Starting a watch collection

About two months ago I wrote about how after 11 years I switched from wearing my Apple Watch daily to simple analog watches, primarily Timex Weekender and Timex Expedition Scout. Since then I've been reading articles and watching plenty of videos about mechanical watches, building a virtual collection of watches I'd love to buy over time.This week I entered the world of luxury mechanical watches with my first purchase: a Longines Spirit Pilot. I wanted to start with something I can wear every day and not be precious about, so I needed a watch in the style of field watches, with brushed stainless steel finish, sapphire crystal and rubber or fabric strap (I never liked metal bracelets so that option was out of the question). I was eyeing both the Tudor Ranger 36mm and the Longines Spirit Pilot 39mm and opted for the latter with a rubber strap.I really love the details of the dial, especially the applied numerals and how the diamond at the end of the seconds hand perfectly tracks the…