This is a very sorry looking Speedy indeed…
A lot of the dial markers have gone, and there is dirt everywhere. It’s not working, and I wonder of course what will lurk inside.
But let’s start off with the story of the watch, as told my our client, Nick.
I wonder if you would be able to look at my old Speedmaster and get it running again?
It was my father’s. He bought it (new) in the 1960s and I recall, as a child, being with him when he took it to an Omega agent for repair.
“Ah yes, sir” said the jeweller “Omega: a very good watch.”
“No” said my father “It is a very expensive watch, but it’s not very good: I have to keep sending the damn’ thing back for repair.”
Despite this, he wore the watch nearly every day (when it wasn’t back in Switzerland) between buying it in the mid sixties and his death in 1984. It has, therefore, considerable sentimental value.
When I inherited the watch I took it to a jeweller in Glasgow (where I lived at the time) to get it serviced: it was not running well. I explained that money wasn’t really an issue: I simply wanted to be able to wear my Old Man’s watch. Omega said it was obsolete, beyond economic repair and that as they were cold-hearted Swiss b*st*rds I should go away and stop bothering them. (I paraphrase)
Eventually, the jewellers said they knew a man who “did this sort of thing” and after parting with several hundred pounds I got the watch back with the advice that it would keep time, but the chronometer functions were dead. Sadly, it wouldn’t even perform to this limited specification, so it lived in my safe until about ten years ago. I’d moved to P****** by then and had bought my wife a frighteningly expensive piece of jewellery: I noticed that the shop also sold Omegas, so I tried sending the watch back to Omega again through the agents in the shop, but the watch was once more returned with the advice that it was still obsolete and beyond all salvation. It went back into the safe.
Two years ago I used the internet to find a watchmaker who would fix the Speedmaster. I found a lovely man (curiously, back in Glasgow) who appeared to be very interested and knowledgeable. He said that he could make the watch like new for a mere £2,000. I said that I’d start saving and get back to him when the piggy bank had £2,000 in it.
By now it was looking rather sorry for itself. The stem had broken and the crown was lost. My efforts at extracting the movement from the case had caused a small tear in the body of the movement where the remnant of the stem had impinged during the extraction. The watch sat in its returns box until last month when I thought I’d have a go myself. Well, I can fix Land Rovers, lawnmowers, people, simple circuits. How tricky can a watch be? I bought a stem (from Germany, on ebay) and a crown. I found instructions on replacing the stem on a 321 movement and I had a go. I got away with it.
The watch now runs (a bit fast, because I moved the adjuster) for between 2 seconds and 30 minutes and then needs a tap to get it going again. The chronometer does seem to work, but the main seconds hand sometimes jumps during a tap – which suggests some serious wear to my mind – and the sweep rate is not constant (again, I think this is likely to be due to wear) so I suspect that a strip-down, clean, new main spring, replacement of worn cogs and rebuild is needed as a bare minimum.
I don’t care that the bezel is worn and faded. I don’t care that the crystal has scratches. I’m not bothered by the fact that the bracelet is a little damaged. These are the things that make it my father’s watch.
My question is: based on what I’ve told you, do you think you can get the watch to run again for significantly less than £2,000 ? If so, how should I send it to you for a quotation?
Well, here is the watch, and let’s see what we can do for it…
On first inspection, there is a lot of rust, and the hairspring has been bent badly with a screwdriver. I can sort of understand that people before me weren’t too keen to get this watch going again, but hey, this is an Ed White, and has considerable value.
Ouch – don’t touch those hairsprings, please!
Most screw heads are oxidised, too.
The blocking lever has a crack, so it constantly blocks the central chronograph runner.
The central chronograph runner has two damaged teeth, so it will need replacing.
It looks like the dial has been scrubbed with oil – there are bits of cotton wool left, and there is a shine to it. Say what you will about preserving original dials, but this one is too far gone for me. Purists will disagree, but this one goes off to the dial restorer. For me, it’s about looking at your watch and if you are happy with what you see.
The hairspring got a bit of grief, but I can set that right again.
The friction spring for the hour recorder driving pinion has lost its tension and some material off the ends, so it will need replacing.
As a first clean, the rusted parts to into 12% vinegar.
Then everything goes into the cleaning machine.
Re-assembly starts with a new mainspring.
And a new tension spring for the hour recorder driving wheel.
Now the hour recorder assembly is mounted on the plate.
Now it’s time to get that hairspring reshaped.
That doesn’t look too bad, and I’m happy with the result.
With the hairspring back in shape, the movement starts up.
The regulator is still a bit oxidised, but there is only so much time I can charge Nick 😉
The intermediate wheel for the horizontal second recorder clutch also needs some attention.
Slowly the chronograph comes back together.
The broken blocking lever gets silver soldered, as these are very hard to get, and not cheap at all.
And the chronograph layer is complete again.
Now for the bottom plate, and some testing.
Everything gets adjusted, and I’m ready for the dial.
David Bill & Sons restored the dial, and it looks quite good. The lettering is a bit wide, but the dial looks so much better than before!
I leave the original paint on the hands, as it’s still quite good, but apply new luminous compound to go along with the new compound on the dial.
The movement gets cased with a new gasket, new pushers, a new crown and a new crystal.
Job done, and I love the look of this Ed White. Good for another generation.
Great job! Really.
I would have not restored the dial though but kept as it was. Then I would look forward for a better original one. It’s expensive but the value of a non reprinted dial 105.003 climbed up in the last years.
Our clients decide what they want to do. I wouldn’t wear the watch with the dial as it was, either…
There is Patina, and then there is plain outright damage.
A decent dial for this reference will set you back at least EUR1000 at the moment. With that in mind I think the owner made a good choice in doing a (sympathetic) redial.
If I was the owner I would try to find a correct dial and buy it as soon as I could. The watch would gain more in potential re-sell value than the money invested in buying an original dial.
That’s really impressive, hats off to you. I have a question: When you send a dial off to the restorer, can you request that they leave as much of the original as possible, e.g. leave the lettering, only reprint the outside tick marks?
It’s not really possible to restore parts of a dial, as the dial is completely reprinted. I haven’t heard of any dial restorers that offer this, and it would be extremely hard technically.
Really Impressed, curious to know how long did it take to complete the restoring/repair.
We received the watch on 2/10, and sent it back to the customer on 19/10.
Fantastic work Christian! And ridiculous that Omega wasn’t prepared to do the work itself and is in the process of ensuring that people like you cant do it either. I guess Omega simply doesn’t care about its older products and is happy to consign them all to the bin.
Another fantastic life-saving service! Im so glad that you take on jobs like this. Especially when you hear the back stories from the owners.
So basically, for the same price as a regular Omega service, you resurrected an otherwise “unsalvageble” watch. THIS is why swatch pulling parts availability is so worrying.
… and half of it went to Omega for parts 😉
Great restoration and it’s so nice to see a sentimental piece saved. Christian sorted my late fathers watch out much to my delight though it was no Ed White!
Have to say I was slightly surprised by the dual restoration. Better than the original I suppose but that wouldn’t have been difficult. Is this as good as restoration can get? I agree with the need for an original dual though I wonder what the cost will be…
EUR1500-2000. If you can find one.
Excellent job. Clearly the chap to go to whilst you can still obtain Swatch Group parts.
Great job sir
Hello Christian, fantastic work on the hair spring and the time keeping after service looks great well done. With Omega’s refusal to service this watch and swatch group statement that they are removing spares from independent’s because of quality issues, it just shows the swatch groups true intensions to hike up service costs and reduce customers choices.
Absolutely right. There is no other reason but an anti-competitive desire to suck the life out of their customers. Our governments should really hammer these pirates.
Shame on you Omega. This is becoming a love/hate relation for me.
Magnificent job Guys! I cant help imagine the moment the son receiving his father’s watch in such a beautiful condition, back from the dead.
Thank you for not giving up on our beloved beaten watches boys.
Best regards.
Miguel
Great rescue!
If I was the owner I would chase down an original dial. They cost an arm and a leg, but the redial is only ok and not really fabulous.
The Ed White is gaining cult status, and prices is very much on the rise!
With a good condition, patinated, original dial it would look vintage-perfect!
Yes, I had to tell Nick to up his insurance on the watch 😉 I’m with you regarding the dial, too – in the long run, it needs a good original one, and it will easily gain the price of the dial in value.
A good dial will return its price several times over.
That’s a really wonderful result! I the finished watch looks perfect to me.
This is a perfect example of why we need to support the independent watch repair trade, especially considering that Omega themselves wouldn’t fix it.
Fantastic job Christian. Is it rude to ask the cost? I dread to think what Omega would charge for this job (not that they would want it).
This is why I want guys like you able to get hold of spare parts. A piece of great sentimental value, bought back from the brink for the owner and his own son perhaps one day.
Great stuff.
Sure, no problem. Costs are as follows:
mainspring Omega original £34
Friction Spring For Driving Pinion ( 1792 ), Omega 321 £28
crystal Omega original £55
case back gasket £5
2 pushers £51 = £102
Spring For Minute Recording Jumper ( 1767 ), Omega 320 £15
re-apply luminous compound to hands £15
strap £5
re-shape hairspring £50
runner mounted 321-1705 £102
silver solder blocking lever £20
dial restoration incl. VAT and shipping £123.78
service £230
So the main bulk of the money actually goes to Omega for the parts 😉
That’s excellent value really to get a watch that desirable up and running again. I’m sure the owner is over the moon.
And you undercut the guy in Glasgow by over £1200!
__Sure, no problem. Costs are as follows:__
Beyond skills and competence, you’re an example of honesty and business best practices, Kudos!
I’ve been a fan of yours for a long time!!
http://www.fratellowatches.com/speedy-tuesday-omega-speedmaster-professional-105-012/
My watch was featured on a website sometime ago with decent pics. I’ve been nervous about servicing but feel its time to do it, not sure about who’s good in my area. How exactly do I safely send/receive my Speedmaster to you, how much would a “proper” service cost before SWATCH destroy all our lives
thanks
Best read our FAQ page, price list and booking page. If there are any questions left afterwards, please contact me through the contact page.
Best regards,
Christian