Originally Posted by
walkerwek1958
Disagree about the ‘sharp edges’ unpolished comments, I’ve refinished a few of these and it isn’t difficult to get the edges sharp again. Many of these watches have dings and deep scratches, but there ‘s lots of metal in them and its not hard to make them look fresh again. However, there are some badly refinished examples where the case has been spoiled.
The big problem areas on these are the dial and the strap retaining ring and threads. The monobloc case design means that the movement comes out after pulling the glass, when refitting its vital to ensure the movement is seated correctly otherwise the dial will get damaged when the glass is pressed in. This is characterised by raised dimples in the 10 and 2 positions where the dial feet are. Damage around the dial edges is common too, where the dial hasn’t seated correctly and the glass has been forced onto it.
The caseback threads get damaged when the strap retaining ring is cross- threaded. Once the threads have picked up its not easy to fix, at best the screw action will be sticky and at worst it’ll be impossible to fit. Ideally the ring should run down the threads with light finger pressure, but provided the action is reasonably smooth it’ll be OK. Fitting new straps is a problem because even the Omega supplied ones are too thick, this makes it difficult to locate the ring on the starter threads and that’s how damage occurs. Last one I fitted had to be trimmed to fit, then compressed by fitting to a scrap case to condition it for a couple of days, only then could I fit it to the watch it was intended for with confidence.
Crowns can be a problem too owing to the split stem design. The original crown was tap 10 but that’s no longer available. Omega supply a tap 9 that looks identical but obviously it needs a replacement female thread to match.
Original Omega glasses are getting hard (and expensive) to source, but thankfully a Sternkrauz generic is available cheaply and it fits perfectly. I use them because I don’t place a premium on having a tiny Omega symbol in the glass, others may think differently. Pulling the glass in and out of the case a few times can leave marks in the plastic unless the mythical ‘Tool 107’ is available, but the glass needs to come out to regulate the movement, so this can be a problem. I use an old glass, only fitting the new one when I’m 100% happy with how the watch runs, but its not unusual to see marks in the glass where its been removed.
Buying these watches can be a bit of a minefield. The dial must be right, getting them refinished correctly is expensive and few people can do then properly. Owing to the Swatch group policy of restricting supply of parts its getting v. difficult to source new handsets too, although they can usually be refinished if they need it.
Hope this helps; my comments are based solely on experience of working with these watches and buying/owning them..........I don’t make this up and I don’t recycle comments I’ve read elsewhere. Handling/inspecting a watch for sale helps a lot provded you know what to look for.
And another thing......many of the bracelets on offer are recent replacements that are likely to be replicas, although the Omega replacements may come out of the same factory. An original bracelet is desirable provided its in good condition, many aren’t!