Was hoping this great community could help me out with their thoughts on this seamaster 2849 cal 503. Does it look original, and is the movement in good condition? My concern is it doesn’t say “calendar” on the dial, although I have seen some similar ones on the forums. Seller says it was recently serviced. Any help is appreciated!
Case has been pretty heavily polished. They even tried to make it look unpolished by re-adding brushing to the circle around the hippocampus logo - that is not original. No Calendar on the dial is okay for a 1959ish piece. Here’s a 2846 of mine from the same year - same dial (color aside), markers, and hands. Notice the case back difference. My crown is incorrect - yours is correct.
I am by NO means a vintage expert the way many of the folks here are, but despite, or depending on your view, in part due to the polish, it might make a nice daily wear example if the price is right. I have seen this era w/o the Calendar marking. Not enough familiarity to judge the dial, in all honesty. Others will also have much better insight as to the movement itself.
I don’t see any red flags, and the combination of fat lugs and the hippocampus logo in overall nice shape makes it interesting to me. I agree it’s been a bit over polished, but the dial looks nice and original and I don’t see any issues with the movement, at this point it’s just a question of price.
Before calendars there were only no-date dials. IMO it was a big thing (technological advancement) when the date complication arrived hence the calendar branding.
Ouch, I did not notice the brushing on the case back. Always appreciative as I learn something new every time I visit here. The asking price is $1,000 usd including shipping. I’m going to assume that’s too much for this watch.
This case would be too polished for me. But there are people who prefer polished cases or don't mind them. Otherwise it looks good to me.