I recently bought this railtrack Connie and was initially very happy with it. Ok it needs a crown, crystal and service, but I love this design and was convinced the dial was original. It has the serifs, what looks like the correct font to me and although the patina/ageing hides it somewhat, the vertical grain is there. However, the more I've been looking at it, the more my concern has grown, particularly with the minute track. Under magnification the minute hashes don't look quite as precise as I might expect, and more worryingly, they aren't perfectly aligned with the gold markers. Any thoughts, is it a decent redial? Has just the minute track been redone? Link to original listing. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/352097642463Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network
Hello David My feeling is absolutely,… a historic redial The letters in 'CHRONOMETER' appear misaligned, and the rail track looks imprecise, in execution The more one looks at the dial ……the more doubts are raised Sorry………
Thanks for the comments Patrick. I'm very torn on this. What doesn't help is the very poor crystal, which distorts things slightly, and this may be what makes the letters appear mid-aligned? I've been looking at it non-stop for the last hour and my feeling now is that the main text is actually original, with the minute track being re-done. Then again, I'm very much a beginner when it comes to Constellations...
A watch with this many recognised, & potential unknown issues…? I, personally, would not drop €500 on this, without a fight
Agreed. I quite like a flutter every once in a while though! The seller described the dial as original so I should have no issues returning. I just don't want to make a mistake by sending it back if it's not as bad as I now think it might be.
Mine has a mirror finish too - similar to the one @fjf show. Like his, mine don't have "CALENDAR" on the dial - did some have that, or....?
Some defintely have calendar writing on the dial. If its a redial its a good one. Here's one I recently sold:
Not a redial based on OP pics though I'd like to see the usual dial w/ linen finish as well. Crystal to scratched!! Love these...
£500 not expensive though still not a buy for me with these pics Just a really well worn watch, in bad shape Love a project or two, but no medallion
My vote is an early re-dial based on the spacing and varying lengths of the minute markers, noticeable near 11:57/58/59. The hour marker at 6 is also misaligned and not vertical.
With a crystal as scratched as that + a patinated dial with a yellowing layer, I wouldn't dare state anything for certain. That said - I would bet on it being original. I have yet to see Constellation redials (and to an even stronger degree EARLY Constellation redials) that look the part. A misaligned marker could be the result of a repair rather than a sign of a redial.
Thanks all. I agree that the font/serifs etc look good and match other examples perfectly to my eye. However, there are 3 issues: 1. The spacing of 'AUTOMATIC' does look slightly different than on other examples. 2. A couple of the markers don't appear perfectly aligned (although as @ConElPueblo says, this could be a spot repair) 3. There is definitely something up with the minute track. It's also out of alignment and isn't as precise as I would expect. So, I'd usually just think, REDIAL! But as others have suggested, the text on the main part of the dial looks fine. If you were re-doing the dial, how/why would you get the text so right, but the (I presume) easy part, which is the markers, out of whack? Is it a part redial, of just the outer track (but then again, SWISS MADE also looks good), or a very good early redial? The crystal isn't helping, so I'll see about getting the movement/dial removed, although this may stop the seller accepting a return.
A couple extra. Looking at these, although we're at a decent magnification, the minute track can't be original.
I don't see how a partial redial is feasible. The printing on these is very tough, so even if it had been cleaned with an acidic solution, the print wouldn't have needed refinishing. And if the minute track had been repainted, I'd assume it would have ended up much worse than how this one looks. On the redials where the minute track looks great, a template have been used which wouldn't fit on this dial. By the way, @fjf on these pictures the texture on the main part of the dial is clear, as is the (dirty!) mirror finish on the minute track. I'm considering offering you €500 for this. It'll save you a lot of hassle returning it...
Here's a couple to compare with, I'm on my phone but your rail track still looks good to me. The texture is also visible in your last pictures too which IMHO is a good sign...
First your three Seamaster 300s in another thread, now two railroad track Constellations. On bracelets... I vote for a ban on @cristos71, effective immediately.