THEY MAY COST IN THE THOUSANDS, BUT FINE WATCH BUFFS DON'T MIND.

Byline: Barbara Whitaker The New York Times

Owning an expensive watch is like owning a luxury car. You don't need a Mercedes-Benz to get from Point A to Point B, but it sure can improve the trip. And while you don't need a fancy watch to get through a day of appointments, you can at least feel like you're spending quality time.

Then there is another similarity: some luxury watches cost as much as a Mercedes.

``The range in the luxury watch market is basically $2,000 and up with the majority of handmade fine watches bringing in $8,000 to $10,000,'' said Hank B. Siegel, a watch collector and vice president of Hamilton Jewelers with stores in the Princeton, N.J., area and Palm Beach, Fla. But some watches with special features can cost much more. ``The six-figure level is not uncommon,'' he said.

The market for luxury watches with mechanical movements almost disappeared in the early 1980s after the Japanese began dominating the market with quartz watches that were cheaper and more accurate. But Swiss watchmakers have re-established themselves at the high end of the market by relying on status, collectibility and mechanical wizardry to attract buyers.

Last year, Swiss watch makers generated about $3 billion from the sale of high-end mechanical watches; the figure has remained steady for several years.

``People are coming to appreciate them as wearable art,'' Siegel said.

That is how Cecil Harvell, 38, a lawyer in Morehead City, N.C., saw the purchase of his $17,500 Patek Philippe watch, which his wife bought him as a gift: The watch is an expensive piece of jewelry, no different from something he might give his wife.

Not only does it make a statement, but with a 7-year-old son, Harvell said he viewed the watch as a keepsake that could be passed down through the family - and possibly grow in value.

Although some rare watches can appreciate, they are exceptions to the rule, experts say.

``I've never heard anybody say anything about watches being a good investment,'' said Joe Thompson, editorial director of American Time magazine, which covers the watch industry. ``It's a wonderful thing to have, and over time some of these may appreciate, but on the whole they don't.''

While Harvell said he could not imagine paying much more than his $17,500 for a watch, he said he was aware that the calendar features, telling him the day, date and month, on the Patek Philippe he selected were good values.

So what else helps determine the price of a luxury watch? Important factors are the amount of labor, the reputation of the makers, the rarity of the watch, the quality of the materials and the styling of the watch, said Anthony J. D'Ambrosio, executive vice president at Tourneau, a watch retailer in Manhattan.

Dealers and collectors consistently place brands like Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet and Vacheron Constantin at the top of the industry hierarchy. Patek makes about 15,000 watches a year, and Vacheron, the oldest company in the business, about 11,000.

By contrast, Rolex, arguably the biggest name in the industry, makes 600,000 to 700,000 watches a year by marketing them for ruggedness and reliability. The watches cost from $2,100 to $150,000.

A handful of young Swiss watchmakers are also gaining attention. Franck Muller, for example, is renowned in the industry for his tourbillions.

What's the difference between a $1,500 Omega Speedmaster Professional in stainless steel with a chronograph, or stopwatch, and a Rolex Cosmograph with the same features, which lists at $10,500? Basically the name.

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Photo

Photo: Cecil Harvell of Morehead City, N.C., displays his $17,500 Patek Philippe.

The New York Times