What should you look out when buying a vintage Invicta

Tip #1 The type of watch

When you are looking for that one watch, it is important to be aware of what kind of watch you are looking for. The price is partly determined by the type of watch you are looking for. In general the dress watches from Invicta are less popular than the chronographs or divers watches. This is also because the latter are much harder to find in good condition. When I have to make a list of what a vintage Invicta usually costs within a category, you could classify them in the following way. It should be mentioned that this does not take into account the material, type of timepiece, design and condition of the watch that can also make a significant difference.

Classic dress: 300 euro

Dress watch with tripple date and/or moon application: 400-600

Diver/sport watch: 300-600

Chronograph: 400-800

Now you will have noticed that the prices are very different. But when you are looking for an Invicta these are generally the amounts that you will encounter on average.

Tip #2 Condition of the watch

If you have a watch in mind and you decide to make a purchase, the state is essential. Usually this is also a tricky issue especially if you decide to buy your watch in an online market such as Ebay or Chrono24. When you have a dive watch in mind and this watch looks worn, the dial is completely damaged and the question is in what condition the timepiece is. Then the question is whether you should buy this watch, especially when the top prize is asked.

You have to ask yourself if you want to pay less for a watch in a lesser condition or if you continue to look for a watch that looks like new. In very rare cases you can find a watch in a NOS (new old stock) state, this means that this watch is in new condition and not worn.

When you get the chance to pick up a watch from someone, it is often easier to judge. That is why this is really recommended when you go to the vintage market. You can then see the condition of this watch, the gold is worn off with a gold-plated watch, how does the watch run and of course whether there are further damages to the watch.

In many cases, watches that are sold in a deplorable condition are actually worthless. Yet you often see that sellers offer this for the main prize, my tip: do not start on such a watch. If you still want to buy a watch that is completely damaged, no service and in poor condition. Do this for the lowest price possible, because you yourself will have a lot of work to make it portable again.

Tip #3 Specifications of the watch

Under tip 1 a number of important factors were mentioned that influence the value of the watch, but also whether you are doing a bad buy or not. Indeed, it is a significant difference whether you buy a gold-plated watch or a watch that is 18 carat gold. Also, watches with larger dimensions are much more beloved and more valuable than those small delicate things. In the 1950s it was the trend to make watches with an average diameter of 34 millimeters. Today this is seen by many watch enthusiasts as too small and therefore such a watch will be harder to sell and also worth less. While a watch between 36 and 40 millimeters is much more common today. They can also be found on the vintage market, only they are rarer because they are often labeled as oversized for the time in which they were made. Of course there is more to say about this, because not only diameter determines whether something falls large or small. The lug to lug distance can also make a watch look smaller or larger. So don't let the size discourage you!

To return to the material from which a watch is made. I already mentioned that solid gold is generally much more valuable than gold. Many Invicta's are gold-plated, so if you are looking online for a watch that is solid gold then you must be careful that you do not receive a gold-plated watch. How do you know if something is solid gold? In many cases, there is a mark somewhere on the watch whether something is 14, 16 or 18 carat gold. When something is sold as solid gold, and you cannot find the quality mark on the photos, you can always ask for a photo of the quality mark. Another tip to find out is to look at the watch lid. If the lid of the watch is made of steel, there is a good chance that the watch is gold-plated. In any case, solid gold watches are in many cases more expensive, whether this is a classic dress watch or a chronograph. These usually go from around a thousand euros to sometimes a few thousand. When it comes to steel watch, it is decisive whether a watch is chromed or full steel. In the past, watches were made from a chrome-plated brass. This was just like gold plated watches to keep the price of the watch low. The consequence of these techniques is when this layer of gold or chrome can go off over time.

The last point I want to raise is the type of timepiece. In the past Invicta often used generic timepieces from well-known major timepiece manufacturers such as ETA, AS, Landeron, etc. You will therefore find a wide range of timepieces at vintage Invicta's. It is now too much to give a whole explanation about this. In rare cases Invicta used a rare caliber or even its own in-house timepiece. In those cases, this may be relevant because it makes a watch unique and therefore more valuable.