So I bought a disassembled 1955 GMT Master...Now what?

[cajuntiger]

Originally Posted by Ranchmanben

Well folks, the deal is done. I couldn't be more pleased with the outcome. I think both parties left happy. I think everyone will be happy to hear that the new owner is going to fix it up and wear it. When I get home I'm going to type up the story here with pictures of where I got this.

Thank you again for all the help and comments. This is a hell of a forum and the members make the forum. I think I'm going to stick around this place, I even already had Rolex before this other find. I just didn't know this was here until I was researching my find.

Ben

Congrats Ben!!!
Cant wait to hear the story.

[Sidmind]

Subscribed to this story.
Congrats.

[TheBluePrince]

Ben - Please do tell us what the lowest offer was from members PM-ing you to try to buy it. No need to mention names, just the lowest price offered so we can all have a giggle :)

[MonBK]

Congats Ben for selling a watch without being a pledge member!

And live to tell about it.

[cop414]

Congrats Ben, I can't wait to read the whole story!

[Sidmind]

Just be carefull about putting this story on Facebook, you have to think about it going viral like the 'Goodwill' watch did last month. Perhaps that is not a big deal but whatever you sold it for you dont want the tax man to come knocking. (if that is even possible)
That and you dont want to screw it up for the rest of us bargain hunters looking for a garage sale find for cheap, American Pickers TV show bumped the prices up on a lot of items that could be found cheap a few years ago.

Just soemthing to think about, even if I am wrong.

[southtexas]

Updates??


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[willang]

I bet a lot of us are like me. Checking this thread a few times daily to see if there's any update from Ben!

[Paul]

Originally Posted by TheBluePrince

Ben - Please do tell us what the lowest offer was from members PM-ing you to try to buy it. No need to mention names, just the lowest price offered so we can all have a giggle :)

Everyone likes a bargain but I dread to think what dismal offers may have come Ben's way.
Hopefully the final deal it was indeed a fair for seller and buyer .
Despite the glaring flaws, that 6542 was absolutely worth saving

[andromeda160]

Originally Posted by Paul

Everyone likes a bargain but I dread to think what dismal offers may have come Ben's way.
Hopefully the final deal it was indeed a fair for seller and buyer .
Despite the glaring flaws, that 6542 was absolutely worth saving

Couldn't be lower than what he paid lol

[jban5]

Originally Posted by Sidmind

Just be carefull about putting this story on Facebook, you have to think about it going viral like the 'Goodwill' watch did last month. Perhaps that is not a big deal but whatever you sold it for you dont want the tax man to come knocking. (if that is even possible)
That and you dont want to screw it up for the rest of us bargain hunters looking for a garage sale find for cheap, American Pickers TV show bumped the prices up on a lot of items that could be found cheap a few years ago.

Just soemthing to think about, even if I am wrong.

I might be wrong too but I agree 100%

[Ranchmanben]

And now...The Story.

Last week my sister sent me a link to a junk/yard/estate sale in the town near me. The ad listed antique farm equipment, tools, books, clocks and old barn wood. I don't usually go to these types of sales but I like tools and building furniture from old wood. My wife, Dad and I pull up to this place and are quickly overwhelmed by the shear volume of stuff we are going to have to sort through. There's crap everywhere. Tables piled with books, old portable tvs, pallets mounded with old electric motors, numerous toolboxes packed with random tools, rusty useless farm equipment and of course barn wood that you couldn't pay me to take home. There was way to much stuff to sort through. Apparently the fella who owned it use to go to auctions a buy whatever didn't sell.


After sorting through literally tons of rust metal, I pick out a few odds and ends and finally venture into the house. Once again, there is stuff everywhere, old Cowboy hats, safety razors, old toys and more clocks that you can shake a stick it. There had to have been 50 mantel clocks. As I sort through all of it the only thing I find is a broken folding ruler. As I'm paying, I see a decent collection of broken pocket watches and what it think might be old watchmakers tools. I comment on these and the woman tells me that her father had done watch repair for years in a near by city before moving and continuing out of his house. I didn't think anything of it and tell her I'll be back in a bit with one of my pick-ups to load up some of the larger things I bought.


A couple of notes on the things I bought. No one, including myself, had any idea what the big contraption in first picture was and they were more than happy to get rid of it for $5. I plan on using pieces of to make a table. The double ended cresent wrench in the second picture was what I was most excited about. I had never seen one before and odd, useable tools like that make me happy.

We return after an hour or so with my truck. After loading everything up, I decide to make one last loop through the house. The lady recognizes me from earlier and we continue discussing the watchmaker tools and parts as I looking around. She tells me that she had a few watchmakers come out and look at what she's got. Every one of them told her that they had their own tools and they didn't want to sort through all the crap. They said they wouldn't buy the lot of the parts because out of all the parts, they might only use a single out of it a year and it wasn't worth their time. Meanwhile, I look in a cardboard box full of smaller plastic boxes, each containing a disassembled watch or pocket watch. Right on top there is something that catches my eye and I think, Surely that can't be a Rolex. I look a little closer and I think, hot damn, that is a rolex and it looks like the bulk of the parts are there. Maybe I can get it fixed for $500 or $1000 and have another Rolex. If not, it looks pretty old, the parts should worth a couple hundred dollars. I ask the gal how much and she tells me. At this point, I'm thinking that if it can't be fixed and if the parts aren't worth anything, at least I'm not out too much money. Later that evening, while trying to research my find, I can across this great forum and you know the rest.

This has been an a once in a lifetime find. In the beginning I recieved what I thought were incredible offers. Thanks to some really excellent advice, I didn't take the first offer and it payed off. Once again I can help but be amazed at how helpful people have been. They have done it for no other reason than being nice. Thank you.

It's absolutely amazing that this whole thing started with a $3 broken watch

[morafa4]

Wait a minute. 3 dollars? ... Un. Believable. I mean that in the nice way, sorta...

Originally Posted by Ranchmanben

And now...The Story.

Last week my sister sent me a link to a junk/yard/estate sale in the town near me. The ad listed antique farm equipment, tools, books, clocks and old barn wood. I don't usually go to these types of sales but I like tools and building furniture from old wood. My wife, Dad and I pull up to this place and are quickly overwhelmed by the shear volume of stuff we are going to have to sort through. There's crap everywhere. Tables piled with books, old portable tvs, pallets mounded with old electric motors, numerous toolboxes packed with random tools, rusty useless farm equipment and of course barn wood that you couldn't pay me to take home. There was way to much stuff to sort through. Apparently the fella who owned it use to go to auctions a buy whatever didn't sell.


After sorting through literally tons of rust metal, I pick out a few odds and ends and finally venture into the house. Once again, there is stuff everywhere, old Cowboy hats, safety razors, old toys and more clocks that you can shake a stick it. There had to have been 50 mantel clocks. As I sort through all of it the only thing I find is a broken folding ruler. As I'm paying, I see a decent collection of broken pocket watches and what it think might be old watchmakers tools. I comment on these and the woman tells me that her father had done watch repair for years in a near by city before moving and continuing out of his house. I didn't think anything of it and tell her I'll be back in a bit with one of my pick-ups to load up some of the larger things I bought.


A couple of notes on the things I bought. No one, including myself, had any idea what the big contraption in first picture was and they were more than happy to get rid of it for $5. I plan on using pieces of to make a table. The double ended cresent wrench in the second picture was what I was most excited about. I had never seen one before and odd, useable tools like that make me happy.

We return after an hour or so with my truck. After loading everything up, I decide to make one last loop through the house. The lady recognizes me from earlier and we continue discussing the watchmaker tools and parts as I looking around. She tells me that she had a few watchmakers come out and look at what she's got. Every one of them told her that they had their own tools and they didn't want to sort through all the crap. They said they wouldn't buy the lot of the parts because out of all the parts, they might only use a single out of it a year and it wasn't worth their time. Meanwhile, I look in a cardboard box full of smaller plastic boxes, each containing a disassembled watch or pocket watch. Right on top there is something that catches my eye and I think, Surely that can't be a Rolex. I look a little closer and I think, hot damn, that is a rolex and it looks like the bulk of the parts are there. Maybe I can get it fixed for $500 or $1000 and have another Rolex. If not, it looks pretty old, the parts should worth a couple hundred dollars. I ask the gal how much and she tells me. At this point, I'm thinking that if it can't be fixed and if the parts aren't worth anything, at least I'm not out too much money. Later that evening, while trying to research my find, I can across this great forum and you know the rest.

This has been an a once in a lifetime find. In the beginning I recieved what I thought were incredible offers. Thanks to some really excellent advice,mi didn't take the first offer and it payed off. Once again I can help but be amazed at how helpful people have been. They have done it for no other reason than being nice. Thank you.

It's absolutely amazing that this whole thing started with a $3 broken watch

[Sidmind]

Great story, the question is did you buy all the watch tools? :) I always do and sometimes get a few treasures in the boxes..

[Ranchmanben]

I didn't buy the tools. I think I could go back and get them but those tools are so far outside of my wheelhouse that I had no idea what to pay for them or what to offer.

Ben

[willang]

Originally Posted by Ranchmanben

And now...The Story.

Last week my sister sent me a link to a junk/yard/estate sale in the town near me. The ad listed antique farm equipment, tools, books, clocks and old barn wood. I don't usually go to these types of sales but I like tools and building furniture from old wood. My wife, Dad and I pull up to this place and are quickly overwhelmed by the shear volume of stuff we are going to have to sort through. There's crap everywhere. Tables piled with books, old portable tvs, pallets mounded with old electric motors, numerous toolboxes packed with random tools, rusty useless farm equipment and of course barn wood that you couldn't pay me to take home. There was way to much stuff to sort through. Apparently the fella who owned it use to go to auctions a buy whatever didn't sell.


After sorting through literally tons of rust metal, I pick out a few odds and ends and finally venture into the house. Once again, there is stuff everywhere, old Cowboy hats, safety razors, old toys and more clocks that you can shake a stick it. There had to have been 50 mantel clocks. As I sort through all of it the only thing I find is a broken folding ruler. As I'm paying, I see a decent collection of broken pocket watches and what it think might be old watchmakers tools. I comment on these and the woman tells me that her father had done watch repair for years in a near by city before moving and continuing out of his house. I didn't think anything of it and tell her I'll be back in a bit with one of my pick-ups to load up some of the larger things I bought.


A couple of notes on the things I bought. No one, including myself, had any idea what the big contraption in first picture was and they were more than happy to get rid of it for $5. I plan on using pieces of to make a table. The double ended cresent wrench in the second picture was what I was most excited about. I had never seen one before and odd, useable tools like that make me happy.

We return after an hour or so with my truck. After loading everything up, I decide to make one last loop through the house. The lady recognizes me from earlier and we continue discussing the watchmaker tools and parts as I looking around. She tells me that she had a few watchmakers come out and look at what she's got. Every one of them told her that they had their own tools and they didn't want to sort through all the crap. They said they wouldn't buy the lot of the parts because out of all the parts, they might only use a single out of it a year and it wasn't worth their time. Meanwhile, I look in a cardboard box full of smaller plastic boxes, each containing a disassembled watch or pocket watch. Right on top there is something that catches my eye and I think, Surely that can't be a Rolex. I look a little closer and I think, hot damn, that is a rolex and it looks like the bulk of the parts are there. Maybe I can get it fixed for $500 or $1000 and have another Rolex. If not, it looks pretty old, the parts should worth a couple hundred dollars. I ask the gal how much and she tells me. At this point, I'm thinking that if it can't be fixed and if the parts aren't worth anything, at least I'm not out too much money. Later that evening, while trying to research my find, I can across this great forum and you know the rest.

This has been an a once in a lifetime find. In the beginning I recieved what I thought were incredible offers. Thanks to some really excellent advice, I didn't take the first offer and it payed off. Once again I can help but be amazed at how helpful people have been. They have done it for no other reason than being nice. Thank you.

It's absolutely amazing that this whole thing started with a $3 broken watch

Ben,

Great ending to this story. Glad you took mine and other people's advice!

Cheers,
Will

[greekbum]

great story the stuffs still out there to be found and with the internet and little research you scored the big one.

[omitohud]

Originally Posted by Ranchmanben

I didn't buy the tools. I think I could go back and get them but those tools are so far outside of my wheelhouse that I had no idea what to pay for them or what to offer.

Ben

Eh, pay em whatever they want? 😉


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Ranchmanben]

There was so much stuff there that people were overwhelmed and didn't know what they had. Just as a small thank you to them I'm going to anonymously send them some money. One good turn deserves another.

[cajuntiger]

Amazing story...really what we all dream about!

Congrats Ben!

[jdmi32]

Thanks for coming back and giving us more of the story. We all dream about making a find like this. It's a good thing you came by here to get some feedback.

[hdrazor251]

Awesome story. Congratulations.

[jban5]

I just have to ask and drag this out a little farther, the rest of the boxes of watches that the GMT was on top of, did you buy them all or just get the Rolex?

[Paul]

...... and I too have never seen a double-ended shifter .... Crescent .... adjustable spanner .... adjustable wrench ...... Bahco.

Or whatever the TRF fellas call 'em in their respective countries - very cool

[Ranchmanben]

I looked through the box and it was mainly cheaper brands, bulova and the like.

Ben

[subtona]

Thanks for sharing the details

[jyan212]

Fantastic story, thanks for sharing!

[SeminarianMike]

What did he end up trading/selling the watch for ?

[cjohns]

Can someone just throw out a "ballpark" figure on what it is worth, I really have no clue... Just would be neat to know.

[greekbum]

25k-35k as it was is my guesstimate what most dealers would have quickly paid