What time is it? Watches and horology

See my post above, would neverbuy a watch off e-bay, no way to check the provenance.

yeah that's my worry as well. Are there no ebay sellers who are beyond reproach?
It's a bit of a minefield! Does De Rosa do watches ;-)

I really dont see what the problem is. The seller clearly has positive feedback as well as authenticity guarantees and paypal buyer protection.

It's a fucking lovely watch. Good luck with the bidding!!!

Ipaypal buyer protection.

Every tried to use this? It's a total joke - they have more get-outs than Houdini. DO NOT rely on that as part of the rational of a purchase, whatever you do.

Yup, dodgy headphones (ie fake). Full refund.

Yup, dodgy headphones (ie fake). Full refund.

Quit while you are ahead then, it's seemingly a completely random process. I never got £40 back for non-existent goods, but did for some £2.99 batteries that never arrived. A good friend of mine is out of pocket still for a dig camera from an ebay shop to the tune of nearly 200 bike-bits tokens.

there are lots of reputable dealers in watches on the bay, you just have to seek them out. if you are thinking of buying one of the commonly faked rolex's then yeah its a minefield but otherwise you should be fine. if your worried use a uk dealer and look at the feedback and if they have negative find out what the buyers gripe as it might have been something petty the seller had no chance of responding to.

re refunds for fakes - i bought a fake cardigan from a seller based in japan. they then messed me around for a long time but i recieved a refund through paypal though it involved a bit of hassle not least getting authenticated proof from the original manufacturer and faxing that to them.

Thanks Soul and CoppiThat

On this one I believe it's genuine, more wanted to know if it's worth the cash or if I am being (well and truly) seduced by the amazing photography. Not knowing much about Seamasters, I'm keen to know if this model is reasonably priced. I don't mind paying a bit over the odds for something restored and ready to wear as this is my first.

if they have negative find out what the buyers gripe as it might have been something petty the seller had no chance of responding to.

good advice. I have 1 negative feedback on ebay, but it's because RoyalFucktards decided to stamp on the package and completely smash the contents. There was nothing I could do about that, it was already extremely padded. Yet now I will forever have a negative feedback because the buyer was a bitch.

you might have been seduced by the overhaul and photography here's a similar seamaster from 1955 that sold recently ............. half the price.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Old-OMEGA-SEAMASTER-vintage-Swiss-AUTOMATIC-watch-C1955-/310233477125?pt=Wristwatches&hash=item483b5b3005

do some more research and know why you want a 1955 seamaster if it is in fact that one. also how big is your wrist?

@sumo can you not resolve the problem with the buyer and get them to lift the neg?

Gerald what do you think of this?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=360306073966&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

do some more research and know why you want a 1955 seamaster if it is in fact that one. also how big is your wrist?

Good advice. I have fairly thin wrists (?) i guess!?

I want a beautiful watch that has had a life and a story and is underpinned by great craftsmanship. I am not particularly interested in modern watches and looking around the shop have been unimpressed with the amount of watch you get for the money.

Why the Seamaster specifically? No reason beyond it being well rated on here and other places and this one looking very nice.

If your going to pay that much, it's worth asking the seller if you can collect. You'd do it for a car.

a couple of my recent favs:

http://www.glashuette.com/index.php?id=1&L=1

its quite nice dammit , i was just reading the sellers pitch looking for any holes. 47mm is pretty big but right for a former pocket watch of that era. would it be a watch for everyday use?

@kam you should see if you can get a few watches on your wrist just to gauge the size. if you have a really slender wrist an average size piece can look like a kitchen clock fashion statement.

Thanks. Not really slender by any means, my brother in law's IWC Pilot watch fits fine (although it's a really chunky model looks wise). Do you know of any good places in London to view and try a few classic timepieces?

Cheers!

@Kam -

The seller of that omega sells some amazing watches so rest assured you'll receive something original. In terms if buying from ebay, make sure you pay with paypal, make all contact through ebay and you're covered.

Those who get caught out and loose money with paypal usually don't follow ALL the rules (albeit the rules can be a bit anal). I recently had some trouble with paypal. I kept all receipts, shipped with DHL, had log of emails and was refunded £800 within 2 days of being aware of the problem with no extra questions asked.

If you're looking to get a watch you'll wear everyday or often enough, think carefully about getting something fairly old. I don't think (but i could be wrong) that the Omega would be great for everyday use. Just be careful and get some advice about how you intend to wear it as alot of the watches sold by that ebay seller are not waterproof and more collectable than everyday wearable.

You could get a 1990's (so more modern) high end second hand watch for under 1k.

Try Austin Kay in the Strand,they've been selling 'pre owned' classic timepieces since the days when people wore sundials on their wrists.

i was also going to suggest them on the strand.

@kam - that's beautiful, I'm very tempted to bid on it myself but am not quite that much of a cad.

There's also an Omega specialist at the top end of Burlington Arcade, wouldn't dream of buying from them, but they have some pretty amazing oldies in there!

Did you get it kam?

Hey Joel,

Nah wasn't quite ready to go that high!

Thanks for the good advice guys - i will checkout the places. Don't I need a lot of $$$ even to go into burlington arcade?!!

@Jodie harsh - hey man, how's things? Not planning on wearing the watch daily, more on special occasions and something to keep in the safe (shit if I buy a bling watch do I need to factor in the cost of a small safe? Never had any 'jewellery' before)!

Fair play fella. It went for a pretty penny but was clearly a very nice piece. The thing to be aware of with the bay is not being able to see what a watch looks like when being worn can be problematic. About 6 months ago I bought a 60s Seamaster on eBay from a London dealer, can't remember how much I paid for it think it was about £500, all restored (allegedly) and very nice in the pics. But when it arrived it just looked tiny on my wrist, like a ten pence piece strapped on with a shoestring. It also didn't work, despite having been serviced recently. Fortunately the seller was sound and I just returned it and got a full refund, think his name was white_lotus or something similar.

To be honest I'd avoid places like Burlington Arcade and the one on the Strand because you'll be paying top dollar for anything half decent, just imagine what their overheads must be like and they have to cover them to be a viable business.

Although by all means use them to get a feel for a watch that you like then find the same model online and pay less.