Hi all, I just picked up this Polerouter for approximately $245. Although I do enough reading on this, and other forums, I made some basic mistakes. I liked the watch and bought it, although I don't particularly like gold never mind gold plated watches . Here in South Africa, nice watches are few and far between. This caused a hasty purchase as the auction time was running out. The photos posted of the watch were not great and a request for more were not answered. Despite this I took a chance... Having received the watch I picked up that it is gold plated and not filled as noted in the auction. I think that the crown is a replacement as it is not signed and does not sit flush against the case. The description of the watch was fairly good as the described damage on the case is present (I wish this was incorrect). What attracted me to the watch is the crystal, which I assume is original, as it has an inverted cyclops over the date. Should the crystal be signed? The outside of the case back has 2 numbers which I assume will be the serial number and case number. The 7-digit number dates the watch to 1960 to '61. The other number is a 6-digit number with a dash and a single digit. I assume this is the case number. Below are a few pictures of the actual watch for any comments. I wouldn't mind cleaning the watch up as it is a pretty cool watch to have. This does however require a full service (the microtor is making an ugly sound), a new crown, dial clean up (worried that the missing lume dots are still in the watch somewhere) and the damaged gold plating will need to be dealt with (or left as is as long as it doesn't deteriorate further). The cost of a new one which isn't gold plated may be cheaper though. What do you guys think of the watch and the restoration of it? Should I keep it or move it on and look elsewhere? Kind Regards JP
If you genuinely like it, it would make a neat project at the very least. I'd move it on if you don't fancy spending the time/money on it.
Look, it's a nice watch and I don't think you grossly overpaid, though you certainly didn't get a steal. If you really end up not wanting it, you can open up a case against your buyer, should he not accept a return, since your watch is not gold plated.
It's certainly a good watch for a project. My only real concern would be finding parts to sort out the "ugly sound".
Thank you for the comments. I think the sound is more from a lack of service. It is a dry, grinding sound. The movement looks good but definitely needs a clean. I'm no expert but it seems like some humidity is present on the top plates (this is apparent in the movement pics). When I got the watch it had an old leather strap on it. It smelt fairly mouldy which leads me to believe its been lying in a drawer for a long time. Lack of mould leads me to believe the smell is not from sweat. Feel like Sherlock Holmes right now... Does anyone know the material used for this crystal and if it can be polished clear? Has anyone ever considered re-plating a watch?