1951 Emery

I think it's interesting how some models are harder to find than others.  Often its understandable... perhaps they were very expensive at the time or were only made for a short period of time.  Still, there are some fairly average-looking models that just don't seem to be plentiful today.  I guess there's something to be said for not being popular with buyers.

One of the models that I don't think you see all the time is the 1951 Emery.  It was made for two years.  I think it looks a lot like other models from the same period... so maybe it just wasn't popular with buyers.

The Emery came in a 14K gold filled case and featured solid 18K gold markers and numerals on a sterling silver dial.  Tucked inside is Hamilton's 8/0 sized 747 movement.

I recently received an Emery from another collector and you could probably describe the Emery as a "railroad watch" because this one was a bit of a train wreck, as you'll see below.

From the outside you can see that the crystal is shot and the crown sticks out from the side of the case by about a millimeter.

Without the crystal blocking the view, you can see the dial is very dirty but it might clean up.

The inside of case back has the model named stamped inside, along with a dozen or so past service marks.

Yikes... someone got inside of this watch and totally buggered up the hairspring.  It looks to be a tangled mess.  Sort of begs the question, what else is goofed up inside?

From this angle you should be able to see that the hairspring is a concentric coil.  This hairspring is anything but a coil.

I suppose if I had unlimited time, unlimited patience and a set of two very nice Dumont No 5 tweezers, I could work this hairspring back into shape.  Normally I lack the patience and the time though so this balance will have to be replaced.

While everything is in the cleaner I will prep a new glass crystal for installation.

Everything is cleaned and ready to be put back together.

My new balance appears to be working nicely.  The amplitude is a little lower than I typically like to see but I didn't replace the mainspring so I'll see how well the watch runs as is.

I think the dial cleaned up nicely and with a fresh crystal, this watch looks completely different.  I also shortened the stem a little so the crown is tighter to the side of the case.