Is There Any Reliable Way Of Knowing Whether A Ww1 Watch Like This Is Authentic?

crockodillopig · Jan 4, 2013

Hi all,

I'm new here!

I've just seen this on Ebay (link below), and it seems like a nice watch, but suspiciously cheap and quite a marked difference between the dates implied by the case and movement numbers.

I guess the question is: What are the key things that identify whether a watch like this is a franken-watch, a fake or a nice piece of history?

Thanks all, I'm sure you get a lot of this sort of thing!

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Rare-Vint...563&pid=100015&prg=1006&rk=1&sd=261150171509&

fjf · Jan 4, 2013

If it is an original enamel dial, it sure looks VERY nice!.

agee · Jan 4, 2013

I agree it almost look to nice to be original, but the sellers description and pictures make it appear good
Nice case to this watch-I like those WWI vintage trench style watches. I'm looking for one to add to my military collection

gatorcpa · Jan 4, 2013

There are a couple of things about this watch that I'm not too crazy about:

1. The serial number on the movement is in the 2 million range, while the serial number on the case is 5.5 million. That means the movement was made between 1902 and 1906, while the case was made closer to 1916 or 1917. While this is plausible, my spider sense smells recase.

2. Very few Omega movements at that time even had a serial number on the back of the movement. Most of the time they were under the dial.

The above being said, I do believe the dial is original to the movement. Whether this is a recase or not, it is a very pretty watch. I just wouldn't get too caught up in the military hype without further provenance to a specific branch.

gatorcpa