Hi vintage Omega friends. I'm new here. Proper disclosure by me should be that I wrote a similar message on another vintage Omega forum and the only reply I got was very short and uninformative. The replier also scorned my English which is not my first language. But other than shaming my English skills in public, he said that the watch "looks fine" and that it's "not the kind of watch that fake makers do".

Yet, I suspect that it might be fake. Why? Because a vintage Seamaster was more or less my dream watch until I received one a week ago, out of the blue.

The person who bought it for me picked it up at an antique fair for around 200 bucks. The seller, from whom I previously purchased an authentic late 70's Seiko diver (7548-7000) promised that the watch was authentic and offered to open it up to show the movement; the person who is not very knowledgeable in watches did not prompt him to do so. This joins the fact that I don't have a tool 104 so I can't open the watch myself - so I don't have any movement shots of the watch itself. What I do have is a movement shot of an identical Seamaster which was sold in GermanyPurchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network, on ebay, a few days go. I've also seen this Seamaster with a date complication. It looks a lot like my "Seamaster" and it has almost identical details on the back, but the number there is 136.018 while on mine it is 135.018 with no dot in between. I know this doesn't necessarily mean my watch has the same movement inside, but still, I'm bringing this to your proficient eyes. All in all, from my inexperienced eyes, the watch looks kosher, and I do find it hard to believe someone faked it like this, but still, I want to know if this is genuine, since we live in a world filled with so many fakes.

I would really, really like to know if the watch is authentic. Any other details about it would be greatly appreciated, specifications, movement, etc. I would also love to know when the watch or series was produced, if it is indeed authentic. Thanks a bunch!

On to the pictures:







Waterproof - Seamaster Logo - 135018 - Tool 104






Movement shot of identical German Seamaster:

 

If you have some canned air, you have "Tool 104" as this was simply an air pump that popped the crystal out via air pressure. You first remove the crown and the crown side of the split stem (pull the crown to the setting position, then pull further on the crown and it will snap apart), the put canned air or a bulb style blower over the case tube, and apply pressure - the crystal will pop out. Then use a small screwdriver to push the stem back to the winding position, and the movement may drop out at that time. It also may have a ring inside that needs to be turned to release the movement clamps, or the movement itself may have to be rotated in the case. There are a couple of different styles for this system, so once the crystal is off you can see what is needed.

If you have no experience doing this sort of work, I would highly recommend you take it to a watchmaker to have this done. In any case replacing the crystal will require a press to do it properly.

Cheers, Al

 

SpikiSpikester - It is good to hear that it looks fine; good to know about the cal too and everything. Thanks!

Archer - I have no experience with this sort of work so my best shot would be to give it to a watchmaker. I'm not sure I will though in the near future, perhaps I'll just be content with the benefit of doubt (which is leaning more towards the "it is genuine" side). Then when I take it for servicing I'll know.

What made me suspect was the engraving on the back, since from my knowledge it's supposed to be embossed. The watch is keeping great time so far. Is there any estimate on accuracy for these movements? Also, is the strap aftermarket or did it come with the watch originally, as best as you can estimate? It doesn't have "Omega" on it but it does look aged and fits the watch.

Also, I would like to hear more opinions if anyone has them!

Thanks - great forum!

 

It's a fairly average item from this period (which isn't a put down).
It has seen some wear and I suspect that crown may not be original, it's a bit too sharp for such an age and doesn't match the wear on the case.
The hands are a mystery to me, I would have expected baton hands with small pointed ends, not square tips, I could be wrong though.
The dial could have been re-done, the Seamaster looks a bit heavy to me.
If your movement is as clean as the pics it's a good watch, the 601 is one of the best manual Omega movements of the period.
I doubt it's the original band if it's not marked omega, it would be unusual for a band to last that long and it's not commensurate with the wear on the case.

All in all, it's a nice watch and with a service should give years of trouble free ownership.

Cheers

Jim

PS: I used an alternative to Tool 104 once (my tube inflator), but the valve opened too quickly and I blew the case apart, along with the movement and dial in an upward direction at great velocity.

Leave it to your watchmaker.

 

Hello Sambation and welcome,

Pretty pictures. They remind me the Seamaster Cosmic I heired from my grandfather, previously showed in this thread:

http://omegaforums.net/threads/omega-seamaster-cosmic.4333/

(before and after its service).
Maybe they're not from the really same version but quite close, I'd say.

Kind regards,


Marco

 

Thanks so much to all repliers! You're a great bunch and this is a great forum.

I am happy to hear that the movement on my watch is a good one. It does keep a good time so far, even better than some of my "modern" automatics. *knock on wood*

And in general it's good to hear that the watch looks kosher.

I just put it on a Hadley-Roma Crocodile grain strap; what do you guys think? It kind of resembles the beautiful Cosmic Varasc has posted. I'll deliver a wrist shot tomorrow, meanwhile a cold war-esque glamor shot.

 

That's an awesome photo. Nicely done.

 

I agree with Poday, an awesome and elegant picture with a nice angle. Worth of 500px, a photography website where I own an account.

Seriously, I love your Seamaster and its new bracelet, really elegant. And it's really close to my Cosmic. It would be nice to find an old catalogue and see if they came from two completely different versions, or if one was the direct evolution of the former.
Really classic watches.

 

Very nice watch you have there and similar to my Seamaster 600...


Nice strap you added, may I ask the details...

 

Wonderful, Hijak.

 

Thanks once again guys! I really like your Seamaster Hijak. That's a very sharp strap right there! What is it? I could use it on my Seiko Lord-Matic. I deprived it from the Hadley-Roma Crocodile grain starp you see on my Seamaster, 19mm.

Adding a few more pictures as promised, plus a GIF. Anyone knows how to make it slower?

 

Seamaster 600 time is it?

Here's mine

 

Ok that's official - this is one of the most elegant and fascinating threads I enjoyed in this forum. Chapeau, to everyone: superb images.

 

Although I would like to ...I can't take credit for my image. I brought my Seamaster 600 from a fellow forum member a few months ago and this is his image.