This watch is for sale on another forum I frequent and I (perhaps foolishly) made an offer before doing as much research as a probably should. The offer has been accepted but I have not paid yet so I still have time to correct my mistake (if I did indeed make a mistake).

The subject watch is a 1953 Tissot, supposedly 14k solid gold. A couple questions - Would it be normal to have a steel/gold plated case back on a solid gold watch? Also would it be normal to have a 14k gold watch from 1953? I read somewhere that only 18k and up is "legit" in Europe but not sure if that is true.

Here's the watch:



https://imgur.com/a/7sFoi

What would a fair price be for this? It's listed at $650 but based on some feedback I've gotten on other timepieces this seller has listed, I think that may be high.

 

"Would it be normal to have a steel/gold plated case back on a solid gold watch?" No, but how is this relevant to the watch pictured?

Squirrel hallmark is correct for a Swiss 14K case.

Personal engraving hurts the value considerably, perhaps 25% or more.

$650 is too much for this watch, more like $450.

 

Sorry if this sounds harsh, but you have made an offer and it's been accepted. Unless the actual watch is not as described, or you have some statutory right to back out of the deal, you have to pay the agreed price. Whether you have "overpaid" in your (or others opinions) is of no relevance. The deal has been done.

 

I think "overpaid" is the wrong term. I meant "overoffered". No deal is "done" until funds have cleared, which they have not. Buyers and sellers back out all the time.

 

Sorry, the collective feeling on this forum is that we don't care too much for those who back out of a deal, on either side.

 

To @dinosaurjuice and @X350 XJR - In most legal systems, a contract is concluded when an offer is met by an unqualified acceptance concensus ad idem

Your belief that a contract is not concluded until funds are lodged is not they way the world works. The delivery of the object and the payment for it are obligations that arise from the formation of the contract.. That people can simply walk away from contracts whenever they please without consequence may hold for the microcosm of watch transactions on this forum, and maybe sometimes elsewhere, but eventually someone is going to hit you with a refusal to let you walk away from a contract, and then you might end up in a world of hurt..

 

In several legal systems on both sides of the Atlantic ocean, once an offer is made and it is accepted there is a binding contract.

The good news is, personally I find this a really nice watch. And overpaying a nice watch is only a minor hurt though when you take your first steps in vintage watches.
Some people who pay the so called "newbie tax" end up over paying for really bad watches.
Cheers,
S

 

I think that perspective will not meet with acclaim in here. This is a "handshake-my word is good as gold" corner of the web!

 

Plus, that's a really cool looking watch!

 

Absolutely. Plenty of 14k Tissot from that time period. 1953 would have been the centennial year for the company. Your example, with raised markers and logo, looks in good shape with just the right amount of patina. I have seen pristine (unengraved) solid gold watches from the classic Tissot period pushing the $600 mark and higher at auction.

 

The inside of the case back is clearly marked 14-karat. I assume a/ that it could be karat gold, and b/ that it's colour leads you to believe the case back to be steel. It is unusual to find a steel back on a karat gold case, but I have had people tell me they have seen such things. The pictures don't have really tell me what colour the case is (yellow or white), but I assume it is yellow since the dial markers are yellow. If the case back IS steel, the karat gold marking may have been added. To be correctly marked, I suspect the case back should have been marked 14-karat bezel, steel back. As to the the lowest legal gold karatage in Europe? In 1953, 18-karat was the lowest legal standard for many European countries. But the watch manufacturers also sold watches in countries where lower gold content was legal. If the terms of sale are such that the seller offers a return priviledge, then you need to do some research on exactly what you have, if and when you end up with the watch.

 

in some markets you would see SS casebacks with solid gold cases as a way to offer the solid gold product at a lower price point.

whether or not Tissot did this I've got no idea.

 

It is just the odd lighting that makes it look like another metal.

As overpaying goes, you have nothing to worry about. $650 is about what I'd expect one like this to go for where I live, perhaps a tiny bit less. It's a great looking watch and if my experiences with Tissot is anything to go by, you'll end up asking yourself why people pay so much for Omegas...

Congrats

 

All,

I appreciate the replies and am still intending to purchase the watch. The seller informed me I would be responsible for exchange and payment fees as he sent an invoice in Euros even though the offer and listing were in USD. I'm going to ask for a little relief on that front or at least to split it since he didn't mention anything about conversion fees in the listing.

However I will say that a PM on a forum hardly constitutes a legally binding contract, especially when he offered to take additional photos of the watch for me after talking cash. I guess you could argue it was just a courtesy but he has continued to list the watch for sale throughout our discussions.

I'm obviously new to this forum and am glad to learn about the culture here. I don't want to start off on the wrong foot or earn a bad reputation so I just wanted to clarify.

As for the watch itself, I still like it and don't mind paying a newbie tax as long as I'm not getting royally hosed.

Cheers!

 

In the jewellery trade diamond deals are done for thousands or millions on a verbal contract. If one party defaults nobody will ever deal with them again.

 

Agree this seller sounds like a conniver... and he's not sticking to his end of the deal. I would run, not walk. What other surprises are you going to have when you get the watch?

 

Just to close the loop here, the seller showed me how to get rid of the fees on paypal and I paid with a card that had no foreign transaction fee so it cost me only a few pennies more than the agreed upon price due to exchange rate fluctuation. Watch arrived yesterday and is in exactly the condition indicated in the ad. The seller had a lot of positive feedback so I was willing to take a relatively small risk. Love the watch! My first vintage timepiece.

 

We need pics! (On your wrist of course)

 

Looks nice. What's the diameter of the case (excl. crown). 32mm or slightly bigger?

Peire06