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Omega watch gifted to me by a patient.

TheGreekPhysique
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OneTwo behardy
Wonderful story and gift from your patient @TheGreekPhysique ! It reminds me of the fascinating conversations I would have with my late grandmother(born in 1917) and her younger brother(born in 1921) regarding living through the depression and the war. 100% agree that just listening to them in their later years, hearing the story they wanted to tell, made all the difference and they were so happy to tell the story. Funny enough it was this great uncle of mine who I inherited his CK2414 circa 1946 that started my fascination with vintage watches. The watch will always be a treasured heirloom and remind me of their great stories.


Thanks for sharing. This kind of back and forth story telling in some countries is the main form of entertainment. In Europe, specifically Greece in my experience, the elderly would sit around in cafes - especially in the secluded villages - and tell life stories for hours. I loved it. I could sit there for hours and just listen to them. I hope to do a write up about it one day in the “A day in the life” thread - perhaps after I visit there again this summer.
 
TheGreekPhysique
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mrbreen mrbreen
And certainly one has to weigh the ethical considerations of not accepting a gift. Seeing as this is a small and incredibly thoughtful one of gratitude, it seems only right to accept it.

Users often pop up on this thread seeking a valuation of a family heirloom (even if that’s just a pretense), and are often disappointed to learn that the value is almost entirely sentimental. But I can tell you that if I were gifted a watch in these circumstances, the sentimental value would be most significant. Thanks for sharing this story here.

thanks! I could not agree more. The sentimental value of this watch gifted to me by someone I cared for during there stay here FAR exceeds what monetary value some states it’s worth.
 
TheGreekPhysique
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Claven2 Claven2
For what it's worth. That watch would greatly benefit from a service and sympathetic dial refinish to the original style and look.

Can't wait to hear what's under the hood.
I’ll let you know when I get home !
 
JwRosenthal
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TheGreekPhysique TheGreekPhysique
I’ll let you know when I get home !
I think the lug shape alone makes it worth looking at a possible restoration- provided the movement is salvageable. Perhaps a member here may even have a correct factory dial, crown tube/stem and crown for it- those markers are very distinct so someone may recognize it. And you aren’t afraid of patina so it’s not like you would be looking for flawless- just something presentable out of a parts drawer.

And if you got it all fixed up and running and showed it to the woman who gave it to you, she would probably be elated that someone took the time and effort to fix her old watch and loves it.
 
TheGreekPhysique
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JwRosenthal JwRosenthal
I think the lug shape alone makes it worth looking at a possible restoration- provided the movement is salvageable. Perhaps a member here may even have a correct factory dial, crown tube/stem and crown for it- those markers are very distinct so someone may recognize it. And you aren’t afraid of patina so it’s not like you would be looking for flawless- just something presentable out of a parts drawer.

And if you got it all fixed up and running and showed it to the woman who gave it to you, she would probably be elated that someone took the time and effort to fix her old watch and loves it.

I definitely am interested in bringing this little guy back up to speed. If anyone has a dial for it let me know! It would be cool to somehow keep these hour markers if they were original to the watch. They seem pretty unique!
 
ken_hodson
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What a lovely gift. Have to say that bracelet is also intriguing. I'm an obstetrician in the UK and I get gifts from time to time (mostly alcohol). My last gift from a patient was a very large Toblerone, which unfortunately my dog ate (the whole thing!)... I spent the next day and a canny sum of ££ at the vets!
 
JwRosenthal
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ken_hodson ken_hodson
What a lovely gift. Have to say that bracelet is also intriguing. I'm an obstetrician in the UK and I get gifts from time to time (mostly alcohol). My last gift from a patient was a very large Toblerone, which unfortunately my dog ate (the whole thing!)... I spent the next day and a canny sum of ££ at the vets!
Been there done that- 5lb Hershey’s Kiss and a box of rat poison -dog recovered fine both times but took a while for the wallet to recover.
 
Walrus
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Engee Engee
Lovely story, and I'm sure you have a very empathic and caring way with patients.

Forgive me if I say this, I honestly don't mean to cast aspersions on your professional practice. I am a psychotherapist in the UK, and while I know that your profession and mine are not the same, I imagine there is a lot of overlap in terms of ethics. I wonder, genuinely, if accepting gifts like this is acceptable ethically, when working with vulnerable people?

Again, I am curious about this. I don't wish to suggest you are behaving unethically, so please don't take my post as some kind of accusation of poor practice.
If you were doing what you do in the US you also could not accept gifts of any kind from patients. I know someone who lost their license to practice for doing so. Depending on the type/level of care sometimes it comes down to the facilities policies. I think more leeway is given outside of the mental health field.
Edited:
 
Caracal25
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Great watch and better story, the sentiment alone makes that one priceless.
 
johnireland
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Thank you for the wonderful story. And to your patient for her wonderful watch. It isn't a gift...it is a torch being passed from one human being to the next. A great book on living with aging people...and being them as well...is "Being Mortal"...Medicine and What Matters in the End...by Atul Gawande. It is a wonderful window to look through and a mirror to look in.
 
TheGreekPhysique
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Dan S Dan S
Cased in US by Jonell.

thanks! Yea searching the reference came up empty so I have been doing a little digging on it and found a post in this forum years ago that involved the J and arrow. Need to hit the hay but will continue reading about it tomorrow!
 
Doc Olives
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The lugs. Oh the beautiful lugs. Thank you for the story and the pictures. Wear in good health.
 
NGO1
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The one and only time a client gave me a watch, this happened.
True story.

25 years and counting…
 
F3D5F141-6A83-4A9D-A415-94C66DC0D9BF.jpeg
TheGreekPhysique
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I was surprised by how clean the movement appeared to be. Now I just have to find a dial that goes with the caliber 420!
 
TheGreekPhysique
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Since this gifted watch is one that was locally cased it doesn't use standardized reference numbers. I am trying to search for what the watch would have looked like originally. I used the vintage omega database to filter references that used the caliber 420. The only example that came in a 14k case is this one: https://www.omegawatches.com/en-us/watch-omega-other-omega-oj-2690

Am I correct in my approach? Should I should try to find a similar looking dial and crown that's included in that picture from the archives?
 
STANDY
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I would be looking for a good redial craftsman on this watch.

it’s already been done so it’s not ruining a original dial and if you want to keep the Markers it would be a lot easier. (Probably cheaper also)
 
Dan S
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TheGreekPhysique TheGreekPhysique
Since this gifted watch is one that was locally cased it doesn't use standardized reference numbers. I am trying to search for what the watch would have looked like originally. I used the vintage omega database to filter references that used the caliber 420. The only example that came in a 14k case is this one: https://www.omegawatches.com/en-us/watch-omega-other-omega-oj-2690

Am I correct in my approach? Should I should try to find a similar looking dial and crown that's included in that picture from the archives?

The OVD only shows one representative dial for each reference, but there were often many variations. Also, there's no guarantee that a dial from a different cal 420 reference will necessarily fit this US case perfectly without tweaking. And honestly, cal 420 watches are not terribly common. I agree with @STANDY that a better re-dial could be an option in this scenario.
 
TheGreekPhysique
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STANDY STANDY
I would be looking for a good redial craftsman on this watch.

it’s already been done so it’s not ruining a original dial and if you want to keep the Markers it would be a lot easier. (Probably cheaper also)

Thanks for the input! I will keep that option open and compare prices. I am scheduled to see a watchmaker on Friday so I will discuss those options with him.

Is the crown that I linked the one that would be "correct" on this one?
 
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