This Omega is a keeper

[matt.wu]

Turns out WIS-dom is in my blood. We were having a dinner celebration for my mom's birthday last night, when she glanced at my watch and walked away from the table. When she came back, she had a small pouch. Rattling around inside was an old Omega. In the past, she had told me of the watch her father wore, mentioning that she thought it was an Omega.

She took it out, happy to find it, and handed it to me saying "Here, I'm sure you're the only one who would really appreciate this".

Well, she was surely right! I was very very excited to have my first "inherited" watch. I've never met my grandfather, as he passed before I was born, so to be able to hold his watch is an amazing thing. I do have a gold and jade ring that he wore everywhere that I treasure, so this is another prized possession to add to it.

My mom said he loved his watch and wore it everywhere, and it certainly shows. I snapped a few pictures, and you'll see the crown is missing, there are tons of scratches on the crystal, and paint is splattered all over it. The spring bars are most certain mangled, as the endlinks rotate somewhat freely. The watch doesn't keep time at all, and even a few shakes wouldn't get it running. Yet, the overall condition of this thing is surprisingly good and the bracelet is actually pretty tight and very comfortable.

I don't know much about the watch, but will certainly be researching more, as well as looking for a watchmaker (perhaps Omega) who can restore this to fine condition while retaining the majority of the original parts (hands, dial, crystal, bracelet, etc...)

Thought it'd be fun to share a few pictures I snapped this morning. And if you have any recommendations on a watchmaker that you would trust to do restorations (no, Derek, not you ), I would gladly welcome the references.

















It would be pretty funny if it turned out to be a fake..... lol

[ezcheese]

Awesome Matt!

I'm looking forward to the future WRUW thread where we are both wearing our grandfathers' restored Omegas!

[polaco23]

wow! what a find.

i still wear the watch my Grandfather wore and passed it down to my dad and to me. That Omega should be cleaned up and put in the rotation, what a find!

The bracelet does look very comfortable and classy, cant wait to see this one back from the dead!

[matt.wu]

I'm looking forward to the future WRUW thread where we are both wearing our grandfathers' restored Omegas!

[matt.wu]

i still wear the watch my Grandfather wore and passed it down to my dad and to me. That Omega should be cleaned up and put in the rotation, what a find!

Indeed it will. I intend to get it up and running as soon as possible.

[randyswagon]

. . .wonderful!!! I'm not sure anything could be better. Great emotion and a great watch tied together.!!!

. . . waaayyy better than anything you could buy, at any price . . .

[SCM64]

. . .wonderful!!! I'm not sure anything could be better. Great emotion and a great watch tied together.!!!

. . . waaayyy better than anything you could buy, at any price . . .

Could not agree more!

IMHO, I would get that thing to the Omega Factory guys and have them do their magic and get it to like new condition. I know some people like their older watches to show some age, but how cool would it be to have that on your wrist as your grandfather wore it, and perhaps pass it down to your grandson one day.

Big shout out to your mom for such a thoughtful gift.

[dshap]

Great story Matt. That's going to be a great looking watch after you get it fixed up. I'm sure you'll make good use of it.

[Safetystop]

Wow, now that's cool.
Matt, don't F around. Ship that to Omega in Bienne and get it restored to new. It DESERVES that type of treatment.
I knew you'd come back to the Omega fold

[moishlashen]

Awesome. I agree send it to Bienne. What a treasure.

[uspopo]

Awesome piece Matt! Congrats...

Stan

[jimyritz]

Very cool....

Mike

[cali kid]

Matt that is such a cool piece and to think it was your grandfathers! Doesn't get any better than that except maybe Dave's sig a couple of post ago! Enjoy that sweet omega!

[rousp]

Are you sure you want to restore it to a perfect condition?

Think about all the history in those nicks, marks and paint specks..

And yeah, I'm serious now...


I would first give it to a watchmaker, ask him to service and regulate the movement and not to touch anything else.
Just maybe, maybe, polish up the glass...

Then, if you - after a while - still want it polished up to former glory I would send it to bienne...

[el presidente]

That is a great story, and what a great watch! Matt,send it to Bienne.No one can restore a watch like them,that beautiful Omega deserves it

[matt.wu]

Part of me was considering leaving it in original condition and just having the movement serviced, but part of me also wants to have it sent to Bienne to have it done right. I mean, when I was looking for a birth year watch, I wanted everything original because the birth year made it special. For this watch, just having it is special since it used to be owned by my grandpa - so restored or not, I will treasure it.

I appreciate everyone's input! I'll be sure to post pictures when it is done.

[BSears]

That's just awesome Matt. I'm with the others here - send it to Bienne. But whatever you decide, I look forward to more pics of that beauty.

[Pasquale]

That's just awesome Matt. I'm with the others here - send it to Bienne. But whatever you decide, I look forward to more pics of that beauty.

+1

[rousp]

Part of me was considering leaving it in original condition and just having the movement serviced, but part of me also wants to have it sent to Bienne to have it done right. I mean, when I was looking for a birth year watch, I wanted everything original because the birth year made it special. For this watch, just having it is special since it used to be owned by my grandpa - so restored or not, I will treasure it.

I appreciate everyone's input! I'll be sure to post pictures when it is done.

Good luck with the Bienne spa then, they are the best!

[Sukispop]

Could not agree more!

IMHO, I would get that thing to the Omega Factory guys and have them do their magic and get it to like new condition. I know some people like their older watches to show some age, but how cool would it be to have that on your wrist as your grandfather wore it, and perhaps pass it down to your grandson one day.

Big shout out to your mom for such a thoughtful gift.

Matt,

That is such a cool thing for your mom to have done.

I completely agree with Steven...but, really, whatever level you end up restoring the watch to, it's going to be something that you're going to treasure for the rest of your life...to be passed down to your son and your son's son, to be treasured for the generations to come.

[matt.wu]

Could not agree more!

IMHO, I would get that thing to the Omega Factory guys and have them do their magic and get it to like new condition. I know some people like their older watches to show some age, but how cool would it be to have that on your wrist as your grandfather wore it, and perhaps pass it down to your grandson one day.

Big shout out to your mom for such a thoughtful gift.

Matt,

That is such a cool thing for your mom to have done.

I completely agree with Steven...but, really, whatever level you end up restoring the watch to, it's going to be something that you're going to treasure for the rest of your life...to be passed down to your son and your son's son, to be treasured for the generations to come.

I've pretty much decided to send it over to Bienne. I've shot them an email asking for a quote and shipping info. Hopefully it's not going to be too expensive, but I'll spend as much as it takes to get it in like-new condition.

[BSears]

Could not agree more!

IMHO, I would get that thing to the Omega Factory guys and have them do their magic and get it to like new condition. I know some people like their older watches to show some age, but how cool would it be to have that on your wrist as your grandfather wore it, and perhaps pass it down to your grandson one day.

Big shout out to your mom for such a thoughtful gift.

Matt,

That is such a cool thing for your mom to have done.

I completely agree with Steven...but, really, whatever level you end up restoring the watch to, it's going to be something that you're going to treasure for the rest of your life...to be passed down to your son and your son's son, to be treasured for the generations to come.

I've pretty much decided to send it over to Bienne. I've shot them an email asking for a quote and shipping info. Hopefully it's not going to be too expensive, but I'll spend as much as it takes to get it in like-new condition.

Can't wait to see the results, Matt.

[Boomer]

Do a search for omega_addict on ebay and look at his work. He'll restore it to any condition you specify. He does excellent restoration. I have one of his watches.

Chris