Greetings from Dublin, Ireland and a watch query

X350 XJR

These are great watches, I have the same one. They use the caliber 861, which is the same one used in the Speedmaster.

R radgi

another one the print of which is not quite clear but the back of the case says royal oak which again looks like a gold watch. It is octagonal

jimmyd13

I'm going to start a line of people to take turns in giving yuo a good slap ...

Does the octagonal watch look like this:
https://www.crmjewelers.com/wp-content/uploads/26331OR.OO_.1220OR.01.jpg
If so, it's probably safe to say it's north of £30,000 on its own.

R radgi

Yes thats how the watch looks but does not have the 2 extra buttons on the side. But the small squares on the dial are the same. Also the watch in your picture looks brownish whereas my grandpa's watch is yellow in colour like gold. What is so special about royal oak? and why are they so expensive?

jimmyd13

So more like this:
https://d23x6d9cx8qezf.cloudfront.n...-Royal-Oak-Extra-Thin-15202-Yellow-Gold-2.jpg
There are three top tier ateliers (watch "factories", but the word factory doesn't do them justice ... "houses" is probably better) .. those are Vacheron Constantin, Patek Phillipe and Audmars Piguet. Why are they so expensive? Well, they are an incredibly perfect machine housed in a hunk of solid gold. Everything, right down to the screws that hold it together, is an exercise in seeking engineering perfection. If you compare, say, a Rolex sub to an AP Royal Oak it's like comparing an Aston Martin DB-11 to a One-77. And there's the price difference.

R radgi

Yes that is how the watch looks. Sorry if my questions come across as basic but I am not a watch enthusiast and am just starting to learn about watches after having seen my grandpa's collection. Looks like he knew a lot about watches and collected some decent ones.

jimmyd13

Don't take my (envious) sarcasm to heart ... this is starting to sound like a collection that needs a professional appraisal. Assuming that these watches are genuine, then you are looking at a very valuable collection and you're going to have to give serious thought as to how to handle it ... even if we're just talking about insurance provision.

gatorcpa

The Dynamics were considered "sport" watches and were usually sold in steel and gold plate as others have mentioned. Full 18K versions are rather rare. I looked at a bunch of Old Omega catalogs from the 1970's. Not a single solid gold Dynamic in there. It almost certainly was a special order when new.

I would love to see the pictures of the Royal Oak. It was designed by Gerald Genta, one of the most famous watch designers. He also designed the Omega Constellation and other iconic watches for several different houses.

Your grandfather had fantastic taste.
gatorcpa

gatorcpa

The bracelet has proper hallmarks, so I think it is solid gold, either 14K or 18K. It would be highly unusual for a gold, Omega signed bracelet to be attached to anything other than a matching karat gold watch.

Once you get it opened by a qualified watchmaker, you'll have your answers.
gatorcpa