...do they mean it was rubbed a few times with a jeweller's cloth, or do they mean someone used a polishing machine on the case?

Cheers

 

Polishing machine, unless they are advertising as NOS

 

+1

 

What folks are saying is that the case has lost its sharp, clearly defined features, particularly on lugs and bezels due to someone’s attempt to “improve” the case by removing scratches and pits. Most collectors are looking for something that has never been anywhere near a polishing wheel, with all the contrast between brushed and polished facets clearly evident.

I purchased a Seamaster a few years ago (as a total noob) that I thought was rather attractive until I started to research how it should have looked. I ended up feeling so sorry for it that I had the whole thing restored/reset to something resembling its original “look”. This sort of reset is normally an absolute no-go, especially for steel vintage watches but in this case it was an 18K Gold dress watch so less critical.

Take a look here to see the differences between polished and original, or at least restored. Note that unless metal is added to the case, restoration is always going to modify the case geometry somewhat.

https://omegaforums.net/threads/omega-chronometer-grade-’69-seamaster-168-022.39097/

Hope that helps

By the way, if you want to see the absolute ultimate in unpolished beauties check out some of the posts by @styggpyggeno1, he has the best 168.023 I have ever seen...anywhere.

 

If I may add, IWC adds metal to the cases instead of polishing them. I am not certain what others are doing- Rolex still polishes them though
Cheers

 

I personally do not like the description when applied to a vintage watch. Unless the vendor has owned the watch from new of course or the watch is reasonably new. Other than that good pictures negate the need for unnecessary verbiage which without micro analysis of the metallurgical structure are difficult to prove.

 

I find the claim varies from vendor to vendor and is as much an expression of subjective opinion as it is a question of knowledge and transparency in the sale.

As always “buy the seller”...

 

A local Rolex AD adds metal to the case in restoration works, then polishes from there to achieve final finish. Verified by the AD uploading videos of the process to their FB page.

 

This is IMO only an issue on high-cost vintage watches. On a lot of pieces with sharp cases you can effectively rule out polishing completely.

Here's a relatively low cost Mido from the fifties:



Fabricating that finish on a worn watch would be extremely costly and as the dial and movement condition matches the exterior it is a certainty that it is unpolished. Had it been a Rolex though...

 

Absolutely correct, and an important distinction.

 

Adding metal or using laser welding is not a normal part of servicing. Plus I wasn’t aware that Rolex ADs could service Rolex watches in lieu of a RSC. I haven’t heard of a Rolex Service Center laser welding anything but then again I haven’t asked.

Not polishing watches when serviced is a newer trend. For decades all Rolex watches were polished when serviced yet somehow every vintage one I see is “unpolished”. If a vintage watch is truly unpolished then it probably wasn’t serviced by Rolex which makes me wonder who did service it and what kind of shape the movement is in. A properly polished watch that hasn’t been over polished would be hard to identify.

 

Agreed. People claim to be able to tell if a watch has ever been polished, but the reality is there's no real way to be 100% certain unless you have owned the watch from new and have never had it in for any kind of service. Paying a premium for an "unpolished" claim is a fools game IMO...

 

To be fair, I do not know if they are a service center or AD as I am in no way a Rolex fanboy. I just recall having seen the video on their FB page and found it adding value to the thread here.

 

This. There is one Japanese seller on eBay that always states POLISHED. All of the omega seamaster/speedmaster casebacks have almost lost the entire engraving... buy the seller

 

IMO when a watch is truly unpolished you can usually tell.
When you can't tell, that is usually an indication it has been polished.

 

Again I think this is related to vintage watches and your expectation that an unpolished watch will have dings, dents, scratches, and pits. Would you be able to tell if a 2017 Rolex Deep Sea was unpolished? Perhaps it was kept in rotation and rarely worn? Or perhaps it was lightly polished and looking like new before being resold. Since it is a 2017 you expect it to look new and would be hard pressed to know if it’s been polished or not.

We’ve all seen the watches that have been polished to shiny round circles by what looks like a dremel tool or belt sander. I’m not talking about that. I just think the whole unpolished/polished debate has spiraled out of control

 

Oof lovely sharp lug there.