Black Bough Clients and their Watches – No. 6 | 18.11.18


Graham’s Omega Genève 166.0163

“It must be that time of year because I found myself once again looking for another watch from Black Bough. This time I was hoping to find an automatic Omega from possibly the 1960s, as my other two are from the preceding and succeeding decades. One that had the hack feature included, where the seconds hand can be stopped to enable accurate synchronization with a time signal, would also be desirable but not essential. So imagine my interest when I spotted this one which had both of these attributes. In addition, this has the ability to change the date in a more convenient way than my other Omega. The one thing that almost stopped me in my tracks were the words from the description, there is a small scuff to the dial to the right of the signature.” Oh dear. Is that going to be a problem and will I notice it every time I check the time? I emailed Alex about the watch and this minor flaw to the dial and asked if it may be more noticeable in reality than how it looks on the video. He said that he thought it looked very much as the video showed it. Closer examination of the photos made it look very slight so I decided to sleep on the decision. The following day, a Saturday, I phoned the shop and Adam very kindly reserved the watch whilst I awaited a call back from Alex. On talking it over I decided to go ahead. I asked if the strap could be changed for a Hirsch Siena Tuscan leather one which I thought would look better on it, offering to pay the difference, and Alex said that this could be done as he had one in stock. It was frustrating that it was a Saturday because it proved too late for posting that day so I had to wait until Tuesday before it arrived. On opening, I found the watch looked even better than in the online pictures but I could see the small scuff. Was this something which would annoy me every time I looked at it? Like all minor imperfections, and I’ve got more than a few, it gets noticed initially but is soon forgotten. After all, when you glance at your watch to tell the time you’re looking at the hands, and when they are pointing in the direction of the scuff it’s actually covered up! The Siena strap suits the watch perfectly and makes it feel even more special. Having an automatic movement is something of a mixed blessing. Yes, I don’t have to wind it every day but in a strange way I miss not having to do it. I suppose I’ve got used to this ritual with my other two watches. Having said that, not wearing it for three days has meant a quick wind to get it going again. So it joins my other two Omega vintage watches. I have found Alex and Adam to be very helpful whenever I’ve enquired about a possible purchase. Living a long distance from Ludlow it would be impractical for me to visit but a combination of the website pictures, video and description is enough for an initial interest and this can be combined with an email or telephone conversation. It boils down to a matter of trust, something sadly lacking in many commercial transactions these days. Black Bough has achieved what every modern shop should be: a physical presence in a town combined with online and email access as well as being able to talk to someone over the phone. I’m sure I’ll be back again.”