Black dials on any Omega Constellation are uncommon and, in some cases, rare. A genuine black dial pie pan Constellation in good condition can command from a 20 percent to a 100 percent premium over a similar standard pie pan, depending on the model and the rarity of the dial furniture. For example, mint black dialled Constellations with pink gold dial furniture and lettering will command double the price of a standard dial example.
This is why enterprising vintage watch sellers refinish even relatively good dials in black. Rarely however does a refurbishing outfit go to the trouble of refinishing a domed dial in black to look as though it is a pie pan. Check out this listing by Teutonic entrepreneur Michael Bannach of Mühltalweg 7a, 83131 Nußdorf am Inn, in good ‘ol Deutschland who trades on eBay as j24_jh.
The dial paint is effectively two-toned, the finish on the inner dial is slightly matt and is fashioned to resemble a faceted pie pan dial by straight angling the paint edge from marker to marker. The lettering is white in this fake pie pan dial as opposed to silver in an original black dial, the uppercase font in incorrect, the Constellation lettering is lacking the tell-tale serifs and the star is crooked. They haven’t been able to get the chapter ring correct and it stands too far out from the optically illusive pie pan facets.
No-where in the listing does the seller reveal that the dial is a fake – yes, it’s not simply a refinished dial, but a dial that has been faked to deceive those who do not possess an expert eye. At the time of writing this post, the watch has been bidded up to the equivalent of two-thousand US dollars – quite a coup for the seller, particularly when the watch is only worth about five to six hundred!
Further, this seller has stolen an image from Steve Waddington's Old Omegas web site and blurred the watermark, and therefore I have no compunction in expropriating one of his, seen above!
My advice is that, unless you are an expert, never place an on-line bid for a black dialled Constellation without posting a request for verification on watch forums such as Watchuseek, Timezone or Puristpro. It will save you a lot of heartache.
Oh....and yes, shame on you Michael Bannach!
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Hi Desmond,
ReplyDeleteI've seen so many faked black dials. I've seen one good one (although I know there are many others) and its currently on my wrist. Bought from a solid, reputable dealer whom I trust. That's the only way to go with these black dial pie pans. Thanks for bringing the fake to everyone's attention.
Pat
You're welcome Pat!
ReplyDeleteGood advice, particularly when some of the refinished jobs from the Orient are getting closer to the real thing.
Cheers
Desmond
Black 'original' dial C-shape 168.017 on ebay #250526263044. 'Original' dauphine hands (on C-shape?), 17 jewel 564, from 1955. Upside down star, to boot!
ReplyDeleteJohn
Thanks John for the tip.
ReplyDeleteNow that's what I call FUgly!!!
Yes, and that dial is not part of the C-Shape livery either.
Notice also that the swan neck regulator is nowhere to be seen.
Priced at 780.00 it either shows the seller's conceit or gormlessness.
Cheers
Desmond
Hi Desmond,
ReplyDeleteThanks for an interesting article. Constellations are by far the hardest watch to collect since there are so many frankenwatches out there.
One Constellation I'm looking for is the one with a black dial. Found this one on eBay. It says refinished professionally, but I'm not sure how professional, to be honest. And the case 168.005? Did that case come with a black dial?
Regards,
Arne
Hi Arne,
ReplyDeleteYou're right about there being a lot of frankens out there!
The redial on the watch you mention isnt bad, a reasonable effort, but the uppercase script is very different to the original.
There were very few black dialled models of the 168.005 produced and most of them were stainless steel, although some in gold cap too.
How do I feel about this particular watch? Well, it's just not original enough for me Arne. The classic pie pan gold cap of course is with the silvered dial - they come up every now and again and usually fetch around 1200 - which to me is worth the money spent if everything is original.
Good luck in your search.
Cheers
Desmond
Hello everybody,
ReplyDeleteAnd here is another masterpiece:
http://cgi.ebay.com/OMEGA-CONSTELLATION-PIE-PAN-DIAL-CAL-551CHRONOMETER-/150612267792?pt=Wristwatches&hash=item231130d310#ht_2788wt_905
Kind regards,
Marius
One of the ugliest of redials I have seen recently :)
ReplyDeleteCheers
Desmond
I own a Contellation from the 60 as it was my father first watch when he became a Psycologist. It was not working when I got it and sended it for repaire. The dial was refinnished and its still working since 20 years after it was repaired. It has a black dial and gold trims as far as my memory goes. Very proud about owning it and I will die with it. But I noticed that they put the star upside down!!
ReplyDeleteSounds to me like you have a wonderful heirloom :)
Deleteregards
Desmond
Desmond, I'm wondering if you'd be good enough to offer an opinion on this Constellation I just purchased. I read through your website and asked for verification on WUS (didn't get a response), and I felt like it was a pretty good purchase for just over $500. Any thoughts? Thanks much!
Deletehttp://www.ebay.com/itm/280828602580?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649#ht_2970wt_1163
If this dial is genuine then you have bought very, very well.
DeleteFrom the pics I cant quite tell.
Click on my about me and the email tab is you would like to send some high res pics of the dial and then I can take a look.
Cheers
Desmond