Speedmasters at WoK auction, 16 March 2019

Again, Watches of Knightsbridge has listed lots of vintage Speedmasters for their upcoming sale. As previously (etc etc), here's a summary of the ones I find interesting - please feel free to discuss below.

Remember the buyers premium is 24% and if you choose to buy via The Saleroom, add another 6% for their fees. Generally, WoK have been pretty good at estimating their lots and they usually sell for at or higher than their low estimate. Their photography skills are still a bit meagre though, but they often have lots more photos they'll share if you ask.

[EDIT - 16 March 2019
Lots of passed lots early in the auction...


… but the Speedmasters did fairly well, with most of the interesting ones meeting their estimates. A few bargains - like lot 181, a fair looking Mark II hammered for £1000]

Lot 172 - 2998-5, est £15,000-20,000
Hammer - £17,000 - inc premium, £21,080 / $28,036 / €24,664

I quite like the look of this - but I don't know enough to spot whether it's kosher or not without much better photos and probably a close look in person. Hour and minute hands appear to be original though the chrono hand and 9 o'clock subdial hands look a bit too white? The dial I quite like, no caseback or movement photos though. I reckon it has service crown and probably pushers as well? If it has real #6 endlinks then I could see it going for well into the estimate range, even though the bezel's a let down.

173 - 105.012-66 CB, est £5,000-7,000
Hammer - £6,500 - inc premium, £8,060 / $10,720 / €9,430

Service crown? Original pushers? The bezel's seen better days but otherwise I quite like. Again, crap photos and no movement or back shot. Surely it's got to be worth more than £7k? and the case facets look good.

174 - 105.012-66 with extract, est £6,000-7,000
Hammer - £7,200 - inc premium, £8,928 / $11,874 / €10,446

Now we're talking - the bezel is very good, original crown and a bit of gunk around the lugs maybe means it hasn't been prepared too much, though might have been polished at some point in the past. Then again, on closer inspection, quite a bit of lume has gone and it's not easy to spot if the dial is spotty or if it's just dust on the crystal... Another one to look at in person, I'd think.

175 - 145.012-67, est £6,000-7,000
Hammer - £6,200 - inc premium, £7,688 / $10,225 / €8,995

More awful photos - the straight on one makes the watch look pretty weird, IMO. Otherwise, looks fairly good? Described as having a blue bezel but I'm not sure I can see that.

176 - 145,022-68 transitional, est £6,000-8,000
Hammer - £6,000 - inc premium, £7,440 / $9,895 / €8,705

Looks like all of tis lume has gone - I wondered if it was a B&W photo but the reflection on the AML and the tiny bit of rust on the chrono hand give that away. Looks like it might be an original Decimal bezel and if the 1039 bracelet is in OK shape then that would be nice, but I'm not a fan of how this watch looks.

177 - 145.022-68 transitional, est £4,500-5,500
Hammer - £4,500 - inc premium, £5,580 / $7,421 / €6,529

Nicer looking - a bit - than the previous lot but still not exactly great. It'll be interesting to see how it compares under the hammer with lot 176, since the bracelet should be worth another £1000 or more; it might give us an answer about whether people will pay extra for a Decimal bezel, even when compared to a DON that's in slightly better condition.

178 - 145.022-69, est £3,500-4,500
Hammer - £3,500 - inc premium, £4,340 / $5,772 / €5,078

Another washed out looking watch and only one photo so hard to know how bleached the lume really is, and whether that chrono hand is original or a replacement... At least it has a bit of crud on it, the DON would likely clean up OK and maybe someone would snag it for the rare Holy Grail 1450/808 bracelet?

179 - 145.022-69 with 220 misprint bezel, est £3,000-4,000
Hammer - £3,500 - inc premium, £4,340 / $5,772 / €5,078

It's a pity the bezel isn't in great shape, as that's the most seemingly interesting thing. Again, lume isn't looking great though the case (and everything else?) is fair enough.

180 - 145.022-69 Straight Writing, est £5,500-6,500
Hammer - £5,200 - inc premium, £6,448 / $8,576 / €7,544

Clearly, there's a supposed premium to having box & papers, though the 1175 bracelet could be a curio and the actual dial looks a bit better than the other -69s and transitionals above.

[16 March - see the Wok is for Noodles thread about the watch above]

And that's all, folks, at least for the vintage selection. There are a few other Speedies that may be of interest - some special editions and a nice-looking late-Tritium.

Informative write up as always, many thanks.

Ewan, well done again, thanks! These Speedies..well, there are nine and besides the 145.012-67 (lot 175) none of them is (initially) appealing to me, for varying reasons. It might just be the bad Lightbox-Pictures, but I actually think one developes an eye for attractiveness, regardless of the picture quality.

They look tired to me and/or have too big issues/damages and I don't even want to put that in relation to the Estimates, because they wouldn't have any value as wearable Watch for me.
I can absolutely accept flaws, signs of use or minor damage on a 50+ Years watch, but I would always go for one with issues that has the so hard to describe vintage attractivity.

Cool post, thanks. Will be interesting to see where the market is heading.
As far as I'm concerned, I like the 2998, and I really like the 145.012-67. The first CB looks nice as well. Of course, more pictures are needed for each watch...

I'm not a big fan of the washed lume of some of the examples, but I'm not against a watch that has lived and can be worn daily without too many issues.

Generally agree - but the first CB (#173) has a chrono hand tip that appears to have been cracked clean off. And the community's collective wisdom seems to be that the genuine blue bezels usually come on -64's so I'm skeptical of their claim about the 145.012-67. Also, on the other picture in the listing it just looks faded to grey.

Generally agree as well 😀
At the right price, I wouldn't be bothered by the 105.012's tip (but only at the right price). I hadn't even noticed until you wrote so
And of course, I haven't taken into account the blue bezel claim on the 67 as it doesn't look blue to me (the date isn't really an issue to me as blue bezels could be swapped from a 64 to a 67 & still be period correct).

Excellent summary, thanks for the post.

I like 173 & 174, but the photos leave a lot to be desired.

I guess I'd not buy watches from auction, as appealing as there could be...

I agree. They are not attractive watches based on the (poor) photographs. Not a good start to the year with these watches and the recent Bonhams ones which were also disappointing.

Just watched the WoK auction online - Speedies did fairly well (see the inline edits to the first post), but it didn't feel like everything was flying off the shelves. Lots of other lots passed. Interestingly, some sold at below the low estimate, which disproves the theory that WoK sets their reserve at the low estimate price...

Yes. I just watched it as well. I think the prices reflected the condition of the Speedmasters. Interestingly the auctioneer still mentioned the papers on lot 180........

Anyone here snag anything? 😀 I didn't bid this auction

@Basset Hound 😵‍💫 and here I was sure they did the right thing. I’ll give them credit after @kov sleuthing they did at least take down the pictures. They likely gave the new owner the fakes stuff as a “bonus” (to scam the next fella 😝)

https://omegaforums.net/threads/wok-is-for-noodles.91529/#post-1185086

I bid on LOT 172, 173 and 174 but did not win any of them. Really liked the 2998-5, not perfect, but in a nice vintage look. In a shape that I would not be afraid to use it.

I am not much of Speedy guy but seeing these vintage pieces...wow.

Although in the introduction at the start of the auction he did say the papers would not be included in the sale. When it came round to the lot, he may have simply forgotten. Then again...😀