Watch of Today

[ricardopalamino 578]

I picked up a few watches yesterday . One of them was this Omega Jumbo Hand wind cal 255 piece .  I also picked up a Cal 254 with the lot I got from a local craigslist ad  , The seller had a truckload of used watches , but most were cheap , quartz watches that hadn't worked in a while . I was able to Pick up 8 watches that to me had some potential for collecting or resale if they work after cleaning , and installing new batteries on about 4 of them .

One of them was a hand wind Timex Marlin that is working and looking good . 

Anyway , this Omega 255 was fully wound , but not working . I took off the back and the first thing I noticed was quite a few Watchmakers ID's scratched into the case back . On closer inspection I noticed that the 2nd to last coil on this Brueget hairspring was wrapped around the regulating arm . Not bent in any way , just installed improperly .

After correcting  that situation , the watch took off running and has been keeping accurate time since Yesterday . 

The case measures in at 35.5 mm W/O crown , And the watch has a nice size presence on the wrist for a vintage watch . I believe this watch is from the 60's . I have to get more into how to date Omegas ,....one of these days .   

 

The Omega 255.....

 

 

 

 

And the Hand wind , waterproof Timex ,...Marlin... [I THINK ....]

 

[drysideshooter 2]

Nice finds!

 

[ricardopalamino 578]

3 hours ago, drysideshooter said:

Nice finds!

 

Thanks ,...I lucked out . Usually I am too late on craigslist finds .

I got 2 Omegas , ..working now . Cal 254 & 255

2 hand wind Timex

1 Timex electric with the original Timex type A battery still in it......see what I can do with this one since it's been a while since I tackled one of these babies .

1 nice looking 17 jewel Swiss made vintage rectangle case with sub dial "Valjean " Hand wind watch..needs to be serviced....

1 Seiko SQ , blue dial all original and running with a new battery . I may install a new crystal and band after I clean it . 

  And Last , but not least ,   a nice looking Swatch Quartz . running with a new battery .

It has a clean dial with the day/date stacked at 6 o'clock , and a clear see thru case .  I think I'll put a new band on it and give it to my Daughter-in-law . She enjoys a horological surprise once in a while .

 

The craigslist seller said he has boxes and boxes of watches he is still going through and is supposed to give me a call if he finds anything he thinks I would be Interested in .  I've got my digits crossed .

 

One more thing ,...I love your Omega and those carbon fiber bands are cool .  In fact you"re too cool for school for not trying to be so cool . 

 

That's cool !!

Edited January 29, 2019 by ricardopalamino

[JerseyMo 544]

On 1/28/2019 at 2:53 PM, ricardopalamino said:

I

And the Hand wind , waterproof Timex ,...Marlin... [I THINK ....]

 

yes, a 1963 Marlin  the band is not original.  Black leather would be a nice addition.

Edited January 30, 2019 by JerseyMo

[drysideshooter 2]

My fingers are crossed for you too!  Getting that many watches at once must have been like Christmas.  Hoping the seller finds some other cool watches for you.  

[ricardopalamino 578]

1 hour ago, JerseyMo said:

yes, a 1963 Marlin  the band is not original.  Black leather would be a nice addition.

Thank You JerseyMo , I was sure you would come through with a correct ID on this watch . I thought it was a Marlin or at least a Mercury .           Last night I was doing a search to see if I could ID this watch . 

Would you know what the difference is between the Marlin and Mercury . They seem to be similar as far as I have seen .

[ricardopalamino 578]

2 hours ago, JerseyMo said:

yes, a 1963 Marlin  the band is not original.  Black leather would be a nice addition.

I did change out the watch band to one I had in my stash . A JB Champion Fine Mesh Bracelet .

I have decided to list this one as I checked and have another in my collection already .

 

[TexasDon 79]

A recent acquisition that's almost instantaneously become a favorite. Wenger SeaForce, special edition Arctic Lights. Swiss quartz movement. So far, it's proving to be very accurate.

[ricardopalamino 578]

19 minutes ago, TexasDon said:

A recent acquisition that's almost instantaneously become a favorite. Wenger SeaForce, special edition Arctic Lights. Swiss quartz movement. So far, it's proving to be very accurate.

 

I see you Install your watch band opposite of what I usually have seen . ...Verrry Interesting....

[TexasDon 79]

It places the tongue up when I fasten it. It's easier for me to both see and manipulate as I suffer from mild arthritis in both shoulder joints.

[ricardopalamino 578]

Very good . Whatever works ,...right ?

[JerseyMo 544]

On 1/30/2019 at 10:21 AM, ricardopalamino said:

Thank You JerseyMo , I was sure you would come through with a correct ID on this watch . I thought it was a Marlin or at least a Mercury .           Last night I was doing a search to see if I could ID this watch . 

Would you know what the difference is between the Marlin and Mercury . They seem to be similar as far as I have seen .

A Marlin is a listed as Water Proof \ Water Resistant and the Mercury would not be.  Just to name one main difference.

But, each had interchangeable movements although the stem crown are not.

[JerseyMo 544]

On 1/30/2019 at 10:45 AM, ricardopalamino said:

I did change out the watch band to one I had in my stash . A JB Champion Fine Mesh Bracelet .

I have decided to list this one as I checked and have another in my collection already .

The Marlins are very hot right now - this should give you a nice return.

 

[ricardopalamino 578]

My big dilemma for today was which blue dialed vintage Seiko am I going to wear ?

First I tried my Seiko 6119-5411 which is definitely a favorite of mine I think  , because for one reason or another It took me for what seemed an eternity to finally get this watch running and looking good to my satisfaction . 

I love the UFO shape....... ET , where are you ?

 

 

 

or my Mad Men wannabe Seiko Actus...    7019-5040 ....

 

 

 

well , as usual ,...I'm having a hard time making a descision on this matter so I'm going to flip a coin and see what destiny has in mind .

 

 

        to be continued.... 

 

 

 

[AndyHull 1,399]

Today's WOT is a Q&Q automatic. This is the latest recruit to my "404 Club", and arrived in a filthy condition, sans strap and pins.

I quick "internal exam" and a freshen up of the crystal and case, and off it goes. One more Automatic for the club.

The strap is borrowed from the "Royal London" quartz I mentioned a couple of months back, and I'm wearing as I type this. I'll pick up a similar strap when I get the chance, as I think it looks quite good on it.

There is some plating wear on the watch, and a few little other bits of "character", hardly surprising given its age, and the condition it arrived in,  but it is now sparkling like a new pin and ticking away like a champ.

I'll keep it on for a day or two, then see how well it performs and adjust, regulate etc.

So far it is going well. There are a couple of other "club members" waiting in the wings. I'll keep you posted on their progress when I get some more spare time.

 

 

Edited February 19, 2019 by AndyHull

[ricardopalamino 578]

On 2/13/2019 at 4:58 PM, ricardopalamino said:

My big dilemma for today was which blue dialed vintage Seiko am I going to wear ?

First I tried my Seiko 6119-5411 which is definitely a favorite of mine I think  , because for one reason or another It took me for what seemed an eternity to finally get this watch running and looking good to my satisfaction . 

I love the UFO shape....... ET , where are you ?

 

 

 

or my Mad Men wannabe Seiko Actus...    7019-5040 ....

 

 

 

well , as usual ,...I'm having a hard time making a descision on this matter so I'm going to flip a coin and see what destiny has in mind .

 

 

        to be continued.... 

 

 

 

 

Here's another Blue Dialed Seiko . This time a 5606-5039 .

My phone camera really does not capture the sharp  lines of the watch or the sharp differences between the Brushed top and the polished sides of the watch  and the blemish free crystal .. Production date was April 1972 .

 

 

[ro63rto 589]

I did have my Citizen Wingman on today but switched to this for tonight.

Old pic as bad light now

[ricardopalamino 578]

That's a Beauty ro63rto.....

[ro63rto 589]

That's a Beauty ro63rto.....

Thanks.
Didn't start out so nice [emoji4]

[ricardopalamino 578]

2 hours ago, ro63rto said:

 

 

Thanks.
Didn't start out so nice

 

Wow , Good Job ,.......big difference .

[AndyHull 1,399]

That Seiko is looking very nice. Well worth the effort of rejuvenating it.

I'm looking at what is probably a similar aged Citizen to that Seiko. Its another potential "404 club" member. 
I've got the watch looking quite presentable, but it has an exhibition case back that is smashed, so I'll need to replace the glass in that.

Here is the watch in question. That flash on the crystal at 1 o'clock is just a reflection, not a scratch or crack.

The watch is running well, but it still needs quite a lot of TLC before I can wear it.

[AndyHull 1,399]

I got this Swatch  with a damaged strap, and more than its fair share of minor scuff marks,  in a bunch of other stuff, so it got "the treatment".

The strap fix was a bit of  a faf, and isn't absolutely perfect, so I may remove one link and try again.

The remaining treatment was cosmetic. Clean, polish (a lot), fit battery.

It is Swatch, and quartz, and pretty recent ((c) 1997),  so I didn't bother to look inside.

It is not a bad looking watch in reality, though lacking a mainspring and a beating heart, so perhaps not as exciting as some of the other "404 club" members. 

I suspect this may well see a lot of use as a daily "beater".

I'm still looking for a Swatch automatic for less than the magic sum. I've come close a couple of times, so I may yet be lucky.
EDIT: The Q&Q automatic from yesterday is still going strong, and seems to be a pretty decent performer, considering its age etc.

Edited February 20, 2019 by AndyHull

[ricardopalamino 578]

3 hours ago, AndyHull said:

I got this Swatch  with a damaged strap, and more than its fair share of minor scuff marks,  in a bunch of other stuff, so it got "the treatment".

The strap fix was a bit of  a faf, and isn't absolutely perfect, so I may remove one link and try again.

The remaining treatment was cosmetic. Clean, polish (a lot), fit battery.

It is Swatch, and quartz, and pretty recent ((c) 1997),  so I didn't bother to look inside.

It is not a bad looking watch in reality, though lacking a mainspring and a beating heart, so perhaps not as exciting as some of the other "404 club" members. 

I suspect this may well see a lot of use as a daily "beater".

I'm still looking for a Swatch automatic for less than the magic sum. I've come close a couple of times, so I may yet be lucky.
EDIT: The Q&Q automatic from yesterday is still going strong, and seems to be a pretty decent performer, considering its age etc.

 

Hi AndyHull , 

I have a Swatch Irony Body and Soul that is an Automatic and has the original watchband ..  The case front looks like your quartz unit .

These pics are from the internet for display , but mine is exactly the same  . I got mine for [ the good price of $25 ] , because The back crystal was cracked and the watch was not running at the time . because of the cracked crystal I was able to remove it , repair the watch, and install a new crystal . 

 

On YouTube , Mark from Long Island Watch often wears his similar Swatch Irony Body and Soul , and shows it on a wrist check .

[AndyHull 1,399]

That is a very nice example. I have bid on a couple of much scruffier ones, but so far not been lucky. If I can find one of those for the 404 club I'd be really chuffed.

My quartz version has a steel spring/elasticated band (original swatch, but interestingly, made in Germany rather than Switzerland).

That is a much nicer looking fixed link band on yours.

Edited February 20, 2019 by AndyHull

[ricardopalamino 578]

While I have seen the asking  price on these all over the place , It is a well made watch with an ETA Movement  , so hang in  there until the right one comes along as they always seem to do .