How much does Significant Polishing Decrease the Value of a Vintage Watch?

[jonthefisher]

I have seen several vintage Tudor Subs for sale that have significantly polished lugs, in some close to the springbar holes. How much does this typically decrease the value of a watch compared to an example with a lightly or unpolished case, assuming the rest of the watch is in good condition?

Some examples, pictures are not mine and are from the web:

[Dan S]

It decreases the value on a sliding scale by hundreds to thousands, depending on the watch and on the extent and type of polishing. Nobody can give you a formula, but with experience you will get a sense of it. More importantly, you will decide how much polishing you can personally tolerate.

Of course, many people are having cases refinished these days, so that's also something to consider. Some buyers are perfectly happy to do that, while some purists continue to seek out cases that haven't been refinished.

There's no simple answer, just personal decisions to make.

[brandrea]

By the looks of it, there isn’t much polish life left in those examples

[Tools]

There isn't a magic formula for determining "value". In the used market a watch is worth what a willing buyer will spend. If the watch is rare, it won't affect value at all; if it is easily available it could be a bargaining point, but still, another buyer may not see an issue the same as you.

[jonthefisher]

I understand the price is market driven but I haven't really found any comps for the watch I am looking at, see below.

I am asking because a local shop (non-AD) has a recently serviced by a RSC (with service receipt) Tudor 9411 that has a new service dial (SWISS MADE, no "T"s on the dial), hands and insert, all with Luminova. The case was heavily polished by the RSC like the cases above. I am thinking about selling my Black Bay and getting this for daily wear instead. They usually don't get vintage pieces in and when they do they usually are motivated to sell them. In 2023 I bought a 34mm Prince Date from the shop for a great price after making an offer to the owner who basically just wanted it gone.

[Dan S]

If they are motivated, maybe you can just make them a lowball offer with the idea that you might spend up to another $1k in having the case refinished, including laser welding additional material. Keep in mind that the luminova service dial greatly diminishes the collectible value of the watch as well. So deduct 40% of the market value of a good example, then take off another $1k.

[jonthefisher]

Thanks, that's what I was going to do, start low. Also gives me an idea of what I am going to offer.

I will probably not get the case laser welded unless it needs to be serviced/polished at which point there might not be enough "meat" there to work with.