Hello all,
New to the forum and was hoping for some help. Please take a look at this Seamaster and let me know if you see anything out of place. Seller says it is a 563 that keeps good time but "clunks" when shaken. Any idea if that is likely as evil as it sounds? Have requested a movement pic since they know the CAL I assume they have seen it. Assuming I have to have it serviced what would a fair price be? I have had a devil of time finding dials that weren't hopelessly messed up in watches that weren't insanely expensive so I was wondering if a cheap fixer with a nice dial might be a better place to start.
Thanks,
John

 

It's a front loader so the seller probably won't be able to give you a movement picture. "Clunking" doesn't sound encouraging though. Could be the whole movement is loose inside the case or the rotor is loose. Anyway, it looks right for a mid 60's SMDV. The crown might be a thicker, more modern replacement but at least it seems to be the correct style.

 

Thanks for taking a look. I have a general question about service on Omega 56X movements. If they are actually running and keeping time does that give you any idea of general condition or is it still possible that when you you send it in for service the watchmaker is going to find serious issues. I realize that things wear and sometimes parts are needed so say $50 to $100 extra in parts I can handle but having them say "Yeah I know it works but the whole movement is so trashed it isn't worth the time and parts to fix" would be rough.

 

The 55x/56x calibers were some of the best production movements ever made. They were built so well that parts can be on their last leg yet the watch will still keep good time. The set bridge and certain parts in the winding system are commonly in need of replacement.

 

The clunking noise is certainly a concern - worn rotor bushing probably, and this can be expensive as a replacement rotor is about $300 the last time I checked. I have seen wear on the main plate that required replacing it, so another very expensive part if bought new. Same with the barrel bridge....and the main plate/barrel bridge wear I've seen a few times usually goes together so both parts are needed.

It would not be terribly difficult to think of parts that would require close to $1000 (if bought new) to replace on one of these....donor movements are an option, but you won't know for sure if they have the same worn spots...

Cheers, Al

 

After reading up on many of your prior threads that was pretty much the conclusion I came to as well. I figure if the rotor bushing is that far gone that gives you an idea of the amount of use, a lot, and the amount of service, not much, that the watch has experienced. Probably does not bode well for the condition of the rest of the movement. Thanks for the education. I didn't realize the potential for financial danger was quite that deep on these. Happy to have learned this lesson as a buyer and not an owner.

Thanks again, John

 

Al,
Just curious. When you referred to possibility of main plate and barrel bridge wear were you referring to the damage caused by the loose rotor dragging on these parts or are there other internal issues.

 

No, not just cosmetic damage like rotor scuffing, but specifically wear in the hole where the stem enters the movement - usually caused by some hack replacing the crown and clamping on the round portion of the stem with a pin vise, creating small burrs that act like a cutting tool on the soft brass plates. This enlarges the hole every time the crown is used to wind or set the watch - this wear eventually makes the meshing of the crown wheel and winding pinion "iffy" and it leads to damaged teeth on both, and an inability to wind the watch using the crown if it's bad - this is when the barrel bridge and main plate need replacing.

Here is one example showing how loose the stem is in the hole of the plate to start, and then when I turn the movement and start to wind it, if you turn the volume up and listen carefully, you will hear some quick clicks in a row - this is the winding pinion slipping on the crown wheel teeth - on this watch just replacing the winding pinion and crown wheel was not enough, and the main plate and barrel bridge were replaced. Usually the watch will wind up okay at first if it is completely wound down. But when the mainspring starts to generate some tension, the force required to turn the crown wheel pushes the winding pinion away from the crown wheel (it deflects because the hole in the plate is too big, and this allows the winding pinion to move), and this results in the skipping - you can feel it much more than you can hear it actually:

Cheers, Al

 

Great video. That's quite a sickening sound there. It's beginning to seem like any deviation from proper operation, feel or sound has the potential to result in the need to replace expensive parts. Not too troubling in an heirloom or a beautiful example worth big bucks that you plan on keeping forever but possibly lethal for a run of the mill daily wearer. Same problem I had with my 69 Corvette. It needed to be restored but was near the bottom of the collector value scale. Cost to restore one is almost the same for the bottom of the barrel and for a desirable model worth 5 times as much when finished. Since the cost to restore it exceeded restored value by quite a lot I let someone else take the plunge.