A $150 vintage JLC/LeCoultre Memovox Acquisition

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IsaaH

·Oct 17, 2022

Hey all,

Pretty stoked with this find. Jumbo 37mm front-loading SS (and one of the rarer JLC cased versions, with signed JL crowns, and fancier pearlage on the inside of the caseback than just the standard domestic Star cases bearing the "Cased & Timed in the U.S.A." stamping. The manual K911 movement will need to be serviced (likely some gummed up lever on the date changer that stops the movement during the date changes), along with a seconds hand needing to be sourced. But, for $150.00, I'm not complaining. I've a jumbo K825 bumper automatic with a very similar case design (but instead is gold filled).

What do you all think?

 

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X350 XJR

·Oct 17, 2022·Vintage Omega Aficionado

I think you could add $400-500 and still have done well.

Well bought.

 

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Larry S

·Oct 17, 2022·Color Commentator for the Hyperbole.

Do tell as to how you acquired this for $150.

 

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cristos71

·Oct 17, 2022

Excellent find....these are the stories that keep us all going!

 

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IsaaH

·Oct 17, 2022

Larry S

Do tell as to how you acquired this for $150.

Just have a saved search on E-Bay that I sometimes check in the morning. It was just listed as one of the first few items when I happened to check, and I snatched it up. Quite lucky.

 

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sheepdoll

·Oct 17, 2022

Is there an ::envy:: button here somewhere😁

 

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Larry S

·Oct 17, 2022·Color Commentator for the Hyperbole.

YES VIRGINIA THERE IS A SANTA CLAUS…..

 

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Tony C.

·Oct 17, 2022·Ωf Jury member

IsaaH

What do you all think?

Equal parts jealousy and anger. 😁

 

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JwRosenthal

·Oct 17, 2022

IsaaH

Just have a saved search on E-Bay that I sometimes check in the morning. It was just listed as one of the first few items when I happened to check, and I snatched it up. Quite lucky.

I have gotten a few gems like that with saved searches and lucky timing. Have also had them disappear by the time I hit the Buy button…apparently others have saved searches too 😡

 

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Mephisto

·Oct 17, 2022

That is a winsome watch at an equally winsome price. Lucky you!

 

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byunjoe

·Oct 20, 2022

Hard to believe deals like this still pop up, much less on the internet! Great find!

 

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Larry S

·Oct 20, 2022·Color Commentator for the Hyperbole.

Were this a yard, rummage, amateur estate or charity sale, I’d have offered fair value on a Watch priced like this. In this day and age however, such a price anywhere else is just lazy or stupid on the part of the seller.

 

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tnt9

·Oct 21, 2022

Great find! very nice to see there are still great deals like this one.

 

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gatorcpa

·Oct 21, 2022·ΩF InvestiGator

The two signed crowns are worth more than the $150 you paid.

Very well bought.
gatorcpa

 

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wagudc

·Oct 21, 2022

IsaaH

Quite lucky.

Indeed!

 

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IsaaH

·Oct 22, 2022

So, a bit of an update:

Got the watch a few days ago (didn't have time to write this up). All looks pretty good. However, the upper crown freewheels in the setting position for the alarm disk (seems like it's not engaging at all with the alarm works) and the hand setting position for the lower crown slips in either direction, which to me sounds like a potentially stripped gear in the setting works. I'm thinking the watch originally jammed up when it got close to the date change, and someone tried to brute force the hands and did some damage to it (but this does not explain why the upper crown does not set the alarm disk). The hour and minute hand are misaligned - probably the hour hand was completely jammed up by the date change mechanism.