Speedmaster '68 - Advice on servicing please.

Greetings,
I have inherited a '69 Speedmaster from my grandfather, and after leaving it unused for over a decade I am planning to get it serviced so as to have it in good order and to wear it regularly. Any advice on things to look out for and on how much to change would be much appreciated. Pictures below. The glass is showing wearmarks and I am thinking of getting that changed, but while the dials have changed colour and lost much of their luminosity I am thinking of keeping them as they are. Any suggestions concerning things to have done and things to avoid or not to have done to the watch in servicing would be very helpful.

Very nice. Let us know what numbers are stamped inside the caseback if you can. That will tell a lot. Don't open it yourself if you're not comfortable with that, but any watch repair shops should be able to open it for you so you can get a few pics. There would also be a serial number stamped on the movement itself. That will also help.

As the guys above have posted, it looks very nice! Definitely get the movement service, but but very specific about making no changes to the visible parts. Don't polish the case, don't change the dial, don't replace the hands. Those are all the parts that make the watch so attractive.

Congrats. That's a nice heirloom to pass along one day.

Many thanks for the swift and competent replies. I will take the watch for servicing in the coming days and will ask them to show me the numbers in the caseback and on the movement. I will keep you posted.
Let me ask one more question in light of your accumulated expertise: the hour finger seems to have lost part of its luminous centre (see image), and on close inspection the minute finger may be on the way to do likewise. Would you suggest having these fixed or left as they are?

I'd have the hands replaced with service hands, and heck, I'd have the dial replaced as well. Hang onto the originals if you're a collector, or throw them in the trash if you're not.

Remember that just about everyone here except me is a collector. But! when the lume falls out it can get stuck in places you don't want to have it get stuck. So I think at the least, get the hands and dial replaced and keep them for the future. Don't let the collectors keep you from wearing your watch and getting full value out of that.

Tom

Edited to add: I didn't notice the upright right away. So definitely hang onto that dial.

What would be the problem if the loose loom was removed and then worn? Will the loom continue to fall off?

If you have the lume removed from the original hand and wore the watch... everything would be safe but it would not glow in the dark, which is why the lume is there to begin with.

Tom

I think there is some risk that the hands deform. I've seen chrono second hands that had deformed with no lume. I've heard (and I'm not an expert on this) that hands with missing lume should be repacked.. repacked with new glowy loom or with non-glowly vintage like lume is a decision left to the owner.

I will add that a competent watchmaker can mix up some Super Luminova (be aware this stuff is expensive!!) to match the aged tritium on your dial, so you can have the hands relumed (hour hand, minute hand, sweep seconds hand) and keep tjhat original dial, which looks stable. Then the hands will glow, which is why they were lumed to begin with, and you keep the original parts and only intervene in that small area.

Tom

Risk of deformation is slim to none, I'd be interested to talk with that individual... but you're right, whether the replacement paint glows or not is up to the owner.

Tom

I was in your shoes not all that long ago; I have a '67, it was in great shape considering its age, but unknown service history but certainly hadn't serviced in at least 15 years. I wasn't knowledgeable about what I really had (a really collectable vintage watch) and I was caught up in wanting it to look "new and shiny". Thankfully, I was steered in the right direction by some members of this forum. They helped me understand that what I really had with this 60's Speedmaster was a piece of history, and that I should not F it up by trying to make it look new, replacing parts, polishing the case, etc. You may also be surprised to learn that if you replace parts on this watch, or take away the vintage look, you will SERIOUSLY devalue it. I strongly suggest you keep the watch 100% all original when it comes to the case, crown, pushers, dial, hands, etc. The mechanical internals can be fully serviced, and worn internal parts should be replaced, but that's it. Finding a competent watchmaker can be a bit of a challenge, but members here can help with that.

If you want a watch that looks more like new, buy a mint condition used Speedmaster as you modern piece. Please, keep this piece original and true. As for the missing lume, a competent watchmaker can give you some options that won't screw it up, that will preserve the original parts and the vintage look and feel of the watch, otherwise, leave it as is. Good luck and congrats on now owning such a cool Speedmaster.

Many thanks for another round of very useful and informative comments. I have no intention of changing anything, just to keep the watch in the best possible working order. Its value to me lies precisely in the way it carries its history and age in the subtle changes it has undergone over the decades. May I ask two more follow up questions? Firstly, several of you speak of the importance of finding a good watchmaker. I was thinking of simply taking it to the Omega shops. Is there a preferable alternative, and if so could you recommend one in London? Secondly, it has been suggested above that the gap in the lumen might deform the hands over time. Could you please comment on that risk? If it is significant then of course it makes the importance of finding a watchmaker capable of fixing the lumen without putting a brand-new one in even more important.

Whatever you do, do NOT let Omega get their hands on it. They will want to do everything that the knowlegable members here advise you not to do. As William points out, making your watch look like new will turn it into just another used speedy worth a lot less than at present, and much harder to sell at a later date should you ever decide to go that route.