About a week ago, this Speedmaster 3590.50 popped up on eBay. It seemed to be in decent condition, the private seller came across as being very honest and the watch, well, it clearly hadn't been in the hands of a collector or scrupulous dealer. An honest, yet used, example. So, off I went and bought this watch. Not just for the head, but for various other reasons too... Fast forward to today, when I found myself eagerly waiting for the delivery guy to come by. After unpacking the watch, this is what I found... So far, this still looks like a perfectly normal 3590.50, with a lovely tritium hue and rather sharp case. Let's have a closer look. Hold on. How does a 90s watch (probably about '95), come with an 1171 Trapezoid Logo bracelet? It gets even stranger; those are rather rare 516 end links (for those not knowing; these were paired to the 1039 bracelets, commonly found in the late 60s and early 70s). Speaking of by-catch... The end result of all this is something I still struggle to understand. How does a late 70s bracelet, paired with late 60s end links, end up on a 90s Speedmaster? To me, it is pretty obvious that it is unlikely to have been a recent pairing, as the bracelet parts are much older and rarer compared to the head it came with. In todays market, they're definitely more valuable too... So, I can't complain. A lovely neo-vintage Speedmaster gained and a few very useful parts to complete other watches with as by-catch. And the Speedmaster itself? It is soon off to the Spa, or it will land on my wrist for a few days first... I'd be curious to learn; who's come across similar combinations before? Share your by-catch!
Good catch and story. Wear it in good health! I saw this on eBay recently and thought about it. I did not end up going thru with it since it would require some work. It was advertised as 145.022-76 but it has a decent DON bezel as well as a step dial. Lume is unattractive though and hence the hesitation.
Yup- that’s how I got my original Komfit- plain Jane 60’s Bulova with a $200 bracelet on it. As to the OP’s curiosity, I suspect it was a watchmaker who had a bin of Omega bracelets and endlinks and put it together for a customer who wanted a bracelet for their Speedy. Don’t forget that these accessories were just parts until the last decade or so when people started actually caring about what parts came with what watch,
Yup, that’s also one of my hypotheses. Fact is that the combination did work pretty well. Except for a tiny gap left between the end links and the last link of the bracelet (which is narrower on an 1171), it’s a pretty good fit. I will still change it back to something more correct. So, the search is on for a parts bin containing some vintage 633s (to complete the 1171) and perhaps a 1479 or 1498 to accompany the watch with. I don’t think I’ll go as far as sourcing an 1039 to pair up with those 516s.
Nice catch! The watch looks good and the 516 is a really good surprise! There are some 633 on ebay at decent prices, if i remember well!
Not exactly bycatch, but more a case of mistaken identity. Late last year, another OF member alerted me to a listing on eBay purportedly advertising a reference 135.011 (Seamaster 600) for sale. Here's one of the rather poor photos from the listing: He knew that this wasn't a Seamaster 600 and that I had been looking for a honeycomb dialed vintage Omega to add to my collection. Long story short, I took a chance and purchased the watch immediately at the rather low Buy It Now price. A week or so later, this is what arrived in my mailbox: A beautiful Seamaster 2761 with a clean honeycomb dial!!! The watch had the wrong crown, a bent second hand, a strap that was literally falling off from rot and it needed a good cleaning, but oooh that dial and the case was in good shape. It's currently with Tanner Morehouse being serviced and restored to its former glory. I'll post pics of the finished product when I get it back. Just goes to show that you never know what hidden gems you'll find on eBay. And a big shout out and thank you to OF member MtV for spotting this one.
In my previous post I promised to upload a photo of the aforementioned Seamaster 2761 when it came back from service. I got the watch back several months ago and completely forgot about this thread - until now. So, better late than never. And consider this post a shameless plug for Tanner Morehouse and the staff at TM Watch as they did a stellar job with this restoration.