1655 Help me out

[inadeje]

I wonder if someone knowledgeable on 1655 could help me out? I’m just looking for a nice looking piece without the fanfare nor, crazy +30k prices. I came across this one which clearly has a service dial and probably service hands but the overall look seems good enough for the price. Does anything jump out at the pro’s on here that would make me think twice?

[Dan S]

Without knowing the price, it's hard to say if it's ok for the price. But you're right about the service parts. Better photos are needed to judge the case, but I think I can see some hints of significant polishing.

The bezel is old and might be original. Do you know the serial number?

[inadeje]

Originally Posted by Dan S

Without knowing the price, it's hard to say if it's ok for the price. But you're right about the service parts. Better photos are needed to judge the case, but I think I can see some hints of significant polishing.

The bezel is old and might be original. Do you know the serial number?

Sadly I don’t have the serial. The watch is around USD 16k. I’m not a total purist and particularly like the vintage feel but not necessarily decrepit dials, hands etc of some “pure” vintage pieces. It seems quite well priced and I’m mainly interested in the style/look. Hopefully you can let me know your opinion.

[Dan S]

Originally Posted by inadeje

Sadly I don’t have the serial. The watch is around USD 16k. I’m not a total purist and particularly like the vintage feel but not necessarily decrepit dials, hands etc of some “pure” vintage pieces. It seems quite well priced and I’m mainly interested in the style/look. Hopefully you can let me know your opinion.

$16k seems extremely high to me, when I consider the sales prices I see for attractive 1655s in average condition, i.e., $20k-$22k. But it's hard for me to advise you, since we probably have different opinions about what is attractive.

[Sorry, I edited this after the fact because I had second thoughts about referring to a particular eBay sale.]

[inadeje]

Originally Posted by Dan S

$16k seems extremely high to me, when I consider the sales prices I see for attractive 1655s in average condition. But it's hard for me to advise you, since we probably have different opinions about what is attractive. Is this what you mean by ugly and decrepit? To me it's reasonably attractive (although experts may notice that the parts may not be entirely original).

What do you think about the way this one looks that just sold on eBay for $18k?

I think that it looks very nice indeed. What I meant was the flaking hands and missing lume on some of these vintage pieces. This one you posted looks very nice indeed. Would you recommend I wait for a better piece?

Edit - Dan S I noticed you removed the ebay photo example but, I did like how that looked