'Budget' Omegas?

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I've had great successes with C24, often bargaining pretty decent discounts as well.

My recent experience with looking at SMPs tells me that a lot of people are selling theirs at the moment and I wouldn't be surprised to see a reduction in prices overall. At one point a Danish sales group had 4-5 2254s for sale at the same time, none of which had ridiculous prices.

FWIW, there was a Great White on C24 from Hong Kong a few weeks ago at £1,400 w/o box or papers, but in good condition. I hadn't got the funds at that time and is still kicking myself over it...
Interesting. I had always been put off C24 by the the unrealistically high pricing but it does make sense that if you put the effort into finding sellers willing to bargain it is a good hunting ground. There certainly are a lot of interesting options on there, I may give it rather more attention in future!

If it didn't need too much in the way of parts, that GW you mention was indeed cheap, I sold a minter at £2,050 only a couple of months ago so there was a lot of leeway for work at the price you quote.
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I find C24 a waste of time, the prices on their are mostly pipe dream dealer prices and often 25% over the watches true private sale value. ebay is of course worth a look but take a look at our sales section at the private listings. Also if you are a member of any other forums, those can be good places to spot a sensibly priced model. TZ-UK is a more GB focused group than here and you would pick one up in my price range pretty quickly, unfortunately you have to be an established member with >250 posts there to even see listings so may be not work for you. This post will act as a WTB for you in fact. US based sellers will be asking more than my figures so aren't ideal, but a UK seller they might be able to help.
Most watches I bought on Chrono were after some negotiation with 10-20% off...
 
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https://www.chrono24.co.uk/omega/seamaster-professional-automatic-22545000--id14575497.htm

https://www.chrono24.co.uk/omega/se...ric-blue-quartz-41mm-warranty--id13102732.htm

https://www.chrono24.co.uk/omega/se...-steel--black-41mm-mens-watch--id14431066.htm

https://www.chrono24.co.uk/omega/seamaster-diver-300-m--id14367278.htm

Been searching Chrono to see what's about at the moment, these are at the cheaper end of the style I prefer - are there any other model numbers I should look out for other than the above?

The 2265 is the cheapest by some margin, being quartz and less popular, I actually quite like the blue dial, but not as undestated as the 2254 or 64.

ETA:

Also seen this on WUS: https://forums.watchuseek.com/f29/e...ze-41mm-quartz-box-papers-2562-a-5162761.html
Assume I'd have to pay VAT from the US too?

https://www.thewatchvillage.co.uk/product-page/omega-seamaster-2265-80-2001
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What country are you in? Either way yes you'll likely get sing for VAT if buying from you US but residing outside of.

On the others I guess it depends on your budget and what you want.

The black dial 2254 is a classic and wearable for almost any occasion, but I must admit to really liking the striking blue dial and makes a a great budget buy. I think that's the only quartz, shop you really want quartz, auto or not care? New aware of you're at all bothered the quartz will likely not got the markers bang on all the time, I know this bothers some people.

I can't really comment on prices as I don't really follow them, I was waiting for more experienced members to chime in but as nobody has I hope my bump might encourage others with any advice.
 
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C24 and budget don´t go together... UK is a big market, try to get 2531.80.00/2254.80.00 without papers/box for a reasonable price, that would be my tip... Proper Omegas, easy and cheap to service
 
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Check out the following. They'll give you an idea of what models have been listed/sold recently and price ranges:

- Watch Charts
- Watch Recon
- Watch Patrol

Good luck in your search!
 
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I sold my 2254.50 for £1600 not long ago with no box and papers but proof of Omega service. Now I regret selling it but I was in one of my consolidation moods.
 
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What country are you in? Either way yes you'll likely get sing for VAT if buying from you US but residing outside of.

On the others I guess it depends on your budget and what you want.

The black dial 2254 is a classic and wearable for almost any occasion, but I must admit to really liking the striking blue dial and makes a a great budget buy. I think that's the only quartz, shop you really want quartz, auto or not care? New aware of you're at all bothered the quartz will likely not got the markers bang on all the time, I know this bothers some people.

I can't really comment on prices as I don't really follow them, I was waiting for more experienced members to chime in but as nobody has I hope my bump might encourage others with any advice.


Hi @Tet , I'm in the UK.

Thanks for the info and the bump!

I've heard varying things about C24, in this thread alone! Some people seem to think it's great for bargaining, others that everything is overpriced. I'm a bit wary of buying off eBay (and to an extent forums (fora?)) for my first 'big' watch purchase. At least C24 seems to offer some sort of buyer protection through the verified dealers. I'm currently rotating between a Seiko monster and Seiko turtle, but those are the most I've spent on watches previous to this.

I've seen this: https://www.chrono24.co.uk/omega/seamaster-diver-300-m-automatic-41mm--id12315582.htm which is a)41mm and b)auto for under £2k from a dealer, is there a reason it's in this price bracket? I've requested more photos. It's a 2531.80 as mentioned by @brownwld above.

Many thanks for your input so far everyone.

Cheers,
Joe.
 
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Hi @Tet , I'm in the UK.

Thanks for the info and the bump!

I've heard varying things about C24, in this thread alone! Some people seem to think it's great for bargaining, others that everything is overpriced. I'm a bit wary of buying off eBay (and to an extent forums (fora?)) for my first 'big' watch purchase. At least C24 seems to offer some sort of buyer protection through the verified dealers. I'm currently rotating between a Seiko monster and Seiko turtle, but those are the most I've spent on watches previous to this.

I've seen this: https://www.chrono24.co.uk/omega/seamaster-diver-300-m-automatic-41mm--id12315582.htm which is a)41mm and b)auto for under £2k from a dealer, is there a reason it's in this price bracket? I've requested more photos. It's a 2531.80 as mentioned by @brownwld above.

Many thanks for your input so far everyone.

Cheers,
Joe.

I think that particular model with the skeleton handset tends to be less desirable than the blake(sword) hands, despite the fact they are used(in improved form) on the latest model the early sword hands are many people(myself included) favourite Seamaster handset. Of course to each their own.

I've never used chrono24 personally, have purchased a ton on ebay and been lucky with pretty much all of them but on each occasion I've put in hours of research before purchasing. Of course you have Paypal on your side if you run into any troubles, especially within the 2 weeks so that eliminates a lot of risk of discovering anything dodgy.

Wish I could be more helpful in pointing out some deals but having a quick search I couldn't see much. BTW have you looked at the early GMT versions? I own the Great White and love it, can pick those up for around the budget you are looking at(£2k), the black dial 2534.50.00 usually a bit cheaper than the white. I feel they're both undervalued with potential to become very collectable at some point.
 
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I suggest you get a Geneve instead of a Seamaster.

Here is one of mine I have not been able to sell, for example.

Tom
That’s very nice.
 
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One point, if you stretched the budget a bit would it make it easier for you.
Seems your constraints on budget are holding you back.

Budget luxury watch doesn't sound right.

Not saying you have to over spend just up your budget a little bit as your not confident buying in the budget bins of eBay and forums 😉
 
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Look for one with a screw down crown, a reduced 36mm Seamaster Quartz is your best budget choice.
 
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USD2,000 to USD4,000 should be a fair budget.

Check out the sellers here in OF.

I’d target either a Golden Eye SMP300 or a Skyfall AT.