Derek:

Again, we are honored to have a message from our leader / favorite techie / esteemed Omega collector!!

Maybe I am being too harsh on these watches with refinished dials. My estimate is based on what I have seen on ebay (and some dealer sites) over the past couple of years.

Most of the refinished dials that we see are on chronos from the 1940's and 50's. By the time they are 50 or 60 years old, there is often some patina or mild freckling. Based on what I see, the heirarchy of what people will pay might be as follows:

• chrono with original dial in mint or near mint condition = 1.5X
• chrono with an original dial (with soft, even patina or a few light freckles) = 1.0X
• good quality refinished dial = 0.6X
• poor quality refinished dial or badly stained original dial = 0.3 to 0.5X

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: Wow. That's a lot. Surely for a poorly
: refinished dial or one clearly altered from
: the original look. But really for one done
: accurately and well?

: I find this especially interesting given that
: some upscale watch dealers back in the
: 1950s/60s routinely did dial repaints as
: part of their superlative repair and
: maintenance services to freshen the watch's
: look.

: Authenticity is important. But then having
: something in a good state of cosmetic
: appearance is important too. Don't want
: someone to think you are wearing junk on
: your wrist.

: I think of dial repainting like repainting a
: vintage car. You wouldn't expect the
: original paint to be in great shape after
: 20, 30 or more years. So a properly done
: repaint restores the value lost from the
: typical, expected deterioration.

: While a repaint may be worth less than a mint
: original, I still believe one done well
: would be worth more than a untouched but
: deteriorated original.