Hi Guys,

This is my first post on the forum and to be quite frank, i'm a total rookie when it comes to omega watches although I have owned one since Christmas 2006.
So, I would request you go easy on me... please?

I bought a Men's Omega Constellation from the AD in Abu Dhabi, UAE in 2006. Reference 12171500 Cal 1532.
It has a stainless steel/18k Gold full link bracelet, 40 diamonds on a gold bezel, champagne dial with a diamond pattern like you see on the leather seats of bentleys (have to look a bit close to see it) and 12 sapphires as hour markers.

I was told that this model was discontinued by the sales person and it was the only one they had remaining at the time. I have only worn it a handful of times and am considering parting with it so I can restore my grand fathers old watch.
So I went on to the vintage omega watch database and entered the reference numbers and calibre and couldn't find my variation of the watch on the site, I've also googled it around and can't seem to find an exact duplicate ref # and cal that matches the look of my watch.
http://www.omegawatches.com/spirit/history/vintage-omegas/vintage-watches-database
Could anyone tell me why that is?
Also, as I mentioned I'm considering parting with it and would really appreciate if someone could give me an idea of what it's worth because the only site where I did see the exact same watch with the ref and cal said $5000-$10,000 which struck me as quite odd. Would I be correct to assume that it's based on condition of the watch? I'm hoping someone could narrow those figures down for me. (Pictures of actual watch included)

Appreciate you taking the time to read this and Thanks in advance if you choose to reply with your wisdom

 

well after a bit of research i have found the exact same model with the ref and cal number on an official omega website.
http://www.omegawatches.com/collection/constellation/quartz/12171500
http://www.omegawatches.com/collection/constellation/quartz/12171500?type=501
First part done!
now to figure out what it's worth.... any ideas?

 

"worth more to you than anyone else?" *ouch!*
that doesn't sound too good... could you elaborate further as to why you say that?
yes, i'm the first and only owner, have everything that came with it, the box, spare links, outer box, manuals, cards, even have the sales receipt with my name on it. That helps right?

 

Without diamonds, the two tone Connie double claw quartz worth only USD 800-1000. In fact I was offered decent Two tone Automatic for USD 1100.
Diamonds is tricky to value, but I guess it would not be more than USD 1000, since it is smaller pieces diamonds.
So I guess USD 1800 - 2200 would be the market value.....with caveat only for the ones who like diamonds.

That's why citizenrich advised you to stick with it rather than sell it.

 

Just curious, how much did you buy back then?

 

Hmmmm I see....so i guess there isn't anything "limited" or "rare" value attached to this either even though production has been discontinued?

my grand fathers ss/rose gold Rolex 1601 is probably worth more at this rate and he wore his watch everyday for nearly 25 years.

the list price on the invoice before i got a decent discount on it comes to $6200

I'm surprised such an expensive watch has failed to retain a third of it's value in a mere 6 years.

 

What it cost when you bought it doesn't necessarily reflect what it's worth now. Demand dictates a large part of value, and there's not much demand for a 6 year old men's quartz two tone watch with diamonds.

 

Unfortunately no limited or rare value assigned to double claw Constellation except: it is limited 150 year edition or all gold cloissone dial.
Indeed 1990 Rolex datejust two tone without diamond worth more ( around USD 2500 - 3000).

If at that time you buy 2 Speedmaster Pro limited or numbered edition (eg Apollo XI landing commemoration and Moon to Mars) with that money, current value would be MORE than USD 5,000. Again it is as ulackfocus said, a matter of demand rather than supply.

 

You mean 11 diamonds as dial markers, right?

As others have said, it's a TT quartz watch with diamonds, so not really a highly sought after model. I'm going to suggest that there is probably a bigger market for women to wear this watch than men (although my wife hates diamonds on watches). It's small enough that a woman could wear it easily, since many women are wearing men's sized watches these days. For example my wife wears a men's DateJust, and at 36 mm it's great for her.

Good luck with whatever you decide. Likely better off keeping it as a special occasion watch maybe for what you would get out of it.

Cheers, Al

 

My wife agrees with you Al . She doesnt care it is not automatic, and diamonds are super magnet to her.

 

yes, 11 diamonds in the dial as well, 51 in total.
I get the whole supply and demand aspect of the valuation... funny thing is that i was selling it because i thought it wasn't a "MAN" enough watch for me anymore and wanted to get something more durable that i can wear everyday. so i can definitely relate to that thinking.
Cheers for the opinions, decided to keep a hold of it for now and might as well use it a bit more.

 

But that was automatic. Quartz is another detracting factor.

 

quartz doesn't always make a watch less valuable. I think high end brands like Piaget have demonstrated this over time. rolex oysterquartz day - dates are generally more valuable that their contemporary automatic versions. I think this is surprising to a lot of folks who are taught that quartz watches are basically worthless.

you could very well be correct in this case. I really don't know enough about Omegas to know if quartz lowers the value of this particular reference.

 

Being equal model, almost all automatic watch is more expensive than quartz, including Omega.
I agree quartz does not mean bad or low quality watch. Al/ Archer has eloquently written about that in this article: http://omegaforums.net/threads/quartz-watches-some-information-some-may-find-interesting.5475/

If you are interested in Rolex Oysterquartz, I know one who are willing to sell ALL GOLD 18K in good condition only for USD 7.5K. Similar model and year with Automatic movement fetch more than USD 9k at least.

 

Yes it does - see below:

The Rolex Oysterquartz is an uncommon watch which makes it valuable but not necessarily more valuable than a Day/Date automatic. Otherwise even quartz watches from brands like Piaget are less valuable as quartz than their otherwise identical mechanicals.

 

Thanks for the tip citizenrich.
I suppose enthusiasts and collectors would prefer an auto compared to a quartz. I've gone a couple of times to get the battery changed on this watch and it seemed like a bit of a chore to be honest since its a watch i seldom wear. i would have liked that whenever i needed to wear it i could take it out, give it a little shake , set the time and be on my way.
That being said, i wouldn't mind quartz for an everyday watch, a change of battery is only needed once every 2-3 years and if that means having an extra couple of grand lining my pockets while the watch looks exactly the same regardless of the mechanics, seems like a chore i can live with.
If it retailed cheaper because its quartz, seems fair it would resale cheaper, but that makes me wonder if my watch was an auto, how much would it have retailed for? $8000?
i believe that would have been around the datejust price range (if i'm not wrong) in which case i probably would have gone for that.

 

I have the exact same piece. It was a present from my in laws and I was young and uneducated in timeoieces when I told my fiancé which one I wanted. It was my first expensive watch and I figured an expensive watch should look expensive and didn't know anything about the movement. If I had to choose now I would choose a much more toned down automatic. There's a Deville I have my eyes on. There is a slightly heavier version of this piece in automatic that retails for 18000... Just to give you an idea