That funky feeling - vintage watches and Grand Seikos

As watch collector, a part of me lights up whenever I get the chance to meet another collector out of the blue.

The feeling is unlike what you get from a watch meet, or when you're both outside the neighborhood haunt too - it's a mix of shared passion with that magical dash of serendipity that makes it oh so wonderful.

I had the chance today. The gentleman was seated across me and I was introduced as a watch collector. He took a look at the one on my wrist and I promptly took it off and handed it to him while I explained what it was.

He opened up about his interests - Seiko. The value proposition of the Japanese watchmaking giant appealed to him. From Seiko 5 to Divers like the Monster series, Seiko does have a lot of heavy hitters under its ubiquitous history.

He then asked me about Grand Seiko and we got into a discussion about whether the Spring Drive movement was quartz and how I would be able to tell a counterfeit Grand Seiko from a real one.

I gave my typical answer of "if you have as many watches as I do, you'll know the difference," but he wouldn't buy it. The look of skepticism in his eyes prompted my next answer - that the level of finish and quality of the build of a Grand Seiko is hard to copy. This alone would deter a lot of manufacturers from attempting to counterfeit a GS.

The hard truth, of course, is that the robbers would rather copy a watch that's easier to sell off. Like a Rolex Submariner.

We were joined by another gentleman, who didn't have as much passion as we did but managed to engage himself nonetheless. On both their wrists are Apple Watches - the most popular watch in the world.

So we have three men at a table. One with a scant interest in the topic, another who has yet to buy a watch for the last decade or so but is leaning on a particular Grand Seiko, and a maniac who has too many watches for his own good.

Times like these give watch nerds like me an opportunity to share what we know and hopefully ignite another’s passion in the hobby. I go home with deeper appreciation for my collection, and hope the gentleman I spoke to went home to take a closer look at his Seikos. My quiet win would be if he has a Monster on his wrist the next time I see him.

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Have you met a watch collector out in the wild and out of the blue before! Share your story in the comments!