Am I right to say that everything is original except for the minute, hour and second hands (I'm not considering the bracelet)?

 

Always luv that post LouS

 

Seller claims he already has an offer at 25k...

 

He told me the last one on Ebay sold for 24900 and he was looking for offers near there...

 

Nice, but too many issues that are way too difficult to resolve ...

 

What are the issues you see Diabolik? Outside the hands and bracelet?

 

Cant see it very well but pushers look mis-matched. Would be good to get a snap of movement (which should be a caliber 125) and case back. Don't get me wrong, dial is nice, case is sharp but $25K i expect it to be all there, unmolested even if it has had a life ...

 

Definitely mismatched pushers.

 

So you don't think the pushers are designed to be size coordinated with the size of the registers fields?



J/K idding

 

Well now he says if I offer anything over $15K, he'll end the auction and sell it. I was just kicking the tires (not fond of the condition of this one as a whole), but if someone was ever a risk taker and dying for a Big Eye...

 

At $9k with 19 hours to go. That dial makes me think of this:

(thanks)

 

Sold for $12101; not sure what this means about the watch market in general or if the seller was making up the offers he recieved... Maybe both?

 

I suspect several factors played a part in the final price:

- Not a Panda. The majority of high priced models that have sold have been Panda version. More desirable vs. the Reverse Panda

- Incorrect hand set. While it's not impossible to find suitable replacements, it's difficult and not cheap.

- Sellers location. South America does not have the greatest reputation for watches arriving in the best mechanical condition. While this one looked fairly good, concern over what may be been done mechanically could have definately played a part.

- Buyers want the best examples for their funds. If you're planning on spending big bucks for a grail, are you going to go all in for an example with obvious issues, or wait for a better, more complete example to surface?

Just my two cents, but add all these up and it may help explain the selling price. I don't think the market has softened, I think this was more of a cautious and realistic buyers group.

 

Agree ...

One sale never sets a trend. That particular watch on that particular auction went for what it did. I for one was not interested even though I am out for a decent Big Eye, I will only consider the best.

If prices have softened, I will be buying. lets face it, the number of collectible vintages at best is stable but in all likelihood they will be reducing. Therefore, price will only go one way. Take a guess what direction that will be ?

Great thing about vintages is the fact that they don't need feeding, garaging or constant TCL. A Service every five years, a nice warm drawer away from moisture and the occasional wind and you can almost forget about them till next service is up (although many of us like to wear ours).

So, if you are waiting for prices to tumble, it could well be a long wait ...

 

to be fair I think 12k for this is a very strong price! Try to find those hands.... good luck!
If this had right hands and the selling platform wasn't Ebay and the watch would have been based in Europe or the US it would have achieved 20k I guarantee you

 

Hello everyone. I'm Jon
I bought the Big Eye and I'll keep you supplied with pics and blurb as I try and fail over the coming months to get the correct hands for it.
Meanwhile let me show you some pics of my tiny UG collection.

 

mmmhhh, yes. I think you should ask for some comments on both. I am interested in the case reference and serial of what looks like a 22209 case (compax three register) ?