1665 Great White Dial. Restore or not restore?

[BDHD]

Hi guys!

Attached you will find photos of my 1979 Sea-Dweller. As you will see the conditions of the Dial are not very attractive. Pay close attention to the Hour Markers for numbers 6 and 9.

Is it advisable to restore the hour markers for this dial? Experts have always told me to never touch a dial and leave it as it is. Would this case be a good exception or the watch will lose value with a restored dial?

If advised, where could I send it for restoration in the US?

Thank you very much in advance for all your great help and knowledge.

Regards,
Leo

[offrdmania]

If you do anything I would just have those markers stabilized and not fully restored.

[dwheelie]

no!

[jlushing]

Isn’t this watch on chrono24 and eBay from a dealer out of Boston?


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[BDHD]

Originally Posted by offrdmania

If you do anything I would just have those markers stabilized and not fully restored.

Yes, I meant to say restoration of the hour markers, not the entire Dial. That would be a total mistake.

Is there a good place in the US where one could send the dial so they could work on those hour markers?

Thank you

[wonkka]

Don't touch it!

[1665fan]

It wouldn’t look near as bad if the crystal got a nice polish

[Robtayham]

Originally Posted by jlushing

Isn’t this watch on chrono24 and eBay from a dealer out of Boston?


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OP, is this accurate?

Are you the seller?

As with all the ‘1 post OPs’ ‘is my watch real / fake’ or ‘granddad gave it to me’ or your post, TRF would be better served if the members had all the details before they start answering these open ended questions.

The answer is different if you’re a seller, a buyer, or an owner; as well as, what are your goals?

[JustinK]

I think you have no choice but to have the lume repaired. It will continue to get worse and eventually drag around the dial when it breaks free.

Check with Michael Young or LA Watchwerks to see what they would recommend.

[BDHD]

Originally Posted by Robtayham

OP, is this accurate?

Are you the seller?

As with all the ‘1 post OPs’ ‘is my watch real / fake’ or ‘granddad gave it to me’ or your post, TRF would be better served if the members had all the details before they start answering these open ended questions.

The answer is different if you’re a seller, a buyer, or an owner; as well as, what are your goals?

Hi Robtyayham -

I am still very new to the Rolex Forums. This is my second thread on the site. What is "TRF", "OP"?

My plan is to sell this watch, that is why I am asking if the watch will lose value with the hour markers restored. Did I break any rules, did I post in the wrong sub-forum? Any feedback and guidance is welcomed

Thanks

[Paulie 50]

Originally Posted by leandroquezada

Yes, I meant to say restoration of the hour markers, not the entire Dial. That would be a total mistake.

Is there a good place in the US where one could send the dial so they could work on those hour markers?

Thank you

Just fishing?

[BDHD]

Originally Posted by JustinK

I think you have no choice but to have the lume repaired. It will continue to get worse and eventually drag around the dial when it breaks free.

Check with Michael Young or LA Watchwerks to see what they would recommend.

Thank you very much sir

[1675-David]

I'd look for a new dial and sell this one to offset the cost, as you point out this is not an attractive dial and relume would be the answer

[BDHD]

Originally Posted by 1675-David

I'd look for a new dial and sell this one to offset the cost, as you point out this is not an attractive dial and relume would be the answer

Thank you David

[Kingface66]

Originally Posted by Robtayham

OP, is this accurate?

Are you the seller?

As with all the ‘1 post OPs’ ‘is my watch real / fake’ or ‘granddad gave it to me’ or your post, TRF would be better served if the members had all the details before they start answering these open ended questions.

The answer is different if you’re a seller, a buyer, or an owner; as well as, what are your goals?

Op, ARE you the seller?

[mohamedalimam]

Originally Posted by Robtayham

OP, is this accurate?

Are you the seller?

As with all the ‘1 post OPs’ ‘is my watch real / fake’ or ‘granddad gave it to me’ or your post, TRF would be better served if the members had all the details before they start answering these open ended questions.

The answer is different if you’re a seller, a buyer, or an owner; as well as, what are your goals?

Agreed, there will be different answers for different scinarios, in my opinion, I would give the crystal a good professional polish, and put it for sale, let the buyer decide on this, and I wouldn't wear it while it's for sale just to avoid the lume coming off.

And if the watch did not sell, then maybe you can consider re-luming.

[1675-David]

Originally Posted by leandroquezada

Thank you David

no problem, that's a great looking case which deserves a great dial

[Robtayham]

Originally Posted by leandroquezada

Hi Robtyayham -

I am still very new to the Rolex Forums. This is my second thread on the site. What is "TRF", "OP"?

My plan is to sell this watch, that is why I am asking if the watch will lose value with the hour markers restored. Did I break any rules, did I post in the wrong sub-forum? Any feedback and guidance is welcomed

Thanks

Do you currently own the watch? Or is it actually owned by somebody else?

You may find that you can’t recoup the costs to restore. You may also find that the next owner would whether buy it as is, and restore it themselves.

[BDHD]

Originally Posted by mohamedalimam

Agreed, there will be different answers for different scinarios, in my opinion, I would give the crystal a good professional polish, and put it for sale, let the buyer decide on this, and I wouldn't wear it while it's for sale just to avoid the lume coming off.

And if the watch did not sell, then maybe you can consider re-luming.

Thank you very much for the suggestion sir. I am keeping the watch in a box for now, don't want any more damage.

[BDHD]

Originally Posted by Robtayham

Do you currently own the watch? Or is it actually owned by somebody else?

You may find that you can’t recoup the costs to restore. You may also find that the next owner would whether buy it as is, and restore it themselves.

I currently own the watch.

Yesterday I received a quote for 350USD. He said he will relume the indexes and for 100USD more he can do the same to the hands. I have zero experience with this process so I don't know what to think of it.

I asked for before/after photos of his previous relume work. If he send me some I will upload them here to get opinions.

[jlushing]

Something fishy is going on here.....


https://chrono24.app/rolex/sea-dwell...US&SETCURR=USD


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[Juhuatai]

I'm guessing he is the dealer. He says he is planning to sell the watch.

[BDHD]

Originally Posted by jlushing

Something fishy is going on here.....


https://chrono24.app/rolex/sea-dwell...US&SETCURR=USD


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Originally Posted by Juhuatai

I'm guessing he is the dealer. He says he is planning to sell the watch.

Hi guys! I am very sorry if I broke any rules. I am totally new to any type of watch forums. Please explain which rules I'm breaking and what do you mean by fishing?

I am not soliciting, providing links to a commercial site, posting contact information and my avatar and username are not associated with any dealership or give a sense of that.

Other members asked me if I am trying to sell the watch so they can give me better advice. I answered the question.

Any feedback is welcome

[jlushing]

Originally Posted by Juhuatai

I'm guessing he is the dealer. He says he is planning to sell the watch.

He is acting like he isn’t in US but eBay listing and chrono are Boston.


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[daveycrawford]

Polish the crystal and stabilise the dial. Only if there is a danger of the damaged markers further deteriorating. If stable leave it

[Kingface66]

Originally Posted by jlushing

He is acting like he isn’t in US but eBay listing and chrono are Boston.

Not sure where you're getting that he's acting like he's not in he US. In his first post he asks for recommendations about places in the US to send the watch for restoration.

[BDHD]

Originally Posted by daveycrawford

Polish the crystal and stabilise the dial. Only if there is a danger of the damaged markers further deteriorating. If stable leave it

Thank you for the recommendation davey. By stabalizing you mean using glue to hold the index in place?

[BDHD]

Originally Posted by Kingface66

Not sure where you're getting that he's acting like he's not in he US. In his first post he asks for recommendations about places in the US to send the watch for restoration.

Hi Andy, sorry for my late reply. I am the owner of the watch, the plan is to sell it but right now the conditions are not convincing.

About my location, I am indeed in the US. I think I was clear throughout the thread that I am looking for good places to send the dial in the US. Thanks for clarifying that to the other member

Also, if I am not mistaken my location is public and is showing right below my avatar.

[exador]

Sheesh. Why the Spanish Inquisition?

Leo, get the dial repaired but ensure that you declare it when/if you sell the watch