The concept of "all over patina" is an important one here. I know that for me at least, I want the watch to balance , the dial, crystal, hands, movement, case, etc. If it doesn't I would like to know why. Of course that doesn't mean I wont buy the watch, it just means I want an understanding. This watch looks fine as it is presented to a point and I wouldn't have an issue with owning it (but probably not at that price) as long as I feel comfortable with the depth of my understanding but to be honest, I think the history may only be alluded to right now based on the evidence. The question raised by Spacefruit is not restricted to just the dial and hands but the all over patina (including the case) and questions should be asked when you have a great looking bezel, dial , movement but a case showing signs of oxidisation. For me if the overall patina doesn't match (arguably subjective to an extent) then legitimate questions need to be asked as part of your due-diligence. What environmental conditions have the watch been subjected to is a fair question and did this at some time extend into the movement, the dial, etc. Is the watch going to be water resistant to 3 barr, if not then steam in the kitchen and showers will definitely need to be avoided in my view (I do that anyway). I am never confident about expressing ideas about these issues as there is so much more to learn, but if any of what I have said is off then I am very happy to be corrected.
Quick question on the corrosion. It is possible, and this is pure conjecture, that the corrosion was caused by sweat? It looks like the corrosion took place were the gasket forms the seal, and if the gasket did its job, it would have protected the movement. If the watch was worn for years then sweat could have penetrated and gotten stuck in the gasket, thus causing the corrosion. If the watch was worn and the owner occasionally washed their hands, then the water would have washed off the sweat, thus not causing corrosion on other places of the case. Just a thought.
That corrosion is not severe at all IMO. It's actually pretty typical of a watch that hasn't had much attention and servicing over the years. It has already been cleaned up, so a new seal there and the actual rusty looking bits have been cleaned, leaving the pitting behind. Odd that when they did this they would not have replaced the crazed crystal, so it may need a full service, Now I can't see the O-ring groove in the case back because the seal is there, but if it's in similar condition to the case, and if crown and pushers were new I would expect this watch to seal. I have had cases in worse condition still pas pressure testing after having done a reseal on them. Cheers, Al
Bear in mind when making your decision, the only way prices are going on good examples like this is up. I sold a much nicer one less than 18 months ago for less than half of the asking price of this one.
Thanks for all the inputs but the watch was sold before I could make an offer . The seller didn't tell me at what price ... The search continues !