Doxa Serial Numbers
Omega placed the year of manufacture of a particular batch of cases right after the reference number in Speedmasters. For Doxa, the first two digits of the case serial number mark the year (only for watches made between 1940 and 1965).
The nice thing about having a lug width of 20mm is that there is no shortage of alternative bracelets available for the Grafic. I just happened to have a spare 3mm thick mesh bracelet in the watch drawer and I think it is a match made in heaven. The mesh bracelet gives the Grafic more of a heft to it and I think the styling compliments the Bauhaus avant-garde look of the Grafic case. There is no question about it. The Doxa Grafic is a stylish watch. It is so completely different to the SUB series of dive watches that people may have a hard time believing that it is a Doxa. There is just something about it that grows on you and even a staunch, big, mechanical watch guy like me has to admit that I like it.
The warranty card must bear the model number and the serial number of the watch, exact date of purchase and the chop of the authorized DOXA retailer. This warranty does not cover the case, crystal, bracelet or strap, buckle or clasp or any damages caused by accident, mishandling, negligence or improper use as well as normal wear and tear or aging. Any repair or maintenance work carried out by unauthorized persons shall also automatically make this warranty null and void. Looking at the table of Waltham serial numbers (see example below), you can see that number 20,900,000 was made in 1917 and 21,800,000 was made in 1918 (marked in red in the table below). Since your serial number falls between those two numbers, you know that your watch was made in 1917 or 1918.
Yeah, sorry, the photograph misled me. What I figured on was that, although small by today's standards (34mm), it wears large as the lug-to-lug distance is quite large. Regarding the orange diver Doxa.
BUYING A VINTAGE DOXA SUB © Dr. Peter McClean Millar - June 2008 There are two main questions I get asked all the time - where can I buy a vintage SUB and how much should I pay for it? The stock answer for the first one is check ebay and the various sales forums including the one I set up primarily for selling and trading Doxa watches.
Can you still see the serial numbers on the back. Worse still would be if the sailing ship logo or Synchron logo was almost polished away. Probably the most important thing to consider in any vintage Doxa SUB is the condition of the bezel. It is the part that takes most of the knocks and unfortunately it is also the part that is virtually irreplaceable. Over the production life of the SUB 300T, Doxa manufactured several different cases which varied in thickness.
If one ever does turn up for sale it will undoubtedly break all records for a vintage SUB. I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for one though. There was also supposed to be a yellow dial T-Graph Divingstar, but again, none have ever been seen. The two famous people SUBs would have to be Clive Cussler's 300T and Gene Cernan's T-Graph.
This model Rolex has been manufactured over multiple years, and it is not possible to date your watch based purely on is model number. However, it is possible to date most Rolexes based on their serial numbers, which can be found stamped between the lower lugs (i.e., the lugs below 6:00 on the watch dial). You will need to remove the band from these lugs to read the serial number. Dating the watch case of a Rolex does not necessarily date the entire watch. It is possible that a movement from another watch was placed into a watch case that is younger or older than the the movement. Like Rolex watch cases, Rolex movements can also be dated by their serial numbers, if this is a concern you have about this particular watch.
It is one of the Aubry period 600T models with the NoDeCo bezel insert. It looks great on the original bracelet. Actually, talking about bracelets reminds me that a functioning original bracelet can add 200 Dollars to the price of a vintage SUB. The bracelets are in even shorter supply than the watches themselves and are a definite bonus for those people who want their vintage watch to be as close to original as possible. I mentioned earlier that I would talk about redialing, well the best thing to do is show an example. The above dial is from a 'scrumper' I bought. Case was in pretty good condition but needed a fair amount of work on it and the bezel.
On the inside of the cover we find on this watch, the logo AWco and K18. This tells us the case was made by the American Waltham Co. And it is made of 18 carat solid gold. The serial number on the CASE DOES NOT GIVE ANY MORE INFORMATION. So now in this example, you know you have a Waltham Riverside 18K gold hunting case pocket watch made in 1886.
Use the movement serial number. Do NOT use the case serial number!
There is a basic generalization in life which states that the rarer something is the more it is going to cost. Well that pretty much holds true for the vintage SUBs.
The vintage ones were brushed. I used a Sector bracelet after grinding the SELs to fit and removing the name of the clasp. I liked the look of the orange minute hand and sweep hand so I never painted them black. It turned out great and is my daily wear now. Almost 40 years old and basically rejuvenated.
Doxa Wrist Watch Serial Numbers
Collection can be found here.
Obviously corrosion is a big red flag and will only occur if moisture has gotten into the watch. So look at the condition of the rotor which is the largest surface you will see. Look also for signs of corrosion on the retaining ring.
Other than the movement I can do pretty much everything else myself so reluming hands, swapping movements and crystals and finishing the case and bezel is fairly easy and enjoyable. However, not everyone either has the confidence or time to do it themselves so it will cost maybe 300 - 400 Dollars over the asking price to bring the watch up to a condition similar to the SUB 300T Searambler shown above. It is still possible to pick up great examples of vintage SUBs. The one shown above was relatively inexpensive.
The other class of SUB which is also both very rare and sought after is the ladies 200. They were produced in the same colours as the 300T: orange Coralline, black Seamaid and silver Nymph.
I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for one though. There was also supposed to be a yellow dial T-Graph Divingstar, but again, none have ever been seen. The two famous people SUBs would have to be Clive Cussler's 300T and Gene Cernan's T-Graph. I think we can forget about owning Cussler's SUB but the Cernan T-Graph has changed owner several times in the last few years. Prototypes are even rarer, but they do turn up. The SUB 500 is a classic example of a watch that the designers thought was a good idea at the time but never saw the light of day. Note the wedge shaped case.
The one shown above was relatively inexpensive. It had been serviced by Doxa and looks like it is brand new.
• J.E., Rancho Mirage, CA, DOXA SUB5000T Caribbean Just a short note to say that my Sub 5000T (68/5000) arrived in tact. It is an amazing watch and I could not be more satisfied. Special pricing made it possible sooner than I thought, and I believe I got a true bargain in a dive watch recognized around the world.
Doxa Pocket Watch Serial Numbers
For anyone interested in a further review of the Seiko SKX781, then I suggest you take a look at an incredibly detailed disection. I recommend this to anyone as both a superb piece of writing and a tremendously informative review.
The SUB 500 is a classic example of a watch that the designers thought was a good idea at the time but never saw the light of day. Note the wedge shaped case.
Without doubt the SUB 300 (no T) is exceedingly rare and those that are in good shape probably number in the tens if even that. It is without doubt that the orange dial SUB Professional was produced in the most numbers. It is considered that the black dial Sharkhunter is next, followed by the silver Searambler and finally the yellow dial Divingstar.
Note the wedge shaped case. The other class of SUB which is also both very rare and sought after is the ladies 200. They were produced in the same colours as the 300T: orange Coralline, black Seamaid and silver Nymph. A yellow dial SUB 200 was never made.
About 18 months ago I gave up the ratrace and went back to school, so money wasn't as abundant as it was before. This limited my budget somewhat. I had always liked Seiko diver watches and I had a 25 year old Seiko chronograph which still keeps good time so after a lot of lurking on the different watch forums, I decided on the Seiko SKX781. This watch is affectionately known as the 'Orange Monster' by its owners. It's a big heavy brute of a watch with a bright orange face and amazingly bright luminous markers.
There was a concern that the supplied screwdrivers were of poor quality, however, I prefer to believe that it is just that the screws have been overly tightened and the channel in the head isn't deep enough for the screwdriver to get a good purchase and impart enough torque before shearing the edges of the screw head. I had to remove 3 links on my bracelet and only had a problem with one screw. The collared pins on the Seiko were a little bit 'fiddly' and I had to be careful not to lose the collars.
What I'll try to do in this essay is to provide a few pointers to what to look for and what to avoid. Hopefully this will allow people to make informed judgments when trying to put a price on a vintage SUB. OK first things first. There is a basic generalization in life which states that the rarer something is the more it is going to cost.
The other class of SUB which is also both very rare and sought after is the ladies 200. They were produced in the same colours as the 300T: orange Coralline, black Seamaid and silver Nymph. A yellow dial SUB 200 was never made. OK so you have just seen a vintage SUB 300T for sale and you are interested in it, what should you be looking for or what questions do you need to ask? Rather than show images of half destroyed SUBs to illustrate the points, I'll show images of pristine watches.
Many watch companies made hundreds of thousands of watches, and some companies made millions of watches! It would be impractical to list the individual serial numbers of EVERY watch made. That would make some really long pages! Our serial number tables list RANGES of serial numbers. So to determine when your watch was manufactured, you will need to find where your serial number fits within the range of numbers. Serial number look-up example: Let's say you have a Waltham watch with serial number 21,607,210 as shown in the photo below. Free book download. Note that we're using the serial number from the watch movement, not from the watch case.
The dial could be redone and I'll show one later, but the worry is that the movement could be shagged and there may be other corrosion in the case. Most sellers are unlikely to open the watch and show the dial and hands like in the photo above, but if possible try to get a close up of the dial. The paint on the dial of a 30 - 40 year old watch will have oxidized considerably, so will the luminous material (most likely Tritium). Silver dials are more problematic as they seem to show 'age spots'. This is caused by the particles of 'silver' oxidising more in some areas than others. I have found that on the vintage watches I have bought that a very light brushing with a cotton bud will remove a great deal of oxide and 'grime' from the dial and luminous markers.
• Dean, Alberta, Canada, 2006 SUB750T Clive Cussler Professional Edition 4504/5000 Thank you for a brilliant time piece. The watch looks a million times better in person than in the spectacular photos on the official forum and on the website (which are what sold me in the first place). This watch is unquestionably one of the finest watches I have ever purchased. I am very, very glad I bought this watch. Doxa's quick turnaround and prompt responses to all of my queries was also much appreciated. I normally hate waiting for things, but like a very few select other parts of my life this watch was well worth the 4 day wait.
So if you are thinking of buying a vintage SUB and the bezel is trashed, consider that you may have to live with it in that condition. If the bezel has minor scratches and has never been worked on then it can easily be polished to remove all but the deepest scratches. The numbers can be repainted using model aircraft paint. Probably the next most important things are the seal groove and the stem tube. Some of the SUB crowns were screw down others weren't.
$DOXA Giant Pocket Watch Up for auction is a Size 30s DOXA Pocket Watch in a open face Nickel case depicting a hunting scene on the back. The case is a DOXA case which is marked on the inside of the outer cover 'Metal Argentan Depose'. This means the case is made of Nickel Silver or 'German Silver'. On the outside of the inner dust cover it is marked 'Medaille D'Or Milan 1906 DOXA Hors Concours Liege 1905'. This roughly translates to 'Gold Medal Milan in 1906, DOXA Out of competition 1905' DOXA won the Gold medal in Milan for their watches and was honored in Liege, Belgium in 1905 for their craftsmanship. The outer case depicts a great hunting scene, a man is seen kneeling and aiming his rifle. His hunting dog is seen by his side and ready to retrieve his masters game.
Doxa Serial Number List
About a month or so ago I came upon the Official Doxa Forum on and found out that Doxa had released a limited run of 1000 watches for the SUB 300T Professional and a similar number for a Clive Cussler inspired Seahunter. I liked the Professional more than the Seahunter because it just seemed closer to the original watch I had seen all those years ago. There were 10 left and I wanted one but $949 was just too much money to spend on a watch.
How does the caseback look? Are there a number of scores and tool marks indicating that the watch has been opened a number of times by someone with the skills of a Cro-Magnon man? Can you still see the serial numbers on the back. Worse still would be if the sailing ship logo or Synchron logo was almost polished away. Probably the most important thing to consider in any vintage Doxa SUB is the condition of the bezel.
This is an example only. Your movement serial number may not be in exactly the same location as the one in the photo, but you are looking for the serial number that is on the watch mechanism itself. Not the serial number on the external case.
The caseback is a press fit and has etched lettering: DOXA - water resistant followed by two serial numbers. The crown is also signed with the Doxa 'double D' logo.
Using The watch on the left above: 1. In this pocket watch we see A.W.W.Co. Riverside Waltham, Mass. This identifies the watch as being made by the American Waltham Watch Co. The grade of the watch is a Riverside. The movement has been adjusted. The serial number (3097487) allows you to date this watch.