# Anonimo future value....



## sanmilc (May 6, 2014)

Hi to all, I really love Anónimo watches (the old ones) but I never had one, in part because I never wanted to invest such amount of money in only one watch (I have 24 watches, some Omega, Oris, Hamilton, Jaeger, etc.) and because I live in Venezuela and we never had distributors, but now I found a guy here that is selling a second hand Anonimo Militare Opera Meccana 2004.



I’m always worry about the value of my watches because very often I sell some of them in order to buy others, I know this watches lost some value when you buy one new and later try to sell it, there is some watches being sell on the bay with discounts, etc. but my question is, do you think that the death of the brand as we used to know it will make the original Anonimos more valuable in the future or the lack of spare parts and no brand support will affect their value.



I know you can just speculate but all comments will be welcome, sorry if my English is not perfect.

Regards,
Cesar.


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## whywatch9 (Sep 30, 2012)

A not so old thread-

https://www.watchuseek.com/showthread.php?t=1064165


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## timefleas (Oct 10, 2008)

sanmilc said:


> Hi to all, I really love Anónimo watches (the old ones) but I never had one, in part because I never wanted to invest such amount of money in only one watch (I have 24 watches, some Omega, Oris, Hamilton, Jaeger, etc.) and because I live in Venezuela and we never had distributors, but now I found a guy here that is selling a second hand Anonimo Militare Opera Meccana 2004.
> 
> I'm always worry about the value of my watches because very often I sell some of them in order to buy others, I know this watches lost some value when you buy one new and later try to sell it, there is some watches being sell on the bay with discounts, etc. but my question is, do you think that the death of the brand as we used to know it will make the original Anonimos more valuable in the future or the lack of spare parts and no brand support will affect their value.
> 
> ...


The quick answer is simply NO, old Anonimos will not increase in value--in fact they are pretty low if you check the actual prices of the few that have sold recently. Examples: I have two Pros, retail values of $8500 (yeah, right...), which I bought in the after market at about $1500 each....A beautiful new in box Drass Polluce just sold on the bay for $1350 (retail $4500?). While a few manage to unload theirs to unsuspecting victims at good prices, most won't sell for much even further down the road, and of all the Nimos, the one most prone to irreparable damage (mostly to the stem) are in fact the Militare. I would pass myself, and at least buy a Millemetri or a Polluce if the opportunity strikes--since their movements are easy to repair, and their cases quite robust and uncomplicated.


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## ericfeuer (Feb 8, 2007)

I really feel that you're a bit extreme in your view on this Timefleas. I agree that the resale value isn't near what they should be/used to be...The fact remains that if you buy it at the right price you can sell it at the right price. I sold my San Marco at the right price for me (and the buyer)....I dont feel i "unloaded it on an unsuspecting victim".....In my case the buyer was a VERY savvy buyer with about 50 Panerai in his stable and it came down to the fact that he wanted what is an amazing watch. I must say the fact you bought Pros for $1500 is amazing....never seen them that low on the forums,...thats incredible.


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## timefleas (Oct 10, 2008)

Eric, Rather than extreme, I think I am coming from the perspective of lowered expectations--where this allows some latitude, but also cushions for worst case scenarios. The last three yellow dial Pros that sold on the bay sold for $1200, $1500, and $1850*. Of course some models are more desirable than others, but as the post was specifically about retaining and/or gaining value in the aftermarket, particularly with regard to the MILITARE, nothing in these forums has suggested anything other than a rather pessimistic view, but of course I greatly welcome a scenario where my Pros gain enough in value that I could actually sell them for more than I paid for them, which as noted, was dirt cheap (though honestly, I would never sell mine--like them too much).

*_If however, you want to reverse the trend, there is one currently offered on the bay for $8500&#8230;yeah, right!_


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## TISSOT PRX (Aug 5, 2011)

Not ALL militare are prone to the stem failure. From my understanding, only certain series of manual wind version are susceptible to such failure. I think a distinction needs to be made here.


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## timefleas (Oct 10, 2008)

TISSOT PRX said:


> Not ALL militare are prone to the stem failure. From my understanding, only certain series of manual wind version are susceptible to such failure. I think a distinction needs to be made here.


The stem/crown design itself is at fault, and is similar to both models, and is in fact slightly similar in even other cases, involving the rather thin pin that is simply pressed into the crown, and can come loose (losing the crown), fail to engage, or simply snap off--you see more problems with the manual simply because they are engaged more frequently (manuals require winding every other day or so), and the more use, the more they are prone to fail. However, from a general sweep of all the lines in the historic Anonimo, the one model most prone to failure, across the board, is the MILITARE, and now, with no parts available, the one model, auto or manual, that I would caution others not to buy, if they were a new buyer. To me, it is simply saying that the auto Mili isn't as bad as the manual Mili, but to me that overlooks the obvious--both are risky in this post-production, post-servicing age--because of this I would always point a NEW Anonimo buyer in other directions in the Anonimo line up. For those of us Nimo veterans, the risks are known, and the choices are open--at least we know what we are buying into.


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## Neofio (Jan 24, 2014)

What about the Dino Zei line? (specifically the similar Argonauta, Glauco and Nautilo lines, _not _the San Marco)

I recently brought mine off a forum member here, although I knew what I was buying into. The weak point I see is the "bayonet crown", which really does not have a replacement. Although worst comes to worst, I do foresee a "transplant" of a regular screw down crown should it ever break (and corresponding modification of the stem and crown). Also, the lugs should be able to take regular 12mm springbars.

This does mean that these watches are destined to be frankens should they ever break at some point. But the proprietary parts are not quite as integrated into the watch case as the Militaire.


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## timefleas (Oct 10, 2008)

With just about no old stock parts remaining, any repair of a historic Anonimo that requires machining a new part I guess would technically make it a "Frankenanonimo", but I personally wouldn't be too concerned about that myself, if a part can be made to keep it running, at this point, that is good enough--there are parts, however, that can't be repaired and very unlikely can they be machined either. 

The Dino Zei line has not had an inordinate amount of problems. As noted, the weak point of most Nimos is the crown/stem system--if you really look at it closely, or if you can access a break down of the construction--it is a rather whimsical and frail design, and is similar in most of the models, but worse in the Mili line up--the Achilles heal of the historic designs--however, most never have problems, so if your luck is good, it shouldn't be an issue. 

I have never seen thick enough 12mm spring pins that could replace the OEM screws, but I suppose something could be fashioned if necessary. I wouldn't worry too much about it, though. 

Most of the discussions are worst case scenarios, which hopefully very few will ever experience.


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## StefB (Feb 19, 2010)

I think it really depends on the model. The slate blue, original 30+ pieces of the Professionale Crono still hold some value. One pre-owned one recently sold on eBay for about $4500. So the rare, higher-end pieces still hold some decent value, which is true for most other watches.

I feel that while you can still find some in good shape or new out there, grab them now, as the prices are indeed quite low - such that if you sell later, at least you won't take a huge loss.


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## philskywalker (May 28, 2009)

StefB said:


> I think it really depends on the model. The slate blue, original 30+ pieces of the Professionale Crono still hold some value. One pre-owned one recently sold on eBay for about $4500. So the rare, higher-end pieces still hold some decent value, which is true for most other watches.
> 
> I feel that while you can still find some in good shape or new out there, grab them now, as the prices are indeed quite low - such that if you sell later, at least you won't take a huge loss.


I totally agree. I dont buy watches as an investment, but I do like to trade them every now and again, but my San Marco and Pro Crono I think will still hold some trade value when the time comes...


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## timefleas (Oct 10, 2008)

In many ways, it just depends on the perspective you choose to take--some opting for the optimistic outlook, others the pessimistic--since it is all basically conjecture. For me, though, I'll take the middle ground, the road of the realist, and base my conclusions on what little facts there are available.

Contrary to comments above, at least dating back four months, the two highest selling Anonimos on the bay sold in the $3500 range (not $4500), both sellers accepted best offers below their listed prices, one a straight Pro, the other a Chrono. In total, there were around 150 nimos offered for sale during this four month period, and I have to admit I was a bit surprised to see that more than a third sold (good news, I think...), however, of this third, 40 sold for less than $2K (and of these, many below $1K!), with only 7 in the mid $2K range, and 6 in the mid $3K range. _(Keep in mind that most of these higher priced sales were the result of a single vendor selling 12 or 13 NOS Nimos in a binge that occupied the attention of this forum a month or so ago--i.e., these were NEW in Boxes watch sales prices, versus the majority of used watches that comprise the rest of this list.)

_SO, while of course Pros, Chronos, San Marcos and the like--the ones that once retailed for $8K or $9K or above (depending on your region)--will still top out at relatively high prices of mid $3K to a bit more if your are extremely lucky, there is little to rejoice about, if retaining value is a primary consideration (the original intent of this thread...). As stated above, most folks owning Nimos in this day and age aren't in it for the money.


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## avalvo (Feb 26, 2011)

timefleas said:


> In many ways, it just depends on the perspective you choose to take--some opting for the optimistic outlook, others the pessimistic--since it is all basically conjecture. For me, though, I'll take the middle ground, the road of the realist, and base my conclusions on what little facts there are available.
> 
> Contrary to comments above, at least dating back four months, the two highest selling Anonimos on the bay sold in the $3500 range (not $4500), both sellers accepted best offers below their listed prices, one a straight Pro, the other a Chrono. In total, there were around 150 nimos offered for sale during this four month period, and I have to admit I was a bit surprised to see that more than a third sold (good news, I think...), however, of this third, 40 sold for less than $2K (and of these, many below $1K!), with only 7 in the mid $2K range, and 6 in the mid $3K range. _(Keep in mind that most of these higher priced sales were the result of a single vendor selling 12 or 13 NOS Nimos in a binge that occupied the attention of this forum a month or so ago--i.e., these were NEW in Boxes watch sales prices, versus the majority of used watches that comprise the rest of this list.)
> 
> _SO, while of course Pros, Chronos, San Marcos and the like--the ones that once retailed for $8K or $9K or above (depending on your region)--will still top out at relatively high prices of mid $3K to a bit more if your are extremely lucky, there is little to rejoice about, if retaining value is a primary consideration (the original intent of this thread...). As stated above, most folks owning Nimos in this day and age aren't in it for the money.


I think it boils down to how much you really like and appreciate the designs. I just picked up a Chronoscopio from the last run that was brand new. It came in for $2,100. That is a fair price for a brand new piece with such workmanship. The movement is pretty standard, so I expect to have it for a very long time. I do think that these watches will become somewhat of a cult classic and you might actually see prices coming up over time. But, I never see a watch as an investment and I don't turn over a collection like some folks.

I think its a good time to pick up a favorite while you can still get them in great condition at great prices.


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## torromoto (Apr 9, 2010)

Amen to that...Congrats on your new purchase..

Best,
Guillermo


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## csm (Apr 11, 2011)

i believe that i got married with my militare chono opera mecana 2007 LOL. i do like the design of the watch, but as everybody here, i'm worried if i need to buy some spare parts for it. not for the movement that is an eta with a DD chrono. but if we need a saphire, hands etc, it can be a big problem... mostly the crown issue. so as far as a insane guy that really want to buy a model lile mine show up, i can say for sure that it was a bad investiment hahaha...... i dont think that watches are an investiment, but as many here sometimes i like to sell and buy new ones.

regards


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## philskywalker (May 28, 2009)

torromoto said:


> Amen to that...Congrats on your new purchase..
> 
> Best,
> Guillermo


+1


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