Just curious about this, I've got two watches now that have clover shape crowns with the Omega symbol on them, and a three pointed start shape symbol inside the Omega symbol, which Dennis mentioned meant it was a Naiad crown. Now I remember hearing about the Naiad crown system in the past in relation to Seamaster 300s, where it was described as a flawed design whereby rather than having a screwdown mechanism, the pressure of the water increased the pressure of the crown seal such that the deeper you went, the greater the seal, however that in shallow water the pressure was insufficient to make a good seal at times and resulted in leaking. Now that makes a bit of sense in a dive watch but give these are snapback solid gold dress watches, their water resistance at depths which would be useful to the Naiad system would be impossible due to the crystal and caseback seal. So I guess I'm just curious as to why something like that would be used on these dress watches? Also I'm wondering, are these crowns in fact original to both watches, and what years were they used? Also are these crowns worth keeping, or would the 10 sided Constellation crown be the better and more correct choice for the Constellation?
These watches were advertised as being "Waterproof" and this was actually engraved on the back of some of the SnapBack watches, so it is not surprising to me that Omega would include these watches in the Naiad experiment. I have seen US advertisements from the late 1950's showing the Constellation with the clover crown. Whether this was supposed to be the Naiad, or if it was a dealer installed option, I really don't know. Hope this helps, gatorcpa
To your question as to why use these crowns for watches with likely, at best, only shallow experience. Simple it was meant to be a one type fits all design. The stem area is a major point of entry, even for minor splashes. While these were certainly not meant to be divers, they were often sold as water proof. The fact that is was ineffectual must have dawned on Omega rather quickly, but stock is money. You want to use that crap up. These were the days before the industry wised up and went to "water resistant" terminology. Ok, that's my theory. Or, I like Dennis's explanation just as well, marketing.
Hmmm... so the Seamaster probably does deserve to keep its Naiad crown, the Constellation maybe still go the 10 sided crown.