Restoring my 50 year old gift

[sdsunnyrolex]

I'm looking for some guidance on restoring my watch that has huge sentimental value, but not great market value. This simple watch will not be for sale under any circumstance. So any guidance you can give will simply help me to enjoy my watch.

A little background, in 1970 I was in second grade and my dad was shipping out for Vietnam. I suspect he had some doubts of when/if he would be back. And for my birthday, he bought me a Speedking with Oyster bracelet. It was too big for me and I probably started wearing it in about 6th grade and wore it regularly into my 20's. When I was working in high school a complete stranger commented that I had a nice watch and should probably be more careful with it. Until then, I had no clue that it was worth any more than a Timex. It got a lot of wear and tear as I wore no matter what I was doing. By 1982, I had a badly scratched crystal and I broke the clasp. A local jeweler shipped it off to a Rolex Service Center in either Dallas or New York, if I remember correctly. It came back looking great, except the bezel came back ever so slightly misaligned and I didn't bother to ship it back to the RSC for that minor issue. I continued to wear it for several more years until I broke the clasp again. After that I just used a cheap leather band and put the broken Oyster band away.

By the 1990's I became aware there were a lot of fake Rolexes around and I decided that my watch was probably just another cheap fake and I just put it away in my dresser. After all, we were not a family of means and what enlisted sailor in the US Navy buys a Rolex for his 7 year old son? In retrospect, I should have understood that the Rolex Service Center would have never serviced it in 1982 if it weren't real, but I didn't know zip about watches.

I hate to sound so sappy, but after loosing my dad this year, I've stumbled across my Speedking sitting in a drawer and I would like to have it restored to a wearable state, while still keeping it's well worn look.

I'll attach a few photos below. It's only 2 big issues are a broken clasp and during the last 30 years of sitting in a drawer, I've lost one of the end pieces. I don't know a lot about this watch, but I've been reading this forum and I think these are the important numbers: I carefully removed the backplate and also checked between the lugs. The model number is 6430 with a production date of 1st quarter 1968. And the serial number is 1,76x,xxx which I believe also indicated 1968. The band is the original 7835-17 with folded links, but I believe the clasp would have been replaced during the 1982 servicing. So the current clasp has a date stamp of 2/71. Would the RSC have used a 1971 clasp during a repair/service in 1982? It's never been out of my possession since it was new, so that's the only time any parts have been replaced.

I would like to get the clasp repaired/replaced with a part that is reasonably close to the original if possible, replace the missing end piece, replace the scratched crystal and get the movements generally serviced.

My questions are:
1) would replacing the crystal be a bad idea?
2) Any thoughts on replacing the clasp or just the blade with broken "ears"? I assume the broken blade can be repaired, even those it has a very clean precise break with no bending at the site of the break.
3) does anyone have a recommendation of an independent shop that could do this type of work? I've seen good recommendations for Michael Young, but I don't know if he handles things like this broken clasp or just the 'loose links' that he is so well know for.

I think the watch looks much better in person than these photos suggest. My lighting for these photos is poor and really highlights the scratches. And the scratches on the crystal make the dial look rather poor. The dial is in good condition with only minor discoloration around the perimeter of the dial. And the watch keep great time. I appreciate any guidance and help I can get. Thanks

[Tools]

Nice looking SpeedKing.

Most jewelers that manufacture/repair jewelry can likely weld your clasp back together for a reasonable cost. Michael Young is in China and the long wait time may turn some folks away.

Replacing the crystal is a good-thing as the older plastic can crack or craze and it is considered an expendable item.

[05carbondrz]

Some Toothpaste and Elbow Grease and You’d be surprised what that Crystal will look like.

[datejust24]

Very cool, thanks for sharing.

[cpefy3]

If it is due for a service, I’d send it to LA WatchWorks (http://lawatchworks.com). They can help you with both issues and are experts in vintage restoration. Best of luck and great story!!

[sdsunnyrolex]

Thank you all for your recommendations and comments. After I get it repaired, I'll post an update.