Hi There, I'm wondering how much of a one-stop-solution a good service is. If a vintage piece needs to be serviced anyways, does it matter if the piece is 'extra' dirty? I've been eyeing pieces like the following 167.021: It comes with a beads of rice, dial looks original (to me), case looks unpolished. Price seems under comparable sales for the same reference. But there is a ton of dirt around the bezel, around the crown, around the rim in the movement shots, even the recesses on the back. The crystal is cracked and the rotor itself has a lot of grooves that appear to be caused by wear. Is something like this a potential bargain where a service you would get anyways can fix everything? Or a giant headache in the making? Thank you.
On occasion, the under-priced “rescue” can end up costing you more in total, than spending what you have to, to buy a pristine example. So the decision is pretty much yours. If this “rescue” watch is a grail watch you really must have, rather than an “acceptable”one that you would buy primarily for its condition, then go for it.
I see speckled rust on some of the steel plates. This could turn into a boondoggle. Also, the Omega logo isn't symmetrical, which makes me suspicious of the dial.
It’s a redial, movement needs work, it will be a money pit and still won’t have half the value it would due to the redial. Bargains rarely are that- take it from a noob that has learned the hard way. You are better off getting a watch that is all original and well cared for than a bargain beater that’s been cobbled. If you ever decide to sell it you won’t get nearly what you have into it back
No redial IMO https://omegaforums.net/threads/ome...66-stainless-steel-167-021-calibre-712.40525/ EDIT: Looks like it is offered in Japan, right?
I just compared this to others of The same reference- this may indeed be a genuine dial That said, if it is running fine and only needs a service to get it 100%, dirt grime and a crystal (and generally a new crown & case back sea to keep it water tight) are standard things cleaned up in a service. I’m not afraid of dirt-watches get nasty since people wear them and people are nasty. Unless the watch comes from a known seller who stands behind their watch (like many of the members who sell here), I always knock the cost of service and common wear parts off the value of the watch and consider that in my value of what I would pay. Otherwise you are indeed looking at a potential money pit
Looks like an original dial to me. There’s dirty and there’s dirty. On the whole, my best buys are dirty watches with bad pictures. Equally the biggest money pits can be dirty watches with bad pictures. Depends how much you back your judgement, how much knowledge you have on a particular reference and how much you’re prepared to gamble.
Appreciate the responses so far. Yes the dial font looks different than the earlier constellations. It seems to match the one which had been in the sales forum here for the same reference, that was referred to earlier https://omegaforums.net/threads/ome...66-stainless-steel-167-021-calibre-712.40525/ I'm inclined to risk it if it ends up pricing <50% of the selling price from that post since the seller states that it is in (at least) running condition and can be returned if it doesn't match the description. Is this a Japan-only model? The seller is actually from North America. The Japanese sellers seem to offer relatively attractive prices, but I'm hesitant about the mystery import duty comes with them. My strategy so far has been to look for headlines with no keywords, photos that aren't necessarily the prettiest, but essentially original and intact pieces. That said, I've been lurking so have not had the regret that can come with that strategy. Where is the rusting on the steel? I have not spotted that.
Light rust locations: edges of the caseback, around the edge of the holding ring at 9 through 10, a bit at 2, and maybe a little bit around the bezel on the front of the case, and around the crown. It's not a rust bucket by any means, but it's definitely seen water intrusion in it's lifetime. Japan is generally a decent source for vintage watches as they have very strict authenticity rules for sellers and people generally like *new* vs old. But the intentional low lighting of these photos makes me suspicious that the seller is trying to hide the condition.