Backstory: This Seamaster De Ville was given to me as a gift by my grandparents in 1998. It belonged to my grandmother's brother in-law; unknown where and when this watch was purchased. It was in fine working condition up until around 2002 when it stopped running and became frozen. I put it in a box of belongings and only recently came across my watch a few years ago. A little while ago, I posted this on Reddit Watches for more info. The info I received is that this is a mid-1960s SDV with an aftermarket Speidel stretch band (Bummer that my great uncle didn't keep the original strap in the Omega box; lost). I haven't had the watch opened up yet to get the exact information. I currently live in Los Angeles and took this in to a local watchmaker, Bestime (of Sherman Oaks, CA), to get a ballpark price quote on fixing and restoration (with specific instructions on keeping the original parts). The owner quoted me that it would cost $200-$250 and would take about two weeks time. I also contacted Second Time Around Watch Company in Beverly Hills about service; the owner responded with a general quote that service typically runs between $375-$450 for complete and correct service. I have browsed the Omega Forums about recommended watchmakers in LA to take my SDV in for this full service. I'm going into Beverly Hills tomorrow to take this to both Feldmar and Second Time Around to have them take a look at my watch up close for some more price quotes on service. Goals: I would love for anyone out there to chime in on if they might know what year and model my watch is. I would also like to know if these quotes which I've received seem about right or if they are too low (or too high) for a complete restoration and fix. *Is my watch worth fixing and restoring based on its current condition? Lastly, I would also like to hear any recommendations on purchasing a new strap for this SDV; original Omega or third party recommendations are welcome. Thank you for checking this out. Let me know if there's any other details I could provide to help out.
Watch is beautiful. I would try to stay in the $250-$300 ballpark for servicing. These cases are a bit harder to open though so don't quite expect each shop to be able to give you a quote on the spot. They may need you to leave it with them for a bit to get to the movement. I think it'll look good with something dark brown like lizard or croco. There is a whole thread just on strap ressources (two "S" ). https://omegaforums.net/threads/«wa...-buy-good-quality-leather-watch-straps.82232/
Thanks Ben for your recommendations and pointing me to the strap thread. I'll start browsing for some ideas on a new leather strap.
A very, very nice watch When taking the watch in for fixing and servicing, make sure to stress that no polishing should be done and originality - where possible - should be maintained. Mechanically these are quite robust and parts ought to be possible to find. The quote given by Ben seems very reasonable and I think that any attempts at matching it in Beverly Hills will be difficult There are a lot of threads where members here suggest various watchmakers around the globe, my suggestion is that you familiarise yourself with the search function on here and spend an hour or so seeking information. Also, a slim, medium/dark brown reptile strap (do NOT buy a padded strap!) will look spot on on your Seamaster.
Hi, thank you for posting, may I ask how much the diameter of the watch is? Looks very small to me or is it just the pic? Caseback looks different as on other ones I think... Thank you very much for your comments on this
The small seahorse is normally on the smaller sized DeVilles, don't know if this also holds true on gold filled versions. Not a 5xx-series movement, right?
"It belonged to my grandmother's brother in-law" - so I thought this small size is very uncommen for men's watches, isn't it? That was my point
Very handsome watch, dress style of the 1960's. As ConElPueblo said, emphasize no (or little at most) polishing of the metal case during service! Sometimes a watchmaker will want to remove every scratch using a buffing tool and that significantly changes the shape of the case. Polishing the plastic window is fine though.
Thanks for the info Pueblo. I’m unsure of the exact series movement, because I have never had my watch opened up before. I’ve been searching the web for possible info to compare to my watch. My best guess so far is that it’s a 1962 SDV (BD 165.0020), because the dial looks similar and the Omega box (with the “Official Watch Olympic Games” icon) which I found in an old advertisement is nearly identical to mine. But I’ll take this in to have inspected shortly.
I agree with you that my watch is small, especially compared to my modern day watches (Fossil, G-Shock). But I can also assure you that my watch is certainly a handed down gift from my grandparents; my great uncle’s watch.
I searched and saw someone on the forums sold a 165.004 back in 2014. It looks pretty similar to mine, so maybe my guess on a 165.002 was off?https://omegaforums.net/threads/seamaster-de-ville-165-004.11949/
Interesting! Didn’t know that there were made in smaller sizes as well. To big to be ladies- and to small for a normal gentlemen sized watch. Can it be one of those “boy” size watches that were quite common in 50s? Anyhow, very nice nad sharp example!
Sorry, my cheap American tape measure doesn’t have metric markings. I have to use Google conversions to convert to inches to mm