In today’s online world, we are constantly bombarded by watch photos and ads, usually with captions filled with acronyms and specific terms describing the timepiece in question. If you are at all confused as to what these mean, you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we will try to walk you through the most common acronyms found on watch advertisements and terms used by watch sellers, and hopefully put any doubts to rest.
Is it really for sale? FS and NFS
We must first understand the important difference between FS and NFS. These stand for “For Sale” and “Not For Sale“, respectively. Got it? Now, you won’t lose any time trying to acquire something that is not on the market.
New Old Stock (NOS)
Sometimes resellers want to free up space in their warehouse for new watches. In doing so, they may find some old models no longer in production left unsold. These are referred to as “New Old Stock” (NOS), meaning that the watch is in mint condition, with original box and papers. This acronym is also utilized for watches that are still sealed – often leading them to reach stellar prices on the resale market.
Sealed or Double Sealed
These two terms are most commonly associated with Patek Philippe watches. You see, when they leave the factory (and are delivered to the Authorised Dealers), they aren’t actually shipped in the fancy boxes that you see in stores. In fact, the timepiece’s original packaging consists of a vacuum-sealed plastic bag which sits inside a thin cardboard box. So, when we talk about Double Sealed, we mean a watch which has both of these original elements.
Lots of watchmakers actually use this packaging and shipping method (yet this term is, as we said, mostly associated with Patek watches) in order to prevent any sort of damage to the product – not even a speck of dust!
When a watch is (single) Sealed, it means that only the plastic bag still remains, meanwhile the cardboard box has been opened.
Both Sealed and Double Sealed are highly sought after features, so much so that they can increase the market price of a watch by even thousands of Euros. Speculators and opportunists were quick to pounce on these types of watches in recent years, inflating asking prices even further. Patek Philippe took notice of these malpractices and introduced a policy which required all of its Authorised Dealers to break both of these seals the minute they take delivery of them in their stores.
Unfortunately, as was the case for a green-dial 5711 at a recent auction, these rules aren’t always respected.
Delivery Contents & Accompanying Kit
When purchasing a used watch, it is very important that you know specific details about the watch and its provenance – that way you avoid unpleasant surprises. Always look for a respectable vendor, read reviews, ask questions and check the documents once you purchase something.
When you hear the term “Full Set“, we are referring to a watch that is equipped accompanied by its original box, documents, warranty, etc. This depends, of course, on what different watchmakers actually offer when they sell it.
It follows that “Papers Only” and “Box Only” are simply Full Sets lacking either the Box or the Paper respectively.
When the watch is not accompanied by either papers nor box we talk about a naked watch. This is very common when purchasing vintage watches, because, back then, owners did not really care too much for these items (nor did they anticipate such high demand for these watches in the future!).
Finding Post-Purchase Documents
Don’t lose hope if nothing from the original kit is left: there will likely be some documents which can come in handy.
Service Papers are documents which attest that the timepiece has been properly serviced and cared for, and also shows if and when components have been replaced. A timepiece that has all of its original components and whose case has never been polished is referred to as untouched and is more valuable in the eyes of collectors.
On this note, a special mention must go to the dial of a watch – a distinctive element that can profoundly alter its value. If, for example, a watch features a patinated, decolourised, or oxidized dial, it could hugely increase in value.
So, be careful when sending it for service, because if you don’t clearly state that you want this feature to remain the way it is, the watchmaker/serviceman is contractually obliged to replace your dial during a service. If your original (pre-service) dial is no longer in production, your watch would receive a service dial. A service dial is a replacement that is closest to what the original watch presented.
Another example of documentation that can be useful when buying a naked watch are the so-called Extracts from the archives. These are documents which one can request from the original watchmaker’s archives. However, you can only request these for models going back to a certain year (each maison has different policies) and with these in your hand, you can cross check the original specifications, such as movement, case, dial, year of production and in some cases even country of origin. By doing so you can verify the legitimacy of the watch.
Factory Set and Aftermarket
Watches today are often adorned with luxurious gems and diamonds. When these are embedded onto the watch by the maison (which doesn’t happen often!), they are referred to as Factory Set.
Watches that are sold without gems and are modified by a third party are known as Aftermarket pieces, and never are appealing as factory pieces.
Author: Pietro Pilla
Translated by: Tommaso Metzger
