Omega Bracelet Sag: Fitment Help and Advice

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Hi guys,
I am in the market for an Omega 2531.80. Found one locally to me and one of the pics just doesnt sit right with me. Bear in mind I am new to all this, absolutely no experience with watches. Is this sag excessive or is it repairable in your opinion? Thanks a lot for the help. Oh yeah the watch is priced at 2300 euros.

 
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Yes it is saggy and no it can’t be easily or cheaply repaired. Unless you fancy sending your bracelet to Michael Young in Hong King that is. Most 2531s will show some level of stretch in the fixed links but that is worse than many and its not super cheap. A new bracelet is over €800 last I looked so don’t risk it. You are right to be cautious. Keep looking.

Looking again, I think the first couple of links are damaged and not actually assembled tightly. Steer clear.
 
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That doesn't look like normal bracelet stretch. Usually bracelets are stretched where the pins are ground down from friction and it allows more spacing between the links. See photo 1 below. It's from a Rolex jubilee but the concept is applicable to the Omega bracelet. Those pins should be fully round but they have been worn away by friction from the connecting link.



The bracelet in the photo above does not appear to have that kind of stretch. It appears like the links were once pulled apart (presumably for refinishing) and then not fully compressed back together. See the photo below that shows the gapping circled in red. Or perhaps they were pulled apart through wearing it.



If you watch the video below, at 14:32 you will see how the links are compressed back together once pulled apart. It's a Rolex oyster but the concept should be the same. You can also watch the rest of the video for how "permanent" links can be pulled apart.


Since I have the tool that compresses the links back together, this bracelet would not deter me (if that's all the problem is). Any good watchmaker should have the proper tooling to fix this in a couple of minutes. FWIW, it does not look like this is an issue with links that are removable--just the links that are "permanent." However, if the problem is that metal has been worn off the sides of the links then compressing likely won't fix the issue. But it doesn't look like material is missing. The sides of the links look straight across, not curved where material was ground away.

As to whether you want to bother with that is up to you.

Perhaps @Archer could shed more light on this matter as he's undoubtedly seen this issue before. Perhaps I'm off base.
Edited:
 
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Thanks a lot for the replies. Maybe the best course of action would be to go directly to the store and ask them about it. Since they posted the picture I guess they are not trying to hide it. So maybe it is not that bad. Also there is a Omega service center nearby there, perhaps I can get someone to the store to check it out with me (unlikely but worth a shot). I will definitely keep you updated about this situation.
 
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Are these bracelets different, using pins and collars which can be replaced improving sag. I’m sure I had it done years ago and it made a massive improvement. Companies like Swiss Time Services in the UK do it.
 
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Are these bracelets different, using pins and collars which can be replaced improving sag. I’m sure I had it done years ago and it made a massive improvement. Companies like Swiss Time Services in the UK do it.
That only works on the removable links. The issue here is with the fixed link sections. STS would only replace, not repair IMO. Which in effect means a £700 bill for a new bracelet.
 
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That doesn't look like normal bracelet stretch. Usually bracelets are stretched where the pins are ground down from friction and it allows more spacing between the links. See photo 1 below. It's from a Rolex jubilee but the concept is applicable to the Omega bracelet. Those pins should be fully round but they have been worn away by friction from the connecting link.



The bracelet in the photo above does not appear to have that kind of stretch. It appears like the links were once pulled apart (presumably for refinishing) and then not fully compressed back together. See the photo below that shows the gapping circled in red. Or perhaps they were pulled apart through wearing it.



If you watch the video below, at 14:32 you will see how the links are compressed back together once pulled apart. It's a Rolex oyster but the concept should be the same. You can also watch the rest of the video for how "permanent" links can be pulled apart.


Since I have the tool that compresses the links back together, this bracelet would not deter me (if that's all the problem is). Any good watchmaker should have the proper tooling to fix this in a couple of minutes. FWIW, it does not look like this is an issue with links that are removable--just the links that are "permanent." However, if the problem is that metal has been worn off the sides of the links then compressing likely won't fix the issue. But it doesn't look like material is missing. The sides of the links look straight across, not curved where material was ground away.

As to whether you want to bother with that is up to you.

Perhaps @Archer could shed more light on this matter as he's undoubtedly seen this issue before. Perhaps I'm off base.
I loved that video, thanks for sharing.