The dilemma of NOS/Mint watch finds: service or not?

What do you do with a 10 to 20 year old watch that appears unworn and unserviced?

Assuming I want to wear it and not put it in a safe (another dilemma), I assume that a 10 to 20 year old watch will have hardened lubricant and need a service. Is this true? Are there exceptions?

The example watch is a 2500 caliber. It has the red dot intact, which folklore tells me that Omega added the dot to identify casebacks that were opened. (Another dilemma, do I open a watch that has never been opened?)

The watch is keeping accurate time over 24 hours. But this doesn't mean that the metal is not being ground up.

What do you think? Yes, service before wear. No, service only if loosing time. And if no service, how long before it needs a service? Can a person expect five years before a watch that sat on a shelf needs a service?


Any thoughts are appreciated.

10-20 years old, service and wear it, assuming you're sure you want to keep it. If unsure, then maybe wear it a bit before investing in a service.

NOS and 60 years old, put it away and occasionally gaze at it admiringly.

This is an answer from @Archer about service interval I bookmarked:

https://omegaforums.net/threads/temperature-slowing-mechanism.170543/post-2324926

I was thinking aloud and asked if I should even wear it. My daughter overheard me and said "watches that sit on shelves are called clocks."

Wise advice.

Smart girl 😀 I'd have it serviced. Whether or not I wore it a bit ahead of time would depend on how the timegrapher results looked.

^^ fully agree