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18 hours ago, luiazazrambo said:

There is one Oris there at least, and if you could get a Unicorn for this price!??! 😄 It says that they don't work though, you might need to figure out what a Unicorn eats then. 😉 

I take it that you're comment re the Unicorn is 'tongue-in-cheek'?

Would any of the watches that are on the link I posted be likely to be radium watches?

What period was that prevalent in and when did the practice stop?

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23 hours ago, Michael1962 said:

Couple of Oris in there , early Oris were pretty small , around 28mm , the first 2 could be 45x or 49x series calibers. The Unicorn might also be an Oris, to know that these will be pin pallet watches if there is no jewel count on the dial. The other 3 will be much the same. The Oris are ok and have some value, as far as pin pallets go Oris were very good as thats all they were allowed to work with for a long time, so they made sure they got the best out of them. Its good to inside though, at the most basic level of inspection of an Ebay sale at least you can see if anything is missing inside, otherwise its just pure luck. Ask the sell if he will add some pictures of the insde for you to privately look at.

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4 minutes ago, Michael1962 said:

I actually sent a message to him on eBay asking exactly that. They all look like snap-on casebooks so should be easy enough to get the photos.

I have bought without seeing inside before and have generally been luck Michael. If its a screwback case i seem to allow some leniency on the removal of it, i dont know why because I've never struggled to remove a back with very basic equipment.  

7 minutes ago, Michael1962 said:

I actually sent a message to him on eBay asking exactly that. They all look like snap-on casebooks so should be easy enough to get the photos.

If everything is inside them, then once restored and keeping time the oris could be worth 20 -30 each, I've paid a lot more Oris date pointers in the past.

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Most all my 404 candidates are coming from swap meets and "antiques fairs". One more $4US plus battery and elbow grease. Unnamed digital on a decent ss bracelet. Gains 10 seconds a day so not that accurate...20240509_0704382.thumb.jpg.0463a8a91c82cb86686a77c205e974bf.jpg

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Posted (edited)

Same show.different vendor. $1US plus battery and polished the crystal and 20240506_1232102.thumb.jpg.e800a81ab2f19095acbc33f85c93fb2f.jpg20240506_122048.thumb.jpg.0aa56049317782f8454bf5b35f1a58be.jpgwiped the case. Added the spring bars and strap, which has a small cut that needs glue.  This one has a hatch to change the battery and hand setting and hack crown is on the back! Rubber strap replaced20240506_162551.thumb.jpg.5447b0672b92073a3b8df8f517c38411.jpg with the brown leather with the cut. It's a West Germany dial.

Edit" to be clear the Barton strap did not come with the watch when purchased, that was for testing and from my own stock. 

 

Edited by Razz
Clarification
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9 hours ago, Michael1962 said:

I actually sent a message to him on eBay asking exactly that. They all look like snap-on casebooks so should be easy enough to get the photos.

If everything is inside them, then once restored and keeping time the oris could be worth 20 -30 each, I've paid a lot more Oris date pointers in the past.

Bought this last week for a quid at a carboot sale. A cute little Smiths made in England alarm clock. The alarm didn’t function properly because the movement wasn't fastened in. But it runs perfectly now, the previous made a bit of a mess of the dial but i still love it. For the Smiths lovers here's  a picture of the inside before i case it up again. Still with it the original Jewellers box.

20240509_214921.jpg

17152878793086054783136655823374.jpg

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On 5/9/2024 at 9:43 PM, Neverenoughwatches said:

If everything is inside them, then once restored and keeping time the oris could be worth 20 -30 each, I've paid a lot more Oris date pointers in the past.

Bought this last week for a quid at a carboot sale. A cute little Smiths made in England alarm clock. The alarm didn’t function properly because the movement wasn't fastened in. But it runs perfectly now, the previous made a bit of a mess of the dial but i still love it. For the Smiths lovers here's  a picture of the inside before i case it up again. Still with it the original Jewellers box.

20240509_214921.jpg

17152878793086054783136655823374.jpg

The front, runs lovely now and alarms works great.

17154291219394331239630422386751.jpg

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Posted (edited)

On the link that I posted, one of the watches has no crown and another has a crown that is not square to the case.

Does a broken crown signify that the movement may be quite corroded, hence the stem has broken, and does the bent crown simply signify that the stem is bent?

Unfortunately as the seller has a bid on the items, he is now reticent to prise the casebacks off in case he damages something.

The seller did reply with this email though.

Hi again Michael - brief descriptions; Oris x 2, dials and hands ok and they set ok and one I just wound and it has been running for a few of minutes as I write this response. Rocar, dial ok no crown. No name dial no good and can't pull crown out to set. Roma dial and hands ok, I think it is pin pallet movement. Unicorn, good dial and hands and plexiglass ok for age. All cases and plexiglasses show wear except as mentioned. I have no idea what movements are fitted or condition so please if you do consider bidding, please do so accordingly as I don't like to disappoint my customers - regards and thanks again for your interest - Jim

Edited by Michael1962
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11 hours ago, Michael1962 said:

On the link that I posted, one of the watches has no crown and another has a crown that is not square to the case.

Does a broken crown signify that the movement may be quite corroded, hence the stem has broken, and does the bent crown simply signify that the stem is bent?

Unfortunately as the seller has a bid on the items, he is now reticent to prise the casebacks off in case he damages something.

The seller did reply with this email though.

Hi again Michael - brief descriptions; Oris x 2, dials and hands ok and they set ok and one I just wound and it has been running for a few of minutes as I write this response. Rocar, dial ok no crown. No name dial no good and can't pull crown out to set. Roma dial and hands ok, I think it is pin pallet movement. Unicorn, good dial and hands and plexiglass ok for age. All cases and plexiglasses show wear except as mentioned. I have no idea what movements are fitted or condition so please if you do consider bidding, please do so accordingly as I don't like to disappoint my customers - regards and thanks again for your interest - Jim

His reply seems quite honest and fair. Whats his feedback like ?, i tend to buy into the seller more than into the sale. Though i do take risks occasionally if i have a gut feeling  i can do ok. Missing and damaged stem can be a red flag but can also mean something quite innocent such as a stem release/set lever screw has come loose and the stem has fallen out and been lost over time. Missing crowns can be less of a problem.  One of first things we do when receiving a watch is to try the wind and set functions and rotate the watch back and forth to see if the secondhand starts up. These are good internal indicators that you may get away with only a service to carry out. Things i personally usually avoid are damaged fancy shaped crystals , heavy case damage, watches with certain damaged/ missing internal parts( parts that can't be self maufactured by the average repairer )The idea is to build up a good stock of commonly comsumable parts, this would be, crystals, balance staffs, watch stems and crowns, springs ( setting and shock ) , watch jewels inc. Caps, impulse and pallet stones, timing washers, all kind of screws.  Those are mostly at beyond a beginner level requirement .

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You are getting 6 watches for 35, I think it's worth a punt. The other way to look at it is, worst case is you will have some donor movements that may come in useful further down the road.

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Another question if I may.

When you guys buy watch lots are you buying a mix of mechanical and quartz as well? Most of the job lots I am finding (all overseas) are a mix.

If they are all mechanical, it is generally just movements with no cases. I am not at the point where I can identify movements by just viewing them so I'm not inclined to buy a bunch of stuff which will just end up lying around.

Is anyone able to successfully move any of the watches they save on to someone else? I can't see a viable market in Australia for refurbished watches. Most people I have seen at work only have a watch if it counts their steps, answers their phone and makes the coffee.

I'll admit it, I have a super cheap smartwatch on my wrist. Will I buy another one when it quits? Doubt it. I don't know if I would even bother with a pedometer. Heart rate? And do what with all the data? Blood pressure? Never been right since I got the watch. Sleep? If I can't work out that I'm not getting enough, I need to have a serious talk with myself.

I think I'll go back to my Seiko and just make myself stay active.

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I only buy mechanical personally, as it's all that interests me. There are a few electronic movements I find interesting, but they're not the sort I tend to see very often at all, and wouldn't come up in any of my searches. I have been given a few quartz watches over the years, but they all just sit in a bag in a drawer. Once I hit some critical mass, I'll hopefully get enough motivation to either sell or donate them.

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4 hours ago, Michael1962 said:

3,804

I have has seen the number, but did not realise it was the number of 100% transactions.

Thats a good record Michael,  i always do a quick scan through sone of the  feedback comments to make sure there are a good few of them relating to sales and not just purchaese.  Feedback can be faked but you can usually spot the dodgy sellers.

1 hour ago, Michael1962 said:

Another question if I may.

When you guys buy watch lots are you buying a mix of mechanical and quartz as well? Most of the job lots I am finding (all overseas) are a mix.

If they are all mechanical, it is generally just movements with no cases. I am not at the point where I can identify movements by just viewing them so I'm not inclined to buy a bunch of stuff which will just end up lying around.

Is anyone able to successfully move any of the watches they save on to someone else? I can't see a viable market in Australia for refurbished watches. Most people I have seen at work only have a watch if it counts their steps, answers their phone and makes the coffee.

I'll admit it, I have a super cheap smartwatch on my wrist. Will I buy another one when it quits? Doubt it. I don't know if I would even bother with a pedometer. Heart rate? And do what with all the data? Blood pressure? Never been right since I got the watch. Sleep? If I can't work out that I'm not getting enough, I need to have a serious talk with myself.

I think I'll go back to my Seiko and just make myself stay active.

I have heard that before about lots of orphan watches in Australia 🤔. How far overseas are you going with buying ? There are lots of good sellers here in the UK, shipping is a bit prohibitive though. Main reason for seeing non cased vintages watches would have been the scrapage of the precious metal cases. I think we decide early on what we want from the hobby, whether that is to repair for the fun, enjoyment and sheer challenge of learning something obscure.  To collect watches and have that ability to maintain them, to gain financially from re-sale or a mixture of those. Its also important to remain aware of how deep the rabbit hole goes and how much money it takes to continue the descent. 

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The 6 watches went today for $70 + $10.75 postage.

Not me. Thinking about it, I just need to get myself going with what I have which is enough for now. Still have to get the workshop finished.

First things first. It was hard to not bid though. I doubt I would have gone that high. Would have worked out to just over $13 per watch which is outside your club rules anyway.

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On 5/14/2024 at 12:06 PM, Michael1962 said:

The 6 watches went today for $70 + $10.75 postage.

Not me. Thinking about it, I just need to get myself going with what I have which is enough for now. Still have to get the workshop finished.

First things first. It was hard to not bid though. I doubt I would have gone that high. Would have worked out to just over $13 per watch which is outside your club rules anyway.

Haha yes you do have to reel in your bidding enthusiasm Michael. I use a " not enough time policy " to restrict myself or else known as sniper bidding. Decide what you are most prepared to bid and place it 7 seconds before the end, cross your fingers ,job done . The price paid here i would say was top  figure another day could have been $40

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I haven't done a hunt in a while, but I'd go through the however many pages of results, open tabs for anything that looked like it might meet my specs, review to see what actually meets my specs, then place my 404 bid and move on. If I get it, I get it. I did my homework, and it was worth it. If I don't, there's always the other half dozen or so. No sweat.

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