Offering for sale my 60’s Seamaster 166.010 with original black gilt dial. The dial has patina which is seen occasionally with these 60’s gilt dials.

The 166.010 is very rarely seen with a black dial and took me several years to find one. I’ve seen about 6 examples in total, one on OF (sold twice), a couple on eBay, a couple from Japanese sellers and a good one which sold in UK bricks and mortar auction a couple of months ago for over £1600 inc fees. The characteristics are always the same; black gloss gilt dial, Swiss Made T (ie single, not double T’s) and markers with inlaid lume strips (not lume dots at the tips).

This example was bought by the original owner from the RAF NAAFI at RAF Tengah, Singapore in 1966 and worn all over the world for the next 20 years including in Bahrain in the 70’s and sailing across several continents (perhaps where it picked up the patina to the dial). I bought it from the original owner in the summer who claimed to have had it serviced in the spring. It runs fine and keeps reasonable time, but there is a small crack in the crystal at 12 and the crown is slightly loose.

Overall, this is a really attractive, uncommon watch with a great history. However, it is in need of a bit of TLC to really make it pop. Unfortunately I currently have 4 watches away for service and won’t get around to doing this anytime soon so offering it for sale.

Details
Price: £895 GBP net to me.
Insured worldwide shipping via Royal Mail and Secursus included in price.
No returns.
Watch is in the UK.

Dial: factory original black gilt dial, not refinished, restored or redialled. Has patina as shown in the pictures. No other damage or scratches. Applied logo and markers with inlaid lume. Text is nice and crisp.
Matching hands.

Case: stainless steel case reference 166.010 in average condition. Case is fairly sharp but has some surface wear as per pictures, reflecting how the original owner used it. Also has some minor surface pitting inside the case threads. Screw down case back with hippocampus.
Omega service crown.
Generic crystal with small crack at 12.

Movement: Omega cal 565 automatic movement with quick set date. All functions work as they should and it keeps reasonable time. However, in spite of the previous owner saying it was serviced in early 2023, it looks like it could do with a good clean and service to me. Some parts appear to be different shades, particularly the serial bridge. I don’t know if this is because some parts have worn or because some parts have been changed over the years.

Bracelet: original Omega 1502 beads of rice with 511 Endlinks. The original owner says this is the bracelet originally sold with the watch.
It’s complete and fully functional, but has some stretch.

Pictures: