This Omega SM300 was sent in for a service and full assembly. Whilst most watches are bought pre assembled from the factory this particular watch was well earned and saved for over a number of years  part by part. With all the parts finally aquired the  complete set was sent to me for a service and assembly, being a big Omega fan this was a nice treat :)
​

The provided movement was an Omega Cal 565 - 24 Jewel Automatic and although used it was in excellent condition and just required a straight forward service. This calibre has the quickset date which is adjusted by pulling the crown repeatedly, the date ring was changed from original white to a provided black date ring to match the dial. Below are some of the assembly photos ( simplified ) >>

Assembly is relatively straight forward here, fitting new dial, hands, mounting to case, cut, adjust and set the stem/crown, and finally case back and glass polish. The original brides were not for this casing so some new larger mounting brides were used. Dial & Hands >>>

​Mounting and securing the movement in place before cutting and adjusting the stem >>
​

With the watch all serviced and assembled it was nearly time to be returned to its new owner, but before that the watch is tested for several days and then has a new strap fitted ( in this case a black heavy duty NATO strap ). The watch finished after glass polish >>
​

Finishing a watch is always satisfying but this one is a true stunner. The watch now returned to one happy owner, hopefully it will provide many years of faithful service :)

Its always a pleasure to service a Seiko and this month was made extra special by servicing not one but two Seiko chronographs ( one being my own ). This watch came in for a long overdue service, being a watch thats been handed down the family line the owner wanted it running back in tip top condition.

The watch was running but the chronograph could not be stopped or reset, the date function had also completely ceased and timing was sketchy at best. The most common problems with this watch are often the most dreaded but fortunately the chronograph wheel was not in bad shape and the original winding gear for the inner bezel was still present and rust free.

Due to the holow design of the pushers, years of gunk and sweat can build up inside and wreak all sorts of havoc with the chronograph mechanism. The combiniation of moist sweat, dirt, and body heat can casue the springs inside to rust and become rotted in, cleaning them is usually straight forward but on this occasion the spring is truly rusted in. With patient scratching away at the rust i manage to free the damaged spring and the case can be cleaned up. Its surprising sometimes just how much can get stuck in them pushers  ;(

The pushers now removed the casing parts are stored separately away from movement for their own cleaning, i clean casings with a different machine to prevent contamination of the movement. The front end is built up of several parts including bezel, glass, rubber gasket, inner bezel, bezel spring.
​

Below are the pictures ( may not be in order ) of the movement strip down. Fortunately the chronograph wheel was in good order and an expensive replacement would not have to be found, however other parts had started to suffer and they would have to be replaced.
​

With the movement clean and damaged parts swapped for new it was time to rebuild and adjust as required. >>
​

Timing looking much better and with only a few adjustments she was purring away happily. Its important to note that setting the correct lift angle on the timegrapher is key to getting correct information on the watches condition ( Seiko 6139B / has a 54.5 Degree Lift Angle ). Unlike Swiss movements Seikos run slightly different and a amplitude of 180+ is considered healthy, this movement running at 222 on a half wind is more than enough for me.
​

With the movement running well it was time to turn my attention to cleaning up the casing and bracelet. The satin finish had taken a few knocks so a brief touch up and thorough clean should go a long way, along the way a little polish to finish the job. >>

Finishing a Seiko is always very satisfying and this one has been both a pain and pleasure to restore to good order. The reset is not always dead on but the watch now runs well, day & date set correctly, and importantly the chronograph can be started , stopped , and reset  ( albeit not dead on every time due to minor wear ). With watches of this age it is expected to have some flaws, without them they kinda loose some of their charm and character, luckily this has plenty >>

In for a service and new glass this Omega Dynamic has a truly stunning original dial, the movement inside is a classic and favourite of mine, the 601. The movement in this case was not running as true as it should and the old glass had left behind the broken armour ring which required removal before a new glass could be fitted. Time to get her stripped down >>
​

The cal 601 is  manual wind movement and servicing is fairly straight forward here with exception only being to the method of disassembly, usually barrel bridge first then train but in the case of the 601 the train wheels need to come out first as the centre wheel prevents lifting the barrel bridge. >>

Whilst the movement was cleaning the casing was cleaned up and dents removed, a new bracelet enroute should finish the job. Reassembly and lubrication is again fairly simple but a good level of cleanliness and accurate application of oil will provide for best results. Each jewel and pivot is carefully hand cleaned even after going through cleaner to ensure best running. >>>

With the movement assembled and running well the dial & hands were re fitted for testing before being fitted back into the case. A new glass always adds that shiny new feeling to any watch and even more so on older watches, the watch just awaiting the bracelet to finish the piece.

With the watch back together its time to add the bracelet and finish the piece >>>

The Omega dynamic is becoming as popular now as it ever was and with looks like this its not hard to see why :)

Omegas have long been a favourite of mine and this little gem came in for service after what appears quite a long and active life. The typical Omega copper tones of the movement plates & bridges have long since sucumbe to age and humidity and turned a rainbow of colours. The movement was erratic and with quite alot of dirt and spread oil i was not sure this would be as straight forward as it would appear. The wear & tear was a concern and the loose rotor was indicating something was not right from the offset. Time to strip her down and get to work >>>

Quite often cleaning a movement can uncover other issues that the dirt and oils are hiding, until this movements clean its too early to tell. The rotor swings but is rather loose and is not going to be very productive for maintaining power on the move :(

Time to strip down and clean >>

With the movement cleaning away it was time to draw my attention to the dial and hands. The original lume on the dial had all gone or had broken up to dirt, the hands were worn but i figured it was worth trying to save them to keep the watch as original as possible. Dial & Hand re luming >>

Moisture is always a very destructive force in a watch and the stem and crown had suffered quite badly here with breakage only a matter of time. A fresh new crown and new stem should set things right so time to get the new crown and stem together ready for final assembly >>>

I was surprised when assembling the movement that there were no major complications or broken/worn parts, the movement ran within good time and after adjustments timing was perfect. The movement does look worn but the running is superb so i was more than happy to recase her. The casing was worn but there was little more i could do other than a light polish. >>>

It was unfortunate that despite cleaning up the original hands they were simply too worn to re fit and work correctly so a new old stock Swiss set of suitable hands were fitted. The glass the watch came with was non Omega and too large so a new Omega glass was fitted to finish this fine piece. She may not be perfect but she runs well and still has some good looks :)