Hello kind gentlemen and ladies, I'm really hoping someone here might be able to help me with my thoroughly first world problem.

I have inherited an Omega Seamaster 300 Automatic a couple of years ago from my father that he bought through the NAAFI in, I think, 1965. It was serviced shortly before it came to me and so is coming up for needing another. I'm told every three years is appropriate. Trouble is that at the prices I have been quoted, £800 for Omega or £300 in my local jewelers, there is no way I can afford this service. At first I thought that I would just put the watch in a drawer but I was told that if I did this the likelihood would be that the watch might break on restarting. This led me to the sad realisation that the only thing to do would be to reluctantly sell the watch as I really can't afford to maintain it.

So, I then took the watch to three of my local jewelers and was surprised that I was offered £500, £800 and £1,500 respectively. The jeweler who offered me £1,500 told me that although the watch was in great condition inside and out he would swap the candlestick hands for sword hands and sell the watch on for £2,000. Having read though your forum and other internet sites I would have thought changing the hands would devalue the watch as everything except the strap is original. To be honest the whole thing has upset me a bit and made me suspicious.

I feel sad that I cannot see a way to keep my fathers watch but it would make me even sadder to think that I hadn't parted with it for it's true worth. So I'm asking if anyone on this great forum could please give me some advice on either it's true worth or indeed the best way to sell it. I've included some photos and would be more than happy to answer any questions about it to resolve my problem.

Many thanks in advance, Dishul

 

These undercover sales posts are getting quite creative...

 

Dishul, it won't cost you anything to put the watch in a drawer whilst you save for a service.

If you truly want to hang on to it as an heirloom, then you should have no issue doing that...

 

and share with us the eBay listing...

 

Thankyou

 

Glad to see that you're so attached to it.

 

Thank you, but I don't earn enough to ever be able to justify spending that amount of money on a watch every three years. If I did manage to save £300 I'd spend it on my daughter :-/ Do you reckon I could just leave it in a drawer until I could pass it on to her. It's only that two of the jewelers said not to.

 

I will give you 1800GBP don't listen to these guys. they will steer you in the wrong direction. They can't be trusted. Ohhhh fu#$&^T

Dude you hit the ffffen lottery. Stop worrying. You have a fine watch. Slow down. Keep it. Don't service it until you do your research.

 

How often are you wearing the watch?

Every three years is a lot more often than most watches in the wild get serviced - to be frank - have you had anyone take a look at it and give you advice on it's current state?

Anyone who isn't trying to lowball you I mean?

I can't see huge issues in putting it away now... unless I were one of the jewellers that was trying to get a valuable watch out of your hands and into mine, for the lowest price I could feasibly get away with.

 

It is only going up in value every day. Keep the heirloom and one day pass it one. Servicing is not every 3 years -- more like 5 or longer.

 

Assuming this is not a bullshit story. The only reason a "jeweler" would tell you that putting the watch in a drawer is not good for the watch is to get you to sell it.

 

You wrote the key word... Daughter...
Your watch worth at least $5000 dollars if not more...

 

I wear it all the time, I was also told that it was important to use body heat to keep the oil inside fluid. The guy that offered me £1500 said it was in good condition with no water damage but the one that offered me £800 said that the oil was starting to dry out inside. I guess that's part of the problem, the fact that everybody that's looked at it says something different :-/

 

Thankyou

 

Go look at sold values - most of those watches are sold in unserviced condition and get considerable more money than those jewellers have offered you.

The wearing/body heat thing... I've never heard that before... ever.

If you don't need the money, and the only real concern is that it will cost money in the future to service, then I don't see that as a reason to sell the watch if you want to keep it.

If you'd rather sell it, then as @dsio said, eBay, no reserve, let it go.

 

No need for service every 3 years unless something is wrong - power reserve is poor, gains/loose time or stops.

 

For a multitude of reasons do not service this watch esp with Omega. The value is in the original Dial and hands which Omega will want to replace. . I'm not sure about the hands on this one but, this is a very valuable and collected watch. That will sell as is if you put it on eBay.