My Omega Seamaster 50 years jubilee

My grand father got this watch as a birthday present on July 11th 1959. He was 39 years old at the time. Today would be his 89th birthday. He passed away at the age of 59 in 1979. I never really knew him as I was only two years old at the time of his death.

A couple of years after his death, my grand mother gave me the watch. The strap was different and was fitted for my tiny wrist. I remember being proud wearing the watch as it was something special for a little boy.

As years went by I forgot the watch. One of the hands was broken, the glass was scratched, the strap was too small for my grown up wrist. I was told it would not be possible to repair the watch. I thought I would keep it as a memento.

Last December I found the watch by accident. I decided to take it to a watchmaker to find out if it could be repaired after all. The watchmaker told the manual winding movement worked well and the glass could be changed and the broken hand repaired. I decided to give it a go and all the necessary maintenance work was done, including changing the strap to an original Omega leather strap.

The watchmaker promised to call me once the watch would be ready. I waited and waited. After a month I called him and asked whether my watch would be ready. He told he had to order a new crown from Omega's factory and it could take a while. I was amazed. Do they really make spare parts for 50 years old watches?

When I finally saw my watch after the maintenance, I hardly recognized it. It was good as new. The new crown and leather strap made a great finishing touch. One thing was not changed. The watch still has my grand dad's initials U H and the date, 11.7.1959.