2 received back from the esteemed Mr Freese this morning. Am pretty happy with the results as both clearly hadn't been serviced in quite some time. The weather here is pretty grey and damp so these aren't the best pics but here goes:

1) Gold cap 14381 with 551 movement, circa 1960, this just oozes class on the wrist, never thought I would like a capped or plated watch but this has changed all that, the gold cap is pretty thick anyhow as can be seen on the underside of the lugs, I believe from reading Desmond's articles that the bezel is actually solid gold on these and the contrast between the gold bezel and steel case is pleasing:






2) Solid 18K Rose Gold 2852 with 505 movement, circa 1959. This has a dial which being kind can be described as full of character but the warmth of the RG works pretty well with the colour the varnish has faded to. It looks nicer in the flesh as photos can be pretty unforgiving!

 

The RG is beautiful! I really love the case design and hour markers of these models.

Has the RG been polished? Or do the edges soften up of time due to the metal?

 

A bit of both probably, don't forget that these don't have the razor sharp bevels and edges of the later dog legs but solid gold is pretty soft so does wear rather more than steel. The lugs should look like those on the relatively unworn and AFAIK unpolished gold capped model above and aren't that far off really. I think the pic makes them look softer than they are, here is a side view, still pretty well defined with the odd dint:

 

Not sure about bezels being solid gold, on all cold cap references - but page 4 of desmonds ref paper states

“In correspondence with John Diethelm of Omega Museum, John confirmed that models with reference numbers KO or CD definitely have a solid gold 14 karat gold bezel and the stainless steel case lugs are covered with a layer of 14k gold having a minimum of 200 microns.
With more than ten times the thickness of an average middle-range gold plated watch today, crowned with a solid gold bezel, Omega Constellations of the 1950s and 60s are still wearing well. The same cannot be said for some of the gold plated Constellations produced in the later 1970s during the Swiss crisis and this is yet another reason for the collectibility and popularity of the 300 and 500 series Constellations.”

 

I haven't come across a gold cap specimen without a solid gold bezel. Considering the amounts saved by capping it instead of making it solid as well as how the manufacturing proces would be, I think that a gold cap bezel would make only limited sense.

The 14K gold cap isn't terribly less defined in shaped compared to the stainless steel versions. I own a few 14.XXX' which are likely to be unpolished, but with some wear:







Not much to it, really. The first place where these lose definition by wear is the lug facet, but where it is imminently visible that polishing has taken place is the bezel; the facet there is wiped out pretty fast.

Another "tell" of a gold watch having been polished is by the reflection on the lugs. If the surface is flat, it should reflect light in straight lines, not wavy or soft.

 

Yes see what you mean, I don't think there is any doubt that the solid case has been previously polished. I didn't realise that the GC one had but it probably has been too based on your comments and pics. I am pretty new to Connies, these are my first 2 but I learn fast...