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Dial variation in Speedmasters

BartH
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Slow day at the office, so decided to play a little with my new smartphone macro lens.

I have two 145.012-67's in front of me with unmolested dials and what caught my attention was the variation in the dial structure. One has a more raised step (dial) and there is also a difference in how pronounced the cocentric circles in the subdials are.

Did Omega employ different dial manufacturers? I was under the impression* that they all came from Singer.

stepdial.jpg coring.jpg


*Mind you, I do not own MWO, I'm waiting for the new edition 馃槈

For fun couple more close ups. Notice how the left one has incorrectly repainted hands (too yellow and glossy paint).
twodials.jpg
Edited:
 
RJwatches
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Nice pictures Bart, the incorrect glossy relume paint is nice to see, don't think you'd see that without a macro lens, right?
 
BartH
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My watchmaker noticed that the white paint was off color and too glossy.

Don't think the hands were relumed.
 
Spacefruit
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A man after my own heart.

I spend hours staring at these things.

I believe, from piecing together bits of information over years, that the dials were mass produced and that the process wore out the machines - so an early dial might have sharper features than a later dial. Then they might have upgraded the machine, and so on.

I also believe omega tried alternate sources for all its parts, so we have small variations.

The best obvious example is the 105.012-66 with the CB case and the HF case. But also there are variations in one manufacturers output.
 
Fost
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Very nice Bart.
I discussed several time with friends which are quite good relumed guys and i think it is quite difficult to repaint hands wihtout relumed them..
Maybe I am wrong but if the hands are repainted , it might be relumed as well...
My 2 cents
 
BartH
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Spacefruit Spacefruit
A man after my own heart.

I spend hours staring at these things.

I believe, from piecing together bits of information over years, that the dials were mass produced and that the process wore out the machines - so an early dial might have sharper features than a later dial. Then they might have upgraded the machine, and so on.

I also believe omega tried alternate sources for all its parts, so we have small variations.

The best obvious example is the 105.012-66 with the CB case and the HF case. But also there are variations in one manufacturers output.

Ah an answer from the foremost speedmaster ogler 馃榾
I was discussing this a while ago with my Dutch mate @emilio who had two Ed White dials, where one clearly had fainter cocentric circles.
 
BartH
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Fost Fost
Very nice Bart.
I discussed several time with friends which are quite good relumed guys and i think it is quite difficult to repaint hands wihtout relumed them..
Maybe I am wrong but if the hands are repainted , it might be relumed as well...
My 2 cents

Not ruling it out. It behaves like old tritium paint, but theneagain...
 
Fost
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That could be tritium even if relumed! many guys stocked some old tritium lume and can still do a terrific job with it...
Anyway i found both hands set very homogenous and nice !
I am jealous...
 
BartH
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Fost Fost
That could be tritium even if relumed! many guys stocked some old tritium lume and can still do a terrific job with it...
Anyway i found both hands set very homogenous and nice !
I am jealous...

The rapainted hands do look rather homogenous. This watch isn't staying with me though, it's (for other reasons) going back to the seller, so it doesn't bother me if they're relumed.

IMG_0228.JPG IMG_0230.JPG
 
ConElPueblo
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Fost Fost
That could be tritium even if relumed! many guys stocked some old tritium lume and can still do a terrific job with it...
Anyway i found both hands set very homogenous and nice !
I am jealous...

Agree - you wouldn't repaint the hands with the lume still present. Mind you, the old luminous material could just as well have been reused after "soaking" for a while.
 
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