Hey all,

Over the weekend my girlfriend's grandmother invited me over to her house to pick out a diamond from her collection so I could get an engagement ring made. After choosing one she handed me a generic watch box that contained this watch. I have no paperwork or anything on it and the only back story I received was that her first husband was an accountant with Getty and at some point in his career he was given the watch as a gift. The band is a Spiedel which I assume was just Getty's way of getting their logo on the watch. I've always saw myself buying a few nice watches down the road but as I'm currently in my last year of law school....I'm broke. Ideally I'd like to get the watch cleaned up and running so I can wear it. If anyone had any information on what exactly it is, how old, what it's worth, etc., I would love to learn more about it and it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

Hello
The watch is from the 1970s and has a tuning fork movement inside, which was developed by Bulova in the 1950s. The technology was also used in satellites and spaceship instruments. There are quite a few companies that used this type of movement in its watches from the late 50s to the early 70s before quartz watches became the main alternative to mechanical watches. If you google omega f300 then you can find lots of information about these watches and looking at ebay will give you an idea of what they sell for, which is usually between the mid to low hundreds. If it is gold capped or gold filled then probably nearer the lower end of the price range as they are not very popular. A lot of watch collecters have no interest in these particular watches save a few models, but I think they are great watches and have a few of them in my collection. Put it on a leather strap and enjoy it.

 

Interesting. Thanks for the info I appreciate it!

 

Wouldn't the stainless steel back imply gold filled and not solid gold?

Nice piece, those watches are also called hummer as they hum. These are generally pre quartz.

If you do get it serviced and wear it I would put it in a leather strap to protect the gold layer on the lugs from being worn off by the bracelet.

This is a nice example and some collectors love these.

 

Your big problem will be that if that hasn't run for many years then there may be a corroding cell inside. As a priority I would get the back off and get the old cell out. Replace it with a 344 cell and it may just work if the old cell hasn't leaked. These are very robust movements.

Hummers are great but not worth huge amounts, gold filled/plated just isn't popular anymore. That one will be somewhere 1970-1974 at a guess, you can check from the movement number when you open it. My avatar is a 1973 hummer by the way.

For more info see:

http://electric-watches.co.uk/

 

Looks to be in good condition. The gold plating on these models is very thick, which makes any scratches you'd get from wearing it much less noticeable.

Hopefully the movement still works. As others have said, you'll want to remove the back, remove the old battery, and replace it with a 344 cell (available online for ~$2). Unfortunately, if the movement is not working, it would be very hard to fix; servicing these watches is next to impossible.

Good luck!

 

I agree with all the above, some models had 80micron plating, others only 20 so let's hope it is the former. Reliable servicing for these is available cheaply in the U.K. from 2 repairers (I linked to one above) but perhaps not so much elsewhere. In the USA I wonder if a Bulova Accutron specialist could service this since the basic tech is the same. I have 5 hummers, all working fine so they are a practical usable classic.

 

The Omega F300hz can be serviced. Look up Accutron service and you find many watchmakers who will service the watch, if it actually needs servicing. I just got my F300hz (same model as yours) back from my watchmaker. The watch had not had a battery in for quite some time and was not working. When I installed a battery the watch hummed and the second hand moved when tapped lightly. My watchmaker is not an Accutron specialist and in fact, he does not like to work on them. But he cleaned and lubricated and now it works fantastic. $150

 

Thanks for all of the help, I really learned a lot. I definitely like the idea of putting a leather band on it as the all gold is....a little much. I know the watch has sat in a drawer for at least the last 20 years so I'm very concerned the battery has fried the inside but I'll keep my fingers crossed. There's some wear on the back of the watch indicating it's been opened up before so perhaps luck is on my side and the battery was removed before storage. This weekend I'm going to take it to my local jeweler who also services watches and have him take a look. I'll try and get a picture of the inside and update what I find. Thanks again to everyone who replied. Very much appreciated.

 

Nice watch. Hopefully it works. If it works you should think about getting it services anyway to refresh the oils and clean the watch. The old oils have been hanging around in the watch since the Nixon years so it is probably dried.

Oh and NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER turn the hands backwards as that will strip the 300 tiny teeth on the index wheel.

I love my Omega f300 watches. Those f300 and my Megaquartz watches are my favorite Omega watches(I have another Megaquartz on the way and another one I am watching)

 

I agree with journey. F300's are great. My Constellation.

 

If we are bragging, here are a couple of mine, and at the bottom their grand father: