I've found what I think to be a really good deal on a gold Seamaster Deville. I've done some research before posting and it appears to have the original 14k gold strap as well as the original crown. Can anyone confirm this? Does the dial & crown look right? Any idea on a date? How do you all feel about the authenticity of this watch from the pictures? They are asking $460 for it, which seems to be a very fair price. It is actually at a local thrift store, so I'm trying to get as much info as possible. From what I understand the only way to find out if it is 14k or 18k is to take off the strap and look at the outside of the case? I love everything vintage, and this would be my first "real" vintage watch. I really like the design of these Omegas and think it would be a great addition to my collection. Thanks for any help!
Stainless steel case with gold filled bezel/lugs (some bezels on these were solid gold and would be marked as such between the lower lugs). Bracelet is gold plated/filled as evidenced by considerable wear, also appears to be short because of the non Omega extender on the clasp. Dial and crown look fine. Mid 1960s. Price relative to condition is OK, but not a huge bargain.
It looks like a ref. 166.020 (or CD 166.0020 as it is known in the Vintage Omega Database). I have one more or less like it, look at my avatar. http://www.omegawatches.com/planet-omega/heritage/vintage-watches-database?ref=15159 It should be equipped with either a cal. 562 or a 565 - both are movements of very high quality. 565 was developed from the 562 by addition of a quick-set date function. If the date advances every time you pull out the crown, it´s a 565. Mine has a 562 with a serial number dating it to 1966. I think it was around 1968 they switched to 565. Around 1965 there was also a slight change in the writing on the back of the watch, and I´m pretty sure this is one of the later examples. As X350 XJR states, the dial looks very nice. The crown looks like the original one, and these are hard to get hold of. It´s a unishell body, where the crystal has to come off to get to the inside of the watch. The case is stainless steel, known as a "Gold-capped" version. To my knowledge, the bezel is always solid gold on this model - looking at picture #4 you can see the side of it. The lugs are covered with thin plates of gold, making the watch much more durable than an ordinary gold plated finish, which wears off. This is not true with regards to the bracelet though, and it´s not really to my liking. Overall the watch seems in nice, cosmetic condition. In northern Europe where I reside, it would certainly be a nice buy - even without the bracelet. X350 XJR is right though - it´s not a huge bargain. A little tip: One thing that is susceptible to wear on these movements, is the rotor bearing. Try shaking the watch gently 10 cm up and down in a direction perpendicular to the dial - if you can sense a weight shifting inside the watch, the bearing is loose. Sometimes you can even hear "clonking" as the rotor hits the inside of the case. It is not a serious condition, as a good vintage watch maker is usually able to tighten the bearing without the need for any spare parts, as part of a normal service. It can give you a bit of bargaining power though, and can perhaps help get the price down. Best regards