Omega 176.007 refurbish

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toxicavenger
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Omega 176.007 refurbish

Post by toxicavenger » Sat Feb 11, 2017 5:12 pm

My buddy James just got his Omega 176.007 refurbished. Here is his post on wus and pics. http://forums.watchuseek.com/f20/176-00 ... ht=176.007

Hi everyone. I just got an early 70�s Omega Seamaster 176.007 restored by a third party, and I thought I would share my story here. It is a lengthy read, but I hope it is of some interest to you.


My story began in early 2016, when I started noticing vintage Omegas with a sunburst (radial brushing) case finishing. After few months, I picked up a vintage Speedmaster Mark 4.5 which had the sunburst case finishing (plus a polished bevel!), but it needed a service and I wanted the case refinished. Call me crazy, but I actually like watches that look great (dents and dings are not "patina"), so a professional restoration to me makes a watch more wearable and enjoyable (family heirloom watches excluded). At that time, I looked around to see what third party service centers could take on this project and had experience refinishing this type of case, but at that time I came up short on options. It was either Nesbits in Seattle or sending it back to Omega. I heard good things about both (and a few not-so-great things about Omega Service Centers), and both were going to be around a $1000 for a standard service (excluding parts if needed) and refinishing (not sure if this price would include laser welding). While I enjoyed that Mark 4.5 Speedmaster and its Lemania 5100 movement, a trade deal came up that I couldn�t pass up (I got a Sinn EZM 10 out of the deal!!), and it was off to a new home.

A few months passed and again I sought out another vintage sunburst Omega, this time in the form of a Seamaster 176.007 (thanks Jeep99Dad for posting yours just enough for me to notice!). I watched the forums and fleabay for a few months, trying to find a good example and determine a fair price. I found this one in very much used condition, and it was recently serviced (so some future costs had been mitigated). It did have quite a deep nick in one of the lugs (oddly on the inside of the lugs), but the dial and hands looked to be in great vintage shape, with very light matching patina. Since I planned on having the case refinished, and having read about laser welding (adding additional steel to fill in deep gouges) in a Hodinkee article where a Doxa 300t was restored, my interest was piqued. Around the same time, I had stumbled upon a watchmaker named Kelly Hunter (@art_of_the_watch for Instagram users) on Instagram. Kelly is located in Oregon and specializes in vintage Omegas. Before purchase, I spoke with Kelly about my idea and he took a look at the watch that I was interested in. He cautioned me about the previous service, but said that it looked like it could be refinished to my liking.

The watch was obviously well-used by the previous owners, and showed more wabi-sabi than I was interested in wearing. So after some back and forth with the seller on the condition of the watch and movement servicing, I purchased the watch.
Upon receipt of the watch, I checked the functions and accuracy of the watch, and everything seemed to be in order. After a day on the wrist, I promptly sent the watch to Kelly so he could evaluate the watch in person and provide an estimate for the case restoration.

After delivery, Kelly quickly reviewed the watch, provided a detailed estimate, and gave me a call to discuss everything. What was not obvious from the seller�s photos was that the pushers were not in great shape and had what looked like dents on their face (pitting?), and the inner tach ring was bubbling in a few spots and somehow had already been repaired. These new issues necessitated an Omega Service kit (pushers, case tube, crown, gaskets) and a new crystal and associated tachymeter insert being added onto the project. To me, these additional parts made sense as I was after a fresh look and I wanted the watch to perform accordingly. Thankfully upon inspection, the movement had been serviced adequately by the pervious owner. I authorized the work order and Kelly got to work with parts and case refinishing.

Kelly provided the following photos and description of the repairs being provided.

Case is stripped bare and marked for laser filling.

I have had it back for a few days now, and I am pretty thrilled with the results. The case�s sunburst finishing looks great! Never having a NOS Omega in hand, I can�t say how the finishing compares to the original finishing, but it looks uniform and even. It certainly catches the light and I am often admiring it (typical watch honeymooning stuff). The polished sides do still show some very faint signs of previous deep scratches, but I did not want too much material removed, so this is to be expected. The bracelet end links were adjusted to allow straight spring bars to be used, versus the bent spring bars that the watch came on. The entire bracelet was refinished as well. Job well done Kelly!

I feel that my original goal has been achieved - an excellent condition vintage watch. As I mentioned earlier, heavy wear and tear detracts from my personal enjoyment a watch, but I understand that this isn�t everyone's position.
I hope this was worth the read, and may be a possible resource for others in the future. I know I have spent enough time looking over minty 176.007 watches over the last few months, and wanted to contribute.
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JP Chestnut
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Re: Omega 176.007 refurbish

Post by JP Chestnut » Sat Feb 11, 2017 5:17 pm

I'm so glad more people (wearers and repairers) are starting to understand and care about proper refinishing.

T. Wong
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Re: Omega 176.007 refurbish

Post by T. Wong » Sun Feb 12, 2017 12:35 pm

That is a very nice model. Bought it back in the 70s. Once, I took it in to have it cleaned and the bent springbars replaced. I was shocked that each cost $5.00. The watchmaker told me they were SS ones. I was a bartender and bent my watch wrist alot. Maybe one day I will get another. Now I have several prebonds and an X-33gen1.

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john wilson
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Re: Omega 176.007 refurbish

Post by john wilson » Mon Mar 06, 2017 5:15 pm

All time favorite ! Sweet!Took this phone shot two weeks ago at my watch guys shop.
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"Remove booger hook from bang button until ready to make holes." Albert Einstein

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Jeep99dad
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Re: Omega 176.007 refurbish

Post by Jeep99dad » Mon Mar 06, 2017 5:33 pm

john wilson wrote:All time favorite ! Sweet!Took this phone shot two weeks ago at my watch guys shop.
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Out of curiosity how much was he asking for it ?


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rockmastermike
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Re: Omega 176.007 refurbish

Post by rockmastermike » Mon Mar 06, 2017 5:37 pm

Man, I sure do miss mine. That's an incredible watch.

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john wilson
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Re: Omega 176.007 refurbish

Post by john wilson » Mon Mar 06, 2017 11:43 pm

He never said. But I'll being seeing him again soon.
"Remove booger hook from bang button until ready to make holes." Albert Einstein

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