I wouldn’t buy a watch from that vintage—by which I mean to say: still within the warranty period—without the warranty card. This is an example where having the “papers” truly matters, as you may well need to use them. (The box is nice to have but matters less in a practical sense.)
I agree, though. Condition is all that matters. If I were in the market for a piece like that preowned, I’d first gauge what the actual “escape price” is by checking the big resellers (Watchbox, Crown and Caliber, DavidSW, etc) to see what sale/trade value they’re offering for those watches. (I’m guessing something like 3000-3500 USD), and then I’d start making comparable offers to all the people selling ones I’d consider buying. Most people will decline because they’ll have unrealistic expectations, having paid full retail recently. But you’ll almost certainly find someone who’s motivated to cash out and who will settle for that amount, maybe + a few hundred, which is totally reasonable. (You can make the same basic calculation by seeing what someone like DavidSW is selling the same watch for, and subtracting about 25%, but there’s more guesswork there.)
