1978 Datejust

[Pmarine1]

I recently inherited my late father’s Datejust and am looking for some help identifying it and having it serviced. It has been sitting in a drawer for over 10 years untouched since his passing but while alive he wore it everyday. I am basing the date off of the 5,29X,XXX serial number and the reference number looks to be 1625.

[Tools]

A 1625 would be an old Turn-o-graph and is often referred to as a "Thunderbird" because that style was presented to and used by the USAF T-bird pilots.

You might give a restoration expert, such as Bob Ridley at Watchmakers International out of Dallas, a call. To keep the value and originality of your watch it needs somebody knowledgeable and skilled. If you want to send it further away there are other good vintage experts.

[Dan S]

Indeed, a 1625 is not just a run of the mill DJ.

[Pmarine1]

Thank you, ironically I remember my Dad driving a 55’ Tbird when I was a child, although I see the name comes from the Air Force. I can see that in his typical fashion he seems to have removed the turn-o-graph bezel. I have attached a picture to show what it currently looks like.

[studioal]

Oh no

[Dan S]

The watch has obviously been modified, but since it’s an heirloom, that’s probably irrelevant. It does mean that you will want to send it to an independent watchmaker, since Rolex would give you a hard time about the modified parts.