How you know that a watch is original

My definition of an “original” watch is one that hasn’t had any modifications from when it was first sold. No replaced parts (even if the same part from the same manufacture), no polishing, no relumed dial or hands. Just an honest watch with dings and dents, as opposed to a piece that was restored and polished to look like new. That’s my dream, although these watches are exceedingly difficult to find.

Given the challenge of finding a watch that hasn’t been modified with since it left the manufacturer, many are flexible in collecting and are readily purchase watches that may not have all original parts, but include watches with replaced parts from another watch of the same model/period, such as bezel or hands. Perhaps polishing and restoration are just fine with you (and, Restored Vintage Rolexes Are More Common Than You Think), or perhaps not (and if you care, time to learn how to tell if a case has been polished). Some dealers, HQ Milton for example, appear to polish the vast majority of vintage pieces so cases look as new. Which may be just what you would like.

By expanding the condition of pieces you collect, such as to those that are polished or have service parts, perhaps have been relumed, you’ll both find it simpler to find a watch, and those you find will be less costly as well. The downside is, of course, that the set of customers that would later be interested in purchasing your watch will be (at least slightly) smaller than it would be otherwise – with the impact being greatest on specific types of vintage where originality is prized. But for many watches, restoration will be required at some point in their lifetimes. A good example of this is lume (radium, tritium or otherwise), which over time will degrade and eventually flake off, which is often seen in older pieces. Those delicate luminous hands that have no metal backing…that lume won’t survive forever.

An interesting read on modified watches is a Hodinkee article on Christie’s auction of the Patek ref.530 with black dial. This watch was born with a black dial, and sold at auction in 2004 with a silver dial for just over $30K. The watch then went back on the block with different black dial, selling for $416K in the May 2017 Geneva auction. The good news? The disclosure of the background by Christie’s, something you might not get from others.

Unfortunately, the seller may know that they are offering something other than what they advertise, and/or will conveniently leave out pertinent information (a restored dial, which can look good), or perhaps simply don’t know otherwise. This doesn’t just apply to sellers on forums or eBay (with even perfect feedback scores), but also holds true for the dealers and auction houses with seemingly sparkling reputations. There absolutely are well-known dealers and large auction houses that sell trash, and don’t make any efforts to tell you what you are getting.

Don’t take this to mean that it is only around the sale of high-value pieces that people may bend the truth. Even on the smallest of deals, it isn’t unusual to hear sellers advertise a watch with a “dial in original condition without any flaws.” We have to translate their statement that “the matching tritium hands and lume plots have achieved achieved a wonderful golden coloration and show no lume degradation,” means that the hands are service replacements, then relumed to color-match the dial.

Read the FAQ on researching a vintage watch for sale for pointers on areas to focus for a particular watch.

One of the most important ways to reduce your risk is through building contacts throughout the watch community. The more people you know, the better. There are too many pieces sold of dubious origin, and all too often you need to be well-connected to sort the good from the bad. I no longer expect sellers (or most anyone) to voluntarily share any information, and I assume there is a reasonable chance that the seller will stretch or hide the truth, or simply lie. And well-known dealers do mess with watches (swap dials, switch bezels, have parts made for them, have serial numbers added to watches that weren’t born with them, etc.) and don’t mention anything about it. It’s the sad (semi-secret) of the industry. As a result, the most important thing you can do is educate yourself.

I recommend visiting watch forums, where there are experts (that are hobbyist collectors) that are often the most knowledgeable in the field, and trying your best to find professionals who act as advisors in navigating this (insane) hobby. Unfortunately, it is incredibly difficult in this business to find experts (really dealers) that haven’t messed around with watches…swapping dials, recutting cases, and so on. It’s completely disappointing, and unfortunately the norm. You’ll hear lots of dealer names commonly referenced as one to trust, and I don’t trust any of them.

Check out our FAQ on authenicating a vintage watch to learn more about which manufacturers provide certificates and extracts.