The Flightmaster thread

£4,500 on the website now - has he had a change of mind?

Where at? Not sure. It was posted on Instagram yesterday and sold in an hour.

http://www.ukwatches.com/shop/

It might be that the website just hasn't been updated. I was having a look because I would probably have been interested, but I might have preferred a slightly better case and foregoing the box and papers at that price.

He had it up for sale last year and brought it along to a Time 4A Pint meet from memory... it's nice... I think my one is nicer. 😉

Wow!

That’s a real stunner! Congrats sir.

BRAVO! What a fine Flightmaster! I never noticed the gold version had an applied logo, perfectly suited. Is there a story to the purchase?

Oh my goodness, that is absolutely beautiful! Where, when etc?!

As a side note, I'm newer here to OF, but have been on various watch forums for over 20-years (I was "SilverBullet" on IWC & MWR forums and "OmegaP99" on TZ, etc.), and most of you who have been around remember Chuck Maddox pretty well. He's been on my mind all morning for some reason, so I have been wearing my Flightmaster to honor him and that's how I ended up browsing this thread again today. A hell of a guy, and tho we never met in person, I benefited in so many ways from his knowledge, like many of us here. Without his passion who knows what the Omega enthusiast world would look like today, but it would surely be lacking, just as it is again with his absence. I'll pour one out for the Omega Legend later this evening. Thanks for everything Chuck.

Yep no words needed for your post

dibs?....

There is not a great story behind. A friend who has looking for one since years has bought this one last year. But the real thing for him was one with the gold bracelet. So the hunt was ongoing. End of last year a near unworn BA345.0801 with box and papers was popping up at Christie's Australia. He was the winner of that auction and I called dibs for this one. So I'm now a very happy owner of something really nice and special.... 😀

Oh wow 😲😲😲 That´s the real collectors stuff 👍

So Cool the gold case and splashes of colour in the hands, amazing watch!

Hi. And thank you for this very enjoyable group. Some watches you just buy and enjoy, and there are some you inherit and hold great sentimental value to their shall we say custodian. And I fall into the second bracket. In the mid to late 70s my father who was doing general building work at the time, was paid by a client with the watch in the photos. I would have been about 10 or 12 and completely fell in love with it. It was big and heavy almost industrial and it had buttons on it I didn’t understand. And although we were separated and our time together fragmented as I grew up I was always allowed to pick it up and hold when ever we were together. I’m 53 now and my father passed away recently so now the watch I loved as child has become mine. But I’m a practical sort of bloke and I’d very much like to wear this as my regular watch. So I would like any advice you feel you would like to pass on and your opinions on the watch, it’s condition, what you think is right and what you think is wrong. After reading all 37 pages of this forum and adding my own memories my opinion is that this watch has been serviced by omega I think in the early 80s. I don’t think the strap in original but it is period. It’s a 1162/173 and these were fitted to the Speedmaster I think, and may have been changed at service. Again I don’t believe the dial is original. As I understand it was standard procedure to replace these at service as the trintium used in the lum was considered hazardous to health and Omega wouldn’t work with the dials. The case is in pretty good condition. No major dinks just a few scratches but the finish has faded or been polished. The plane on the back is also starting to wear. The pushers and winders are odd and obviously not original but are again period. None have and colour. The GMT and the internal bezel are plain with a raised omega logo and the chronograph pushers are solid with no indents for paint. From what I’ve read on here and other forums there may have been an issue with the coloured pushers not being able to keep out moisture. I’m guessing that’s why so many and especially the 910s suffer from the “Tropical” look. Personally I don’t like it but I know lots of you do. So if anyone has a view or knows let me know. The mineral glass is good but has a few obvious surface scratches and 50 years of micro scratches. So I’d like to get it polished, again your views welcome. Although I’ve known this watch for over 40 years I’d never worn it. My dad didn’t like the way it wore but he wore it quite lose. When I got I wore it straight away and he right. It was so heavy it flopped around all over the place. But I had some links taken out and micro adjusted the bracelet so that it fitted tight and it’s a joy to wear. You would think it would be difficult read with such a busy dial but it’s surprisingly clear and intuitive. One other question I have is the lume. It’s terrible. It’s old I get that but although the dial lume is virtual nonexistent the GMT hand still glows as bright as my modern diver. So that’s strange. So there it is, Old, loved, full of memories and never to be sold. One of the kids will get it when I go.

in memory of Cedric William Lawrence. April 7th 1948 to July 23rd 2020

Sorry not all the photo loaded

condolences on the passing of your father. your watch is in a well loved state, and as it is a treasure to you, i'd suggest having it serviced to keep it running as it should. most here would suggest you should leave the externals as they are, and as it was for your father, but that is a matter of personal choice.

once it's serviced, wear, enjoy and remember your dad!

I'm very sorry for the loss of your father, and I see it is so recent as well, so you must still be feeling it. It was lovely to read your story, but to lose a parent too young is even more sad than it would otherwise be.

I have spent a pleasurable few minutes analysing your watch against the book Flightmaster Only, and if you are at all interested in the history of the watch model, I really recommend it.

Dial - I suspect the dial is original. It is marked T Swiss Made T. Service dials are marked "Swiss Made" only. The dial dates your watch between 1972 - 1976 (not having any dots at the 3, 6 and 9 positions). That's why the lume is poor - the tritium paint has lost its luminescence.

Hands - I suspect the yellow hands are original, mainly on the basis that the main second hand appears to be of the thinner and the original type. The white hands look like replacement hands filled with luminova; I think this because of the shape of the end of the hour hand and how white they are. A way to check is to put the watch in the dark after wearing in daylight - if the luminescence persists beyond a few seconds, they are likely replacement hands (but correct). On the yellow hands - about one third of the production had yellow hands, which were supposed to be more visible in cockpits with red lighting. It would be interesting to get a look at the GMT hand, which is obscured in your photos.

Bezel - looks original, or at least an original part. The current replacement part has serifs on the numerals.

Bracelet - you are right, the correct reference bracelet for this model is 1162/172. The 173 was for Speedmaster MkII variants. I think it is 2mm thinner in the endlinks, to fit 20 mm lugs instead of 22 mm. You can still find the correct bracelet.

Pushers - Yes, these are not the correct pushers, nor the correct crowns. Replacement service parts for all these are still available. The main crown is not correct either - it should have 22 teeth.

If this was my watch, and I wanted to wear it daily, I would go about it in this way. I would find a trusted watchmaker with an Omega parts account. I would not send it back to Omega as they may, as you suspected might already have happened, replace the dial. I would have it properly serviced. I would have all of the crowns and pushers replaced, and I would also have the mineral crystal and the seal replaced. I would do that because the pushers and the seals all affect water resistance. I appreciate you won't be going swimming in it, nor can the water resistance of such an old timepiece be guaranteed, but having new seals can't hurt. Get all the old parts returned to you, and you have both retained the history and maintained the watch to be a working faithful original.

I would not get the case refinished, given its sentimental history, but it could be done.

Hope that all helps answer your questions, and enjoy the memories the watch gives you.