Oyster Speedking 2280

[Rukus]

Hello all! Looking at diving in to my first Rolex, a vintage 2280 dated to 1941.

Could anybody kindly take a look and tell me if it appears correct for this era? Seller says the dial was refurbished, but not sure exactly what that means. I’m also wondering if the crown is original, I’ve seen so many variations on the different Oyster models it’s hard to be sure.

Hopefully someone can enlighten me! Thank you.

[Rukus]

[offrdmania]

The dial has been badly redone, the hands have been badly re-lumed and the crown has been replaced. If the price is right then these faults can be corrected. Unfortunately, the work needed to be done will most likely be greater than the watches value.

It is much later than 1941 since it has center seconds. Probably from the late 1950s.

OP, do you realize that this watch is only 32mm? It is very small for todays standards.

[Rukus]

Thank you for the response. Yes,I realize it is very small by today’s standards. My wrists aren’t that big anyway so it’s not a problem.

In the interest of learning more, can you explain what you mean by having the dial “redone”
Does that mean it was relumed, or painted or what?

[Dan S]

Probably completely restored, and not particularly well. Look how crooked the SPEEDKING printing is. Misalignment of the minute markers with the lume plots. Wonky lumed numerals. Poor fonts and bad printing alignment. It has the typical signs of a dial that was damaged at some point, and was restored in the distant past. This is common, but not desirable.

[214270Explorer]

What Dan_S said.
Much of the 'value' in vintage pieces is in the dial.

If it runs, enjoy it.

[Kingface66]

It’s a great hobby/passion/obsession, this vintage Rolex thing, but personally, I’d keep looking. 32mm, even for narrow wrists, is very small. Plus, that dial is pretty horrendous. And on top that, when you get around to selling it, you’re gonna have trouble with buyers who will be noticing all of these things, too. There’s absolutely nothing special about this watch. Save up, learn more, discover what models “speak to you” and set your sights on those.

[Rukus]

Thank you all for the perspective. This is why I joined the board, to learn. I’ll pass on this one and invest some more time into the search and my knowledge base.

[Andrew18]

I have one speedking like this.
try to post image

[R.W.T.]

[QUOTE=offrdmania;11820433]

It is much later than 1941 since it has center seconds. Probably from the late 1950s.
/QUOTE]

2280 was both center and sub seconds there is nothing wrong with that.

[R.W.T.]

The biggest issue is the watch has a modern crown...then the dial. Depending on how that was accomplished you may not be able to reverse the process without a large expense and some laser welding. The dial is obviously refinished but you can find a dial...albeit expensive and difficult to locate. To determine the real age of the watch you'd need the serial number...if it is indeed 1941 it would be located on the back of the case. The price is likely higher than the value.

[Rukus]

Much thanks RWT, the serial was on the 222xxx range. I looked it up on Bobs Watches site and it returned a production date of 1941 or 1956? It is stamped on the back of the case, Would a ‘56 production have the serial stamped elsewhere?

What would the original crown look like, I’m having a very hard time trying to figure that out, there seems to be so many variants.

[R.W.T.]

It's not a 56 it's closer to 41. Yes 56 would be between the lugs and the 2280 was gone by then anyway.
Could be lots of crowns...but not that one. It's not twinlok crown. It's a bubble back style crown.