Speedmaster ref. 145.022-69 is in need of a service, what are my options?

imageWIS

In your shoes, I would not send the watch to Omega and find, as others have stated, a competent watchmaker that can properly service a vintage Speedy without destroying it's, for lack of term, 'soul'.

Stripey

My sense is that if I had a vintage watch with charm - like this one - I would not send it to Omega. If I had one that was utterly trashed, and wanted to get something that looked like new, I would. Am I wrong in my impression?

timecube

This is false.
She was either lying or engaged in wishful thinking. I will be generous and imagine she was simply naïve.
Swatch group is notorious for acting according to their own standards and ignoring customer requests. Their goal is to raise the watch to a level Swatch thinks "perfects" it. If they see any part they don't like, they will replace with a modern equivalent. You can request that they leave certain things alone, and they might honor that, but they will always rely on their own discretion— not yours.

It gets worse the older things are. I don't know how they treat SMPs like yours. You might get lucky, or you might not. If all you care about is making the watch functional, and are not concerned with aesthetics or collectible value, you won't be disappointed. Swatch servicing is very good at making watches function.

Martin Sivertsen

I'm leaning more and more towards replacing the hands though, as the tritium on the minute and hour hand is all but gone, and what's left might fall off and rattle around inside the case/dial. I don't think that would be a great scenario.

asrnj77

Just get the original hands redone with new color matching lume. It will be more expensive to replace the hands and even then you’ll need to get them relumed because it probably won’t match the rest of the dial

JACK G

Hello Martin,

Welcome to the forum and nice watch.

I know you stated that you didn't want to send the watch abroad but before you make a final decision you need check out and seriously consider Simon Freese in the UK.

http://www.simonfreesewatchmakers.com/about-1/

Simon will do exactly what you have in mind as he knows what these watches require - he does this all the time and I have had many watches sorted out by him. He can also deal with luming your original hands and I would not replace them.

Simon is familiar with dealing with watches from abroad and as this will be a one off exercise for you the right guy is more important than geographical location.

Hope it all goes well for you.

Jack

pix98

problem is to find a good watchmaker...

nkhandekar

This is a time that I would choose not to send my watch to Omega. There is a lot of good original stuff to keep intact. This needs a conservation treatment, not a restoration.

Martin Sivertsen

Yes, and that's what it's going to get being serviced by Simon Freese.

jaegodylan

You shouldn't have to pay VAT or customs when the watch is returned to you.

Archer

Laws in most countries disagree with you. When something is sent out of country for repairs, there is value added by the item being repaired, and most countries will charge duties and taxes on the added value (the value of the repairs).

This is why when I ship a watch back to another country that I have repaired, I fill out several forms to ensure that it's only the value of the repair that is declared as value for customs purposes, not the insured value of the watch. It's important that the watchmaker knows how to do this properly, so that you don't get stung for the full value of the watch.



Not a great idea to commit fraud...