Another of my “vintage” watches was a gift from my in-laws in the early oughts, otherwise known as “around the turn of the century.” (I’m beginning to notice that many watches I’ve had since new are now considered vintage. How is it that they become vintage and I am simply old?)
This is a La Crosse Technology WT-961(B) radio controlled watch. If you’re not familiar with La Crosse Technology, they make home weather stations and wall clocks that set their time from a signal broadcast by station WWVB from near Fort Collins, CO, by NIST (National Institute for Standards and Technology.) NIST it the nation’s time keeper and broadcasts a low frequency (LF) signal which transmits a binary code that defines the time. The LF bandwidth has a limited bandwidth so the code is sent at a bit rate of 1 Hz. It takes a full minute to transmit the date and time code. Clocks with WWVB receivers can decode the signal, synchronize their movement, and apply a time zone correction to the code, which is broadcast as Universal Coordinated Time (UTC). 
So, as a watch, this one can do exactly two things. Receive the WWVB signal and apply a time zone adjustment. That’s it. It has no backlight. Its only button is recessed and requires something small, like the tip of a pen or toothpick, to press. This button can change the time zone, invoke the radio signal search manually, or turn off the watch. Functionally, that’s all a watch is really supposed to do, right? Well that’s everything and the only thing this one can do.
As a watch it is unquestionably the poorest quality instrument in my collection. It is eminently functional, and performs its basic tasks flawlessly; however, nothing else about it was designed to impress. The case and case back are plastic, the case back held in place by four fine Phillips head screws. The face does have a bit of texture molded in for visual interest. The links of the bracelet are plastic enclosed in thin metal sheets that wrap around each link. Links are removed by pushing out split pins and the stamped clasp has no micro adjustment. One side of each link is raised slightly from the other and this raised detail flows into the little bit of detail molded into the case face. In theory, it could be plainer, but not by much. When I received mine they came in black and grey. (I’m guessing the (B) in the model number for this one indicates the grey variant.)
The metal clad plastic bracelet seems unique to this watch and is surely its weakest point. If it should break no standard band would work. The watch case has a single central lug and the bracelet end links have two wide lugs that straddle the single case lug. If this watch was ever popular, I’m sure the bracelet was its major source of complaints. 
Of course, none of this is surprising given that they were quite inexpensive. I can’t find a price reference for the time, but I seem to recall they were advertised in the back of the Parade magazine found in Sunday newspapers of the day. I’m sure those who remember those recall the fine quality products advertised there.
This one is in really great shape. I did wear it for a time, but as any other watch I had offered more features, I think I tired of this one quickly. But I put a new battery in it the other night and after 5-6 minutes of receiving the WWVB signal it set itself. I applied the time zone setting and it’s been holding perfect time since. I’m sure the movement is standard quartz level accurate but its ability to reacquire the signal and adjust nightly keeps things synchronized.
Of course, with the introduction of cellular communications, and smartwatches in particular, everyone carries a device tied to the time standard of that network. I’m intrigued that current G-Shock models with Bluetooth can connect to a mobile device via an app and pull the time from there. But back in 2001, WWVB was one of the few sources of such an accurate signal. 
I don’t think I’ll ever wear it again and it hardly seems worthy of a pillow in my watch box. The bracelet is so inflexible it won’t fit in the drawer of the box either. Perhaps I’ll just remove the bracelet and keep the case in the drawer as a standard to check all my other watches by. 
Addendum: YouTuber Greg Anderson, aka The Good Timekeeper, had done a nice little review you can watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSyhjBRoY5U.

There is a pivotal time in the watchmaking industry known as the “quartz crisis.” After Seiko released the first quartz movement watch in late 1969 a revolution in watchmaking took place. Many of the world’s watch making companies embraced the new technology which is more accurate and easier to mass produce. Switzerland was late to innovate and adopt the new technology and many famous Swiss watch producers became insolvent during the 1970s.
Several Swiss watch manufacturers banded together in an effort to save their industry. They began producing a product called the Swatch. Swatch was a plastic cased, quartz movement watch that was easy to mass produce, inexpensive, yet highly profitable. Eventually, the group of manufacturers was renamed The Swatch Group and acquired other Swiss watch brands. Many now famous watchmakers are still members of the Swatch Group.
Somewhere in the mid 1980s, during that turbulent time for the watchmaking business, I became aware of the Swatch trend, as many of my 20-something friends did. Though there were many colorful and playful designs available, I went for a simple minimalist design, eventually known as the Soto. The printed dial feature a series of gray concentric circles on a black background, whose line thickness varied from wider near the 3 and 9 o’clock side positions to much thinner near the 12 and 6 o’clock, top and bottom, positions. It’s a striking design that almost seems to move. Many report first impressions that it looks as if the lines are a turning spiral. 
I didn’t feel the need to own more, though many friends bought collections. But I wore mine almost daily. Inexpensive as it was, the reliable quartz movement remains accurate to seconds per month. Despite the sealed plastic case, there is a battery cover that can be opened with the edge of a coin. I replace the battery a few times over the years but eventually the plastic strap began to get sticky. Whatever seemed to coat the strap could not be easily removed. Eventually, I discarded the strap and put the watch in a drawer. 
I tried to find replacement straps several times, including a stop at a Swatch store in the San Francisco Airport while waiting on a flight delay. Though the salesperson attested the strap would fit any Swatch, alas, the one I bought did not. Over time, Swatch began producing models in more sizes and the strap I got was too large. Of course, those were pre-Internet days and though many retailers sold the watches, only Swatch sold straps and Swatch stores were rare. 
Not long ago I found the watch. Of course, today many online vendors offer Swatches and bands. I ordered a band, replaced the battery again, and it runs and wears as it always did. By modern standards, this Swatch is almost tiny. Watch sizes have grown in the last decade or so, with the fashion favoring cases that are 40 mm wide or more. These original Swatches were 34 mm. They still produce this size under the Gent style. The New Gent style are typically 41 mm wide. Fortunately smaller watches are beginning to trend again and this old one still looks fine.

The oldest watch in my collection is a gold Lord Elgin manual wind mechanical that belonged to my grandfather. 
The Elgin National Watch Company was an American watch producer that manufactured watches in Elgin, Illinois for over 100 years. Watches were produced under the names Elgin, Lord Elgin, and Lady Elgin. When the company ceased manufacturing in 1968, they sold the rights to the name, which has been resold numerous times. 
The case back is engraved, “Rena C. Myers, 35 Years Service, Penna. Rfng. Co.” This gold watch was presented to my grandfather on the 35th anniversary of his employment at the Pennsylvania Refining Company.  A luncheon was held in his honor. The watch was presented and he returned to work that afternoon. Yes, 35 years of service was not the point at which he retired.
By today’s standards this is a small rectangular watch, measuring 23 mm wide, 38 mm lug-to-lug, and 11 mm thick. The dial features a small second hand on a secondary dial the the 6 o’clock position. The gold dauphine hands point to precisely applied gold arabic numerals. The numerals 1, 5, 7, and 11 are replaced with small gold dots. There are two gold triangles in place of the 12 numeral. The dots are an interesting design element, similar to the tetradic (sets of 4) design of Vaer watches. 
My aunt got the watch when my grandfather died and passed it to my father some years later. When he offered it to me I had it mechanically refurbished by a watchmaker friend. He replaced the crown and cleaned the movement. It runs quite reliably now and I typically wear it on Sundays. 

​What do you think of when you think of watch collectors? I imagine folks with lots to spend on fine luxury watches. Think Marvel’s Steven Strange and his drawer full of winders to keep his exquisite automatic movement time pieces running accurately. I certainly didn’t consider myself a watch collector.
That is, until I began to discover watches in drawers, and jewelry boxes, and cardboard boxes around our home. Yes, I’ve always liked and owned a few watches. But never set out to collect them, per se. But when I started thinking about the watches I was discovering, I began to view them as a collection. Not a curated intentional collection. But I started recalling details about each of them: when I got it; how I got it; why I got it. Some were treasured gifts. Some were bought on a whim. Most were bought with a specific purpose in mind. (Seems I’m a tool watch kind of guy.)
I’ve had enough interest in at least some of my watches, that I got a watch repair tool kit and a case press a few years ago. Though none of my watches are particularly valuable, I have taken the time and effort to replace batteries and use many of them, off and on. I certainly didn’t consider any of them disposable, although the argument could be made that a couple have outlived their purpose.
As I began to assemble the collection (and replace batteries by the handful) I began to see them as a collection, which makes me a collector by association, I suppose. I started to think of what each represented as a watch; its features, unique elements, etc. And I began to wonder what I might add to fill out a collection with watches that represent things my existing watches do not. So, I began to compare and categorize them. I also started thinking about what each means to me. 
Which led me here, to the idea of cataloging them in some fashion. I enjoy examining each in detail to discover their features, some common, some unique. But a collector must be realistic about whether there is an audience for this information. One thing I’ve realized about collecting things is that others who have no interest or experience in the objects one collects may not care. Some may become interested to learn of the details that have come to fascinate me. Others may not now nor ever care. Rather than bore those friends with show-and-tell, I’ve decided to put that effort into a catalog. If I discover others who may be interested, then I can share.