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Vintage Seamaster De Ville- Help

E
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Good evening everyone,

I imagine this is a fairly common theme on here, but I am wondering if anyone can help me out with some information.

My grandad has given me his SDV but he doesn’t know a great deal about it himself. It looks and feels like the real deal, but I haven’t seen any online that are exactly like the one I have and my grandad didn’t have any papers. Could anyone help me out by giving me an idea of the year, authenticity and originality of the watch?

I can’t get the back off to try to check the number, so may have to make a trip to the local omega specialist.

I’ve attached some photos, any info would be greatly appreciated. The self-winding system works well and the watch is in great shape overall.

Cheers,

Adam
 
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padders
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The box is 30 years younger than the watch, the watch looks quite original and legit. The 9K gold case was assayed in Birmingham, I can't make out the year letter but the watch looks to be late 1960s. If you can provide the year letter I can give you and exact date. It may well be a locally made case as was common with gold Swiss watches back when there were tariffs on gold importing. The bracelet is certainly UK production, it has the makers mark on the hallmark (W H Wilmot of Birmingham). These kind of bracelets are problematic as they have very little adjustment and were sized for the first owner. I presume it is welded onto the watch head?

ps It has a front loading case so I do hope you didn't try to get the back off too hard!

pps looking again, the hallmark letter looks a little like the W for 1971 but that is a little later than I would have expected.
Edited:
 
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padders padders
The box is 30 years younger than the watch, the watch looks quite original and legit. The 9K gold case was assayed in Birmingham, I can't make out the year letter but the watch looks to be late 1960s. If you can provide the year letter I can give you and exact date. It may well be a locally made case as was common with gold Swiss watches back when there were tariffs on gold importing. The bracelet is certainly UK production, it has the makers mark on the hallmark (W H Wilmot of Birmingham). These kind of bracelets are problematic as they have very little adjustment and were sized for the first owner. I presume it is welded onto the watch head?

ps It has a front loading case so I do hope you didn't try to get the back off too hard!

pps looking again, the hallmark letter looks a little like the W for 1971 but that is a little later than I would have expected.

Hi Padders,

First of all, thank you for taking the time to reply to me. That’s all really useful to know. I’ve attached a closer photo of the print on the strap which should give a more clear indication.

The bracelet is indeed welded onto the watch, but it fits me perfectly so all is well in that department!

I say tried to get the back off loosely, I meant had a look around it and a fiddle about, I never used any kind of force.

Thanks again,

Adam
 
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wagudc
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Welcome Adam! Nice watch. Padders is quite knowledgeable and has given you more information than I know about it. I would take it to a trusted watchmaker who is experienced with vintage Omega. It would be a shame not to wear this beauty. It will need to be serviced before getting regular use, and of course it would have to be made to fit your wrist. A good watchmaker could help you with both.
 
padders
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E emberton93
Hi Padders,

First of all, thank you for taking the time to reply to me. That’s all really useful to know. I’ve attached a closer photo of the print on the strap which should give a more clear indication.

The bracelet is indeed welded onto the watch, but it fits me perfectly so all is well in that department!

I say tried to get the back off loosely, I meant had a look around it and a fiddle about, I never used any kind of force.

Thanks again,

Adam

OK so that is the stylised W date letter for July 1971- June 1972.

That example is quite late for an SMDV. It will be interesting to see what movement is inside. You’d expect the classic Cal 552 for a 60s example but I wonder if the early 70s models moved over to the later 1xxx series. Whatever, it is a very tidy dress watch. A little out of fashion perhaps but I would treasure it.

Dennison were the big Birmingham manufacturer for local cases (search Google for Dennison Omega) but they ceased trading around 1967. Then a London company called Shackman took over. I wonder if Wilmot continued Midlands manufacture on a smaller scale, they already made cases for Rolex etc. Or perhaps it’s a Wilmot bracelet welded to a Shackman case, unlikely I’d have thought. The marks behind the movement will tell you more but get it professionally removed.

I would give it watch box space certainly!
Edited:
 
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wagudc wagudc
Welcome Adam! Nice watch. Padders is quite knowledgeable and has given you more information than I know about it. I would take it to a trusted watchmaker who is experienced with vintage Omega. It would be a shame not to wear this beauty. It will need to be serviced before getting regular use, and of course it would have to be made to fit your wrist. A good watchmaker could help you with both.

Brilliant, thank you for the advice! I will start looking for a specialist today.
 
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padders padders
OK so that is the stylised W date letter for July 1971- June 1972.

That example is quite late for an SMDV. It will be interesting to see what movement is inside. You’d expect the classic Cal 552 for a 60s example but I wonder if the early 70s models moved over to the later 1xxx series. Whatever, it is a very tidy dress watch. A little out of fashion perhaps but I would treasure it.

Dennison were the big Birmingham manufacturer for local cases (search Google for Dennison Omega) but they ceased trading around 1967. Then a London company called Shackman took over. I wonder if Wilmot continued Midlands manufacture on a smaller scale, they already made cases for Rolex etc. Or perhaps it’s a Wilmot bracelet welded to a Shackman case, unlikely I’d have thought. The marks behind the movement will tell you more but get it professionally removed.

I would give it watch box space certainly!

Thanks again Padders!

That’s all really helpful again. I agree, it’s very smart and to be honest, I’ve loved wearing it since my grandad gave me it.

I will send an update through once I have had it looked at professionally.

Cheers,

Adam
 
wagudc
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E emberton93
Brilliant, thank you for the advice! I will start looking for a specialist today.

What part of the world do you live in? We can point you in the right direction if you let us know.
 
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wagudc wagudc
What part of the world do you live in? We can point you in the right direction if you let us know.

I live in Sunderland, North-East England.
 
wagudc
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E emberton93
I live in Sunderland, North-East England.

I am in the US, so I don't have any experience with UK watchmakers. However Swiss Time Services (STS) and Simon Freese are names I hear around here a lot. You can try searching the forum for them, and / or start a thread asking for recommendations. Also don't be afraid to mail your watch to a watchmaker. I send mine to a guy in another state.
 
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