Cairelli on the 'bay

LouS
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Heck, none of us did!

Zenith Cairelli CP-2, non-assigned, non-issued and all correct sold in open auction for USD8321.
 
MMMD
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Wow. Big price. Interesting how the lack of assignment/issuance markings doesn't seem to affect the price of Zenith's most iconic military piece... though you rarely find an issued example in such stellar condition.
 
dsio
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Oh wow, that thing looks clean as hell, almost looks wrong that a military watch has that much sparkle to it
 
MMMD
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dsio dsio
Oh wow, that thing looks clean as hell, almost looks wrong that a military watch has that much sparkle to it

Quite a few of the unissued ones look like that. LouS has a very sharp one that has clearly never encountered an F-104 canopy latch.
 
LouS
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MMMD MMMD
Quite a few of the unissued ones look like that. LouS has a very sharp one that has clearly never encountered an F-104 canopy latch.

...which is going in the safety deposit box after that sale

dsio dsio
Oh wow, that thing looks clean as hell, almost looks wrong that a military watch has that much sparkle to it


Ash, the story goes that il Signor Cairelli or the Italian military failed to make payment on the whole order, so a significant number were never delivered. This is supposed to account for the minty ones that surface without branch of service and issue numbers on the back.
 
LouS
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Here's what an issued caseback looks like (from an old sales listing on an italian forum - 3700Euros intrattabile in 2010 - *sigh*)

sam0624.jpg

compare this with a nonissued one...

$_57.JPG

and you see "A.Cairelli - Roma" where the issue number should be, suggesting it was the Italian military that failed to pay Sr. Cairelli, who then sold them to the civilian market with his name attached.
 
Gavin
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No wonder he did not accept my offer which I thought was more than fair. Looks like I am never able to get one of this. :(
 
LouS
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He didn't know the value either, other than it had to be between "high" and $9600, which is where some examples sit at BIN, since there hasn't been one of these sold in open auction in several years at least. I would have (and did, in private discussion) put the value at $6500 to $7000. Shows what I know.

I agree that an "end-It-Now" offer was a good way to play this one, Gavin - but this seller trusted in the EBay market.
 
U
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Andsan
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I was with and bidding but stopped at 610 GBP when I discovered that the chronograph not working as it should. It was an unusually high price which makes me think a bit. Is one produced in 1000 copies worth so much compared to one produced in 4000 copies?
 
speedbird
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citizenrich citizenrich
strange things are afoot in the watch world. I put a "goof" bid in on Rolex Explorer 2 (white dial which I love) and just won the auction @

$3,150 all-in from a well known auction house and the watch is an easy 94/95 out of 100.

I never see these explorers go for less than 3500. I didn't even really want it. uh-oh hahahaha

i agree. I learned my lesson with low-ball bids in the past. Once in a while I buy something I never thought I'd ever own. This holds true for "best offer " listings as well. Sometimes folks will accept your goofy, low-ball bid
 
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