Greetings, folks:
In looking around for a silver/white Polerouter/Polerouter Date, I happened upon this watch, which I might consider at the right price, and would appreciate your feedback on a few points in the meantime.
A. Dial patina: the piece shows a fairly heavy patina and I notice the term “Automatic” is almost entirely gone, while the term “Microtor” is still in place (the caliber is not mentioned in the posting, so for now, given the Automatic and Microtor text, I am guessing it is a 215x): in your experience, is this (i.e. faded text) something that happens sometimes, or might it be the result of some kind of service intervention such as an overly aggressive cleaning? (even if it was “natural” would this sort of thing be a non-starter for you (I’ve seen some of the cleanest beauties on this forum)? I see some charm in it, but suspect it might be my “just saw this piece” enthusiasm speaking and could use a cold shower if one is due)

B. Caseback logo: the caseback on this piece features the UG globe. I notice that other UG casebacks sometimes feature the UG shield: to your knowledge, is there some rhyme or reason around which design appears on which caseback/model/caliber?

C. Crystal: Do non-date Polerouters come with a non-signed crystal? I don’t think I see a signature on this one, and was wondering whether this is par for the course on non-date models.

Thank you kindly in advance for any thoughts you might have on this.

 

Hey Severin. I would think that it had a signe crystal at one point. I have the non-date gold plated version and it had the signe crystal but it doesn't have the AUTOMATIC written above MICROTOR like the one you're showing. I would guess that the watch you're showing just had the crystal changes.

The dial on the watch does seem to have had a cleaning of some sort and also a few polishes.

 

The dial is no doubt original, and it is hard to tell what might have caused the damage. There is a finger print in the lower left quadrant, so someone was not careful with it. The fact that the word "Automatic" is degraded could be due to moisture damage, or to some kind of abrasion from someone trying to clean it. This damage is not necessarily a problem. It depends how you feel about patina. I think it looks kind of nice. The luminous dots on the dial and the luminous infill in the hands have nicely darkened, and they match, so they all appear to be original, which is good. The original signed crown is in place, which is important. It is very unusual for original signed crystals to survive, so I would not worry about that. It is also good that the logo on the case back remains intact, since these shallow engravings often rub out completely. The movement will be a cal. 215, and a photo of it would be important to have to see the condition. On these calibers the heavy, offset rotor has a tendency to become loose and make noise and scratch the inside case back. Sometimes they also change color from their nice original coppery color. The problem with this watch for me is that the case has been heavily polished. I personally do not like the look of polished cases. They usually look different than they did when they came out of the factory, unless the person doing the polishing has special equipment, and has the specific intention of restoring the original profiles and finishes. The case polishing is a very personal judgement that you will have to make. What is the asking price?

 

With the polished case and dial damage this would be a pass IMO. Just my two cents...these are fairly common and you can do far better!

 

Thank you, all for your thoughtful and helpful perspectives. Although I find the visual appearance of the piece in question quite charming, I will not pursue the piece any further. The examples I've seen on this forum have helped condition my price/condition/ "walk away" expectations and I am trying hard to stay disciplined within those bounds (the current $CDN to $US conversion sure doesn't help!).

The seller was a pleasure to deal with, has a lot of lovely watches on offer and I hope to do business with him in the future (Analog Shift) - in this particular instance, however, the stars are not all aligned for me and I will step away and keep looking.

Thank you all again for both your support and for your cold water! A la prochaine.

S.

 

I

i think that is a wise choice. I've been in your shoes and I promise something better will come up-especially at the price point that these guys were asking. Good luck on your hunt

 

Where in Canada are you? Are you looking a Polerouter or are you open to other nice UGs?

 

I'm in Toronto, Ontario. While I admire most UGS from afar, my ownership focus is on Polerouters/Polerouter dates - I wear mine as a daily wearer and would like pick up a few to help preserve through rotation, ensure I can wear them for life and eventually share with family. Perhaps in a
few years I'll look around for a Sub, but for now my focus is singular and fairly simple.

 

You owe us a family shot of your Polerouters / Polerouter Dates

 

It's a small as a family can possibly be, but we have ambitions for growth. Pics of the nuclear starting point are forthcoming and will arrive as soon as one of the two members returns routine hospital visit.

 

Looking forward to it!