Dear All, can you please help me identify this watch. I inherited it when my father passed in 1987, but I doubt he bought it as he was a Rolex fan. It's possible he also inherited it. He was a Royal Engineers officer in WW2 and the family was Southampton based since 1900.
The case rear is unmarked as are the case sides. Omega is stamped on the inside of one part of the buckle that remains.
I've only just found it again in an old box of memorabilia. If possible I'd like to get it restored to working order.

 

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Hi BlueOcean.

The watch your father left you is most likely a ref. 2279 housing an early CHRO C12 - the movement that in later iterations would be named cal. 321 and placed in Speedmasters etc. It is probably from around 1940, give or take a few year.

It sound like the buckle is an early Omega-branded one, which is pretty rare in its own right.

I take it you are in England? If so, many options for sympathetic repairs are available; STS, Simon Freese, Watchguy.co.uk or our own @ChrisN. I have had very good experiences with the latter two

Welcome aboard - looking forward to more photos of your beauty!

 

Hi ConElPueblo,
Thanks for the answers. Yes, in England - about 20 miles west of Heathrow Airport.
Alan.

 

Great care must be taken with this watch and it's restoration.

Properly done it will be worth a small (very small) fortune.

Improperly done, it would be worth nothing much, except as a parts watch.

 

Welcome @BlueOcean

You've been given four good (very good) names. Any one of them will be able to deal with the restoration of the watch and they will treat it sympathetically. All four are easily found online. I suggest you call them, talk to them, go over what you want from them and they'll be able to explain your options in detail. They'll take the watch and examine it before providing you with a detailed estimate and you can decide your course of action then.

It's a beautiful inheritence.

 

Chaps,
More photos as requested. Unfortunately camera is iPhone.
Now you've made me nervous; I'm not a watch expert. I also inherited a 40 year old Rolex Oysterquartz which I had serviced by Rolex for £1200. It's not particularly valuable, maybe £3000 so I was happy to get it sorted. I don't want to ruin this much older Omega. Should I perhaps take it to Omega in London for repair?
Alan.

 

Absolutely not. They may replace original cosmetic things to make it 'new' ( = ruin things). Take it to one of the 4 names provided...they will treat it with the utmost care and respect it deserves. Trick is to tell them what you want done, i.e. Leave the case untouched except for ultrasonic clean, sympathetic movement restorative service, and maybe a polish of the crystal if at all possible...but these guys will inevitably know this without asking...always good to be clear.

 

I'm a relative newcomer here, but every time some one suggests taking a period Omega, to Omega for service the advice is a resounding NO!

 

Thanks eugeneandresson. No restoration, just tickle it back into life and keep as original as humanly possible.

 

Alan, please don't.

This is a vintage watch and its appeal lies in the fact that it is original. If you ask Omega to service it, they will ... but to a different level and from a different perspective. They will return a watch to you that will run as well as they can make it. They will make it "as new". In doing that, they will change parts - major parts - that will significantly detract from the value of the watch.

Instead, there are independent watch makers who will address the watch as a vintage item. These watch makers are Omega certified. They are as capable as any Omega employee but they have a different view to that of Omega. They will do what is best for the watch rather than what is best for the company image.

Please take the advice already given.

 

Taking it to Omega could possibly ruin it, so please don't.

What @jimmyd13 says is good advice

 

Just curious. Assuming @ConElPueblo hit the mark, what would you estimate a market value on this piece as it stands?

 

It's a fantastic looking watch with a great movement, but less than a vintage Speedmaster or a cal. 33.3 Chronograph, I'd say. If forced to make a completely unresearced guess I'd say around £3-4,000?

 

It's not a 33,3 (at least I don't think it is). The photos are pretty poor to assess the dial condition. It could certainly be brought back to a condition that's more than attractive but, even then ... £5k? Without hands on, it's all "finger in the air" but the watch is certainly worth sinking £500 or more into it.

 

Thanks Jimmy...as I said (and deleted) out of my depth here...I guess this is closer to the mark...

https://clocksavant.com/products/om...dial-circa-1942-fully-serviced-by-clocksavant

 

Nice watch, but the price listed there is probably not the price on the invoice... Cal. 33.3s are a fair bit more uncommon, the cases fashionably large and the one in the link has a perfect, black dial. Had it been a waterproof case, it would naturally have been better

It ought to be possible to gauge a probable price for a 2279 as the reference isn't exactly rare. Kyle had this more worn one for sale here a few years ago: https://omegaforums.net/threads/omega-2279-chronograph-cal-chro-c12.39706/

Remember that these movements were housed in a number of different case by different marques (Tissot, Lemania, Omega) and the more desirable ones have round, waterproof pushers and screw-down casebacks.

 

The dial of the op's watch seems to be quite nice. And it is a multicolored dial. I have seen a perfect dial alone on ebay go for 3000Euros.