Hi there,

I've just purchased a vintage Omega Geneve on Ebay and I'm having trouble finding definitive answers to some questions, likely because there isn't a strong consensus; so I'd like to field the questions with a little bit of context.

I'll start by saying I'm a very low income recent grad, just waiting to start graduate school (i.e., my income situation will stay low for a considerable amount of time). To really bring the point home, I won this watch as a birthday gift for myself, and put down $150 dollars. For me that was breaking the bank for a watch. I'm not interested in whether this was a great deal, or how much I could sell the watch for. I love it (aside from the hideous crocodile band) and I have no intention of ever getting rid of it. I've been wanting a manual watch for some time and I finally had a bit of cash to make it happen. With that in mind I'm interested in the most cost effective way to make sure that the watch keeps on ticking.

So,

Who should I let service it, and what would an acceptable service job consist of?

How much should I expect to pay, keeping my income in mind (sending it to Omega for a $600 service job is not and option. I want to wear it and enjoy it, not stick it in a drawer for 10 years until I can afford to have it fully serviced)?

Does it actually need service to keep from breaking down and causing real damage to itself, like a car without oil; or will it just be a gradual decline in accuracy until a possible stoppage that can be remedied with a good servicing?

And most importantly, how can I tell when service is necessary? The seller was not the last owner/wearer and doesn't know the service history. Using my computers clock as a guide (not knowing how accurate it is, only that it updates with the internet and is likely to be the most accurate I have access to) the watch has lost roughly 24 +/- 5 seconds in 30 hours of running, with one winding at the beginning of that time and none since. I also believe most of that loss was in the last 12 hours or so (I gather that's what would be expected as the main spring winds down?).

Unfortunately I don't know yet what the movement is as I cant find this exact model pictured on Omega's index of vintage watches. I've added links to the nearest matches.

If you've read this far you are truly kind, and I appreciate any advice or information you can give.

http://www.omegawatches.com/spirit/history/vintage-omegas/vintage-watches-database?ref=19742

http://www.omegawatches.com/spirit/history/vintage-omegas/vintage-watches-database?ref=14369

http://www.omegawatches.com/spirit/history/vintage-omegas/vintage-watches-database?ref=19442

 

You have a reference 135.041 with a manual wind caliber 60x inside. It's a decent watch, and you got a nice deal on it.

To answer your questions, yes you do need to service it. Without a cleaning & oiling, gunk will ruin the gears, teeth, and other parts that rub together and impact each other inside your movement. If you don't know the last service date, that means it needs servicing. It's about $150-ish for a service unless parts are necessary and then it will cost a bit more. The interval for a service, IMO, is anywhere from 5 years out to 8 years. Once you get used to how consistent your watch runs after a service, you'll know it needs another when it loses that consistency and starts getting more broad timekeeping swings.

Contact Steve / N2FHL about getting what you need done. He does very nice work for someone who doesn't have tons of cash to spend.

 

There was an excellent post by Archer recently about why/when to service. But I can't find it. maybe it was just a link to WUS? Does anyone have it, I'm sure the OP would appreciate it.

 

Thanks a million guys, very helpful. I really want this thing to last, I fell in love with it right out the box. My last question would be, given the current accuracy would I be in an acceptable range to wear it for say another month, maybe two until I can scrounge up the money for the $150-ish service job, or should I really just let it wind down and sit until the job is done? That price is reasonable enough, and I like it enough to patient for that long if I really need to.

 

Don't gamble. You're asking for problems running.... make that grinding.... the internals with no oil and grit / dirt inside. I've seen what can happen first hand and it isn't pretty.

 

Crap. Well I suppose I'll do what I have to do. Would you happen to know if Steve has a website, or is the forum the best way to get in contact with him?

 

Send him a message using his screen name here (it's N2FHL).

I understand instant gratification, but with proper care & maintenance that watch will work a lifetime. A month or two is a short time.

 

Gotcha, I can appreciate it. I'm a nerd, and probably the first person in my family to have a watch that could even be considered "decent" by a veteran of a forum like this. I was getting a little antsy letting people mess with it looking for a band to replace the crocodile when I got it in the mail yesterday hah.