IWC cal 853

Hi.

I'm considering buying my first vintage IWC watch, and have been looking at this cal. 853. As far as I can tell the serial number dates it to 1958. I really love the clean design and the dauphine hands, but I am not too experienced in assessing a watch from photos, so any thoughts on the state of the dial, movement or anything else would be greatly appreciated.
The opened case looks a bit dirty around the edges. Should that be a concern? 

By the way, in addition to the leather strap, it comes with a IWC steel bracelet. Any idea if that might be original to the watch or a later addition?

Thanks.

Cal. 853 belongs to the series developped from cal. 85 by Albert Pellaton at IWC(cal. 852,853, 854 8541, 8541B). The legendary Ingenieur vintage line used this caliber in many watches. The dirt (also on the lid) should be no problem for a skilled watchmaker who uses an ultrasound cleaning unit.
The steel bracelet is most probably an original "bead of rice" steel bracelet made by Gay Frères and used for cal 853 Ingenieurs and Yacht Clubs.
If so, it is a much sought after collectors item.
Regards,
Adrian,
(alwaysiwc).

Thanks for your reply.

I guess I am not worried about the dirt on the case as such, but more for what it might tell about how the watch has generally been taken care of.

Interesting information about the bracelet. I was inclined to think it might an unoriginal bracelet with a logo clasp added to it. I'll try to see if I can get some additional pictures.

Hi Mikkell,
it is hard to judge a watch from pictures only, but here are my musings.
First, the "dirt" on the rim of the caseback is from my experience more corrosion of the caseback. That is not untypical for IWC cases of that era, in that  time the cases where made from Steel that has some sulfur in it to make the material more machineable. So if you can take a closer look and see that the material looks more corroded (matreial is etched away) than this could be a plroblem. The rest of the case seems to be in good condition, but if the "dirt" is really corrosion, that this is not matching with the condition of the rest of the watch. I would say that the case has been polished to remove scratches and marks. The movement shows some scratch marks on the base plate at the circumference of the rotor, that is often the case when the bearing or the rotor axis is worn out. The dail has quite some patina, which is also very common for an IWC of that age.

br
Cromagnonman

Great info. Thanks a lot. I did wonder a bit about what those marks on the base plate might be...

I guess it is a bit of a gamble. Can't quite decide if it's a gamble worth the 850 usd it is listed at (not including customs charges)

By the way, is there a hierarchy amongst the Pellaton movements. Looking at these watches for a little while now, I've seem to find the 853 is generally less expensive than the 852 or 854. Any reason for this?