30T2 SCRG auction result

I was tempted to bid on this fantastic 30T2 RG that sold today at Gardiner Houlgate auction house in England.
Rarely see them come up for sale in decent condition and even harder to find with original buckle, box and receipt.
This one was 33mm and 14ct gold and was passed down to consigner by their brother; it hammered for a whopping £9,800.

I was tempted to bid, and was waiting for better photos in natural light. However I would not have come close to winning.

Whilst the condition looked fantastic with little wear to the case; there were gouge marks where someone had opened the case back and removed the bezel. The dial also looked very clean, however there were some spots that seemed to have halo marks around them and I wondered if the dial had been cleaned. Hard to tell with the bright and seemingly processed photos.

Did anyone see the watch in hand or get better photos?
And did anyone here on OF bid or even snag it 😀

Would love to hear your thoughts on the watch and price achieved. Do you think it would have reached that price without the overall package of buckle, box and receipt and provenance (although I didn’t dig further on that, and confirm if the brother was the original owner - receipt was from a South African shop.


https://auctions.gardinerhoulgate.c...a99077/the-watch-auction-two-day-sale-lot-37/

I bid on the watch, but had set myself an absolute limit of 6.000, premium included, which I thought would be already excessive.
But I suspect that the buyer who won the bidding match will not regret it, even for the final price of £12.400. You don't usually see them in such a good condition. I wonder how Erich @mac_omega would judge the watch.

The case backs and bezels of those cases came with those slight gaps as insertion spots for the case opener. Somebody left some marks on them but the gaps themselves are not a flaw.


Edited to insert a link to the auction.

Both Erich and I came to the conclusion that the that numerals were either removed for some reason and replaced (a very good redial) or, they fell off and were replaced. I cannot see how Omega quality control would have allowed this to pass inspection as the majority of the numerals have not been fitted centrally e.g. 12 - or even in my opinion more irritatingly misaligned, e.g. at 6. It looks sloppy which suggests it has had some interference, even if it is just small. The boxees I have seen sell on ebay for £250+, although they come up very very very very rarely. So there will of course be a premium on this. The receipt is nice too to add to the whole presentation.... but it doesn't in my opinion double the value of the watch. I considered bidding on first glance, and would have bought it if it were near the estimate.... but as I already have this model (in my display pic) I suppose I can resist a little more than someone who absolutely desires this piece. In my opinion it would have to be a 35mm version to justify this price. Especially considering there is 26% commission on top.... that said mine has a polished case as shown below - and that's why i was drawn to the above example, as an upgrade until I looked a little closer...



It was this image below taken from the auction that put me off, just look at those applied numerals... and when you look down at your watch every day, you'll notice those sloppy mistakes.

Yes, result is very strong and no doubt will have pleased the seller. Superficially the watch is a good “ package”, inclusive of original receipt, buckle and Omega chronometre case. Original crown, sought after dial type, movement in good shape.
To a more stringent analysis, and in absence of images for the buckle, factors that should have driven valuation down, include:
1- Dial has been manipulated (washed?) as shown by imprecise repositioning of the indices
2- this is a 33 mm watch, not the 35.5 version
3- the case and bezel show signs of the tools to pry open the back and the bezel
4- it is a 14K gold case rather than the most sought 18k
5- lugs shown sign of heavy polishing (should not taper) and flattening of curved surfaces
Probably the buyer got a bit carried away, nevertheless would like to give him/ her my contacts
Best
Franco

Great feedback, thank you all.
A nice watch, just not as good as first impressions suggested.
I was initially tempted to bid as I missed the one (below) I had recently sold to Somlo (I believe it is staying in his personal collection).
But as Erich said, there was a lot of food for thought regarding the dial and I decided against it.

O
That particular lug shows sign of heavy polishing on the upper surface, and the hole is really close to the surface - compare with the upper lug. Anybody would avoid to erase the hallmarks, that one lug is probaby less polished in the vertical surface to preserve them.