I bought a pretty ratty 1970 seamaster chronometer 168.0034 earlier this year. The case and dial looked pretty good. I like the sparkly dial. As I get older and travel a lot, having a reminder of the day is not a bad thing. It did come on an omega strap 22mm at one end, 14 mm at the other with an omega buckle, its a pretty serious taper, which Omega assures me is correct. The watch case has a movement suspension that was no longer working and had all kinds of stuff jammed into the space between the inner and outer case, but the dial still moved when the crown was pulled out. (The IWC Yacht Club from the same period also has a movement suspension, but is decidedly less funky). The rotor was unattached. Over all it needed help, and this is the kind of vintage watch I like to use on a daily basis as it needs to be restored, and it can't lose anything through the restoration. (as an aside, I work in an art gallery in the conservation department, so if I had a piece in original condition, I couldn't use it for fear of changing its condition). This is what it looked like when I sent it in to Omega for an overhaul And it went to New Jersey, then to Bienne. Three months later it came back looking absolutely great, with a bag of parts that had been replaced during the service. I love that Omega does this. The crystal was replaced. The original one had a series of cracks around the outside edge. The crystal has an attached rehaut and the new minute track is slightly different to the older one, but its not a critical difference. The hands were also replaced and are flatter than the originals, with more sleek black and lume cut outs. Again, I like this as it looks like a retro take on the originals (and I have the original if I ever feel the need to switch back). The day wheel was replaced as the original has a big scratch, but the font on the new wheel is different. I have a spare day/date wheel set, but I will live with what I have for a while before I make any decision. As I said, it looks great, and I don't want to mess with the good work that has been done. The case had the radial brushed finish restored, and it looks fantastic. The bezel was replaced as well and it has a lovely radial brushed finish as well. In the 1970 catalogue this model appears with a synthetic rally strap, which gives it something of a rugged aspect. I really wanted a watch to wear for the Summer and decided to use an Omega NATO strap. The black on the strap picks out the indices nicely, and the white edging picks out the minute track. So now I have a 50 year old watch that I can wear and not worry about its reliability-it keeps chronometer time. As its been fully restored, I don't have to worry about the loss of any originality as I wear it. And most importantly enjoy it....its taken me a long time to appreciate 1970s style and design, but I am there.
A nice restoration, thank you for sharing! The minute track for this one is part of the crystal assembly?
That is right. The old crystal and old minute track are firmly attached to each other. The new minute track hovers very slightly over the dial and strongly suggests that the new minute track is attached to the new crystal. Someone who has access to a parts catalogue can clarify this information.
I can confirm this now. I just bought a replacement NOS crystal "Part Number 5164 Seamaster Waterproof Crystal with Ring" and the minute track and crystal are one part. It describes the minute track as "white" (yellow is the other check-box option) although it looks more silvery. I have seen yellow minute tracks on Seamaster 166.066, but not on this case shaped model (168.034, 168.035, 166.064, 166.065)
Here is mine at work visiting a grandfather . Its a Summer favourite, especially on the Omega NATO strap