Unconditioned Love – Omega Seamaster Date Bumper 1952, Honeycomb, cal. 353 bumper

Omega Seamaster Date Bumper 1952, Honeycomb dial, Steel case, cal. 353 automatic bumper.

The watch presented here has its own particular place in my heart. The first serious watch to be purchased in Ebay, by me, and the one gave me thoughts over thoughts as a first hand collector.

The story goes I  was looking for a watch that recalls the layout of a white dial/ gold index oyster Rolex, but I  definitely did not have the budget, nor the knowledge to purchase one. Even in my early days as a collector I knew Rolex timepieces were among those hard to buy and collect. First because lots of fakes flashed the market: frankenstein and rip-off models populated the market. Second because of the price tag and the simple fact I had no way to discern a good condition piece from another. Therefore I could not distinguish a good price-tag from a very bad one. I knew little about watches, being the first steps on the minefield. Even less about fakes or for that matter Rolex. At that time therefore Rolex was a “no go” for me. But I knew -well, now I don’t know why I thought I knew – I could find an Omega with similar characteristics easier to spot it out, if faked in some way. Or at least I thought so. 

Looking around I found this piece in the UK from a so-called “reputable dealer” – in Ebay  – that even discounted me. Yes I  know now: I should have been more patient and conscious, but that is also the good part of being young and growing old. 

I checked a few details, I looked for information on the serials and models, dial layouts, movements and configurations. I carefully checked the pictures, looking for inaccuracies or defects. I think at that time I did a pretty decent job. Nonetheless I didn’t know yet that vintage pieces are a science, and an art, on their own. It is very different to spot a fake/tamped modern watch from a vintage one. And that is the reason why there are experts in both fields, and those who are prepared on one side  may not be trained on the other. Then I decided and went through with the purchase. The watch arrived: at first glance, it was in immaculate conditions. Movement well cleaned, case likely polished,  and dial looks new. Yes I know, the first question you should ask yourself: how a piece of 1952 could look new today, after 70 years have passed. Well, I  was a bit naive at that time. Maybe I still am today.  

At that time I didn’t even own a magnifying  glass.  First thing I bought after I received the watch. And then the troubles,  or questions, started to come. I had a limited time to complain with the seller about inaccuracies or strange issues with the watch. Therefore I had to do my homework better and figure out quickly if all fit in correctly.

At a close scrutiny something was not adding up. The dial seems too white to be so old. “Yak”. Second, the central second hand was black, not gilt like many other models of that age. “Mmm”. Then I looked very close at indexes and numerals. At my surprise, at a very fine scale, traces of white paint seemed to cover both sides of the numeral 3,9,12. I was considering directly returning it, but once I contacted the seller, on the possibility the dial was repainted, he just offered a partial refund. 

Well I did not  know what to do at that time. It is true on one hand the watch has been somehow reworked with and the conditions were not 100% original. Yet, all considered the price for what I got, even  counting the additional partial refund, was a very good price. I mean, not cheap, but 40% less than a similar model I would have fetched at a proper  brick and mortar store. I decided to keep it. 

But I couldn’t let it go. I wanted to know if my discoveries were properly placed or just aberrations.

I then went to an old watchmaker who used to take care of the watches in my family. He was a very old man at that time, over eighties, but he was still a very sharp man,  and a great authority for vintage pieces, at least in my city. 

I first met his employee that flipped the watch on the back, looked at it, and immediately discarded it as 100% fake. That is because the case back didn’t have a mark or symbol like the Seahorse: a characteristic of the Seamaster Omega line. But anyway he called the old man, owner of the shop, to have a look at it. When he arrived, I explained to him my troubles, and I asked what he thought about it. He gathered the watch, looked at it back and forth and straight away told me: that is a good nice watch. The employee told him as the watch didn’t have the Seahorse symbol on the back. But the old man laughed at him and said it was a common thing. The symbol has been introduced later. I then asked about the dial. He took a loop, went to the back of his laboratory, gave a closer look and came back. No, that’s all good. Then I asked: “ I thought the watch had a reprinted dial”. He looked at me, behind his glasses and say “No way. This kind of dial is a honeycomb dial. To reprint and repaint them you first need to sand it out, so old color traces fade away. In this one,  the honeycomb pattern is perfect. I would say it is the original”. 

I was a bit moved by the security of his answer.  Therefore after a few words exchanged I left. 

After getting back to my thoughts, I could not let it go easily. I wanted to search deeper and deeper. Looking for a definitive answer. I then bought a better loupe: one that could better magnify details. Didn’t know that was the moment in which I  took the path of collecting. 

I waited a few days for the magnifying glass loupe, and as soon as it arrived I checked the dial.  All the elements I had seen before were there. Clearer, bigger, but there. I started to check the Seamaster logo, the written text, the “Seamaster” text on the bottom, just on top of “CALENDAR”. I compared to others pictures of similar models and the text matches perfectly.  Surely there were some differences in the text font. In those years dial print was handmade therefore never one looked exactly like the other. But with a certain margin of error texts and marks seemed correct. 

Checking first the text is important because in a reprinted dial the text , redone, is the first feature a true collector can spot as fake or remade. Fonts change over the years but lettering, size of the letters, ink used, and even the thickness of the ink used to print the dial can give away elements to acknowledge a reprinted dial from an original one. At this point all seemed fine, like the old watchmaker said. Not satisfied, I went looking for other marks around the dial. Then came the moment of truth. 

I managed to find two micro spots of white paint over the number 12 and number 3, very very small. They seemed to be the leftovers of an after-work on the dial. In fact, it would have explained the presence of a rework on the dial with a small “waterline” white color around the markers’ side. Indeed markers in the original dial should be as clean as they can  get, since they are generally mounted after the dial is colored and printed. Never done before. No color sign should be present on the side of markers because they are glued or positioned in the last step in producing a dial. 

That was my answer, but then another one came to my mind. The work on the dial seemed spotless, aside the two micro spots and the white “waterline” around the markers and the date window. A work made definitely not from an improvised watchmaker. If the rework was done, this was the case, the work definitely had been done masterfully. We are talking about 1950, therefore a handmade work always carries the defects and imperfection of a craftsman. It is quite natural, we are not machines, nor did they have technologies to precisely intervene at that level. Moreover we have to consider I was using a magnifying lens to spot it out. No man could have seen these elements with his own eyes. Looking for details at this scale, among collectors, is a very modern practice in the recent two past decades only. Additionally to the masterful hand that reworked the dial, the text font has been done with precision. 

At the current state of my knowledge, about dials in particular, I cannot say if the dial repaint has been done only on some spot or on the all surface. One case or another brings very complex problems on the printing text methods, and in working around the element already embedded on the dials, like markers and numerals. 

My conclusion.  The work had been done by professionals that knew what they were doing. For a reason I ignore. Could have been the result of a dial discoloration or damage that the past owner required Omega itself, or a highly skilled craftsman or watchmaker to deal with.

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What to do with this story and what to learn. 

Well, vintage watches are not the same as today’s watches. That is part of the beauty. Dial, or watches for that matter, before the 1960 has been done by craftsmen. Real people. No  controlled laser machines, nor people with microscopes. Not necessarily within a company that produced and branded watches, all the components were made there. Common practice was to subcontract and outsource elements: dial, hands,  movements  ect. Different providers would have offered different levels of precision and quality: some good, some worst, but both meeting minimal requirements from the requiring company. 

Therefore it is today impossible to scrutinize vintage watches and spot with certainty fakes, rework and frankenstein. Yes you can spot some, but not all. The more evident one can be seen. If you are a collector, inform yourself but buy what you mostly love at the price that is for you best. 

Do I regret that I  kept this “reworked” watch? Never, there is no day that passes that I do not love this watch more. For what it was, what it is, what the story it told me silently.  Omega  Bumper Date Honeycomb dial: a real treat.