So i have just taken delivery of my latest purchase, a MK2 Speedmaster. My quandary is whether or not to have the crystal replaced and whether to have it very very lightly refinished.
I was told that the watch still had its original crystal, albeit very scratched and chipped, and that it had never been polished. It does appear to have a lot of metal left on it, but again as with the crystal it does have a lot of scratching and some fairly new looking slip marks on the case back. Other than that it has a replacement chrono second hand which sticks out like a sore thumb.
The watch was serviced in November 2016 so should run nicely for a little while now.
Any thoughts please? Particularly on the second hand and what could potentially be done with it.

 

Hour hand is wrong. For the vintage Mark II, it should have long lume.

 

Put it on your wrist. Leave it there for a week, then ask yourself those questions again.

(A replacement glass won't differ from the one on there. All the parts are still available and still correct, but ... yo can never unpolish a watch).

 

So are you saying the length of the hand is correct but the length of the lume plot is wrong?

 

There is a difference; crystals with and without serif numbers. The watch has the less common serif numbers right now, I don't know if replacements do or don't have serif numbers. I do have one replacement crystal lying here and it got the plain numbers.

 

Nice watch, I would keep it as it is.

 

Odd. I don't doubt you but I have a '72 that had the glass replaced last year and it's identical to the one that came off it (if you ignore the big scratches and chips).

 

Don't need a week. 6 hours was enough. I love the look of the case. The crystal however will craze me. How much am I looking at? Ball park. Thanks Jimmy [emoji106]

 

£75 fitted

 

I was looking for an identical dial like mine today(where the concentric rings are hardly visible if at all there) when I noticed subtile changes in the crystals.

plain numbers


serif numbers


there are more differences like the dots farther away from the numbers and tachymetre is almost at the edge.

 

on eBay there are a few original omega crystals available with a flame fused sapphire layer, they are made by a watch refinisher who is also a member. I have bought one too, I hope they are a bit more scratch resistant. The mineral crystal will scratch if you look at it.

 

Yes

 

Ok, so the plan for this then, firstly its going to go back to the watchmaker that serviced it 10 months ago to get the chrono-creep sorted out. Once back it will be off to STS here in the UK to have the correct hour hand fitted and aged, along with the chrono second hand. Finally ill have a new crystal fitted and that's it. I decided id rather stick with the roughed up look of the case.

 

Sadly the mk2 doesn't command interest as the original does and therefore prices are lower and stable. I really like the mk2 and have just sent mine for lapping, I'll use her as a daily wearer I think as a classy vintage timepiece.

 

There's nothing sad about that for those of us who love to own and, more particularly, to wear out Mark II's.

As far as I'm concerned, they can stay "cheap" for years to come.

 

+1

 

Fair point but realistically why do you think prices aren't rising ?
Most vintage watches are on the rise, there are still bargains out there but becoming rare

 

In truth, they are rising. Two years ago, they were all under £1000, now good ones are asking more than £2000. I know chrono24 isn't representative of values but here's what a search brings up: http://www.chrono24.com/search/inde...earchexplain=1&accessoryTypes=&goal_suggest=1

The re-issue certainly bumped prices but it's still a watch that flies under the radar ... and it's not the most fashionable. Whatever we think of watches as collectors, the true values are still driven by fashion. Is a 1972 145.0022 really three times more watch than a 1972 145.034? Same movement; similar dials; hands; the MK II is more water resistant (150m against 50m). The mechanics of the watches are similar enough to say we're comparing apples to apples .... it's just what's fashionable. The toneau case isn't fashionable, but it is incredible well designed and ridiculously hard-wearing.

Also, how many articles have Fratello or Hodinkee dedicated to the Professional or Pre-Professional compared to the Mark II? Meh ... this is just me typing with a beer and a gin inside me but no food, so take it for what it's worth. My daily wearer is still my Mk II despite, or because of, having many more "desirable" pieces to choose from.

 

I think the disparity in values may reflect the practical issue that the MkII and many other designs from this era are a tad big and cumbersome vs the earlier version. The flight masters too are unnecessarily big and can't be easily carried off by some with smaller wrists. That and the halo effect of the space program means that all the other Marks tend to be overlooked rather but if you do have the wrist to carry one off make for a cheap way into classic Speedmaster ownership.

 

Ha. My weapons of choice, it must be a mk2 thing. I've had 6 beers and 3 G&Ts ..... and a BBQ. Wearing an SMP though[emoji106]