Omega Seamaster Automatic Cal.552 18ct 1961

Omega Watches

Since the company was founded in 1848, Omega has pioneered a huge range of technical innovations in watchmaking. 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 1950s and ’60s introduced the legendary Constellation, Speedmaster, Seamaster 300 and Railmaster. Over the 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 into space on NASA’s Mercury Sigma 7 mission and in 1969, two Omega Speedmasters landed on the moon, worn by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin.

Description

A fully restored 18ct yellow gold Omega Seamaster with a superb cross-hair, silver-white dial from 1961. Omega watches of this period are very highly regarded for their quality, particularly their movements which are outstanding. Here, the Calibre 552, 24 Jewel automatic movement is superb and following an overhaul and service, is in tip-top condition and running perfectly.

Omega Seamaster watches have always been highly regarded for their accuracy and dependability and these are considered one of the most practical everyday vintage watches one can buy.

The Dial

The dial is simply outstanding. The style here is classic Omega, very clean and simple and comprising of applied gilt ‘baton’ hour indices matched with original gilt ‘index’ hands on a wonderful silver-white, cross-hair dial. All of these elements really catch the light beautifully and look far better in real life than in the photographs.

The dial carries an applied gilt Omega brand and is signed ‘Omega’ and ‘Automatic’ at the top below 12, with ‘Seamaster’ in the lower part of the dial and ‘Swiss Made’ at the very bottom below the 6.

This is the original dial which has been restored to the highest standards by the best dial restorers in the UK.

The Movement

The Omega Cal.552, 24 Jewel automatic movement fitted to this watch was one of Omega’s most successful movements, remaining in production for almost 20 years.

The Omega Cal.552 movement is very highly regarded for its accuracy and reliability, making this watch perfectly suited for everyday use as well as evening wear. The movement is in tip-top condition having been overhauled and serviced by our vintage Omega specialist watchmaker which means it has been completely disassembled to all its component parts, carefully inspected under high magnification, replacement where necessary with only genuine Omega parts before careful reassembly and adjustment and calibration. The watch winds, sets and runs perfectly accurately and reliably within +7 seconds per day, averaged over 5 positions which is excellent for any watch of this age and has been confirmed on our electronic watch timegrapher. The movement also has an excellent 52-hour power reserve when fully wound. We are therefore more than confident in offering 12 months’ warranty with this watch movement*.

The movement is correctly signed ‘Omega Watch Co. Swiss’ ‘Twenty-Four 24 Jewels’, and carries the Calibre 552, along with the serial number 18338758 which dates this watch to 1961.

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

The Case

The watch case is a very high quality, Omega Seamaster Swiss made 18ct yellow gold, advanced two-piece watch case, designed for improved water and dust resistance. This is a large case size for the period at 35mm, excluding the original correct Omega signed crown. It is in incredible condition with no marks, scratches or dings visible to the naked eye and importantly, the case is of full-thickness and has never been inscribed.

Inside the case-back, all the markings are correct and as expected, signed with the Omega Watch Co. brand, ‘Fab Suisse’ and ‘Swiss Made’, along with Swiss Geneva 18ct hallmarks and the serial number 155307.

The two-piece watch case was designed to be waterproof when new and all the rubber seals have been replaced. However, the watch case has not been pressure tested and its water resistance is not guaranteed. As ever, our standard advice applies: Vintage watches should be kept clean and dry at all times.

The Strap & Buckle

A high quality Hirsch black leather strap has been fitted, with a gold-plated Omega buckle. We feel this finishes this watch perfectly, however if a different colour or style of strap is preferred, please do 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. We can also obtain most types and colours from our partners at ‘Watch Obsession’ within 48hrs. Please take a look at their wonderful range of straps if you wish here.

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 1961.

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 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 Omega presentation box shown in the photographs is included in the sale.

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.