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Aero Compax Ref 22289 / SN 1072......Original Dial Debate! Opinions Needed

  1. CaptainWinsor Jan 5, 2020

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    I wasn’t trying to re litigate. Sorry if it was read that way. More that I’ve learned from UG base that as @bgrisso said, were notoriously inconsistent.
     
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  2. Woops Jan 5, 2020

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    Aside from the important matter at hand, that sounds like some party ::psy::
     
  3. bgrisso Jan 5, 2020

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    Actually I stopped drinking a while back and usually mark the eve quietly. Spent NYE day at nearby hot springs, chilling with friends. I don't know what took me out, maybe I should have been partying !
     
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  4. sdre Jan 5, 2020

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    not getting any younger buddy. ::bleh::
     
  5. oinkitt Jan 5, 2020

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    Hello all,

    I am the owner of this watch. Thanks to Larry S for opening this thread
    I have no problem with this discussion and I encouraged Larry S to initiate the thread.

    Thanks to all members who have taken the time to post in this thread.

    I bought this watch off the original owner who bought it in New York after the war. He was 92 years old when he sold it to me so he may have forgotten things. I spent about 3 hours at his house and he appeared to have all his marbles!!!
    The original owner told me he had only had the watch serviced once, in 1959, and he stopped wearing in 1961 as he bought a Rolex Submariner. He didn't mention that the dial had been replaced and he is no longer alive to ask. I suspect he would have mentioned it if it had been as he said he treasured the watch.... I felt a bit guilty about buying it and asked him if he was sure he wanted to sell this watch. I bought 4 other watches off him, he didn't care a toss about the others. He actually had every watch he had ever owned. He said he was selling them as his wife had died a year or 2 previously and he had cancer. I used to have an add in the paper looking for old watches and he had seen it and called me.

    I paid him pretty reasonable money for it, I cant remember exactly how much. I always tried to pay good money to people like him.... you would be surprised how many referrals I used to get from seller like him... it was good business to do so.

    I don't care what the watch is worth, or if I ever sell it. Like most watches, its the story behind them that's really interesting.

    Regardless of the outcome, I will always fondly remember meeting the original owner of the Aero Compax.
     
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  6. Andy K Dreaming about winning an OFfie one day. Jan 5, 2020

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    Sorry in advance for the dumb question, I am ignorant when it comes to UG and I've never seen the Sala book.

    What is the deal with the "color plates"? In the original thread @Larry S says that the color plates are "hit or miss". Is it that the B&W plates are from the factory and considered gospel, while the colors are later and thus could be redials/service dials? Just trying to follow along! :thumbsup:
     
  7. JwRosenthal Jan 5, 2020

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    Wonderful story @oinkitt - and the newspaper ad was a brilliant idea as a collector- and the network you build from referrals by treating people fairly and not screwing them is priceless.
    I know nothing about UG, and your watch is a stunner to my eyes and I wouldn’t know if original or not- but it is possible that when the original owner brought the watch for service in 1959, the watchmaker took the initiative to touch up the dial, replace it with a factory replacement- etc without even telling the owner as it was SOP back in the day to make a watch “like new” when they went in for service.
    I do have to ask-did he sell you his ‘61 Sub? :coffee:
     
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  8. Larry S Color Commentator for the Hyperbole. Jan 5, 2020

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    @Andy K ... yep sometimes you can trust em and sometimes you can’t. The B&W photos came from factory shots.
     
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  9. MattF Jan 5, 2020

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    The initial watch in question is a redial. All the font if you look closely is incorrect. All the numbers, letters, etc. It is a clear redial.
     
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  10. MattF Jan 5, 2020

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    And let's please all remember one thing. We love Sala, it is one of the best resources we have but there are a lot of redials and other pieces with issues referenced in it. It too is just one resource that needs to be balanced with the collective eyes of all of us who have been witness to good and bad examples of many pieces whether it has benefited us or not.
     
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  11. Larry S Color Commentator for the Hyperbole. Jan 5, 2020

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    Well said ... my copy is falling apart/ taped spine loved.
     
  12. oinkitt Jan 5, 2020

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    I bought a first series 9k gold Rolex Bubble Back, a Rolex 6538, the Universal, and 2 Seiko's off him.
     
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  13. JwRosenthal Jan 5, 2020

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    I hope that dude went out and partied like it was 1999 after that and went out with a bang- he deserved it!
    And I just looked up the 6538- holy shit!
     
  14. jumpingsecond Jan 5, 2020

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    The sheer range of takes on this topic is what makes Universal so cool to me. On the few occasions I've spoken to Sala about references and their inconsistencies he always reminded me that Universal was a few watchmakers who met with great popularity in a short amount of time and were trying to run a business and stay alive. To me this means Sub contractors, juggling suppliers, and generally doing whatever you have to- to keep up. They weren't making watches to be scrutinized by collectors today for consistency, they were trying to meet the demands of their rising popularity.

    It's just something I think about when these pieces come to light and get dissected by the hawk-eye maestros roaming these forums & generously sharing their experience/ knowledge.

    @oinkitt best of luck battling the blazes.
     
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  15. oinkitt Jan 6, 2020

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    The whole collectables market is crazy. I often remind people the original owners bought "whatever" to use. They didn't think, I better look after this watch, toy, knife, pen, doll, teddy bear, or whatever else one collects..... because in 50 or 150 years the collectors market will really value it. I more than most realise what a pathetic soul I am for collecting "dead peoples crap". I do try and keep it in perspective.

    I have left the south coast now to return to my rural property on the north coast, the fires are closing in on my place up there. I have an elaborate sprinkler set up I can activate via the net or by phone. I am better prepared that most others and I feel pretty safe.

    Its been a big summer, and we are only a third through it!!
     
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  16. timjohn Jan 6, 2020

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    Here's my Aero-Compax, a 22547 rather than a 22289, but the serial number is close at 1068xxx. The rounded threes worry me in the OP, but not as much as the off-centre recorder dial at 12 o'clock. the A's look a bit wonky to me too. But we're talking about Universal, and they put out some shockingly bad dials back in the day. I've also attached a picture of my Dato-Compax: I'm pretty sure that's original, but the dial design looks like the work of a happy kid with a crayon.
    And good on @oinkitt for putting it up for discussion
    Universal Aero-Compax 3.JPG Universal Geneve Dato-Compax 2.JPG
     
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  17. Diabolik Jan 6, 2020

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    I am a little late but original Aero on this thread is a redial. Sala's is great, but there are lots of questionable references and photos. @MattF hi nail on the head. Totally agree with your assessment and comments ! :)
     
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  18. JwRosenthal Jan 6, 2020

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    For the education of those of us that don’t know these watches but want to learn- what are you seeing on the OP watch that says redial to you- specifically?
    With every new watch posted in this thread I see variations in every dial, different use of serif or non-serif, different placement of text and numbers, mixed open 6’s with closed 6’s, flat topped 3 and rounded 3’s- all on the same dails but in different places. There is even a crossed 7 !! It looks like UG was all over the map- how can we possibly know what came out of the factory with this many variations?!
     
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  19. bgrisso Jan 6, 2020

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    There's almost nothing "standard" about the dials in question. But the rounded 3s in lower subdials, the closed 6 and 9 in hour sub, the use of different numbers altogether in the tachy scale, the UG and aero compax fonts, the lack of Swiss, and the lume plots at 3-6-9-12 is plenty to focus on.
     
    Edited Jan 6, 2020
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  20. Willbur Jan 6, 2020

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    There is also 3 different font used for the 4.
    But doesn't it means that both (subject and Sala example) have been "re"dialed by the same company very long times ago ?
    I never seen someone able to make an ageing Lume like this.
     
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