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Watch of Today


mk3

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Wearing my Invicta Quartz Pro Diver today. One of the few Invicta's that aren't gaudy and pretentious or enormously oversized. This is also 1 of the only 3 quartz based watches I own. On a side note, I also carry a pocket watch every day. This is my only Waltham. It is a model 1883 made in the last half of 1892. This was my very first 18s watch. 

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I have a pro diver I rescued  from  a thrift shop. It required  a new movement  and crystal. I considered  the investment  worthwhile. It's  actually  a decent  watch  which only  lacks a screw down crown. Be careful  when cleaning  that dial! The letters  are not glued on well..I now own  an.      IN  C A. The daily  watch today is what I believe  to be a piquette  antichoc..the previous  owner obliterated  the logos. It  is running  a lorsa p72a. Be careful  when  working  on these. The hair springs are delicate. Don't let the balance  wheel  dangle. You WILL mangle  the hairspring..Dont ask me how I know. 

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Speaking of mangling hairsprings, I was timing an Invicta NH35 I got from a pawn shop and my tool slipped and I ended up creating an awesome 90° bend in the hair spring. :startle:Thankfully it was only $5. I still have yet to order a new complete balance, it's on my to do list, lol.

Handsome watch @yankeedog! I've had my eye on a Russian Kirovskie that has similar indices. I should grab one.

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Well  my Florida brother. I hate to burst your bubble, BUT. Your pro diver  may or may not have a swiss  movement..most likely  it is a ronda 515...which may or may not  have come from Thailand. Ronda,a swiss  company  outsources there.some 515s are swiss,some are Thai. With invicta  it is really  the luck  of the draw. I like  your kirovskie  idea. Just be aware that that watch is not shock  protected..so you can NEVER  drop it.A quick  look  at them online reveals  a movement  that I think is a poljot  2409 with  without  shock protection...these movements  run well  for  a very long time. A have a few that  came in cheapo sixties  watches,that  run as well  or better  than  my cheapo swiss  watches of  the same era.

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Today I'm wearing my Accutron Hummer. It is a 1974 218D. This is technically a resto-mod as I sourced the movement, case, dial and hands separately though they are all period correct. The strap is a super comfy aftermarket leather one with a butterfly clasp. It's a bit finicky to keep consistantly running. It definitely needs a proper service by an experienced Accutron person. It will randomly stop humming and it takes several taps on the side of the case to get it started again. I have an Omega Hummer on layaway that I should have in my possession by December, I'll be sure to share that too.

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Very true @yankeedog. I have an Elgin pocket watch from 1869. Elgin was founded as the National Watch Company in 1867. The dial is pre Elgin. It's a low serial number, under 38,000 if memory serves. It was a wreck when I got it. Bad balance, missing both banking pins, no hour wheel, no dial, no hands and naturally, no case. I was able to source all the missing parts minus one banking pin. I had a sliver swing out case with a unique inlaid grizzly bear walking along train tracks that had a broken winding stem. I felt that was the proper case for it. Both had character and told a story. It runs strong and doesn't miss a beat. No one irl but me knows the story behind the watch and the time and effort involved. It is a source of inner pride as I'm sure most of us feel when we resurrect and restore a watch in poor condition.

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2 minutes ago, yankeedog said:

Nice work..pity about those  old watches  with their cases scrapped  for  the metal. It is also  a testament  to the standard  of manufacturing  involved  that such things can be done. 

Standard is absolutely the key! Because american pocket watch manufacturers pioneered standardization, all the parts from one model will fit perfectly into any other watch from that same model. I have an English Fusee with a Massey lever escapement that dates to 1827. All the parts were hand fit. It's nearly impossible to find a part that just drops in perfectly. I'm not in a place skill and tool wise, where I can confidently hand fabricate components yet. Honestly, not sure I'd want to tackle something of that magnitude.

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The '77 Marlin that had taken a bit of a licking,  with the hands rattling about in the case arrived, and got the full strip and clean treatment.

The hands were a bit chipped, so they also got freshened up, and the case pox was addressed to some degree.

It is now running on a fresh from the packet Chinese "Real Leather" band, and looking, if not quite factory fresh, then at least clean and wholesome once more. 

The day/date mechanism works fine. Day and date issues can be a problem on some of these old Timexes, but this one appears to be good.

Another loud ticker joins the 404 club.

Edited by AndyHull
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A 25 Rubis Incabloc "Orfilux Automatic" brought back from the scrap heap is today's "Watch of today".

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I'm in too minds about those hands. I know that the moment I touch them, the lume will fall out, and removing the rust will no doubt leave little pits and in all probability make them look worse, but the OCD pixies are also muttering in my ear.

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I've decided to leave them well alone for the time being.

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Another 404 club member. You can hardly fault a smart little 25 jewel automatic  watch for the cost of a loaf of Hovis Soft white bread from the local supermarket.

Edited by AndyHull
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48 minutes ago, yankeedog said:

 You could just order new hands, I think the dial warrants it.

I'm toying with that idea. I think I'll see if I already have something that matches, if so, I'll prep those, then take a crack at cleaning up the originals.

The thing is otherwise almost immaculate. It has a very attractive Felsa 790 series automatic movement, with buttery smooth winding. This same high quality Felsa movements are alleged to have been used in the Breitling Bydinator series among others.

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This is about as close to a genuine Breitling as you are likely to ever get for just over a quid. :D

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I'll wear it for 24hrs and see if I can get it within a couple of second a day.

Edited by AndyHull
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4 hours ago, yankeedog said:

It seems to me that British Timex dials hold up pretty well.

I have had a couple of tabs break off on me, but they are generally pretty robust. I don't know how many times you would get away with removing and refitting them before the tabs were almost certain to break, but I suspect that number would be in the single digits, maybe half a dozen or less.

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18 hours ago, yankeedog said:

It seems to me that British Timex dials hold up pretty well.

The dial on this 404 club member, UFO cased M27 Timex Marin from 1974 (27851 02774) certainly seems to be still hanging on to its youthful good looks. RIMG0277.thumb.JPG.7e217e8a68daa3b746074799ea02f4ec.JPG

It is not exactly slim line, but I guess you could also say the same about me. :P

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This is where the fun starts. The dial is the least of your worries. ;)

Edited by AndyHull
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Not on the wrist but just arrived for the scavenging of the movement to transfer to a tasteful Seiko chrono.

A humongous DIADORA............  fashion thing, with DIADORA in BIG LETTERS on the side in case you didn't notice what the fashion brand is, lovely G10 too to make it a bit more subtle.

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