Best place to buy a 1665 Sea Dweller

[pierson]

Any suggestions as to where I should look for a original 1665?

I've been monitoring:
HERE (obviously)
Ebay
VRF
Chroo-Shop
Chrono-24

Any other thoughts?

Also - does anyone see anything online that they really like in the 10-15k range?

[dcash0615]

Buy from a reputable vintage dealer. Eric Ku with 10 Past Ten or Jacek with HQ Milton come to mind.

[swish77]

Andrew Shear is another good option. A little pricey, but he gets fantastic examples.

[colpol]

Go to the list of vintage dealers at top & book mark their sites. Lot of the dealers /guys use Instagram & their watches shown there first

[clock]

Originally Posted by swish77

Andrew Shear is another good option. A little pricey, but he gets fantastic examples.

One of, if not the best.

[av29]

Kirill has a fantastic 1665. Check out lunaroyster.com nd he regularly has great models comin in. Great guy to deal with too.


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[acf321]

I have had tremendous success with Michael Morgan at Iconic Watch Company, with superb and ultra clean examples of 1675 and 5512, and whilst I have not bought from Jacek at HQ Milton, I have conversed with him, and he's very helpful.

[thenewguyguys]

Any good dealers in EU? Shipping from US aint worth it

[pierson]

Originally Posted by av29

Kirill has a fantastic 1665. Check out lunaroyster.com nd he regularly has great models comin in. Great guy to deal with too.


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is thuis the one you are referring to?
http://www.lunaroyster.com/watches/b...ioty484fbntkt9

[Fabiolegnahito]

I want sell mine 1665 mk1 for buy a 1655
But i am in Florence, Italy

[PVR]

Pierson, I have never in all of my life seen a 1665 without the engraving Registered Design above the model 1665. Im not talking about one that has worn away, I am talking about leaving the factory with no such writing.

I can only speculate why it hasn't sold but, I wouldn't buy lunar oyster's watch based on that omission alone.

Someone feel free to post a pic of another such 1665 case missing that engraving, I would like to see it if it exists..

[Brianmac 883]

Originally Posted by PVR

Pierson, I have never in all of my life seen a 1665 without the engraving Registered Design above the model 1665. Im not talking about one that has worn away, I am talking about leaving the factory with no such writing.

I can only speculate why it hasn't sold but, I wouldn't buy lunar oyster's watch based on that omission alone.

Someone feel free to post a pic of another such 1665 case missing that engraving, I would like to see it if it exists..

There is another thread somewhere on this forum about this very issue. As I recall, the patent on the Oyster case expired in 1980, and Rolex removed the "Registered Design" engraving. They eventually replaced it with something else, but for a year or so, there was no engraving. I suspect that this is the case with this watch, since it dates from 1980.

[RHIII]

Originally Posted by swish77

Andrew Shear is another good option. A little pricey, but he gets fantastic examples.

x2

[swish77]

Originally Posted by pierson

is thuis the one you are referring to?
http://www.lunaroyster.com/watches/b...ioty484fbntkt9

Nice example overall, but the relumed and color-matched hands would be a deal-breaker for me. Still, the price reflects that issue. If I'm entering the $10K and up vintage watch world, I would need an unmolested example.

[PVR]

Brianmac: Yes, that is true that Rolex did lose the patent (or forgot to renew it) but, it was only removed from casebacks not cases. You will see around 83 (?) that certain casebacks had a channel cut into the engraving from the inside to remove that text, but never to my knowledge was it omitted from a mid case.

Again, I don't know where the discussion is but, if this is the case then there should be others that are the same and I have never seen another. If it occurred over the course of a year then there should be close to a million such examples..literally.

[Brianmac 883]

Originally Posted by PVR

Brianmac: Yes, that is true that Rolex did lose the patent (or forgot to renew it) but, it was only removed from casebacks not cases. You will see around 83 (?) that certain casebacks had a channel cut into the engraving from the inside to remove that text, but never to my knowledge was it omitted from a mid case.

Again, I don't know where the discussion is but, if this is the case then there should be others that are the same and I have never seen another. If it occurred over the course of a year then there should be close to a million such examples..literally.

PVR: Entirely possible/probable that you are correct... I was only referring to the post that I read, and have no idea if it was correct. I'll see if I can find it for reference. And, yes, I agree that
there would be many, many with this missing engraving out there, so that's another point which favors your opinion.

[Brianmac 883]

Here is the text from the thread that I referenced. I have no idea if it is correct:

"have you ever noticed (after removing the bracelet) that some Rolexes are engraved with 'REGISTERED DESIGN', others say 'ORIG ROLEX DESIGN' while a number of Rolexes have neither wording engraved on the watchcase between the lugs?

just learned this the other day...sometime around 1980, the patent expired on the original Oyster case design. as a result, Rolex had to change the wording. watches manufactured prior to 1980 will have the 'registered design' notation while those produced after 1982 will have the 'original design' designation. during the period between 1980 & 1982, there was no designation one way or the other.

this probably explains why legitimate watch manufacturers have been able to emulate the classic oyster design from one extent or another. while the notation change is a trivial detail, it provides yet another viable reference point for approximating the age of a Rolex & verifying its authenticity to a certain extent."

[Suboc]

Tops in my book. He always has amazing pieces and is great to work with. Look up his site, Sheartime
Daniel-

[scooba]

Originally Posted by clock

one of, if not the best.

x2

[pierson]

THANKS GUYS!! Wow, theres a ton to learn here! Any watches for saleonline that you really like? (Ideally sub $17k) I don't want to get screwed.

[av29]

Originally Posted by pierson

is thuis the one you are referring to?

http://www.lunaroyster.com/watches/b...ioty484fbntkt9

Yess this one.


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[ILuvSubs]

Originally Posted by pierson

THANKS GUYS!! Wow, theres a ton to learn here! Any watches for saleonline that you really like? (Ideally sub $17k) I don't want to get screwed.

The safest way to ensure you don't get screwed, particularly if you're starting out in vintage Rolex is to buy only from the trusted sellers (such as those already mentioned in this thread) and to read as much as you can, including the stickies in this section, such as:

* Vintage Rolex Buyer's Guidance to determine the originality of your watch..

* List of vintage watch dealers

If you're looking for a 1665, this website from one of the leading Sea Dweller collectors, Ed Delgado, is a must-read http://drsd.com/

Good luck and happy hunting!