Omega Cal.265 9ct 1952

Omega Watches

Since the company was founded in 1848, Omega has pioneered a huge range of innovations. Britain’s Royal Flying Corps chose Omega watches in 1917 as official timekeepers for its pilots and again in 1940, RAF Pilots watches were supplied by Omega. The 1940s also saw the first tourbillon wristwatch and the first of the famous Seamaster watches, whilst the ’50s and ’60s introduced the legendary Constellation, Speedmaster, Seamaster 300 and Railmaster. Over these years, everyone from John F. Kennedy to Elvis wore Omega watches on official duties. What’s more, in 1962, astronaut Wally Schirra took his Omega Speedmaster to space on NASA’s Mercury Sigma 7 mission, and in 1969 two Speedmasters landed on the moon, worn by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin.

Description

Here we a have a wonderful example of an early 1950s, 9ct yellow gold gentleman’s hand-wound Omega, with a wonderful 34mm watch case and a unique, original ivory-cream dial. This watch is completely original, unrestored and untouched yet remains in wonderful condition. This watch also contains the outstanding Calibre 265 movement which is also in sparkling condition.

The Dial

The watch carries a simply beautiful, fully original, unrestored and untouched ivory-cream dial with applied gilt ‘arrowhead’ hour indices mixed with applied gilt ‘2 – 4 – 6 – 8 – 10 – 12’ standard Arabic numerals, all of which are swept by the original ‘dauphine’ hands. The subsidiary seconds dial, as can be seen from the accompanying photographs, is particularly large on this watch. The dial as a whole contrasts beautifully against the yellow gold watch case and carries a unique even patina, along with some delicate and beautiful spotting.

The dial is very simply signed ‘Omega’ with the applied Omega brand and is also narked ‘Swiss Made’ at the very bottom, below 6.

This dial has a great deal of appeal due to its classic signs of ageing and due to its relatively good condition and for reasons of retaining the character and the originality of the watch, we have left it completely alone. If however, you would prefer the dial sympathetically restoring, we will be happy to arrange this for you without any extra charge.

Please note, studio lights, professional-grade digital cameras, and macro lenses can be very unkind to an unrestored vintage watch dial. Also the dial here measures less than 1.25 inches across, so the image you’re seeing may be between 5 – 25 times larger than the watch itself. Therefore please keep in mind you are seeing many tiny flaws which cannot be seen, or will be very hard to see with the naked eye, even under close examination. Suffice to say, on the wrist, in natural light, this dial looks much better and carries a great deal more charm than the photographs portray.

The Movement

The Omega Calibre 265, 15 jewel copper-plated beryllium bronze hand-wound movement is part of the famous Omega 30mm series. This series was continually developed over 25 years and during this period, became a cornerstone of Omega’s technical and commercial development. It is very highly regarded, not only for its accuracy and reliability, but also for its dependability in a wide range of adverse conditions. Indeed it is this series of hand-wound movements, along with Omega’s early automatic movements of around the same time, which were largely responsible for Omega’s success in the second half of the last century and through to the current day.

As can be seen, the movement is in pristine, sparkling condition and has obviously been very well cared for. It is of course, signed ‘Omega’ and ‘Swiss’ and marked with the calibre number 265 and 15 Jewels, along with the movement serial number 12898576 which dates the watch to 1952.

This watch has been fully overhauled and serviced by our vintage Omega specialist watchmaker and is calibrated to run arrow straight within +12 seconds/day! This is outstanding for any watch of this age and has been confirmed on our electronic timegrapher. The movement winds, runs and sets smoothly, exactly as it should and has a power reserve of 45 hours when fully wound . We therefore have no hesitation in offering a 12 month warranty on the movement of this watch*.

*Please note – our 12 months’ warranty is only applicable if the list price is paid.

The Case

The high quality Omega Swiss made 9ct yellow gold case measures 34mm in diameter, excluding the correct unsigned winding crown. This makes this a slightly larger-sized wristwatch for the period, when typical sized watches measured only 32 or 33mm diameter. The case is of a sturdy three-piece construction with a wide bezel and strong lugs.

After a close inspection, the watch case has simply required a careful clean and a gentle polish to bring it back to its current, almost as new condition. The case, the case-back and bezel are all in superb condition with almost no marks visible to the naked eye, indicating this watch has been very well cared for. The case-back is of full thickness and has never been inscribed. It is also tight-fitting and presses back with a pleasing and reassuring ‘pop’.

As this is a Dennison made case, inside the case-back all is as expected and correctly signed ‘Dennison Made in England’ and ‘A.L.D’ with the  case reference number 13322 and the case serial number number 496078. The case also carries Birmingham 9ct hallmarks which date this watch correctly to 1952. Dennison and Sons in Birmingham and Shackman and Sons in London, both produced top quality cases for almost all of the watch brands you see on this website.

Please note – as ever, our standard advice applies: Vintage watches should be kept clean and dry at all times.

The Strap & Buckle

This watch comes complete with a high quality black leather strap and yellow gold-plated Omega buckle. However, if a different colour or style of strap is preferred, please let us know and we will do our best to oblige free of charge. We carry tan, conker, dark brown and black in stock in plain padded leather, crocodile skin or lizard skin, but can also obtain most types and colours at short notice.

Box and Papers

Although there are no original papers with this watch, the reference numbers, markings, signatures and hallmarks are all correct, dating this watch to 1952.

Detailed particulars will be included with our purchase receipt for your interest and security. A separate insurance valuation for the replacement value of this watch will also be provided at the time of sale along with our unique ‘Lifetime Authenticity Guarantee’ which states: “If this watch proves to be anything less than 100% genuine, authentic and original, a full refund will be given at any time”.

The original Omega presentation box shown in the photographs is included.

Payment and Delivery

If you would like to pay by bank transfer, we will be pleased to assist you with this. Similarly, if you wish to pay by International SWIFT or Bank Wire Transfer we will provide you with our BIC / Swift number and our IBAN number.

Please check the import duties and any taxes your government may apply, these are different for each country and, unfortunately, out of our control.

We understand there may be some ‘loopholes’ that may help you avoid these charges; however, attempting to use these could impact our ongoing ability to serve our growing international customer base.

For those who happen to visit London on occasion, we are, of course, more than happy to store your watch until we can meet you in our offices in Kensington, London, and hand your watch directly to you there.

As with all our watches, this watch will be sold under our 14 days no-quibble sale or return policy.

In Conclusion

This is a very impressive vintage Omega hand-wound wristwatch, which is ready to wear and very practical for everyday use. If treated with care, this watch will make an excellent investment or heirloom piece. Omega has always benefitted from a first class reputation for the superb quality of their watch movements and just as in the case of Longines, which have been undervalued in the past, this is beginning to show in the way Omega watches are increasing in value.

A word on our prices – We always try our hardest to acquire the very highest quality watches we can find, before restoring them to the highest possible standards. We then offer these at the fairest prices we can, taking into account our pre and post-sales care and service. This approach means we will never be the cheapest, but nor will we be the most expensive. Indeed there are some well-known stores in West London which are highly successful charging between two to three times the price you see here. We, therefore, consider our prices to be fair, given the quality of watches we have to offer.

Please note, we also welcome part exchanges. If you have a watch or a small collection for sale, please contact us as we will be happy to discuss this.

We will also be happy to Service your watch, Repair your watch or Restore your watch, all at ‘sensible’ prices. Please see here.

If you have any questions please call us on 020 7727 7095 or if calling from overseas on +44 207 727 7095.

Please take a look at our other fine vintage gold watches.

Thank you