Inherited omega dynamic... worth the price to repair?

simko · Jul 19, 2021

Hi Everyone
My grandfather passed away peacefully in April, like me, he appreciated nice things and one watch in his collection that was not taken by other family members was an omega dynamic, with a blue bulls-eye dial and date (ladies model?) regardless, it has the original bracelet and is sized well for me, we had the same 6.5" flat topped wrists. Anyways, im VERY fortunate to have Archer Watches nearby (30 minute drive). Al kindly sent me updates on what would need to be replaced and he warned me of the following:
"....in addition to the new mainspring that I will install in the watch ($66), the following parts required replacement:
1 - Third wheel - $47
2 - Fourth wheel - $47
3 - Winding wheel assembly - $56 - this is a remanufactured part, so I have to send the old one back to Omega for exchange in order to get a new part, so I cannot return this part to you like I will with the rest.
4 - Ratchet wheel driving wheel - $47
5 - Small satellite winding wheel - $47
6 - Large satellite winding wheel - $47

I did mention that the crown was supposed to separate from the watch, however I didn't realize it came apart quite as easily as this one does. So there are two parts involved in this item that is known as a split winding stem - the part that attaches to the movement, and the part that stays attached to the crown. I'm not sure if I will need to replace one or both as this point, but I will only replace what is needed of course. These are $18 each, so it could be $18 or $36 for these parts.

In addition, the crown on the watch no longer has an effective seal, and the watch didn't pass pressure testing for water resistance when ti arrived. In order to make sure this watch doesn't leak when worn, I would suggest replacing the crown, which is $32.

New Crystal - $88 ..."

Of course, Al did much more explaining in our emails so I have paraphrased what he sent me.

This list comes to around ~970 CAD.

My question for today is, sentimental value aside, is this still considered a good investment on a watch like this? Ideally i would have this fixed and wear it for formal/business occasions, but if I did need to sell, would I be able to recover what I would spend into fixing this watch?

thanks everyone!

Revo · Jul 19, 2021

I'm not sure you'd get your money back if you sold it but for me that wouldn't matter.

DaveK · Jul 19, 2021

For the most part, watches + investment aren’t words that should go together. Your grandfather’s watch + investment seems like a balanced portfolio though. If you have the funds and want to wear the watch, go for it. At least you don’t have to pay shipping costs 👍 Usually, the cost of service is not recouped when a watch is sold. If you look at eBay sold listings, you’ll see that $1000 is very steep for a ladies-sized Dynamic, but none of those are listed as your family’s watches

jeppe888 · Jul 19, 2021

its a difficult decision and there are both pros and cons, you will probably not be able to get your money back but does it matter?
i think Dave describes it pretty well

JwRosenthal · Jul 19, 2021

That looks like a man’s size in your hand. Should be around 35-37mm. Ladies was around 28-30mm.
It’s in nice shape and has the factory bracelet. If it were a basket case like so many heirloom watches we see, I would say just keep it in a drawer as a keepsake. But this is your grandfathers watch, it’s quite a stylish statement piece (these dynamics are very groovy) and they are on the rise in “value”, but are not “worth” your investment-yet- but that is a matter for you to decide as @DaveK mentioned.
If this were a pie Pan constellation, everyone would be saying to service it- I don’t see why this should get any less respect considering - it was your grandfathers watch.

Archer · Jul 19, 2021

This is the full sized Dynamic, case #166.039. Has a Cal. 565 inside.

jaguar11 · Jul 19, 2021

If it were my Grandfathers the the question of it being a "good investment" would not even approach my mind as being a relevant consideration. Good luck!

JwRosenthal · Jul 19, 2021

jaguar11
If it were my Grandfathers the the question of it being a "good investment" would not even approach my mind as being a relevant consideration. Good luck!

I agree with this. But if I were quoted close to $1k to service my grandfathers gold filled Gruen- I would also ask if it were “worth it”. In this case (grandfather connection aside)- I think you would be hard pressed to find a watch of this quality and style today for under $1k

Larry S · Jul 19, 2021

A) you are fortunate to have Archer n the hood. B) Absolutely spend the cash to fix your grandfathers watch. C) You will have a very handsome, reliable watch when it comes back

DaveK · Jul 19, 2021

JwRosenthal
I agree with this. But if I were quoted close to $1k to service my grandfathers gold filled Gruen- I would also ask if it were “worth it”. In this case (grandfather connection aside)- I think you would be hard pressed to find a watch of this quality and style today for under $1k

If it didn’t have a date window (my personal preference) I’d happily pay $1k for this watch that was serviced by Archer.

Canuck · Jul 19, 2021

If your only requirement is a watch to wear, whose sole function is to give you the time, WalMart could sell you 10 (or more) watches that would last you for decades. By that token, this one isn’t worth repair. But if this one is worn 90% because you love it and the family connection, and 10 % because it tells time, it is very much worth it!

kingsrider · Jul 19, 2021

Do it now. The couple hundred CAD it will cost over the value will be absorbed in time 😀 and more than that, the joy you will receive when the watch is returned, will be worth every Maple leaf penny.
The dynamic is a piece of art.
https://revolutionwatch.com/watch-i-love-omega-dynamic/
https://www.thewatchcompany.com/blog/guide-to-omega-dynamic/

simko · Jul 19, 2021

Revo
I'm not sure you'd get your money back if you sold it but for me that wouldn't matter.

I appreciate the honesty, now I am leaning more towards the sentimental side, and will ask Al to move forward with the work, thank you!

DaveK
For the most part, watches + investment aren’t words that should go together. Your grandfather’s watch + investment seems like a balanced portfolio though. If you have the funds and want to wear the watch, go for it. At least you don’t have to pay shipping costs Usually, the cost of service is not recouped when a watch is sold. If you look at eBay sold listings, you’ll see that $1000 is very steep for a ladies-sized Dynamic, but none of those are listed as your family’s watches

Thanks for your honesty re: watches + investment! Very happy that instead of paying shipping I get to take a scenic drive to Archer! As confirmed below I was mistaken and this is a man's watch.

jeppe888
its a difficult decision and there are both pros and cons, you will probably not be able to get your money back but does it matter?

i think Dave describes it pretty well

Agree with both you and Dave.

JwRosenthal
That looks like a man’s size in your hand. Should be around 35-37mm. Ladies was around 28-30mm.

It’s in nice shape and has the factory bracelet. If it were a basket case like so many heirloom watches we see, I would say just keep it in a drawer as a keepsake. But this is your grandfathers watch, it’s quite a stylish statement piece (these dynamics are very groovy) and they are on the rise in “value”, but are not “worth” your investment-yet- but that is a matter for you to decide as @DaveK mentioned.

If this were a pie Pan constellation, everyone would be saying to service it- I don’t see why this should get any less respect considering - it was your grandfathers watch.

Thanks for your reply. I agree that it is a neat groovy piece, once finished I will wear it, and im sure I will be the only person who appreciates the beauty, unless another watch enthusiast happensto be around 😀.

Archer
This is the full sized Dynamic, case #166.039. Has a Cal. 565 inside.

Glad I didnt say anything bad about you!😀

jaguar11
If it were my Grandfathers the the question of it being a "good investment" would not even approach my mind as being a relevant consideration. Good luck!

Fair enough, I have spent 1000 on sillier things!

JwRosenthal
I agree with this. But if I were quoted close to $1k to service my grandfathers gold filled Gruen- I would also ask if it were “worth it”. In this case (grandfather connection aside)- I think you would be hard pressed to find a watch of this quality and style today for under $1k

This is a question i ask myself, how much will it cost to buy a qwatch of similar quality.... I agree with you, if I were in the market for a nice mechanical watch I would be looking at an aqua terra, seamaster 300 or railmaster... none of which are in the $1000 range.

Larry S
A) you are fortunate to have Archer n the hood. B) Absolutely spend the cash to fix your grandfathers watch. C) You will have a very handsome, reliable watch when it comes back

A) Agreed! B) Will do! C) Agreed again!

DaveK
If it didn’t have a date window (my personal preference) I’d happily pay $1k for this watch that was serviced by Archer.

Thanks! I actually prefer having the date

Canuck
If your only requirement is a watch to wear, whose sole function is to give you the time, WalMart could sell you 10 (or more) watches that would last you for decades. By that token, this one isn’t worth repair. But if this one is worn 90% because you love it and the family connection, and 10 % because it tells time, it is very much worth it!

My daily watch is a gw5610, it handles everything and lights up in the middle of the night.. I don’t expect this to do that, but the Gshock doesn’t have the history, or class that this does!

Well, looks like the tribe of omegaforums has spoken. I will post updates when I can! Thanks Everyone!

simko · Jul 19, 2021

kingsrider
Do it now. The couple hundred CAD it will cost over the value will be absorbed in time 😀 and more than that, the joy you will receive when the watch is returned, will be worth every Maple leaf penny.
The dynamic is a piece of art.
https://revolutionwatch.com/watch-i-love-omega-dynamic/
https://www.thewatchcompany.com/blog/guide-to-omega-dynamic/

Ah you snuck in while I was replying to everyone else!
Thanks for the links, we (archer) is moving on with this project!

wilderbeast · Jul 19, 2021

You have already said that you would like to wear the watch for special occasions and it’s a classic dial variant of a model that has its fans and is gaining in popularity.

it seems a lot now, but the investment is not so much in value recouped from selling in future, but in ensuring that this watch, which you clearly like and appreciate, will be able to be enjoyed on your wrist for a fair few years to come.

EDIT: I now see you are going ahead. Great news! Welcome to the Dynamic club - my MkI Royal Blue says hi:

perks713 · Jul 19, 2021

It's a nice looking watch. As others have said you probably won't see the full amount you put into it back in a sale. It's hard to judge the ebay sales prices on these when comparing to a fully serviced watch. Almost anything you see on ebay with a $400-$500 US price tag probably still needs a few hundred dollars worth of servicing. If you had to sell this in a few years you might not get all your money back but I think it's reasonable to say you'd get a good chunk of it. Especially because you'd be selling a watch that was "serviced a few years ago" and you can include the PDF Archer sends you afterwards.

Enjoy it, happy to see you're moving forward with it!

LesXL · Jul 19, 2021

Larry S
A) you are fortunate to have Archer n the hood. B) Absolutely spend the cash to fix your grandfathers watch. C) You will have a very handsome, reliable watch when it comes back

D) that could probably go to another generation too 😀

cristos71 · Jul 19, 2021

I once spent double what it cost me to buy a watch on servicing it, thinking I'd never recoup my money and it was a terrible 'investment'.

I've now enjoyed the perfectly working watch for 5 or 6 years and today it's market value is about 7 or 8 times what I paid for it. So what today may seem like not such a great investment can tomorrow be a quite different story, and that's not including the value and enjoyment given by restoring a family piece.

Revo · Jul 20, 2021

Be sure to keep us updated.

You’re one of us now!

w154 · Jul 20, 2021

Please don’t shoot me down... I’m just trying to give a rounded view here...

The OP mentions that he might wear the watch on special occasions only, so I guess fairly infrequently. It does seem quite possible that over time the frequency of wearing or might reduce. Of course it might not, but it might. So let’s say the OP might wear it for 25 days over the next 5 years. Then also I’m not actually clear whether it’s running or not right now ? If it is, was your grandfather wearing it regularly until he sadly passed ? If it is working, and it is likely to have little use in the future, then you “could” consider just leaving it as it is. I’d say it boils down to how much the 970CAD means to you.

Also there’s the possibility of buying a donor 565 to swap in. Now I personally wouldn’t even consider this on a family watch as you’d be losing a large part of the character, but there are plenty of guys in the watch business that would. It’s potentially one of the cheapest ways to get it running if it’s not running at the moment. It would certainly damage the collector value on an expensive watch (as any archive extract in the future wouldn’t match), but this watch isn’t quite in that value range.

So there are options. It’s clear that the more you spend the better the result, but without knowing someone’s fininacial situation it’s hard to state outright that a 1k service with an Omega authorised watchmaker is the best option for you.

Inherited omega dynamic... worth the price to repair?

simko

Revo

DaveK

jeppe888

JwRosenthal

Archer

jaguar11

JwRosenthal

Larry S

DaveK

Canuck

kingsrider

simko

simko

wilderbeast

perks713

LesXL

cristos71

Revo

w154

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