Hi, my first post, so please be gentle! A couple of years ago I acquired this Seamaster from a colleague. He had won it as a prize in a national competition here in the UK in the late 1960's/early 1970's, so I am pretty sure of its provenance. It keeps very good time - in fact not far off that of my Seamaster GMT - but it has not been serviced for some years. I have a few questions about it: (a) should I get it serviced and, if so, are there any recommendations for Omega servicing in the UK? (b) the dial is obviously showing some patina, but is it generally recommended to leave this "as is" rather than looking to restore? (c) I don't have the nerve to remove the case back, but is it possible to tell the exact model without doing so? (d) the strap is a modern replacement, but what strap should I look out for if I would like to have the watch back close to its original specification? (e) what rough value should I put on it for insurance purposes? (f) is there anything else I should be aware of with regards to this particular model?
The model number is 168.022 - quite a desirable watch with the sparkle dial and top grade cal. 564 movement. Unfortunately the dial is not in its best shape. I don't think new replacement dial is available for this late 1960s watch, but if you're lucky you may find an NOS or one in good condition somewhere. A refinished/restored dial is never as good as the original, especially with the sparkle finish. For insurance, I'd put value about $1000-$1500 depending on serviced or not. For selling, without serviced and with this dial's condition, it'd be a hard sell at $500.