Dear Forum members I am looking to make an acquisition of the abovementioned ref: 2700 rose gold constellation with pie pan dial. Seller is a reputable dealer with good credentials, and according to them all dial, hands and markers are original. Case is still relatively unpolished, but the buckle is not original. To me the crown also looks like a replacement. Attached are pictures of the watch, case back and movement. As I am a relative greenhorn to this I would be most grateful for the expertise and experience of the members here to comment on the condition of the watch and movement. The black stuff on the bumper rotor and (wheel?) bridge look like grime/grease/ lubricant more than anything else? Could it be rust? Would really appreciate any comments/input!! Thanks a lot Ken
It's hard to say too much about the watch from the pictures. Everything looks OK to me. Crown is signed, and "bowler hat" crowns were common on Omegas then. Many early Constellations had them switched out, as the 10-sided crows were difficult to grip. Movement should at least be inspected by a watchmaker to confirm your thoughts. The stains could also be from water intrusion, so a clean and lube would be a good idea. Very nice watch! gatorcpa
Thanks guys! Yes indeed it is, as stated impeccable credentials but not cheap. Asking for USD4,500, is that a fair price? Unfortunately I'm way over in Singapore so will be hard to inspect the condition (if my untrained eye can even tell that is?). As far as my research allows everything looks fine save for what's mentioned above, but i don't want my desire for its looks to blind me to any shortcomings the movement may contain. The person I'm dealing with said the piece would be checked out before sale and serviced if necessary. Would anyone know what kind of servicing Matthew Bain would subject it to and if it would be sympathetic (ie no swapping out the old parts)? What happens if worn parts need to be replaced? I imagine original spare parts are hard to come by and expensive! Sorry for the twenty questions but it's my first vintage and online buy! Naturally trying to be as informed as possible Thank for all your help!! Ken
I would not buy it at that price. Looks like the dial has been cleaned and the top coat is not there anymore. Wrong crown and wrong second hand. Dirty movement, too. It should look like this to sell for that money
"Impeccable credentials" https://omegaforums.net/threads/my-zenith-el-primero-a386-story-experts-please-critique.27346/
Wow, guess that shows how little I know huh! Thanks for the advice guys I'll keep looking then! Btw for my knowledge how can you tell that the top coat has been removed? Wouldn't have known what to look for. Most obliged! Ken
If you look really closely at the dial picture, you can see the surface is blemished in some parts and not even. Some parts are darker (like around the text and star) and some are lighter.
Great help, thanks. However my untrained eye is struggling to distinguish this from what I originally imagined to be age wear and discoloration from a sixty odd year old watch. Are there more specific giveaways?
That´s why you are asking for advice, right? The points that the guys are making are perhaps not so identifiable to you as an inexperienced buyer, but if you were to drop $4500 on that watch and then want to maybe sell it on later these are certainly the `problems´ that would be raised if you were to attempt to get your $4500 back. Everything has a price and if this watch were to be in the $2000-$3250 range the critique would be less intense and the buy signals stronger, as it is it is borderline overpriced based on rarity and condition and at that price not something that an experienced Constellation collector would consider purchasing.
Oh absolutely, and I totally agree with everything that's being said. My gut feel was that the asking was too high and that 2-3k+ was the usual going rate. But was not sure how good a conditioned piece it was and how rare a rose gold 2700 is. The reason I'm digging so deep is that I'm trying to learn as much as I can so that I know what to look out for when the next one comes along! Sorry didn't mean to come off doubting or overtly questioning. Really am attempting to fully educate myself here. As always, really appreciative of the invaluable advice and wisdom of you experts!