Hi there, I'm looking at buying this Omega Constellation 14902 62 sc, cal 561, but would love some of your comments on originality and overall condition? The seller has apparently inherited it from family, and do not have much more information on it. Otherwise, I've looking at this one from a vintage watch dealer in Britain: http://www.ogdenharrogate.co.uk/wat....aspx?p=1&c=8&o=alpha&fvw=vintagewatches.aspx Thanks, Peter
That's a nice steel piepan connie. Crown is a later replacement but otherwise parts look original and in good shape.
I like the watch in your photos much better than the one in the link. Everything looks as it should. gatorcpa
I agree with gator. A few points off for replacement crown but the lug bevels are still defined. The dial is nice as well. Good luck!
Not necessarily. Some did and some didn't. So long as you don't see holes there, it's likely correct. gatorcpa
Gentlemen, thank you very much for comments. I've purchased it for around 600$, which I would think is a reasonable price. I'll post some pictures, as soon as it arrives. Thanks again!
Without having seen the watch live yet - do you think to whether to replace the crown? and e.g. the cost of this?
You should but the original vintage version you will have to hunt for on eBay. Other crowns such as the one on the watch right now are actually more practical and easier to handle than the correct small decagonal crown.
The standard crown for these is a thin 10-sided crown. I'd say that most cal. 551/561 Constellations had these when new. As MSN points out, these are a real pain to grip for manual winding. Also, the gold-plated versions tended to wear out rather quickly. So many pie-pan we see today have had the original crown replaced. Replacement thin 10-sided crowns are just about impossible to find on the web or eBay. Omega hasn't sold these for many years. There are other 10-sided crowns that may fit your watch, but were really designed for earlier versions of the Constellation. IMO, these look clunky on the watch as compared to the originals. The crown that's on there now isn't too bad and it's close to the replacement that Omega sells today (it could be the same). If it signed with the Omega logo, then I'd leave it alone. You need to have the watchmaker replace that nasty looking gasket before any water gets in there. Not a big deal. It's good to see that bargains still exist. gatorcpa
[quote="gatorcpa, post: 151225, member: 142" You need to have the watchmaker replace that nasty looking gasket before any water gets in there. Not a big deal. gatorcpa[/quote] thanks for the comments. Would you please elaborate on this last bit?
Yes. The black gasket surrounding the movement looks like it's seen better days. They tend to deteriorate with age. You can see a few spots when the gasket has discolored. This is an easy fix for a watchmaker or even a DIY if you know which is the correct part (I certainly don't). Hope this helps, gatorcpa
Hi I'm wondering why a lovely watch like this would have an officially certified chronometer movement, but not state that on the dial? Thanks
Some models (14381, 14902) don't have that on the dials. Omega learned that mistake then came back with that on the next models (168.004,168005, 167.005 etc...)
If decided to replace the crown on the watch. Could any of you help me with purchasing the correct crown-size? So far, I've located this one from Cousins. Unfortunately, no case-numbers are listed to compare to.