Omega seamaster crystal removal

[Samspeed87]

Hi all, 

I have recently had the pleasure of working on my first omega, I am at the start of the restoration and am struggling to remove the crystal, is this glued in? The case is a 166.002 with a calibre 565 movement

any tips or help would be much appreciated

[RichardHarris123]

What methods have you tried so far? 

[Samspeed87]

So far I have only tried to push the crystal out with my thumbs but even with a good amount of pressure is doesn’t want to move, I did also think this could have a tensioner ring and it’s not something I have encountered before

[VWatchie]

You should be able to see if it has a tension ring if you look at it from the inside. If it doesn't have a tension ring you should be able to push it out with your thumbs, but as you can't do that I would say it has a tension ring. So, you will need a crystal press to get it out and back in. This could be a good option if you don't have one and are on a budget. I don't have it myself but I'm considering getting one as I'd like a bit more control than I have with my Bergeon 5500 which I demonstrate in this video.

[Samspeed87]

I had a feeling that could be the case I hadn’t worked with one before and tbh the inside of the case needs a good clean so I couldn’t really tell if it had a tension ring, good thing I have the press so I will give that a go later today thank you

[JohnR725]

11 hours ago, Samspeed87 said:

166.002

Omega case numbers are interesting because they referred to more of a style of the case then the material it's made out of. Then numbers have also been revised so that your number is actually 166.0020. Then at the link below you can find the casing information I snipped out an image the first one is 18 karat gold with the indication of a ring. The second case that are not snipping out apparently is pink gold and once again it's a ring and the letters are different indicating that the internal ring color would be different.Then I just picked the last one look at stainless steel and once again the letters are different indicating stainless steel ring so your Crystal has a ring which is why you can't easily push it out by hand.

 

https://www.cousinsuk.com/document/search?SearchString=166.002

 

 

[Samspeed87]

Thank you all for the advice, I used my crystal press and there is a tension ring, the crystal came out whole so I can double check all measurements and get a new one on order, always nice to learn something new in this hobby