My DHs GMT Master

[Fiwi]

He bought this watch from a Doctor in New York 14 years ago. He was in NY for business and bought it after meeting the seller and feeling confident about the watches authenticity. He had it appraised when he got home and all seemed good. He didn't know much about Rolex's at the time, so he's all of a sudden become nervous about it. He's been thinking of a new watch for himself, but only if he sells this one. It's an older watch (how do you date them?) so it does not have the sapphire crystal which really bugs him. His main concern is that it does not say "Swiss Made" on the face. He wants to be sure everything checks out before he trys to sell it. I thought this was as good a place as any to put it to scrutiny! Please excuse its' shape. He should be shot It's due for a good polishing.

[Spencer]

Originally Posted by Fiwi

His main concern is that it does not say "Swiss Made" on the face.

My main concern is that it looks like it was run over by a truck

[colemanitis]

Looks good to me. I'm not real familiar with that dial, but the rest of the watch looks legit. Has he considered sending it to Rolex for service? It would return looking better than new... maybe then he'd like to keep it.

[joelwong]

Originally Posted by Fiwi

This is a replacement bracelet dated 91 march

[Fiwi]

Originally Posted by Spencer

My main concern is that it looks like it was run over by a truck

*grimmaces* I know. It's just terrible. The pics actually make it look worse than it really does. Not having a sapphire crystal is a huge drawback. He had hoped he could get a sapphire crystal for it, but apparently the casing won't hold one. He wears it all the time and the crystal on it scratches so easily. That's why he wants to get rid of it. Hopefully once it's polished up it will present much better.

[Fiwi]

Originally Posted by joelwong

This is a replacement bracelet dated 91 march

Yes, my DH replaced the bracelet shortly after he bought it.

[colemanitis]

Originally Posted by Fiwi

*grimmaces* I know. It's just terrible. The pics actually make it look worse than it really does. Not having a sapphine crystal is a huge drawback. He wears it all the time and the crystal on it scratches so easily. That's why he wants to get rid of it. Hopefully once it's polished up it will present much better.

I know the feeling. I recently traded my vintage GMT for a modern Sea-Dweller. The acrylic really ticked me off too. Just cleaning it with my shirt would leave fine scratches.

[SeaGoer]

The markings on the clasp date it in 1991 which matches the time your husband bought it. Dont worry about not saying "Swiss Made" as they did not that time. Does it show Swiss T<25?
As far as I could tell from the pics it looks ok to me though seriously abused. The real experts will chime in soon!
As far as selling it, dont expect to net a whole lot as it will take quite a bit to recondition it. Your husband should maybe consider sending it for service/polishing, keep it and buy the next one when time is right.
That's my two bits of advise and as the saying goes "You got what you paid for"

[mrbieler]

All the Root Beer dials I have seen have had "T Swiss T" on older ones and "Swiss" on newer ones. This one doesn't appear to have anything at 6 o'clock. See something new every day.

[tonelar]

you know, most watch services would polish it up for $10 - $20 depending on the amount of work...

It actually says nothing at the 6 o'clock position?

Not Swiss
or Swiss<25
or T Swiss T?

What's a DH?

[colemanitis]

I imagine it would cost quite a bit for Rolex to service this one. They'd probably want to replace many of the abused parts. As Tonelar mentioned, it might be worth visiting a local watch shop for a quick polish.

[astcell]

DH = Dear Husband

[Fiwi]

Originally Posted by SeaGoer

Does it show Swiss T<25?
As far as I could tell from the pics it looks ok to me though seriously abused. The real experts will chime in soon!
As far as selling it, dont expect to net a whole lot as it will take quite a bit to recondition it. Your husband should maybe consider sending it for service/polishing, keep it and buy the next one when time is right.
That's my two bits of advise and as the saying goes "You got what you paid for"

It does not say Swiss T <25 as far as I can tell. He's going to send it in for reconditioning. Really though, I wouldn't say it was "seriously abused". The watch has seen a lot of wear. My husband is not the kind of guy to buy a watch and keep it in a box. The acrylic is impossible to say the least.

[mrbieler]

I wouldn't say abused either. Looks like a 10 year old watch that gets worn every day and is need of some service/tlc.

[SeaGoer]

No problem! Scratch the "seriously abused" part!

[Fiwi]

Originally Posted by tonelar

It actually says nothing at the 6 o'clock position?

Not Swiss
or Swiss<25
or T Swiss T?

What's a DH?

That's right, nothing. DH= dear husband

[Fiwi]

Originally Posted by SeaGoer

No problem! Scratch the "seriously abused" part!

Thanks!

[mike]

Hi Melissa,

What you have is either a TT 1675 or 16753. The difference is the 16753 will have a 3xxx movement and quick-set date feature. If you remove the bracelet look between the lugs. You will see a model number on one side and the serial number on the other.
With the serial number we can fairly closely date the watch.
The model number with describe the reference. -- 1675--15xx slow beat movement,non-quick-set. 16753--succesor to the 1675 and will have a 3xxx fast beat movement. There is a chance it might say 16753F--made for the French market.
The tt Brown GMT has had a bit of an upsurge recently. Also known as the "Root beer" GMT or the "Clint Eastwood" model because Eastwood wore the watch in the movie "Firefox" the TT GMT orginally came with a TT Jubliee or oyster bracelet.
The dial is commonly refered to as a "nipple" dial because of the thick, pointed surrounds around the markers.

As to the dial.....can you give any more history as to the history of the watch? Certainly the lack of legend at the 6 o'clock is odd, but I've never seen a font on a dial like that.
The "GMT-MASTER" looks big and off center compared to knowed examples I've seen, and "Rolex" above "Oyster perpetual" seems a bit small.
My concern is to the orginallity of the dial.
Know examples both in Brown and Black,







One really beat up!



Sending the watch to Rolex for service may be something to weigh before you do.
Rolex will service the watch--currently about $500 and if the dialis questionable replace along with the hands--about $265 for a standard dial-not sure about a nipple.
The big hit will be the TT bracelet--well into four figures.
The upside to all that is however, you will have essentially a new watch!
As far as the acryllic crystal goes--yeah they do scratch a bit, but can be polished easily.
Additionally a complete service will polish the watch to as new condition.
A possible option, rather than sending the piece to an RSC (which can be rather draconian) is to contact one of the two independent authorized Rolex service centers in the U.S.
1.--Rolex Service Center--San Francisco--(415) 982-9830
2.--Rolex Service Center--Chicago--(312) 782-7768

Hope this helps a little.

[Fiwi]

Originally Posted by mike

Hope this helps a little.

Actually, you helped a lot! Thank you! I see what you are saying about the size of the font -- especially when I compare my DHs to your 1st two pictures. However, I thought that the fonts in your third photo looked more like mine. Here they are side by side:

We removed the bracelet, and there are no serial / model numbers. Which I can't understand. Could they have worn off? I'm curious b/c when we had it appraised the jeweler wrote the model and serial # on the appraisal:
Model # R1675, Serial #555173 I know he checked the watch internally as well. Thanks for you help!

[mike]

Yeah, it's possible. Non sel end links can have a habit of wearing against the case (especially if worn) rubbing the numbers.

A 6 digit number sounds a bit low, that would date the watch to circa 1960-before the model came out. A 7 digit 5 mil number would put you at circa 1977 well within the model range. Is it possible he simply missed a number?

[mikey]

WOW, you removed the band and no serials?? Sometimes an old watch you may need a magnifier to see. Personally, I have never seen a Rolex with nothing at the 6 oclock position because the dial could not be real OR the whole watch is not real Rolex. BUT, the true test of authenticity is to send it to a RSC to authenticate and refurbish. To tell you the truth, I would just send to authenticate and wear it as it is. It is a great looking watch!

[Fiwi]

Hmmm. I guess we'll have to get it looked at again. It doesn't sound too good. So much for an appraisal from a trained professional.

[mike]

More background info,
http://www.network54.com/Forum/20759...ad/1125145001/

[Fiwi]

My husband was just recalling that the Jeweler said he had difficulty reading the serial number, so perhaps he did make a mistake.

[dman]

Originally Posted by astcell

DH = Dear Husband

For my wife it means - Dumb Husband.

[C.J.]

Originally Posted by dman

For my wife it means - Dumb Husband.

I'm not even going to tel you hat it stands for when used by my wife referring to me

[JJ Irani]

Hi Melissa,

Looks like Mike and some of the others have given you very good advice. Your best bet would be to send it to Rolex for a full appraisal and subsequent service.

Good luck - JJ

[tonelar]

Your jeweller friend might have been giving you numbers from the inside of the watch or case back.

Use a magnifier and strong lighting, the serial numbers between the lugs are usually light and you might need to shine the light on the area from an angle to see them.

[Fiwi]

Originally Posted by tonelar

Your jeweller friend might have been giving you numbers from the inside of the watch or case back.

Use a magnifier and strong lighting, the serial numbers between the lugs are usually light and you might need to shine the light on the area from an angle to see them.

Yes, they did come from the inside of the watch. I can see some marks between the lugs, by they are very worn and don't look like anything at all.

[steve-o]

No serial numbers under the lugs, a replacement band and not saying "SWISS" somewhere on the dial all make the watch sound suspicious to me.

I recommend you go to an AD and get it verified.