROI will realize quickly that watches seldom offer real returns. Those steel Pateks you see go at auction? They end up on the wrists of serious watch lovers. People who take the time to learn about, study, and purchase watches at auction are real watch people, no matter what they’re spending, and saying that all these great watches will end up in the back of some rich guy’s safe says more about the person making the remark than it does about the “rich guy.”

You’re already in a hyper-niche community, don’t try to create another divide between you and the rest of the watch collecting world. We’re all in it together, and as you gradually are able to afford more of what you’d love to own (or just become more willing to spend more) you wouldn’t want people to think you’renot a real watch guy, would you?

7. Calling Any Vintage Rolex With a Black Bezel ‘Bakelite’

Yeah, a ref. 6263 Daytona doesn’t have a Bakelite bezel. Neither does ANY Submariner. Or any Rolex watch that isn’t a Reference 6542 GMT-Master, for that matter. Bakelite was used by Rolex on just this one reference, no others, and for a very short period at that. Understanding bezels is an art form in itself, and we’ll give you some tips on that in the coming weeks. But first things first: Bakelite inserts for a Rolex exist only on a reference 6542. It’s that simple.

8. Citing One Post on One Forum (or One Instagram Comment) as Fact

You know who can make a post on a forum and declare themselves an expert? Anyone. Literally anyone on this planet. You know who fact checks them? Nobody. So, citing a single post or thread on a single forum as fact is something that doesn’t make too much sense, realistically speaking. You have to remember that the world is full of people trying to take advantage of you, and the man you know only by his avatar could very well be a dealer, or a less-than-honest seller who may have invested heavily in one vertical or another. I’ve seen people make six-figure decisions based on literally the opinion of one person, whose legal name they do not know. Trust experts whose names you know, and who you know will be there to support you if something goes wrong – not the random guy on the forum. They are littered with mis- and disinformation, and while forums at times can be fantastic resources for watch lovers (my favorites include Timezone, The Purists, Omega Forums, On The Dash, and VRF), I’d strongly encourage you to consider who exactly is on the other end of the comments that are driving your purchasing decisions. Same thing goes for Instagram comments – a few thousand followers does not an expert make.

9. Calling a Deployant Buckle a ‘Deployment’ Buckle

This is a common one, so don’t be too hard on yourself, but it’s “deployant,” not “deployment.” It’ll be second nature to you soon, I promise.  (If you want to know why, it’s because the term is French: boucle déployante, first introduced by Cartier).

10. Proclaiming You (or Someone You Know) Is the ‘World’s Biggest Collector’

Realistically speaking, nobody you know, even the guy you met at the last HODINKEE event, chatted with at a RedBar meet-up, or follow on Instagram with the crazy nice collection is the “biggest watch collector in the world.” First, what would that even mean? And second, just no. There are tons of mega-collectors out there, and the most serious would never claim to be any absolute biggest or greatest. This is a community, and titles like that just have no place here (practically or otherwise).

11. Assuming That Any High Price Achieved at Auction Only Happened Because a Brand Was the Bidder

This is another one that we hear a lot from young watch fans, and, to be fair, it’s not as if claims that the watch brands themselves support their watches at auction are unfounded. We know that watch brands bid on and buy watches back for their own collections – many brands have fantastic museums and private collections which they are constantly looking to build upon. But the truth is, and I can tell you this first hand, a watch company does not bid on many watches per year, and the bids they do place are strategic, and on pieces that they genuinely want to own for their museums. Many cite this 2007 Wall Street Journal piece on how Patek and Omega have influenced auction prices as validation that brands frequently collude with auction houses, but what is not often mentioned is that the WSJ story was widely disputed by several accounts immediately after it was published. Also, this story was written over 10 years ago, when the prices these watches were fetching at auction were, in some cases, a fraction of what we’re seeing today. So indeed, many watch companies are active bidders on their own pieces, but only on historically important or special pieces needed to complete a collection. After all, money is money. Oh, and remember, it takes two bidders to raise any sale price, so one institutional bidder with deep pockets can’t do it alone.

12. Forgetting That It’s Just a Watch—and You Don’t Need One

I love watches. I’ve dedicated my entire career, if not my entire life at this point, to them. But at the end of the day, I know that what really matters in life are friends, family, health, and happiness. I’ve seen good friends have long, drawn out arguments over watches. I’ve seen friends literally swear off people they’ve known for years because someone insinuated their watch was re-lumed, or over-polished, or maybe even polished at all. How dare they! It’s too easy to fall into the ego games of some watch collectors and while I am as guilty as anyone who wants to own something special, remember that these are just watches, and at no point should a comment about your mechanical watch change how you feel about a close friend or associate. There’s more to life than watches, and that’s coming from me, so take that for what it’s worth.

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