When a grail-worthy watch pops up, sometimes you just have to go and get it. That's part of my collecting philosophy, and my favorite buys are the one-owner "it spent 40 years in a drawer". The seller is happy, I'm happy, the watch is happy. In this case, the watch has lived an intense 15 years before being stored in a drawer for over 30 years. I'm absolutely not an expert in Zeniths, let alone early El Primeros, so I wanted to post this here to have a consensus. I believe that the watch (s/n 923D607) is a Mk3, looks original except the crown (which looks awful). The owner told me it was serviced in the seventies and then put to bed. The case looks good to me, probably not unpolished (anyone cares to guess?) but if it has been polished then the case was respected. To me it has just been worn, as worn cases seem to be a little less sharp than NOS watches... I feel like the only thing I should do is have it serviced and look for a Zenith crown: do you guys think that "service" crowns are available, even if not period correct ? I'm looking for a viable and honest alternative to dropping 1/1.5 grand on a crown (which isn't going to happen). Touchiez subject: I'm wondering if the two subdial hands (seconds and chrono hours) should be repainted white, since they have this greenish colour? It doesn't bother me, and feel like it's nice to have the watch the way it aged over 50 years, but maybe it would look nicer with "whiter" hands ? Thanks for your inputs. PS: the watch is incredibly wereable and comfortable, looks stunning in the flesh and the colors don't clash at all with each other. I wasn't sure if I was going to fall for it, but I feel like the charm is working... Btw, nicer pics and a @Fost strap are coming tonight, so stay tuned
I imagine you didn't sleep last night waiting for the post office to open Incredible barn find...2 in less than a month... Are you always so lucky? Some people will not find one in a entire life Enjoy your beauty mate!
Congrats ! Very nice und well done ! Honest condition but you should look for another crown (at least a Zenith Service one). I am happy for you and the forum. Great to see one without a xxxD460 serial
Haha I dreamt of the post office opening This one is not comparable to the Racing, the seller was fully aware of his watch, but for sure November 2017 has been a crazy month for me. I've just put the A386 on your strap, it's ridiculously spectacular
Thank you very much for the kind words! Yes I'll be looking for a crown, I'll bring the watch to a watchmaker once I'll have the crown. Happy as well to see the OF A386 family grow
As already commented on IG, I wish I find one in a similar condition - I really love that dial Congratulations
Merci bien @kov you will find one, they are out there, you just have to find the right drawers On the other hand, I'm more worried about finding a spectacular ultraman like yours... And why do you need 2 anyway ??
The dial is stunning, but the package as a whole is what really amazes me. The fact that they've produced such a watch in 1969 whilst the 6139s and cal11s were hamburgers on your wrist, it's crazy. The case is a real masterpiece, maybe my favorite aspect. Plus, let's talk about the @Fost straps: perfection
Great catch !!! Welcome to the club !!!! Case looks unpolished.... Get yourself a crown and polish the glass, then you're good
Thank you Fred! Glad to hear about the case from someone that knows a lot more than I do. I'm going to look for a crown, it might be a bit of a ball-buster but let's see what I can dig out
I love a good grail-worthy watch-in-a-drawer story! This is what I usually find in a 40 year old drawer:
Thanks for making me puke ! @Frederic_gva I'll take a pic this WE or next one of my 3 "drawer watches"
Quick update: the watch was left with a watchmaker that seems and is said to be very competent. He partially disassembled the movement in order to show me under the loupe the two pieces that would have suffered the most from wear on the movement: the rotor, and the reversing wheel (part n1488). He said that the 3019 looks great, though the oils look like crap now, but the date works well, and overall it's very clean, so I'm glad. The rotor is great but apparently the reversing wheel is just OK, he told me that it will keep on working until next service, but that replacing it wouldn't hurt (apparently they are prone to wear especially if the movement hasn't been serviced in a while).. Plus, the service crown looks like crap and I'd like a Zenith one (a service crown exists? Or from another model is fine). I've checked eBay for both parts (1488 wheel and crown, without the stem) but I have no idea what a decent price for these parts would be. Would anyone have advice as to where to find them (especially the crown) and a sensible price? Below are the specs needed for the crown: Thanks in advance guys!
