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Is this a reasonable price for a service?

A
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I took my new vintage omega to a reputable watchmaker in my city. He quoted me $265 for a full service. He said it hasn't been serviced since the 90s and he needs to polish some parts inside.

It's a fairly basic movement with no date complication. Cal 591.

wZPvcH1.jpg

He also told me that the movement is not really common so be extra careful to not drop it because it's gonna cost a lot to fix broken parts. Is this true?
 
SkunkPrince
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For where I am, that's about half of what I would expect to pay. You might want to ask him how closely he's going to adjust it. If his response is "30 seconds a day and you're lucky", take that into consideration.

Many of the collectors on this site just want their watch to run and they don't care how accurate it is because they don't wear the watches, or they only wear it for a day or a fraction of a day.

I, personally, pay extra for another round of adjustment because I wear one watch for days at a time, and perhaps weeks.

You will now see multiple posts vilifying me but that's OK. It really depends on your goal.
 
SkunkPrince
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A afaw34
He also told me that the movement is not really common so be extra careful to not drop it because it's gonna cost a lot to fix broken parts. Is this true?

This means that he likely does not have an Omega parts account so he has to find the parts on the secondary market. Factory service would take care of "woops, I dropped it" but that has its own issues for collectors, who go batshit insane when someone gets their watch serviced by Omega.

It's just a good idea to never drop your watch. 😁
 
K
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That feels expensive for a basic time only watch - consider shopping around to other qualified watchmakers
 
Shabbaz
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The price really depends on location but also what a watchmaker has to do. This depends on the condition of the movement. But in general I would say $ 265 is reasonable. My watchmaker asks EUR 225 for servicing a cal 565 ex costs of replacing parts.
 
JimInOz
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K killer67
That feels expensive for a basic time only watch - consider shopping around to other qualified watchmakers

Well we don't know what city the watchmaker is in or what sort of dollars are involved.

In my city, $265 is a very reasonable price for a service.
 
K
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JimInOz JimInOz
Well we don't know what city the watchmaker is in or what sort of dollars are involved.

In my city, $265 is a very reasonable price for a service.

that’s true - OP location might be a better indicator
 
ZIELSZIEK
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Eric304 Eric304
in LA range from $500 to $1500 for a vintage speedy
Well, that's a manual wound chronograph.
OP's watch is a no date, autowinder.
It's a different story
 
timecube
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I'm wondering what a no date, autowinder would run in the LA market, actually.
 
wilderbeast
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It’s worth seeing what else is around, of course. But I would never underestimate the skill required to service a vintage watch and it’s important to build up a relationship of trust. I’m happy to pay £280 for an automatic (admittedly with date complication) in London, but I know that my pieces are in good hands and they always come back keeping excellent time.
 
Eric304
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ZIELSZIEK ZIELSZIEK
Well, that's a manual wound chronograph.
OP's watch is a no date, autowinder.
It's a different story
Exactly! So now he can be the judge if the $265 is reasonable or not 😉
 
Biezmez
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Shabbaz Shabbaz
The price really depends on location but also what a watchmaker has to do. This depends on the condition of the movement. But in general I would say $ 265 is reasonable. My watchmaker asks EUR 225 for servicing a cal 565 ex costs of replacing parts.
Yep, I pay about the same (€225/250) for a service plus parts on this type of watch movement.
 
kkt
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An Omega authorized watchmaker, who would have access to parts from Omega, would charge in the $700 range here. That's also what Omega would charge - except if you get an independent Omega authorized watchmaker they are more likely to listen when you tell them not to polish the case.
 
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