Hello all, Long time, no post. I took a break from the forum for a few months because it seemed like I was spending every waking hour on here for a time. In the interim, I added what I believe is a lovely 1997 Speedmaster by way of @Noles_88. As a child of the 90s, I felt I should throw one of these in the mix. Trying to shake the rust off by analyzing a selection of eBay Speedmasters. Hopefully i'm not spoiling the game for anyone here, but I feel like we all have eBay alerts set up for speedmasters at this point. Here we go...feel free to debate/correct/contradict/insult/shout/whatever. 1. "Estate Fresh" 145.022-69 w/DON https://www.ebay.com/itm/Omega-Spee...9ST-Vintage-Estate-Fresh-Working/274570014141Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network Case: big fan of the case on this one. I love to see those fat polished feet on the back of the case. Case lines look quite strong and unaltered. I would put this in the good to very good category. Bezel: fair amount of gunk and grime on the bezel that should clean up well. That being said, the ding near 70, the overall fading of the bezel, and the considerable "meteors" between 90 and 180 put this one in the fair category for me. Hands: don't like the dark color of the lume and would dock the value accordingly but this doesn't ruin the watch for me Movement: looks like it needs a service, guessing it has never had one. nothing looks damaged, but nothing looks clean. the serial matches for 145.022-69 pre-moon on ilovemyspeedmaster Dial: a bit of a question mark as the crystal is quite scuffed up. It is a step dial, type C1 with medium S, so it is correct. I suspect the lume is of the "mint green" variety, but could also be a faint yellow; hard to tell from the pictures. I do not see any signs of lume loss beyond the step. A few lume plots look to have dirty spots, 3 o'clock in particular, but its hard to tell. From what I can tell, there is no degradation to the hour/minute track and the body of the dial looks like a true black throughout. I think we have a good dial on our hands here. Valuation: considering what many of the 145.022-69 with tired dials have been going for on eBay of late, this one could sell relatively cheaply if it is anywhere near those. I would value this in the $6500-7500 range but could see it going for 8500-9000. With its current hands/bezel, i think it should not receive top marks, but some people might view this as a "barn find" and bid high. The seller has elected to start the bidding at 6000USD, and watches sometimes struggle when the starting point is 'relatively' close to their value. 2. 145.012-67 from well known seller https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Om...h-145-012-67-Cal-321-Tropical-NR/203180184815Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network I'll start with the seller's description as it covers most of the bases: The case has been lightly polished in the past, with thick and even lugs. Dial in good condition with no wear/scratches, and is being to turn a nice dark chocolate brown color. Dial and hands have been professionally relumed by James Hyman in the UK, and glow similar to original tritium when exposed to UV. Original Omega-signed crystal has minor scuffs/wear. Watch is running, and chronograph operates as it should; chronograph starts, stops, counts down, and resets to 12, although service history is unknown and recommended at buyer's expense. Serial number (26xxxxxx) is in correct range for this reference. Original DON (Dot Over Ninety) bezel in excellent condition. Bracelet is an Omega 1039 flat-folded link, dated to 1969, with 516 endlinks, in good condition, and will fit an approximate 7" wrist. This one could sell well just due to the very nice DON/correct flat foot crown/correct type 4 pushers/1039/clean 321. I personally don't care about 1039s as I think they are a bit overvalued and they are quite fragile, typically with a fair amount of stretch. If I had one, I don't think I would wear it. Something that is bothering me is the hands on this one. It could be the relume job, but the lume almost doesn't look centered on the hour hand? The chrono hand is the flat end (which many threads on this forum would attest is correct) but it just looks odd, with what looks like white paint in part of the lume well. The hands look tired in relation to the rest of the watch. I would attest that this watch has had more than a "light polish" as the seller says. The 5 o'clock lug's polished portion is too large if you look at the profile shot. The dial looks very nice, and the relume on the dial is a good job in my book. I am curious what others on this forum would value this at, as for me, it is a finger in the air situation. If I had to guess, I would say many parts of this watch were not born together, so I think the correct way to look at it is "sum of the parts". As of the time of this writing, bidding sits at $6000. 3. 105.003-64 in the UK https://www.ebay.com/itm/Omega-Speedmaster-105-003-64-Ed-White/233778706528Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network Case: seller claims the case is unpolished, I am not convinced but am curious what others think here. How can anyone claim a watch of this age is unpolished? Seems kind of irrelevant when looking at an Ed White. From the back, the lugs look a touch thin to me. Not great contrast from the photos for this type of analysis Bezel: Nice correct DON with a bluish tinge. I like the bezel and I think could be one that changes color based on the lighting Dial/Hands: Correct close T type A7 dial. Nice yellow lume throughout. I am a poor judge of whether or not a watch has been relumed, but I am leaning toward this one being relumed. The even yellow patina seems inconsistent with the rest of the dial. Please chime in with opinions. The hands have nice white paint and look pleasing to me. The main hangup for me on this watch is the unevenness of the dial patina. There is a splotch in the running seconds subdial that I am not a huge fan of. There appear to be tinges of brown, but also some paint loss on the dial around the step. I fear this dial may have been mishandled at some point in the past to cause this damage. Despite this, the hour and minute tracks look nice and crisp to me. The dial is likely to heavily cap the value of this watch. Crown/Pushers/Caseback: Correct double bevel caseback but has lost most of the definition, likely from wear. I can't tell from the pictures if it is a 24 tooth, narrow flat foot, which would be correct. The pushers look like the medium variety to me, which would be correct. Movement: not much to report here i think, serial matches for the reference. needs a service and a few parts have oil splotches or some corrosion Valuation: tough watch to value but i think it will likely go for less than 10k USD. I don't think it is good value there as the dial is too much of a turn off for me. 4. 105.012-65 I'll come right out with it. I love this watch, at a price. Am I right in saying this watch has bounced around the forum previously? Case/back: nice and honest with a fair amount of wear. Much of the definition in the brushing is likely gone but the lines are still there. The gouge in the 7 o'clock lug doesn't bother me too much for a watch of this overall condition. Double bevel caseback is correct for this reference with a fair amount of wear and scratches. Dial/Hands: Looks like a correct B2 dial (round O, close Ts, long indices). Main concern with the dial is two light spots on either side of the script. I detect a secondary tinge of brown that I think is nice. The seller states the hands are service units that I am guessing have been color matched at some point. The dial plots have dirt spots and I can't decide if these have been relumed or not. At the right price point, it is not a huge concern for me but please share your opinions. Bezel: Correct DON bezel. Some do not like the heavily faded/chipped look. I think it can look good as long as it matches the watch, and I think in this case it does. This should factor into the valuation though. Crown/Pushers: Love the correct wide neck pushers, main reason I love the 105.012. Looks like a correct flat foot, 24 tooth crown. Valuation: Pending my wife's blessing, I would be a buyer of this watch for <$7500. I fear it will go much higher, but that it how I'm looking at it. A solid "fair" on condition, but an attractive watch nonetheless. A long post, but I'm getting back in the swing of things!
Also, another “ultra man” on eBay. No idea if it’s legit or not https://www.ebay.com/itm/193751891913Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network
#1 looks like a hole through the caseback. Under the hypocampus through to a mark right on the 69 internal. Could be wrong of course. I would also wait until auctions are complete instead of posting a bunch ending shortly all at once but hey, that’s me. Not like stuff flys under the radar on eBay but you may increase your own competition.
yeah my assumption is anyone looking for these references on here is aware of these auctions. This post is more so for me to sharpen my skills and have other people weigh in. I’m guessing there are other people on here looking at these watches who will probably wait until the auctions end to give their views
I get the point of your post and appreciate it! Just saying not everyone is actively looking and there are some very deep pockets here so if you are interested in a piece you may not want to point it out to the masses while it’s active. Someone may just say what the heck, don’t need it but it’s nice,,, It really wasn’t a “get off my lawn!” post
#4 went for $6400USD. I think someone got a deal. I never did get that approval from my better half...
I think that your valuations are generally on the high side, particularly on #1. I'm not sure anyone will start the bidding at $6k. I wouldn't.
that could be. I haven't paid super close attention the last several months. I'm looking at these watches through the lens of the turn of the year.
For what it's worth, like @140dave, I'm personally not really a fan of threads like this. If you are seriously considering purchasing a watch and have legitimate questions to ask, then ok ... if you're willing to accept the competition. But just gratuitously posting every Speedmaster auction you can find, even if you're not going to bid, seems a bit much. Just my opinion.
Thanks for that post, so was about to make one to know what was wrong with number 4 as it seemed to be like a pretty food deal I regretted missing...Now I know more!