Vintage Rolex

[mugsisme]

Found a really cool watch today.

I did a scratch test, it's 14K gold. (Although it shows up for plate like that as well.)

This is the guy whose watch it was.

The watch doesn't work really. The crown is not right. If you try to wind it, you can't. If you try to set the time, the crown unwinds. I am considering taking it to the watch repair to see how much it would cost me to clean and fix it. I think for under $400 it would be worth it. I'm not really sure where to sell such a thing. I am loathe to sell it on Ebay and give them so much money. any ideas?

 

[Dapman]

Beautiful watch - love the dial!

You could always sell it to me

 

[Professor of Engineering]

What a beautiful watch! Congratulations on the find.

Very interesting engraving.

 

[tamrock]

Wow! is all I can say. How'd you come by that? It should have a tiny Swiss hallmark on it if it's a solid gold case. Rolex did make a plated of sorts case, but it's a thick plate they call a gold shell case. That is for sure a find I would call a Banner Find. A very great score I wish I had.

 

[mugsisme]

I, uh, got it in a jewelry box from Good Will. If I told you what else was in the box, you would all move here and stalk my GWs.

I'm going to the jeweler tomorrow to have him open it for me, and we can see if it is 14K.

 

[Paleo_joe]

Wow, what a fantastic find!! Not just the watch but the history on top of it.

 

[bigcaddy64]

Isn't the E award for production efficiency? I've found a number of the E banner pins in sterling but never a gold Rolex. I wonder if that was a gift by the employees for hitting a target number of items/goods produced?

 

[bigcaddy64]

That watch has a great look to it and would look even better if the strap was replaced with a nice quality brown of black leather strap.

I don't know if that metal band is original but a bit of repair and cleaning would get you a fantastic looking Rolex for cheap.

IMO, the case has a rose gold color to it

 

[tamrock]

I, uh, got it in a jewelry box from Good Will. If I told you what else was in the box, you would all move here and stalk my GWs.

I'm going to the jeweler tomorrow to have him open it for me, and we can see if it is 14K.

Even busted it's worth some good money. Hard to say if you'll recover the cost in a repair. It won't be cheap. I got this vintage Glycine 24hr dial Airman for 12 bucks. It was missing the bezel rotation knob and the hack assembly. It would cost over 400 to fix right. I put it on ebay and broken it sold for $455. It may have done better having it fixed, but I'm more for the cash flow... Not sure what your Rolex will sell for until you know if it's a solid gold case or not. Still you scored very well as it is.

 

[austin]

Send it back to Rolex and let them restore it. Then ask them who might be interested in paying what it is really worth. You may be surprised...

 

[mugsisme]

I texted pictures of it to my jeweler friend. He wants to see it really badly. Problem is he is going out of town tomorrow. So we are going to meet up Monday morning. Meanwhile, I am running it by another jeweler friend (yeah, I have a lot of friends who help me). I want him to open it. Contacting Rolex might not be a bad idea. Wonder if they have any life time warranties on their watches. The first friend said he has to see the watch and look it up. It could be worth a lot, or it could be worth 1K.
You have no idea who happy I was when I saw this. :-) I have several fake ones. And my stainless steel 14K band which is real gold is a fake. :-(
Can I find out more about from the number on it?

 

[bdsawyer]

What a great find. Even better with the WWII connection. I hope it's solid 14k!

 

[mugsisme]

I can't wait for the morning now! Look what I found:
14k PG Rare Vintage Rolex Oyster Perpetual, Ref. 3795 | J&P Time Pieces
Mine is obviously not museum quality. Capt. L.J. Stecher graduated in the class of 1914. His son became a capt as well, and he named some system, AEGIS. I can't find more information on the father.

 

[bc8888]

I, uh, got it in a jewelry box from Good Will. If I told you what else was in the box, you would all move here and stalk my GWs.

I'm going to the jeweler tomorrow to have him open it for me, and we can see if it is 14K.

The back looks like a regular screw back case, it should just twist off with light to moderate pressure

 

[mugsisme]

The back looks like a regular screw back case, it should just twist off with light to moderate pressure

I've tried. There is a lot of grime on there.

This watch is so totally cool. I found out a drop more on the guy. He was on a Destroyer in 1941 as a commander then. He is L.J. Stecher, sr. He has a son, L.J. Stecher, jr, who also served. He served around the time I was born, almost 50 years ago.

 

[bc8888]

Probably hasn't been opened in forever. I had a 1943/1944 Rolex Oyster Athlete, back was a little tough to unscrew, I can't remember if I used a friction ball or my hands

 

[mugsisme]

Rolex is real. They recommended that I not open it. If I send it to NY to get cleaned, it's going to cost $600. They may not be able to fix it, because they may not have parts.
so one of the salesmen went nuts over it. Said it was worth 2-3K. I told him I promised Dee, from the jewelery downtown that he gets first dibs on it. The guy gave me his cell phone number, and asked me to send pictures. An hour later, I get a call from him, asking where the pictures are. He has a friend who may be interested in it.
Meanwhile, Dee told me not to do anything. He comes back this weekend. He said he thinks it is worth up to 5K, and he is willing to help me sell it to get as much as I can!!!! How exciting is that?

 

[Iron Patch]

I'm glad this was updated because it was starting to drive me a little crazy reading this thread! Did you contact Rolex to see what they can do? The LAST thing you want to do is to send it to a non Rolex watch maker and have him substitute parts to make it run, because all your money will be lost because the new buyer will be taking the cost a full overhaul into account.

Do yourself a favor and post it here. You'll get most if not all of the answers you want. They'll love the history and I'm guessing wil be eager to help.

TimeZone : Rolex - Vintage

 

[blindbug]

A Rolex with, even genuine, replacement parts is worth considerably less than original. You need to seriously consider calling on Rolex, or at least a Rolex-certified watch smith to look at the watch before deciding on whether to do any repairs.

In any event, I'm jealous!

 

[mugsisme]

It can't be serviced through Rolex; it's too old. There is a guy who specializes in vintage watches. I'm going to take it to him to look at. Remember, I can't do anything until my friend gets back from NY to look at it.

Rolex recommended I take it to an independent appraiser. I know where I can get a good recommendation; I think it's $75. I may go that route.