Reply With QuoteI concur with your approach.
In this case depends on the price if it is worth a punt.
Maybe it's my attitude to risk but I get a kick out of it, all depends on the photos, description, seller history (talking about from Ebay now of course) most of the time it's worked out well for me though...
Here is my latest..
Would you??
I concur with your approach.
In this case depends on the price if it is worth a punt.
I bought this:
on the strength of this:
If you know the brand and model fairly well, you can tell if the damage is superficial or not. This picture, the description which did not mention the unusual 28J movement and the obscurity of the brand, meant that mine was the only bid so the price was no risk.
100% up for the risk. Funny enough I bought a Helvetia very similar to the above with a far worse photo, stupidly I didn't save the seller pic.
Here is my recent one which most people here are familiar with...
I want even sure from the pics that it was the mirror dial I was chasing but took the risk. A few others did too sadly so my bid got pushed higher than expected. Alot more people are happy to gamble on poor pics than always used to.
Anyway here is the watch after service and refurb.
Without hesitation I would have bid or bought that Flighty!
We could do with HookedSeven reporting to the thread.
Assuming you have serious knowledge of the brand, these 'poor photo'adds can be most interesting!
A few years ago I bought a Heuer 2446C from Germany based on two really bad photos. BT only and the seller was unwilling to take more photos. I took a punt and it arrived in a jiffy bag, working and a big surprise too, it had a double grain GF bracelet attached, something that wasn't actually visible in the original photos. It cost me less than a grand.
I've mentioned the other one before, the Siffert I bought from what was very obviously a scam eBay listing. No bids after four days, he'd agreed to meet me in London to show me the watch and then pulled out, but also refused to take fresh pictures or anything, so I gave up. The next morning he messaged me to say he was working from home, 10 miles from me. I arranged to meet him at his place a couple of hours later, spent 20 minutes looking up him and his house etc. Completely original Mk2 Siffert, GF bracelet, £400 cash.
I've actually bought a few restoration jobs from eBay and not had problems with any of them. I still have various Autavia bezels (NOS and good used ones) but sadly all the nicely battered old Autavias now cost a fortune on eBay.
"A man of little significance"
Sometimes these turn out to be the best deals. But usually more so for vintage watches. Blurry images of a current model- I would be very hesitant.
Very good point. Blurry images of current models usually = fakes and frankens.Originally Posted by RAJEN
Often been tempted but never actually done it. Maybe this is the year to be brave...it’s definitely the kind of thing that appeals to me.
The photos for this watch, described simply as "vintage Seiko", mostly showed that the crystal had once taken a short sharp trip across a pavement, but back then, I would have bought any datefree vintage Seiko under £100. I placed my bid of £24 in the last minute of the auction.
When I opened the parcel a few days later, I could not believe my luck. Straightaway it got a service, a new crystal and a new strap, and five years later it still gets plenty of wear. I've lost count of the offers I've had to buy it from me. The movement is in good condition too, it's been a consistent -10s/d the whole time.
Yes, if it's something I want I'm very much up for the risk. I prepare myself in advance, ready to lose the lot. If I win, I win, if I lose, I lose. I have a very, very good sniff around first though.
Yep, his is the best story ever.We could do with HookedSeven reporting to the thread.
Someone who lies about the little things will lie about the big things too.
I did it loads a while back, when prices were lower and I could allow the kind of sums required to slip into the high risk category.
Not sure I can recll any failures, but I did get a few notable successes. A Tudor Jumbo that really could only just be identified as a Tudor by the seller, and turned out to be totally original from 1972 with that rare thing, a perfect, non-burned blue tritium dial.
My De Luca came from a very unsophisticated seller in Italy that packed it do badly that when it was jammed through the letterbox (unsigned for) the watch fell out of the envelope it was sent in.
An Old Wittnauer chrono that came from a house clearance guy in the states for very little and turned out to be a very lovely old Valjoux 71 model.
But I have done a lot less recently, and the competition is much greter than it was.
D
These days the real bargains are very few and far between, but there's still the occasional pearl among the swine:
I’ve done this in the past. I found a watch that had been badly photographed in a mixture of daylight and indoor light, confusing the white balance of the camera. The result was that it looked like it might actually be mouldy. Realising what had happened, I pulled the yellows out of the pictures in Photoshop and was left with a pretty good idea of how it really looked - which was great. Not surprisingly the auction ended well below its real value and I ended up with a lovely vintage Omega.
I'd suggest it's because when buying through eBay, there's not really a gamble any more - the returns policy is so very buyer-biased, you can buy and return it with practically zero risk.
True for BIN but I don't think the return policy comes into play for auctions unless deliberately misrepresented?
Yes I would, I would approach it just as you are and if the price is right, buy it. You have Paypal protection anyhow and the poor photos will only strengthen your claim for a refund provided the description doesn't claim the watch to be in poor condition etc.
Nothing to do with Auction or BIN.
If the Seller is a Business Seller, then you have 14 days, by law, in which you can request a "change of mind" refund, and a further 14 days in which to return the item. (You may have to pay the return postage).
If the Seller is a Private (or indeed Business) Seller, then you can raise an Item Not Received (INR) or Significantly Not As Described (SNAD) claim. Assuming that you pay using PayPal, you have 180 days in which you can do so.
I do it all the time on vinyl records and watches.
Several bad experiences with vinyl records and only one with a watch.
The positives clearly outperform the negatives.
The story....
Apparently purchased late 60's early 70's by X forces guy based in the USA at the time from the NAAFI (sort of a department store, bar, cafe for the armed forces)
He bought it because he could pay weekly out of his wages and it was tax free. He wore it most days until the mid 80's when he left the Army.
He was then given a 'modern' quartz watch for his birthday, hence the Flightmaster was consigned to a desk drawer. He asked his grown up 'kids' if they wanted it but no interest so he sold it to me..
Never been opened, until now, serviced or polished.
Last edited by Heuerfan; 23rd April 2019 at 16:33.
Lovely! Please don't have it refinished, it looks lovely as is! Polish the crystal, service the movement and Bob's your uncle.
"A man of little significance"
I have just bought a Omega 2254.50 off ebay on a BIN with poor pics,vague description (SAS inscription always a little further"),no box,papers or cards just a spare link.
I pulled the trigger straight away,although for the price (how much??!!!) I was expecting the worse..but having missed out on two watches I thought were too good to be true BINs and Ebay/paypal returns I thought what the hell.
Sadly my phone has a black screen issue so cannot upload the pics,not yet anyway.
Its a 2007 piece,legit,and in great condition,just needed a clean and buff,really pleased as been something I have wanted for a while.Even if I factor in a service(yes,its having one),a half link I need,the replacement box and send off for the full set of cards should still be cheaper than what they are fetching nowadays.Hell,probably a full refurb if it needed it would still leave me in profit if I ever sold (which I wont!)
Googled the SAS stuff but this has the original case back?
I was looking at getting it micro welded but think I can live with it!!
Its got to be one of my best purchases.
Lovely Flighmaster - and I agree it doesn't need polishing!
I will leave this link here about a similar experience I had, it remains my biggest watch related SNAFU and even after all this time it still stings.
https://forum.tz-uk.com/showthread.p...ter+submariner
Rob
Oooh, just realised that would be a birth year flightmaster for me. Great watch.
Please do not get the case lapped, it's done its mileage, got to 50 years old (like me) and needs to show it, imho.
Dave
What would he know; he's only got 17 posts?
In the Sotadic Zone, apparently.
Sneaky runner, him.
Someone who lies about the little things will lie about the big things too.
yes i would take a chance on that flightmaster 910, depending on the price. At the service they could put some new enamel in the pushers. looks like it has the original dial and hands. not sure about the strap. Not sure flightmaster are popular enough to be faked, but they are interesting enough to own.
Sent from my iPhone using TZ-UK mobile app
The flighty wasn`t that much of a risk, was it?
You can see the watch isn`t in any way moody, the pics are clear enough to judge its condition and if the seller was of sound character + the price was fair it was a safe enough `gamble` to take?
This was my best.
Colour didn't look right and 99% of vintage black dialled Omegas are redialled but I though it was worth a go. Turned out to be genuine and pink gold which was why the colour looked off.
Before:
After:
As the new owner of the watch in the OP I have to say it’s in much better condition that the original pictures suggested
And so far seems to be keeping good time (over the last 8 hours)
I am very happy with it.
I've bought a few on the basis of horrible pics. Mostly did OK too. Carlton-Browne will remember this one as we both have a thing for early quartz. The single photo accompanying the listing was this:
Apparently taken with a potato with vaseline on the lens. While drunk. That's it blown up and sharpened too. And the wording in the listing was as bad. But I knew, or hoped it was a personal "grail" of early quartz that I'd been hunting for many years and one that many reckoned were only ever promotional items. And it was that grail.
Got it for around 200 quid with it.
What a cool watch!Got it for around 200 quid with it.
Given the poor listing photo, I am surprised anyone bid more than a fiver. Suppose at least one other bidder knew exactly what was being auctioned?
Someone who lies about the little things will lie about the big things too.
That was the opening price Raffe. IIRC I was the only bidder. When I saw it open at 220 I figured bad pic aside the seller had some idea it might be worth something, but maybe not.
An absolute bargain Wibbs.
I have a vintage cushion case Nino somewhere that has a gold 'circuit board' dial very similar to your GP. If only I can bl**dy find it...
It's always a risk buying second hand especially relying just on picture no matter how well the pictures are taken.
Bought a second hand watch from the well taken pictures and even had chance to view before parting with the payment but only noticed one of the bracelet's screw is well worn after a few days.
May be this was down to my inexperience.
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Now that's a grail.And it was that grail.
Oh that's interesting BB.An absolute bargain Wibbs.
I have a vintage cushion case Nino somewhere that has a gold 'circuit board' dial very similar to your GP. If only I can bl**dy find it...
Now that's a grail.especially for what was an expensive watch at the time. You could have bought an Omega Speedy and a Rolex Sub for what one of those cost, so I reckon the buyers in that price bracket went for more traditional and less weirdo looking dials. Even today I'd guarantee a few chaps are looking at it thinking; that's a grail? I'll have whatever he's smoking, because it's clearly the good stuff.
+1 KM and I'd reckon it very much depends on the area you're buying in. Compared to most folks looking at Subs and Seamasters, I'm buying at pocket money levels TBH, so if something goes bad and I get a howler(and Lord knows I have) it's no big deal really. I just offer it up for my many sins to the gods of bidnapper, ebay and late night glasses of Bordeaux.Plus I like a bit of patina, wabi in an old watch. If I were more full of pocket and looking at a couple of grand or more at some newer and nicer bit of kit and something was off, I'd likely burst a vein in my forehead.
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