New Old Stock - General Questions

Vitezi · Sep 17, 2019

pnwyankee
Since I don't know enough to be looking for particular movements yet, interesting dials in good to great cosmetic condition are what catch my eye

Along with the overhyped words "Military !!" and Very Rare !!" 😀 the use of "NOS" is just another way that sellers try to separate you from your money.

Your weapons are patience and research, to build up your knowledge of what's right and wrong in a watch. There is no need to rush. The right watch for you has been waiting decades for you to find it; a little while longer won't hurt.

JwRosenthal · Sep 17, 2019

Totally understood- don’t rush and take your time and learn what to look for. Google images is your friend and there are all kinds of obscure nerd pages you can read. We have all made our mistakes- some of us still do.

Now if you don’t want to waste your money on low lying fruit, just bite the bullet and buy this.

https://omegaforums.net/threads/price-drop-vintage-zodiac-zodia-chron-chronograph-valjoux-72.97296/

JwRosenthal · Sep 17, 2019

Oh, and Clebar was a sub-brand of Zodiac, @watchdaddy1 knows a thing or two about those.

Dan S · Sep 17, 2019

That watch is in really nice condition, but I just don't see myself spending $1000 on a smallish gold-plated chronograph, no matter how nice it is. I'd rather buy a larger all-stainless watch with minor wear. And I would probably even sacrifice the column-wheel movement (e.g. for a Valjoux 7733) before compromising on size or material.

pnwyankee · Sep 17, 2019

Dan S
That watch is in really nice condition, but I just don't see myself spending $1000 on a smallish gold-plated chronograph, no matter how nice it is. I'd rather buy a larger all-stainless watch with minor wear. And I would probably even sacrifice the column-wheel movement (e.g. for a Valjoux 7733) before compromising on size or material.

In general, are steel watches preferable to gold plated?

Willbur · Sep 18, 2019

Depends of your tastes, but steel will be more robust.

Regarding NOS, I was wondering why a cool watch was staying so long in the stock !
One of my hypothesis, is that watch had some issues.
You know, the kind of watch you buy and few days later you notice some trouble.
And you go back to seller with all tags and box for a replacement.

Or the watch that you are using as a donor to fix customer complain in a short time....

JwRosenthal · Sep 18, 2019

pnwyankee
In general, are steel watches preferable to gold plated?

Gold versus stainless comes down to personal taste. Solid gold is preferable to gold cap (Omega and a few other companies used gold cap- can’t remember the process but it uses a solid gold bezel and a heavy plating system on the midcase I believe- please correct me if I’m wrong) and gold plate is rarely if ever desirable. Although I’m sure there were a few rarer watches made that came gold plated- I just can’t think of any.
I am personally not a gold person, but appreciate the beauty of a solid gold watch. Some of the rarest and most coveted watches (like some of the Constellations) only came in solid gold gold.

Dan S · Sep 18, 2019

pnwyankee
In general, are steel watches preferable to gold plated?

Plated cases (chrome or gold) are generally the least robust and desirable to collectors. They were basically a cheap way to make a case look good at the time of sale, but easily damaged unless treated very carefully. Between solid gold (14k or 18k particularly) and stainless steel, it is really a matter of taste and it depends on the type of watch (e.g. dress watch vs. sport model), although these days, SS seems to be more desirable in most cases. Gold cap, which is a thick layer of gold, lies somewhere in between, although again that's a bit of an over-generalization.

New Old Stock - General Questions

Vitezi

JwRosenthal

JwRosenthal

Dan S

pnwyankee

Willbur

JwRosenthal

Dan S

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