Community Stories

Would appreciate opinions on this inherited Omega (?)

FitzpatrickRN
Posts
3
Likes
1
It sat in my Father-in-law's dresser for many years before he passed. We almost dontaed it to goodwill before I noticed the logo. I can't find any information or similar pics of this style on the web. I don't see "Swiss Movement" on the face. The movement looks identical to many pictures I found today. I wound it and it is keeping time though. I see some faint etched numbers on the case back in the 1 o'clock position, as well as some etched or written numbers in the 3 o'clock position. Appreciate any help and opinions on whether it's real and if so, should I restore it?
Thanks in advance!
IMG_9768.JPG IMG_9766.JPG IMG_9759.JPG IMG_9763.JPG IMG_9764.JPG IMG_9770.JPG IMG_9764.JPG IMG_9772.JPG IMG_9767.JPG
 
Wat-1
Posts
434
Likes
198
GOLD GOLD GOLD good thing you didn’t take it to good will this is beautiful, case is obviously solid 18ct gold as well as possibly the dial watch is around 1958 which is very unique personally I wouldn’t touch a thing maybe just get a service and enjoy this lovely family heirloom one of the lugs looks a little bent but be very careful If you look at getting this straightened as it may snap very easily ,oh and it’s real congratulations on this lovely piece
 
Wat-1
Posts
434
Likes
198
Unsure if this would have originally has a second hand. You could also look at getting the crystal replaced. I’m sure more people with more knowledge will rely soon. 😀
 
FitzpatrickRN
Posts
3
Likes
1
Wat-1 Wat-1
Unsure if this would have originally has a second hand. You could also look at getting the crystal replaced. I’m sure more people with more knowledge will rely soon. 😀
Thanks very much!
 
mseamaster
Posts
457
Likes
151
It clearly says cal. 511. A quick google says no seconds. Nice watch!
 
DON
Posts
2,164
Likes
1,350
New crystal and a service. If you take it to watch maker. Just ask for a service est. don’t say anything else
 
mseamaster
Posts
457
Likes
151
DON DON
New crystal and a service. If you take it to watch maker. Just ask for a service est. don’t say anything else
Why would it matter if he says anything else? Would it somehow raise the price?
 
DON
Posts
2,164
Likes
1,350
mseamaster mseamaster
Why would it matter if he says anything else? Would it somehow raise the price?
Let’s be real. There are honest and dishonest. If you say it belonged to my mother, father etc. there could be a sympathy charge added as a dishonest watch maker might see a bit more in the repair.

I remember 9 months or so about someone who got charged close to $1200 for a service. And another who got charged $800. Far more than they should have paid. Did they say anything? Can’t recall, but I do know the first belonged to a family member.

That’s why I say. Bought at a flea market or garage sale. Nothing else.

Other opinions may differ.
 
mseamaster
Posts
457
Likes
151
DON DON
Let’s be real. There are honest and dishonest. If you say it belonged to my mother, father etc. there could be a sympathy charge added as a dishonest watch maker might see a bit more in the repair.

I remember 9 months or so about someone who got charged close to $1200 for a service. And another who got charged $800. Far more than they should have paid. Did they say anything? Can’t recall, but I do know the first belonged to a family member.

That’s why I say. Bought at a flea market or garage sale. Nothing else.

Other opinions may differ.
Interesting. This makes me very curious. Would you admit to having an Omega collection(or whatever collection you are building) to watchmakers? Would that drive the price up or maybe pull it down?

Would you tell a watchmaker that you have more of the same watch for example? I was thinking logically there should be a discount if you are servicing lots of similar watches. But it could be the opposite, the watchmaker thinking since you have the funds to buy lots of watches he might as well rip you.
 
Speed2Sea
Posts
755
Likes
3,980
mseamaster mseamaster
Interesting. This makes me very curious. Would you admit to having an Omega collection(or whatever collection you are building) to watchmakers? Would that drive the price up or maybe pull it down?

Would you tell a watchmaker that you have more of the same watch for example? I was thinking logically there should be a discount if you are servicing lots of similar watches. But it could be the opposite, the watchmaker thinking since you have the funds to buy lots of watches he might as well rip you.
I can only speak for myself, but I wear a different disguise when I visit my watchmaker for a repair or service. One must take the necessary precautions at all times.
 
ACC1965
Posts
224
Likes
498
Do you change your name or just outfits?
Can I recommend not visiting the same watchmaker twice?
 
mseamaster
Posts
457
Likes
151
Speed2Sea Speed2Sea
I can only speak for myself, but I wear a different disguise when I visit my watchmaker for a repair or service. One must take the necessary precautions at all times.
So I ought to take an old pair of shoes, t-shirt for home that's riddled with holes and to not shave and wash my face, no shower, etc.? Would that lower the price or would the watchmaker just call the cops? 🤣
"I found this watch on the street, how about fixing it for 5 bucks or smth? I really dig it."

Jokes aside, I am honestly interested in strategies regarding this. Like obviously I think you shouldn't wear a more expensive watch if you're bringing something cheap for servicing. And also you shouldn't overdress either, ditto for the car.

So just average clean clothes, average car.

As for the watch however - if you're wearing a crappy generic watch, the watchmaker might think you have no knowledge of watches and can therefore do shit without you noticing. So maybe it would be best to wear a similar watch to what you're bringing for a service.

Otherwise you could try playing the single watch card and not wear any watch, but then the watchmaker would be inclined to think the watch is too valuable to you and hence could overcharge you.

So let's exclude the clothes/car/etc.

1. Watch is of high value to you -> good work with chance of overcharge
2. Watch is of low value to you -> possibly botch the job and expect you not to care/notice, shouldn't overcharge but still could

1. You understand watches -> you're probably a collector, so your you value your watches a lot, so you can be overcharged, work must be done properly
  • you don't value them but resell - you make money so you can be overcharged
  • you don't value them and don't resell - no overcharge but shit quality of work possible

2. You don't understand watches-> you can be overcharged and even get low quality work done.

In conclusion:
  • More knowledge of watches/More value given to the watch > Higher Quality, Higher Price
  • Less knowledge of watches/Less value given to the watch > Lower quality, Unclear on the price
 
Speed2Sea
Posts
755
Likes
3,980
ACC1965 ACC1965
Do you change your name or just outfits?
Can I recommend not visiting the same watchmaker twice?
Yes, I give different names and use various accents and dialects. I also fly to different countries if I think a watchmaker is suspicious. As far as using the same watchmaker twice, I would have a family member drop off your watch.
 
Speed2Sea
Posts
755
Likes
3,980
mseamaster mseamaster
As for the watch however - if you're wearing a crappy generic watch, the watchmaker might think you have no knowledge of watches and can therefore do shit without you noticing. So maybe it would be best to wear a similar watch to what you're bringing for a service.
This is quite the conundrum, but there is a third important scenario to consider. Wear a crappy watch on your right wrist and on you left wrist wear a watch with the approximate value as you are seeking to repair. It will momentarily confuse the watchmaker and he or she will probably give you a reasonable repair or service estimate.

Djdi.jpg
Edited:
 
mseamaster
Posts
457
Likes
151
Speed2Sea Speed2Sea
This is quite the conundrum, but there is a third important scenario to consider. Wear a crappy watch on your right wrist and on you left wrist wear a watch with the approximate value as you are seeking to repair. It will momentarily confuse the watchmaker and he or she will probably give you a reasonable repair or service estimate.
Hahah, sounds like the watchmaker in this scenario is an NPC driven by a badly written lua script. Excuse my World of Warcraft reference but I couldn't help it. Who would get confused like that.

Question here would be - would you want someone who gets confused so easily to touch your watch.

Speed2Sea Speed2Sea
Yes, I give different names and use various accents and dialects. I also fly to different countries if I think a watchmaker is suspicious. As far as using the same watchmaker twice, I would have a family member drop off your watch.
At this point you might consider wearing a rubber mask as a cheaper alternative or plastic surgery every few years when your watches need servicing.

I bet this topic is making the watchmakers on the forum laugh. Jokes aside surely in every country there are watchmakers who charge based on random customer profiling.
 
FitzpatrickRN
Posts
3
Likes
1
FWIW, I called Nesbit's this morning and gave them some basic information about the watch. They almost immediately said that I would likely need to send it to Omega in Switzerland because parts are so rare. They suggested I call the local Swatch place and they could facilitate the shipping. After 20 minutes on hold I gave up. Surely there is somewhere in Seattle that could do the work?
 
Archer
Posts
29,671
Likes
76,829
FitzpatrickRN FitzpatrickRN
FWIW, I called Nesbit's this morning and gave them some basic information about the watch. They almost immediately said that I would likely need to send it to Omega in Switzerland because parts are so rare. They suggested I call the local Swatch place and they could facilitate the shipping. After 20 minutes on hold I gave up. Surely there is somewhere in Seattle that could do the work?
The 511 isn't exactly a common caliber compared to the others we normally see here. I looked it up on the Omega Extranet and checked the bill of material to see what parts are available for it - Nesbit's was right - many of the common wear parts that you would expect could need replacing, are no longer available to purchase from Omega.

This is a "Bienne only" caliber, so if you send this to Omega it will not be serviced in your local service center - it will go to Switzerland for service.

If you go to an independent, they would have to find whatever parts might be needed on the open market. For many Omega calibers, parts are plentiful, but for something like this, a caliber that wasn't as popular as many others, it may require a fair bit of time to find those parts. Time is money, so...
 
Archer
Posts
29,671
Likes
76,829
mseamaster mseamaster
I bet this topic is making the watchmakers on the forum laugh. Jokes aside surely in every country there are watchmakers who charge based on random customer profiling.
The only customer profiling most watchmakers do is to weed out the people who have demonstrated that they might be a pain in the arse to deal with.

All the projecting of potential evils being done by watchmakers in this thread is something that we don't have time for, because we have far more work being offered to us than we could ever actually do. This means that if I don't reject your watch outright and give you a price (meaning I have a spot for your watch in my schedule), if it's more than you want to pay, so be it - there are 5 others lined up behind you who are grateful to take your spot right away.

So you can employ all these strategies you have listed in this thread all you want, but other than making you feel better it's not going to change anything when it comes down to actually getting the work done you need done. No one cares what car you drive, what you wear, what watches you own, or where you bought the watch you want serviced (or inherited it from).
 
padders
Posts
10,440
Likes
16,324
Archer Archer
The only customer profiling most watchmakers do is to weed out the people who have demonstrated that they might be a pain in the arse to deal with.

All the projecting of potential evils being done by watchmakers in this thread is something that we don't have time for, because we have far more work being offered to us than we could ever actually do. This means that if I don't reject your watch outright and give you a price (meaning I have a spot for your watch in my schedule), if it's more than you want to pay, so be it - there are 5 others lined up behind you who are grateful to take your spot right away.

So you can employ all these strategies you have listed in this thread all you want, but other than making you feel better it's not going to change anything when it comes down to actually getting the work done you need done. No one cares what car you drive, what you wear, what watches you own, or where you bought the watch you want serviced (or inherited it from).
How about if we turn up carrying several cats?
 
10 More Posts...
Sign up or log in to reply...

Similar threads

G

Noob question! Is this inherited OMEGA worth restoring>

golsonic Vintage Omega Watches Help, Discussion and Advice
CBM1590
CBM1590
Posts
17
Views
3K
new.nic2019@gmai

Could anyone offer any info about this inherited piece?

new.nic2019@gmai Open Discussion
Canuck
Canuck
Posts
5
Views
708
DavidG

Would appreciate advice re this SM300 CK2913/3 I am thinking of buying

DavidG Vintage Omega Watches Help, Discussion and Advice
drpaul
drpaul
Posts
32
Views
3K
A

I need your advice on an inherited Omega OT 14707 Cal. 268

airxon Vintage Omega Watches Help, Discussion and Advice
Archer
Archer
Posts
13
Views
357
Lbreak

Opinions on this vintage Zenith 146D

Lbreak Zenith Watches
Crate046
Crate046
Posts
7
Views
2K
steveokie93

Wanted opinions on this watch before getting it for a friend

steveokie93 Vintage Omega Watches Help, Discussion and Advice
Larry S
Larry S
Posts
11
Views
3K