A couple months ago I acquired this watch from a retired watch maker, it seems to be all original but there's one thing I can't seem to under stand or get over. Can someone put my worries at ease... I read somewhere, a while back, that all Rolexes from the 1940s and prior has "Swiss Made" or "Swiss" below or around 6 o'clock. This one doesn't seem to. The first thing that comes to mind is this a redial? I'm inclined to say no because everything else seems to be correct (type face, the patina on the dial, this particular watch maker retired during the quartz crisis and never touched it since). The way the lettering on the dial is straight, the pictures make them look crooked. I can't understand this, who can help me out?
is this a 42xx or a 31xx? these watches were not very waterproof and a lot of the dials got beat up. It's possible that an over aggressive jeweler "cleaned" the swissmark off this particular dial. some evidence of this possibility exists in the fact that other writing on the dial looks like it's been scrubbed. it's tough to see through that big scratch above 6 and over the "Officially Certified…" Do you have any of the service history for this watch? the crown looks correct from the side view. that's good.
It's 5050, here's a cleaner shot of the writing, nothing seems to be smudged. Is it possible they made it without the "swiss made" or 'swiss' written on the dial? It may not be very clear in the picture but it appears the watch has been serviced regularly..
I agree with citizenrich...it looks very possibly original with damage to the printing on the lower part of the dial. The fonts and coronet look okay.
I've been following it on eBay since my first post and concluded my search, that is the ref 5050 does not have Swiss Made on the bottom of the dial... My next question is why? http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Men...0-/151287329949?&_trksid=p2056016.m2518.l4276Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network http://www.ebay.com/itm/ROLEX-BUBBL...0-/291125913271?&_trksid=p2056016.m2518.l4276Purchases made through these links may earn this site a commission from the eBay Partner Network