Hello -
Hoping someone can shed some light & advise.

This was found in the surf approximately 2 weeks ago. It reads Omega Speedmaster Professional on the LCD face & has the logo on the hatch along with " Flight Qualified by NASA for Space Missions" in all caps. Both the analog & LCD have and are keeping the correct time, although the LCD is one hour different. The side buttons & the bezel will not operate. Taping on a hard surface will still release fine sand particles. Evidently the pin on the band failed & it was lost, with the exception of removing some of the sand this is the way it was found. The winding stem still operates. I took it to a local jeweler that sells Omega, they could not tell me if it was real or a knock off. I do not see anything like it on the Omega website. I did find one for sale on E bay that indicated it had multiple surface blemishes and the hour & minute hand do not function. It was listed for over $1000. The jeweler offered to send it to Omega for analysis & estimate.

My questions: Is it an authentic Omega, what is the approx. value, would it be worth the full rehab costs of around $500 ( per the Omega website)? If it is authentic I don't think I would trust anyone but Omega to service it.

Thanks for your input.

 

Looks like a second generation Speedmaster X-33.

Have you taken any steps to return it to the person who lost it?

Omega are the only folks who can service these, as they swap out the complete movement for a new one.

But before you go down that route... if you haven't yet, I'd try to get it back to the owner (in the UK the law says you have to hand something in to the local police station, and only if it is not claimed within a set period, do you get to keep it)... maybe google the serial number on the lug and see if anything comes up.

 

As above, it's definitely a Gen II X-33. If it were me I would have it serviced by Omega and then return it to the owner if he/she could be found. How good would that make you feel?

As it was found 'in the surf' then the law in the UK is that it must be reported to the Receiver of Wreck, a position within the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCGA). This is the same as with any item recovered from a wreck such as a porthole, lamp, bell etc. I have been through this many times when recovering items.

 

Good knowledge! I’ve only ever found things (further) on dry land.

 

Did he say it was found in the UK?

The first post soliciting value/authenticity advice seems....suspect.

 

Nope, but I think @Skier and I are on the same page in suggesting that if it were then there are some UK rules/law that apply.

And that the OP needs to take into account the rules/law wherever he is in the world, rather than just going down the fingers keepers route.

 

One thing is for certain. Now that you have posted your having found this watch, you will be MUCH easier for the owner or the authorities to find than you would have been had you kept your good fortune to yourself. However, if you now send it to Omega for service, chances are Omega might be a party to notifying you who the seller was, if not the owner. You might be best off following local protocol so that your tail is covered.

 

Where would I find the serial number? I don't see one on the outside of the case. I am a little further west than the UK and fear were I to contact the local police where it was found it would wind up on the chief or some member of his family's wrist. I guess I could post an ad in the local paper & ask the person that lost it to form a line on the beach. If I can find the serial number maybe Omega could contact the owner if they registered the watch, which I'm sure is automatic with purchase or the owner was that responsible. They have probably filed an insurance claim at this point anyway, might cause more problems for them if it is returned, but if I can find a serial number I can try.

 

Well it may seem suspect to you, but when I first saw the watch I couldn't tell what it was and frankly, on first impression thought it was junk, and considered putting a cheap band on it & giving it to my grandson, it was not until I got it home & placed it under a magnifying glass that I could read the fine print close enough to realize what I might have. I contacted Omega well over a week ago but have heard nothing in reply.

 

Sorry, but this part is insane.

If you hadn't posted this, you could have just published a Lost & Found ad without describing the watch you found more specifically than the brand and let the responders describe exactly what they supposedly lost, including the strap.

 

Maybe I have a little more of an altruistic attitude.

 

Have you contacted the police/authorities in your area? You seems to have done a lot of due diligence trying to determine the value of your find, but not so much in trying to find the actual owner.

And there are frequent posts here from first-time posters with "interesting" stories of found or acquired watches asking for advice on value. You'll have to forgive people for being a bit skeptical.

 

IMO, altruism would be donating that amount of money to some legitimately charitable cause. Spending that amount of money out of your own pocket just to service a luxury watch for some total stranger about whom you know absolutely nothing really seems a little nuts to me.

 

I ask an honest question and in a matter of minutes I'm characterized, as a scofflaw, thief & opportunist. What a welcoming group. People have suggested I should pay to have it repaired & then return it to the owner. I've never owned a watch that cost more than $150 in my life, I'm supposed to shell out $500 to get it fixed & return it? I'm beginning to think I should just throw it back in the water.

 

Altruistic? I would say: unrealistic

 

I trust the local police where found it about as far as I can throw them.

 

Do your due diligence to find the original owner. It will give you a warm fuzzy if you find him / her.
Do not do anything to the watch. It is obvious that the strap broke and fell off their arm.
If a reasonable amount of time goes by and nobody comes forward, give it to your grandson (after you buy a new strap).
You have probably googled the value by now. It is a nice watch.

 

Put an ad in the local paper saying not to bother contacting you unless the responder can furnish the serial number. To claim ownership, one has to be able to identify the watch and that's the only way to definitively identify a watch reliably (other than proof of a contemporaneous forum post or public notice or something like that about losing an Omega X-33 in that area). If you took it to the Police, that's the proof they'd require, and I agree with you that it's not safe to assume whoever's in charge won't just keep it, himself. After nobody identifies it in the statutory period in your area, send it to Omega for a service estimate and compare that cost with the going rate for that watch on eBay. Then, either sell it or do whatever you planned to do with it, originally. Whatever you do, don't publish the serial # if you find it. If Omega keeps it because the serial # is in their database, then, you've done your good deed, assuming Omega can be trusted to contact the owner. If Omega service fees are too expensive in relation to the resale value, just find a local watchmaker to repair it for roughly half the cost or sell it as-is on eBay with full disclosure about the condition but not the circumstances of your acquiring it to avoid false claims of ownership. Welcome to the forum.

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chingachgook

Interesting choice for a name to go with your avatar. Care to ell us how you settled on the name of a fictional character from the stories of James Fenimore Cooper? You a fan?

 

And I feel the same way about anonymous first-time posters on an internet forum.