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My Mother-in-law must not hate me.

Mr. Phil
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My Mother- in-law gave me her father's Rolex GMT Master.

The Rolex dealer near me won't service it because spare parts are not available.

I'd like to keep it, have it serviced and get a bezel. I'd like to wear it while flying airplanes. I've always wanted a GMT Master.

Wondering if it's too old to be worn around and banging into stuff?

The Rolex dealer said it originally had a root beer like bezel?

It appraised at $5000. If I got a $1500 bezel and a $1600 service, would it be worth $8100 ish?

I'm in the SF Bay Area and was wondering who you would recommend to work on it .

Thanks!
 
IMG_6550.jpeg IMG_6549.jpeg
Dan S
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No, there is a misunderstanding about the original bezel. It was red and blue bakelite, which is not something you can find. You can replace it with a more modern bezel with an aluminum red and blue insert.

It's not easy to put a value on a watch like this. All original, it's extremely valuable, but a lot of the collectible value is gone with the original dial/hands/bezel. Still, I think it's probably worth more than $5k unless there's more wrong with it.

The Omega bracelet might be worth a couple grand, can you show photos of the clasp and endlinks so we can see the numbers on the bracelet?
 
Evitzee
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Don't worry about what it's worth, it's a family heirloom which should be put back in shape and worn. Enjoy the family history of the piece and don't worry about it picking up any new marks, it's all part of its life.
 
Mr. Phil
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Dan S Dan S
No, there is a misunderstanding about the original bezel. It was red and blue bakelite, which is not something you can find. You can replace it with a more modern bezel with an aluminum red and blue insert.

It's not easy to put a value on a watch like this. All original, it's extremely valuable, but a lot of the collectible value is gone with the original dial/hands/bezel. Still, I think it's probably worth more than $5k unless there's more wrong with it.

The Omega bracelet might be worth a couple grand, can you show photos of the clasp and endlinks so we can see the numbers on the bracelet?

It says 47 on it.
Wouldn't be surprised if the bracelet is a fake.
 
Mr. Phil
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Evitzee Evitzee
Don't worry about what it's worth, it's a family heirloom which should be put back in shape and worn. Enjoy the family history of the piece and don't worry about it picking up any new marks, it's all part of its life.
Thanks good points.
 
Dan S
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I think the Omega bracelet is totally legit, probably ref 1175 with #47 endlinks. Not worth as much as I said before, but probably in the neighborhood of $500. Very nice for a vintage Speedmaster. Unfortunately, that amount won't get you a proper Rolex bracelet.
 
Mr. Phil
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Dan S Dan S
I think the Omega bracelet is totally legit, probably ref 1175 with #47 endlinks. Not worth as much as I said before, but probably in the neighborhood of $500. Very nice for a vintage Speedmaster. Unfortunately, that amount won't get you a proper Rolex bracelet.
Appreciate it! My in-laws have boxes of fake watches from trips overseas and figured the bracelet was fake.
 
Pastorbottle
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There are aftermarket ceramic replacement bezel inserts to be found on eBay, they come in a large variety of colours
These would look more like the original Bakelite than an anodised aluminium one. Just be sure, carefully measure the bezel ring before you order, if it is the domed type insert it will press fit and be held by the outer diameter of the insert ring, the inner diameter might just have to clear the crystal. A flat type insert will have to be a good fit on the inner diameter of the insert into the bezel too.
As for the bracelet, I wouldn’t bother, I’d find a nice leather strap.
 
watchyouwant
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Whatever happened to this GMT in the past, the normal alloy insert bezel will fit well with the current dial and the big arrow GMT hand. That makes it ready to wear again.....
 
pdxleaf
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Rolex itself replaced a lot of bakelite bezels, as the bakelite would crack and they felt it didn't represent the brand well. Consequently, there are fewer watches with original bakelite bezels. This means two things. Yes, original bakelite bezels are more valuable, but secondily, it's not unusual for these early watches to have had their bezels replaced by an aluminum bezel. If you could find a vintage aged aluminum bezel, you could have a lovely watch that would not be much different from many of the early watches that also had bakelite bezels removed by Rolex itself.

This was a lovely gesture. If it is a real GMT, it's worth fixing. It will likely bring you a lot of joy.
 
Dan S
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pdxleaf pdxleaf
Rolex itself replaced a lot of bakelite bezels, as the bakelite would crack and they felt it didn't represent the brand well. Consequently, there are fewer watches with original bakelite bezels. This means two things. Yes, original bakelite bezels are more valuable, but secondily, it's not unusual for these early watches to have had their bezels replaced by an aluminum bezel. If you could find a vintage aged aluminum bezel, you could have a lovely watch that would not be much different from many of the early watches that also had bakelite bezels removed by Rolex itself.

This was a lovely gesture. If it is a real GMT, it's worth fixing. It will likely bring you a lot of joy.

In fact, Rolex recalled some of the original Bakelite bezels because of radioactivity.

gmt_hero copy.jpg
 
Taddyangle
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9.625% is the tax rate. Wow.

Please do share a nice pic once you get the bezel sorted. There is something special about a family/heirloom watch.
 
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