Thanks - I really appreciate the advice and information!

 

Those are both nice references to look for; however those particular watches are not recommended. First, they are terribly over-polished, to the point where the original sharp lines of the cases have been completely lost. Both are also absurdly priced. Again by a factor of 3x, given their condition.

 

These Tudors are nice, and it's clearly you are drawn to them. As you may know, the staining on the dial is radium burn. The condition of the case is accurately described in the listing IMO.

 

Welcome and I too am in the GTA.
I have had good luck with ETA Automatics as well as Rolex 1520 & 1530 (both in Submariners). Rolex put these in many of their watches along with the Chronometer version, the 1570.

 

The polishing is a little bit unfortunate from what I can see, but otherwise it looks like the original dial and crown. I think I will hold out for the version with numbers all the way around the dial rather than the 3, 6, 9, 12.

 

All numbers? Not afraid of Radium? Small size ok ? You have one hour to bid on my all original Omega from the 40's. Will be cheap. eBay. Search for watchyouwant. Is the cheapest one there. Good luck ! Kind regards. Achim

 

No luck finding watchyouwant on Ebay... Link?

 

154277444157...... You searched for sellers ? And did not come up ? Strange.....

 

Found it. Thanks. A little small for me and it has sub-seconds which I don't want.

 

Take a look at Omega ref 2179 examples. The military issued ones might be out of your budget, but you could probably find a civilian piece that would work. I'm not sure if it's what you're looking for, but maybe. They often have all arabic numerals, but they are lumed, and they sometimes have a distinctive radial orientation. Many people like them.

 

They look quite nice. Great layout and proportions. I did a bit of reading on radium and got a little spooked, so I might want to stay away from lumed examples.

 

Indeed. While saving $1400 from your budget is itself cause for jubilation, eliminating any opportunity for dealing with CBSA and paying extortionate taxes and duties is priceless.

 

Looks like you've got your preferences dialed in.

 

Did you happen to see this one? It's quite small and a bit polished, but not bad overall, and it's well-priced. Good quality and supposedly serviced. It seems to meet your requirements, and it would get you into the vintage watch market at a low cost of entry. Personally, I think you are being a bit narrow in your thinking and ruling out many of the best watches, so it might be good to buy something less expensive first. That way, if your tastes change later, you won't take a huge loss.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Longines-1200-Vintage-Mens-Watch-Pre-Admiral-Serviced-Stainless-1960s/224304023927?epid=1928598675&hash=item34398fc977:g:-v0AAOSwBcZfkaye&LH_ItemCondition=3000Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network

 

If only it shipped to Canada...

 

I would contact the seller if you're really interested. It's easy enough to mail something to Canada. I sent something to @amcclell fairly recently, and it was no problem at all. They may have just checked off no international shipping by reflex.

 

Still looking for the right watch.

I came across this one being sold by a dealer in Canada, which would be rather convenient for me. The thing that seems odd is that the dial is signed Tudor and yet the movement is signed Solar. From previous posts in this discussion I learned that Solar are Eaton's house branded Tudor watches. So I am a bit puzzled why they don't correspond.

ROLEX "CASE REFERENCE 7965 " TUDOR "PRINCE MODEL" ROSE GOLD FILLED ROLEX SIGNED CASE AUTOMATIC AND WELL SERVICED 1961
STOCK NUMBER # TU8010-----First of all the scan does not do justice to this original black dial Tudor Rolex wrist watch. The back of this case is worn and water tight for sure as it has been tested for such. This is a rose gold filled Rolex signed Oyster case with a Rolex screw down crown, From lug to lug this Tudor is 40mm long and wide less the screw down crown it is 34mm. The back of this case is stainless steel and signed Rolex as the scan shows you and there are no personal engravings on this case. The case reference number is 7965 and the case serial number is 289,300. The case serial number places this Swiss Rolex factory wrist watch to the year 1961 and as it has been well serviced as it keeps great time. The hands are original and I re did the luminous material so they glow bright at night and the color is exactly as the original color. The dial is original never cleaned nor altered. The movement is spotless and it is a full automatic oscillating weight movement caliber 2472 with 25 super clean and inspected Ruby jewels. A few flicks of the watch and the balance takes off perfectly as it is that clean. The band is leather never worn at 19mm in width. This is a classic 1961 design and runs like a top ;-)
1550.00 USD

 

Very simple solution to this, open an account with comgateway.com or similar and they will ship to you no problem. I have used them to Hong Kong without any issues but I understand my risk appetite may be different from other peoples’.

 

Terrible case condition. Pitting everywhere. Plating damaged. Will not be even splash proof....

 

In answer to your question, the hands and dial look quite nice but but the photo is terrible resolution, so you would need better pics to confirm it is original. As stated above, the case is a mess and I suspect that in person, it will look even worse as any brass showing through after the severe wear and polishing will stand out like a sore thumb. The yellow gold, mismatched crown stands out, as does the rough bezel.

You are into the era of newer ETA Tudor movements and there are parts available for these, as everyone and their brother used them back in the day. Do a Google search of ETA 2472 and you will find page upon page of links to information. There are lots of old stock parts around as well as scads of old donor watch movements. The major brands engraved their names on the rotor, so the original would have had Tudor on the rotor. The Solar branded rotor indicates that a worn rotor was robbed from a Solar watch to fix this one, or just as probable, the entire movement from the Solar was transferred to this Tudor.

You have a bit of a dilemma with your search, as some of your objectives will be in opposition. You like autowind and dial designs of the 1950's which creates parts availability challenges. Autowind was not nearly as common then, but manual wind movements were the norm and they were very robust. If you look at Omega, and Longines there are plenty still around. By the 1960's when the autowinds took hold, most watches had simple designs with no numbers on the face. The early 60's to mid 70's were a golden era in Swiss watch making and these movements are very serviceable by independant watch makers today. If I was going to buy only one watch for everyday use, for the 1940's and 50's, it would be a manual wind and most likely a sub-second movement to give me the best longevity and serviceability. For the 1960's and 1970's, autowind with centre seconds is great. If I was going to wear it to work, where it was subjected to abuse, it would be stainless steel and a glass or sapphire crystal. That takes me from the 1970's through to the 90's but I used to be a mechanic and the crystal takes a real beating. On older watches, everything that touches acrylic leaves a mark, so the crystal will need regular polishing or replacement if the abuse is severe.

In the end, it is up to you and how long you want it to last.