Hi all:

In the process of cleaning out a watchmaker's estate, I came across three vintage Omega spare parts catalogs. They are numbered 620-1, 620-3, and 620-5. The appear to be from the years 1954, 1963, and 1967, respectively. The first two volumes are staple/cloth bound, and the last volume is in a multi-ring binder, presumably so that it could be updated. Page count on each is 232, 278, and about 100, respecitively.

Each volume contains a detailed description and parts list of the standard calibers of the day. Each book is a wealth of information, as it contains each caliber's creation date, high resolution photos of the parts, the parts names, and the part numbers. It also lists subsequent calibers that were created from teh basic caliber. The final volume, 620-3, contains an extensive section (about 20 pages) of crowns and a new crown numbering system that Omega switched to.

The last binder also contains about a dozen service bulletins which this watchmaker chose to save. I know these aren't worth a lot, as I've seen them fairly regularly on eBay. There is also a handful of bulletins concerning servicing of the Omega Cal. 1250, which I believe was Omega's tuning fork watch. Also, a few loose leaf pages talking about disassembly of what was then the new Deville (one-piece) cases.

There were so many photos, I decided to load them to Dropbox, and provide a link if you would like to view them. You may wish to left click on the link and open it in a new tab so that you don't lose this window:

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/pwzh5aqfq3iotj8/_oAkTUm8b6

The first four images are samples from catalog 620-1. The next three images are from catalog 620-3. And the remaining images are from catalog 620-5.

Can anyone give me an approximately value on these books? I'd like to sell everything as a set, but don't know where to begin, or even if these are collectible.

I did a search on google and also eBay to see if any like this have come up for sale, and I didn't see anything. But as we all know, just because something hasn't been seen for sale in a while doesn't necessarily mean it's desirable.

Any comments would be appreciated.

Bruce Shawkey
brtime

 

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Yes, but the OP doesn't know the inside joke using that picture.

 

Yikes! I took a flyer on them and paid $200 for the lot just 'cause I'd never seen them before. I see lots of material catalogs at the NAWCC marts, but they're usually for Elgin, Waltham, Hamilton, and the like. I've seen Rolex collectors go ga-ga over the Rolex material catalogs, even though, as MSNWatch points out, the information contained therein is often available for free online or the nearest Bestfit book. Oh well, I'll run 'em up the flagpole on eBay and take my lumps. Live and learn.

Bruce
brtime

 

Care to share where any of these files can be found. I've searched for more recent parts/movement sheets, notably for my Speedmaster Mark 4.5 (176.012) with little success.

 

Yes, and more. I've spent the week trying to specifically find the part number for the O ring that holds the movement module into the case. If you are familiar with this watch, you would know that the whole movement module can be separated from the case, by pushing on the crystal. I'm looking for the O Ring part number, but I will take any info you can supply. Actually would love it.

Not my picture, and not a traditional Mark 4.5 case, (custom hand made, great story and talent) but you get the idea. Photo from the bottom of the Chuck Maddox web page. http://chronomaddox.com/c1045.html

 

Sorry, didn't see your PDF link. Wow, thank you very much for that. Appreciated.

 

Thank's CC. I've searched everywhere for that info. Glad I finally landed here.

 

Hi Bruce .. any idea how much you want to sell ? Buying because I have a vintage watch and your photos of looks cool thanks but sending to singapore may be expensive

 

Wow, some thread resurrection. 8+ years since the original post and you're hoping he still has them for sale

 

You never try never know , just asking good day

 

A Personal message might be better. A quick look at Bruce's profile shows he hasn't been around since August.

 

Francis8chua: I sold those manuals on ebay long ago. Think I got $50 for them . You weren't wrong to inquire about them. I've got stuff that I've hung onto for 20 years or more. Like you said, you never know. It's never a bad idea to acquire actual paper goods. The problem with online references is you never know when they going to disappear. I can't tell you how many times, in the course of my research, I Google something, and when I click on it, I get the dreaded "404 Page not found" message!