1923 Ladies Decagon

Long before there were men's wrist watches there were ladies wrist watches.  Men of distinction would wear a pocket watch.  I guess the trenches of WWI proved that real men could wear wrist watches and by the early 1920s you could find men's and ladies models in Hamilton's line up.

Ladies watches came in two forms, the earliest being essentially small open-faced 6/0 sized pocket watches on a chain bracelet.  The other were 6/0 movements without a second hand in a case that would be outfitted with a silk ribbon strap.  It's very unusual to come by an original strap with its original buckle (findings).  You'll see them on rare occasions but they are always in tatters.

The cases for Ladies models with ribbon straps were highly engraved.  The also came in different shapes... round tonneau, cushion, and 10 sided decagons.  Cases were offered in solid gold and gold filled.  You had lot to choose from!  

My project watch dates to 1923, 101 years old.  Looking at the loops for the strap, there have obviously been some repairs.  However, there's not a lot of case wear, considering it's a gold filled case.

The trick with these three-piece cases is to find the right spot to slip a case knife in to remove the back and the front bezel.  This case back has a clue to which corner, as it's a bit chewed up from prior openings.

Tucked inside the case is a 17 jewel 986 movement.  This watch is fully wound but not running.  There's no obvious issue, like a wobbly balance, so hopefully a good cleaning is all that is needed.  We'll see.

This caliber shares a lot of parts with what would soon be introduced as the 987 movement, but it would be a few more years for the 987 to be hit the catalogs.  Notice the case back has a hole in one of the corners - this hole aligns with a post in the case and helps you align the 10 sides when you press it together.

The mainspring inside is an old blue steel design.  I have no doubt that it will be "set" in a coil and need to be replaced.

Sure enough, not only is it a tight coil, notice it isn't flat - this is a sign that it was installed by hand.  That's a very tedious process and a mainspring winding tool is a much better process.   This mains also has a Swiss-style brace at the outer end.  In order to use this spring, a small metal rod was installed in the barrel, to catch the brace and keep the spring from spinning.  This isn't a proper Hamilton mainspring with a T end, so I'll replace it for sure.

Everything gets cleaned and dried.  I installed a fresh white alloy mainspring for a 987 movement.  It should be okay as the 986 shares the same mainspring as a 987.

Although my camera has frozen the motion in time, the movement is now ticking away with a good motion.  Let's see what the timer has to say.

Hmmm... something is making extra noise inside.  The timer listens to the ticking and discerns how it's running.  It's picking up extra noise and it could be the hairspring is rubbing the center wheel or there's a piece of dust inside.  It doesn't take much to send the timing off.

It took some tweaking but I got the hairspring to run cleanly.  The amplitude is great, the beat error is a little high.  The two lines are little wobbly.  It could be one of the wheels is a little worn or bent - after 100 years a lot can happen to a watch.  It would take some detailed analysis to find the issue.  The beat error could be reduced if I had the cajones to try.  Balances from this era of watches have no forgiveness and are extremely easy to goof up.  As they say in every Star Wars movie - "I've got a bad feeling about this" and I'm going to listen to my inner voice and let sleeping dogs lie.  This beat error isn't ridiculously high so I don't feel bad leaving it as is.

The cleaned case is bright and shiny so this 100 year old watch looks fantastic.  I was unable to bend the lug loops... whatever material was used to repair them is definitely solid.  A jeweler could probably straighten them and prep them for a new strap.

1959 Thin-o-matic T-450

I've often been asked what my favorite model is, and that's a difficult question to answer.  There are so many to choose from.  I've also been asked if I have a favorite movement to work on.  That's also a difficult question to answer.

It's easier to answer the converse question, do I have a least favorite?  In that context, my least favorite movements are the second generation micro-rotor calibers used in the Thin-o-matic models in the late 1960s and 1970s.  Those are the silver-colored microrotors.  They're quality movements but they have an offset center wheel and often suffer from a loose arbor that makes the hands appear to slowly even though the movement is keeping accurate time.

My second least favorite movements are the first generation micro-rotors that are pink.  They're also quality movements, they just have a gazillion small parts to keep track of and once they're assembled they sounds a little "crunchy" when they wind.  Just the nature of the beast I suppose but I much prefer the manual winding movements or the ETA automatics.

I don't dislike the pink micro-roters enough to turn them down when they're in need of restoration.  They usually power large, but thin, models and they make for great dress watches.  They just take more time and patience to overhaul.

My most recent project watch is a 1959 Thin-o-matic T-450.  It was produced through 1963 but I don't think you find this model that frequently in the wild.  The 4 in 450 means it has a gold filled case and the 5 means it has a stainless steel back.  The 0 means it was the first Thin-o-matic with a gold filled case and stainless steel back.  Next in line would be the T-451, and T-452.  Those are the only Thin-o-matics with gold filled cases and stainless backs, other than the calendar models, and I haven't come across one of those yet.

My project watch arrived on a metal bracelet.  It's not the original bracelet but it's not too far off.  The one thing you'll immediately notice is the dial is askew.  The crown is missing and its safe to assume the stem is too, or the movement wouldn't have been able to rotate.  It looks like the hour hand has been rubbig the dial, based on the marks on the dial below the Hamilton logo.

The case back unscrews so the movement comes out of the back.  Sometimes the stainless steel back is integral to the bezel and the movement is a "front loader", but not on this model.

Neatly secured inside the case is the aptly numbered "beast" of a movement, the 666.  There are two movement retaining clips.  They don't appear to be properly placed though, which may be why the movement was loose enough to rotate.  At least they're there though.  Sometimes they get lost to time.

Sure enough, there is no stem inside the movement so it didn't break off, it simply came out.  The set lever screw might be loose or the set lever worn down.

In this photo you can see the rub marks from the hour hand.  I'll see if I can reduce them with a little wax polish.  I doubt it, but you never know.  The luminous paint on the hands the dial dots will be removed and replaced with modern luminous paint.

Close inspection reveals the tip of the set lever is missing.  I suspect it broke off somehow and could no longer hold the stem in place.

I have a donor movement that I can steal the set lever from, and any other parts that need replacement.  Notice the tip of this set lever comes to a point.

Everything is cleaned and dried.  The case back shows the tell-tale sign of a loose rotor.  I'll take  extra care to seat it more properly so it doesn't drag on the back.

The reassembled movement, without a rotor yet, is now ticking away and placed on the timer.

It's running a little fast but that an easy adjustment.  The amplitude is a little low but I haven't wound it up all the way.  Otherwise everything is looking good.

With a new crystal, crown, fresh lume and a polished up case and bracelet, this 60+ year old T-450 is ready for wrist time.  This is a good sized watch and would look fitting on a wrist even by today's standards.

1941 Barry

One of my favorite things about restoring watches is when someone contacts me with a family piece.  The story is almost always the same... "I found my grandfather's (or father's or even great grandfather's) watch in a box (or drawer, or pile of stuff) and I'd like to get it working again".  I think it's almost a universal story, including my own, for how people start to collect watches.

My least favorite thing is when someone contacts me with a family piece that they're looking to sell.  It always reminds me of the "Cats in the Cradle" song.  Someone's memory is being forgotten and perhaps they didn't do a good job creating memories worth keeping.  

It's a lesson for us all.

Anyway, I recently had an opportunity to restore family piece and I thought I'd share it with you.

It's a 1941 Hamilton Barry.  The Barry was introduced in 1941 and continued into 1946, with a slight disruption in between to fight a war.

The Barry came in a 14K gold filled case, with a sterling silver dial outfitted with solid 18K gold numerals.  It's distinctive by the raised humps that celebrate the lugs that attach to the strap.

My project watch looks like it might have fought a war.  It has a serious case of dial rash from missing it's crystal and the hands have corroded.  The hands are gilded over steel.  Eventually the gold wears off and the rust can take over.

I looked in my stash of project watches and came across a Barry with mismatched hands and also a Cedric.  The Cedric came out in 1950 and looks very similar to the Barry.  I can reuse the hands on my project watch and take the dial from the other Barry.

Clearly I'm walking in someone's footsteps here.  The movement inside is a 17 jewel 980.  The serial number dates to 1942 but the Barry should technically have a 19 jewel 982, since it has a 14K gold filled case.  The 10K gold filled models got the 980.

In addition, you may spot the balance cock has different damascening and gold enamel.  That means it's from a 982M movement... any easy way to replace a broken balance staff or balance jewel, or both.  This watch could tell some stories, I bet.

I'll prep a new glass crystal for installation while all the parts are in the ultrasonic.

Everything is cleaned and dried.  The watch already had a white alloy mainspring.  I grabbed a balance cock from another 980 movement so this watch is ready to be reassembled

The reassembled movement is ticking away with a good motion.  It looks like it should with a proper balance cock and is now bright and shiny.

Well, overall it's looking promising but the beat error of 4.2ms is a tad high for my preferences.  The beat error is a measure for how centered the balance is.  Ideally the balance is centered and will swing equally to one side and the other.  As the beat error increases, the balance swings more to one side and less to the other.  Eventually this will cause the watch to stop prematurely.  It's not uncommon to have to give a watch a little shake to get it running - that's a symptom of a slightly high beat error. 

Correcting the bear error requires removing the balance from the balance cock and adjusting the hairspring one direction or the other other, then reinstalling the balance and trying again.  Every attempt is a roll of the dice and tempts disaster.  I usually draw the line at 3.0ms but 4.2 is a little too high.  

On my first attempt, I chose poorly and went the wrong direction.  Now the beat error is 4.7.  Sometimes you get lucky but not this time.  I'll have to try again.

The third time proved to be the charm and I arrived at a more than acceptable 0.6ms result.  Now I can move on to the dial and hands.

The finished watch looks fantastic.  The dial is an old refinished dial but it looks very authentic and a better hands with a fresh glass crystal make this watch look like a very well maintained 80+ year old watch ought to look.  A new genuine lizard strap is icing on the cake and makes this watch wrist-worthy again.

I hope this family heirloom continues to get passed down to the next generations, just as it should be.

1964 Thinline 2005

1964 was an interesting year for Hamilton watches.  It was the only year that featured the M-series of men's models and there were a few one-year-wonders too.  The M-series was  made for several years but only 1964 featured them with the rest of the line.  

As for watches you'd only find in 1964, one of them is the Thinline 2005.

The Thinline 2005 was cased in solid 14K gold.  It's a unique in that it didn't have a second hand.  That's uncommon but not unheard of.  You could be forgiven if you feel sub second hands are over rated.  They are so small.  Without a second hand the dial is a cleaner, simpler design.  This simple design is even more apparent when the watch is super thin, like a Thinline model.

Being a one-year-wonder and cased solid gold, you don't come across the Thinline 2005 very often.  That's a little surprising though, I think it was bargain. Priced originally at $135 in 1964 is like being priced in at $1,300 in 2024.  Try finding a solid gold watch today for $1,300.

This is the first time I've seen one so it's a new model for the blog.  My project watch is in excellent condition, other than a slightly scratched dial.  The finish on the dial is very interesting.  A lot of dials have a brushed finish that radiates from the center outward, but this dial seems to radiate from the bottom upward and out.  My camera doesn't do it justice.

The caseback is super-flat and unremarkable other than the usual Hamilton markings.

This watch even came with its original Hamilton strap - although it's broken at the buckle and cannot be reused.  The Hamilton-branded buckle could be reused though - if you found a tapered strap to fit it.

Inside the case is a 17 jewel 687A movement.  The interior of the case has the usual Hamilton markings.  The number with the V is the serial number unique to this case.  The other number is the model number and the ending in 64 is a clue this model was introduced in 1964.  There are no other markings inside the case, so I may be the first person to see the inside of this watch in the last 60 years.

Everything is taken apart and thoroughly cleaned.  The crystal has been polished and should be okay to reuse.  Now to reassemble it with fresh lubrication.

I find that the Thinline movements almost reassemble themselves.  The short arbors for the gear train mean the bridges almost always line up on the first try.  Of course, you still need to be very careful but it didn't take too long to get the watch running again with a good motion.

Sure enough, the timer agrees.  This watch is running nicely.

A new genuine croc strap is a great finishing touch on this beautiful time piece.  It even has it's original box.