26 Incredibly Niche Watches I Love
The watches I usually don't talk about.
One challenge of writing about watches, often older ones, is that you need a peg to make it feel timely. Why should you, dear subscriber, learn about some obscure Seiko chronograph from 1964 right now?
Often, we do this by referring to auctions (buy it now!), reissues, or “trends,” real or imagined.
But there are plenty of watches I love, hunt, and would gladly own—or have owned—that’ll never get a proper day in the sun. No in-depth article like the 5004 guide we just published over at Hairspring, no Reference Points, not even something like last week’s Daytona deep dive.
Here are 26 niche watches I love, for no other reason than to give them some love, and perhaps send you down a rabbit hole of your own: 26 niches for 2026.
Why wouldn’t I cover these watches? Well, life’s not fair, especially if you’re a Sinn EZM1. Many of them are historically important, but there simply isn’t enough collector interest to justify the time it’d take to properly research or document. Some don’t have enough variety to really sink your teeth into.
One thing I like to say: There’s a thin line between rarity and obscurity. Rarity connotes a certain desirability, that a collector community has formed around an object. No doubt, the watches in this list have their appreciators, they’re just fewer in number.
Watches like the vintage Explorer, 50s Datejusts, neo-vintage Patek Philippes, and plenty of modern watches will not be on this list, since I’d like to write longer pieces on them one day (or in the case of modern watches, history is still being written). Nor are watches like the Tudor Ranger, Movado M95, or round Audemars Piguet QPs, which have been documented by myself or others.
Let me know if I missed your favorite niche, or come at me if you think some of these are important enough for a full article.
Subscribe to the Unpolished podcast on Spotify / Apple / RSS, or listen to the latest episode above.
Unpolished is the newsletter for watch collectors, and a top-20 fashion Substack. Subscribe for $8/mo (or $89/yr) for all the good stuff, including this full article:
1. Zodiac Sea Wolf
Since my pal Max Braun wrote about the Zodiac Sea Wolf for Rescapement in 2021, I’ve wanted an exotic orange one. I finally found one on eBay last year with a nice tropical dial, even if the bezel was stuck and the movement didn’t run.
Max called it the “forgotten dive watch,” and it certainly plays third fiddle to the Rolex Sub and Blancpain Fifty Fathoms, which were introduced around the same time in the early 50s.
There’s enough variety in the vintage Sea Wolf to have some fun, and that’s before you get to the larger Super Sea Wolf. The more colorful, the better. Unfortunately, Zodiac has fallen on tough times and is even sold at TJ Maxx next to the Calvin Klein socks, so the brand can’t properly tell its own story.
2. Mido Multi-Centerchrono
I feel like back when I started really paying attention to watches, everyone wanted a slick mid-century chronograph. The name on the dial hardly mattered: Rolex, Longines, Mido, Movado, even anonymous.
Near the top: The Mido Multi-Centerchrono. All its hands, including a minute totalizer, are on the center pinion, which means it doesn’t look like most other chronos. But it’s got more to offer: Francois Borgel case, ‘Tasti Tondi” pushers, modified Valjoux VZ movement. Introduced in 1941, it’s like the distinguished grandfather of the Daytona, Speedmaster, or Carrera.
3. Blancpain Air Command
Some watches are so rare there’s not enough info for an article, much less a real collector base. Take the Blancpain Air Command Chronograph. It’s mysterious like @watchumor’s identity: A pilot’s watch made for the U.S. Air Force after Blancpain supplied watches to the Navy, but no orders were ever placed, and the project was never pursued. A real prototype. Only a few have popped up on the modern market, selling for big numbers like $100k and $150k.
P.S. I also dig the modern Air Command, especially that Blancpain makes it in 36mm.
4. Gallet Clamshells
One more mid-century chrono: Gallet Clamshells, the first real waterproof chronographs. They have a “clamshell” case design that uses four screws to secure the caseback—primitive now, but innovative when patented by Gallet in the 1930s. Other brands also used the clamshell, but Gallets are the best.
You’ll find all kinds through the 1930s and 40s—gilt, non-luminous, multi-tone dials that manage to elegantly squeeze scales together in a way that embarrasses modern designers. Different movements, too. When the cases aren’t overpolished, they feel larger than the 35mm diameter because the clamshell construction is a chunk of metal.
5. Bulova Accutron Spaceview, but only because of this photo of Paul Newman
This has gotta be the best photo in all of watches, right? Paul Newman’s 1967 fishing trip. Like, if I’m Bulova, I don’t care what the price is, I’m figuring out a way to license this photo and plaster it on every billboard along I-95. Nothing has ever really made me want an Accutron (people used to make fun of my Accutron ad reads on a previous podcast I hosted because they were so lacking in enthusiasm). They seem like watches for people who spend too much time watching Star Trek and only go outside to check the mail. But Paul!
6. Old Patek Philippe Rectangular Watches
I like the Tank and the Reverso. But old rectangular Patek Philippes are a level up. I’m not talking about the totally crazy, ugly ones with fancy lugs and shaped crystals, the type of stuff @misterenthusiast blathers on about.
For me, it’s simple, clean, rectangular, and even better in steel. This steel reference 492 on a matching Gay Freres stretch bracelet still haunts me, with its curved case and stepped lugs, though I wouldn’t kick a ref. 425 or 452 out of the watch box.
It’s funny that collector interest in shapes, or at least in Cartier and Gilbert Albert, has juiced those prices, but look at auction prices from 25 years ago, and you’ll see these Art Deco Pateks often sold for more back then.
Like Lupe Fiasco’s Food & Liquor, they deserve more attention!
7. Longines DolceVita Heritage (2000 Limited Edition)
Pretty sure this (above) is the account that turned me onto the DolceVita
Longines introduced the Dolce Vita collection in 1997, and in 2000, actually made a good one, instead of one that just looks good on ambassadors Jennifer Lawrence or Henry Cavill.
The DolceVita Heritage (ref. L5.669.6) was a limited run of 2000, inspired by 1920s Art Deco Longines: 1000 made in white gold, 600 in pink, and 400 in gold. It’s got these gothic, blued hands and matching Arabic numerals, a manual (Peseux) movement, and feels Art Deco but not fussy.
A limited-edition, precious metal Longines feels like a lot of watch for ~$5k. So much better than any modern DolceVita.
8. The only Grand Seiko I really like
I briefly mentioned this last year on the Hairspring pod, but there’s probably only one genre of Grand Seiko I really like (I’ll grant that last year’s UFA is pretty good):
