http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-ZOR...987328035?pt=Wristwatches&hash=item19d75c3a23Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network

 

Black dial chronographs?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/261136431384Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network

http://www.ebay.com/itm/261139635737Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network

 

First is not shabby, but is a nonrunner, and currently sits not far from fair value.

Second is one of the grails on my short list, a ref A 277, but an awfully grotty example. The subdials look like microbiology culture wells, a separate and rare yeast or bacterium growing in each. It'll never look decent with that dial, but it's a good parts watch.

And here's your test mule: http://www.ebay.com/itm/ZENITH-CHRO...988333000?pt=Wristwatches&hash=item19d76b8fc8Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network

 

What's the servicing situation with Zenith? Do they service vintage, have vintage dial availability, or have the ability to make more (the dies and whatever else)

 

Had to post this one. Price is twice what it ought to be, but it is a beautiful example...feast for the eyes
http://www.ebay.com/itm/280995460995?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network


<EDIT: pictures added for posterity - and since I this watch..... ULF>

 

$1625 for a nonrunner. Impressive.

 

It is an act of faith among Zenith fans that somewhere in the Zenith factory, which same physical plant Zenith has inhabited over the entirety of its history since the very beginning, there are replacement parts for everything. And Zenith bleeds out the occasional unusual part, dial, handset or case in NOS condition just often enough to reinforce this belief. But access is opaque and haphazard. There is no archival service, except when some collector who knows someone who knows an email of someone else gets a brief but courteous reply.

During a trip to the manufacture, James Dowling documented that Zenith indeed does have dies to a wide variety of vintage movements, including the 135 - http://justwatchingwithjamesdowling.blogspot.com/2011/07/attic-trip-into-watchmaking-history.html - but apart from Primero, they've never been known to actually use them.

As for service, back in the fall of 2010, I sent Zenith a running vintage Primero for service, encouraged when they posted their service fees on their website under the then-new directorship of Jean Frederic Dufour. http://www.zenith-watches.com/en/#/customer-service/service-fees/ New spirit of transparency, breath of fresh air, new emphasis on customer service, hurrah.

Their fee for service of vintage pieces (which they defined as pre 1995) was not specified, but their fee for a Primero without complications was then, as it is now, USD 630. Remarkably decent for manufacture service. So how bad could vintage service be when the movement has barely changed since it's introduction?

Answer:




Well, really it's not so out of line for Swiss manufacture service but I certainly felt misled by the advertised amount. I declined the service.

And that's what I know about Zenith and vintage service.

 

MMMS, Perhaps you are not familar with Ulackfocus's penchant for Alligator

 

You are upsetting the cat again.

 

I think in general the vintage watch collectors tend not to send their watches back to the factory for servicing - lots of negatives including cost, long turnaround times and most importantly failure to preserve original parts. I have never had Omega in Bienne service any of my timepieces - I have a couple of watchmakers I work with and am very specific about what to do and not do with a specific watch and frequently, I provide the parts that need replacing - I actually include an index card with every watch specifying what I wanted for that particular piece. I also have a store of vintage movements I keep with both to use for parts and of course I have a whole tackle box filled with parts that I store for future use. I don't know what the trend is with zenith but I have noticed vintage omega watch parts becoming harder and harder to locate as the company seems to be slowly moving towards expensive factory service for all their watches new or old.

 

Potentially a good find. The problem of course is poor photography. Poor photography generally indicates someone trying to conceal something or a novice seller, so in this case, no prior sales sort of stands Mr. Tex MacDaddy in good stead. You'll note that other watch he is selling is also badly shot, although the boots came out rather well.

Dial and hands look very good. No movement shot unfortunately. My biggest concern is the condition of the case. Certainly, the edges appear sharp, but in that second image, the top edge appears curved. It could be an artefact created by the camera lens, but that's also another way to screw up this case. It typically happens when someone polishes too close to the edge of the crystal and then has to camouflage the error.

Example:
Normal contour


Botched polishing


This little issue is easily resolved by asking seller for additional pix. You could suggest to him that he shoot doors under natural light to remove the annoying shadows.

Here's a little promotional literature for you

 

I'm not a zenith expert by any stretch but that watch looks like a poor redial.