1964 Thin-o-matic T-412

Hamilton's line of Thin-o-matic models is an interesting model line.  Thin was in, in the 1960s and Hamilton produced watches with several different calibers of movements.

Most of the time the movement is a microrotor design produced by Buren.  In fact, Hamilton eventually purchased Buren and after production in Lancaster ceased in1969, Hamilton moved production to the Buren facility in Berne, Switzerland.

However, not all Thin-o-matics used Buren movements.  Some were made by ETA - the same company that made the Accumatic models.  In fact, all Hamilton models produced nowadays are based on ETA calibers - they're all part of the Swatch Group today.

I'm not sure how many Thin-o-matic models used ETA movements - that would be an interesting topic to explore.  I'd wager no more than 10%, perhaps less.  One of them is the 1964 T-412.  It was produced for three years.

The catalogs don't say so but it appears that the T412 was available with a metal mesh bracelet.  I've never seen on but the catalog shows some interesting details.

My project watch arrived sans bracelet.  It's fairly dirty but not really beat up so I think it should clean up nicely.

The case back has a classic pie-pan shape which indicates it has an ETA movement inside.  The single-piece case opens through the crystal and has a two-piece stem.

The movement inside is a Hamilton 623 with 17 jewels.  It has a strong family resemblance to other ETA movements of the day, like the 689 but it also looks a lot like ETA movements produced today.

 

With all the parts stripped from the main plate, you can see that the 623 is based on a caliber 73.  That's the Hamilton equivalent of an ETA 2520, in case you ever needed to find parts.

The crystal has some deep scratches so I'll replace it.  That will make a significant improvement.

A GS PHD (high dome) crystal in 28.3mm will do nicely.

All the parts, including the case, are cleaned and ready to be put back together.

The inside of the case back doesn't show any prior service marks.  I wonder if this watch has ever been serviced in the last 60 years?  The two numbers inside mean different things.  The R number is unique to this case and is relevant only to the case maker, Star Watch Case Co.  Presumably theres and -70 and a -72 out there somewhere but it all depends on how big the batch of cases for this model was.  Perhaps this was the last case in the run?  The other number is Hamilton's model number.  This number will be in all T-412 cases.  The last two digits represent the year the model was introduced - 1964.

The most difficult part of reassembling the movement is to get the four pivots of the train wheels to line uo so the train bridge falls in place.  No force is needed - when everything is aligned properly it wil goes together.  If it doesn't go together, then you have to fiddle with which ever wheel is out of alignment.  It can take some time and a LOT of patience.

The rest of the movements goes together very smoothly and once the mainspring is wound up a little the watch takes off ticking.

Nothing wrong with this timekeeping.  The amplitude is a little low but I haven't wound the movement up much.

The remainder of the automatic framework goes on next and the movement is ready for the dial and hands.

The finished watch looks fantastic, don't you think?  I would describe this case as "cushion-shaped".  Is it futuristic?  Maybe, if you consider the funky numerals and dial design.  However, Hamilton's first mens wrist watch was also cushion shaped - so it's a nice nod to Hamilton's watchmaking heritage.

1924 Hamilton 992 Railroad Watch

The Hamilton Watch Company was founded in 1892 with one purpose - to make the finest time pieces available in America in order to keep American railroads safe.  Railroads criss-crossed the country and typically trains moved both directions on the same line.  It was critical that trains kept to a strict time schedule in order to prevent two trains traveling opposite directions from colliding.

The accuracy required to keep railroads safe across the country was a daunting challenge.  A time standard had to be defined and everything aligned to it with a level of accuracy in terms of seconds per week!

Hamilton rose to meet that challenge and by the 1920s thousands of high quality pocket watches were produced each year.  It's one thing to create a single movement with such exceptional time keeping.  It's another thing to make thousands of watches, each with the same level of quality.  It was said that you could take 100 Hamilton movements, completely disassemble them, mix all the parts together, and reassemble 100 working movements.  That's saying something.

"Railroad grade" really depended on the railroad in question.  The requirements differed across railroads.  You had local transit systems and cross-country rail networks with no single definition.  Eventually a common standard evolved and it included several attributes such as... it needed to be 16 size or larger, it needed to be open-faced with the pendant at 12, it needed a minimum of 21 jewels (sometimes less but not less than 17), it needed to be certified accurate to within 30 seconds per week, etc. etc.

For the most part, the entry-level Railroad Grade watch for Hamilton was the 992, at least in 16 size.  The 940 was the most common 18 size movement.  The 992 was produced for decades starting in the early 1900s, with enhancements made over the years.

Back in the day, if you wanted to purchase a watch you would go to your local jewelry store.  Jewelers would carry an inventory of movements from different makers along with cases made by various case makers.  The customer could choose their movement and then their case and the jeweler would fit the two together for sale.  You could purchase a top of the line movement and put it in a base metal case or a 7 jewel movement and case it in solid 18K gold.  It was entirely up to the buyer - although railroad models had to meet certain requirements.

Typically, for older models you'll find cases with "warranties" for wearing through the gold layer based on years... so a 10 year warranty would have less gold than a 15 year warranty, which would have less gold than a 25 year warranty.  When the case is marked "permanent", then it's solid gold.  Eventually the jewelry standards for "gold filled" were established and the industry adopted the standard for pocket watches in cases marked 10K gold filled, 14K gold filled, or solid gold, and so on, including stainless steel.

Personally I think all pocket watches have a cool factor.  Although the utility of them is fairly limited today.  A lot of collectors focus on railroad-approved examples and you could spend a lot of time and money developing a well-curated collection of the various Hamilton examples.  However, Hamilton made beautiful dress pocket watches too.  So the sky is the limit if you really caught the pocket watch bug.

My project watch is actually a part of my personal collection.  I've had it for many years and I rarely use it.  However, the oil inside any mechanical watch eventually evaporates so even watches that have little to no use need to be serviced every few years if they're to be kept in running order.  I'm not sure how long I've had this example and I don't see my service mark inside so this may predate my ability to service watches.  

The case is 10K gold filled and was made by Keystone, another Pennsylvania company, like Hamilton.  The bezel is knurled so it's easier to unscrew to get to the set lever (another railroad requirement).  The dial is "double sunk" with three surfaces... one for the hours, the center, and another for the seconds register.  The dial is enamel and often presents with a chip or crack somewhere.  This dial is excellent.

The back of the watch is unremarkable.  It's not unusual to see an engraving but this one is untouched.  It also unscrews to reveal the movement inside.

The movement is nicely damascened and really sparkles in the light.  You can see the regulator for the balance has a goose neck micro-regulator - a railroad requirement.  The large center wheel is solid gold as are all the jewel settings!  The serial number of the movement dates the watch to 1924.

Out of curiosity I gave the watch a few winds to see what I'll be dealing with.  Looks like there shouldn't be any major issues.

This era of pocket watches are basically like giant wrist watch movements (or vice versa) so the process of disassembly, cleaning, and reassembly is the same - just all the parts are much larger.  Three dial feet screws on the side of the mainplate secure the dial in place.

With the dial out of the way you can see how the lever set mechanism works.  You slide the lever at 1:00 out and it moves the keyless works to the time setting position.  When you slide it back in, the watch goes back into winding position.  This setup prevents the movement from accidentally popping into time setting position... another railroad requirement.

With the mainspring let down, I can start to take the movement apart.

Everything is cleaned and dried.  Time to reassemble it with fresh lubricants.

The reassembled movement is ticking away with a good motion.  I'll use the case to wind it up and see how things are running.

Well, it's a little fast abut I can adjust it from here

Slowing it down is a job for the micro-regulator.  I can see if I can lower the beat error - that requires some finer adjustment.

Alright - that's about as good as I can do.  Every adjustment tempts fate and disaster can strike anytime.  So I'll leave it here and see how it runs.

It looks great - so it all goes back into the case.  Everything is bright and shiny now.

The finished watch is a superb example of a 100 year old fine timepiece - what a testament to the watchmakers who created it!

1961 Stormking VIII

I don't know the Hamilton lore behind the Stormking line of models but I'm sure there must be something to it.  There are 11 different Stormking models, starting with the Stormking I, II, III, IV and V in 1955 and ending with the Stormking X and XI in 1964.  

The Stormking line features all of the case materials from solid 18K through 14K, 10K, gold filled and even stainless steel.  There's a Stormking model for just about anyone.  However,  I've only come across eight so far, and this post marks number nine.  

Today's post is the 1961 Stormking VIII.  It was produced for only two years.  It was presented in a 10K solid gold case.

I don't believe it was available with a bracelet, just a large-time alligator strap.  It was not an inexpensive model, priced at $110 in 1961 is the equivalent of over $1,100 in today's currency.  Although you'd be hard pressed to find a solid gold watch new in a jewelry store today for $1,000.

My project watch is a nice example that shows good, honest wear.  The bracelet is made by Kreisler and has started to wear grooves in the lugs.  If a bracelet is not original to the model, I'm always in favor of replacing it with a fine strap.

The case back has a deep bowl and that's to make room for the 8/0 sized US-made 735 movement that's tucked inside.  This is a one-piece case so I'll pull the crown and crystal and the movement and dial should drop out the front.

As I suspected, the 735 movement powers the watch.  This is a shock-jeweled version of the 748 movement introduced in 1948.  In another year of two, the 735 would be replaced with the 736, essentially the same movement but with a new balance design.  The movement is held securely in place with a movement ring.  The movement ring holds the assembly in the case.

The rim of the bezel is a little banged up in the 11:00 region.  There are four or five watchmaker's marks inside the case indicating that the watch was pretty well maintained - at least for the first 20 years of it's 60 year life.

The crystal has a yellow reflector ring and the crystal is cracked - perhaps by the same incident that damaged the bezel.  Cracks can let moisture in so I will replace the crystal.

I find that GS Evr-Tite crystals are a great choice for models with reflector rings.  27.9mm should do the trick.

All the parts are disassembled and cleaned in the ultrasonic (except the dial).  Actually, they get three passes - one cleaning and two separate rinses.  Everything comes out nice and shiny.

Reassembling a 748, 735 or 736 movement is not for the faint of heart and definitely not for new, aspiring watchmakers.  Getting all four pivots aligned in the train bridge takes a gentle touch and lots of patience.

The balance goes back on and the watch is ticking away.  I haven't wound it very much since there's no crown attached but there's enough energy to get it going so I can check the timekeeping.

Ooof!  The beat error is too high at 5.6ms for me to let slide.  I had the same issue with the last blog post watch I did.  This will require removing the balance from the balance cock and then adjusting the hairspring.  Trial and error is the only recourse.

Getting warmer, I'm no at 3.3ms but I challenge myself to do better than 3.0 so I will tempt fate and make another adjustment.

Okay! I'm happy with 1.1 so I will call it good to go and now I can adjust the regulator to slow the ticking down slightly.

There - right on the money.  The amplitude of 167 doesn't bother me because I haven't wound the watch up fully yet.  I'm confident it will increase when I wind the watch up properly.

The finished watch looks a lot shinier than what I started with but the new crystal is a nice improvement.  Now the watch looks as good as it runs.

1954 Newton

 Hamilton began producing men's wrist watches over 100 years ago.  Initially you had very few choices other than case material.  With each passing decade the model line up grew larger and larger to the point that men of discerning taste had many different models to choose from.

If you're a Hamilton collector you could focus your attention on only one decade and still acquire an impressive collection - as long as it wasn't the 1910 decade.

I think it's interesting to note how automobiles changed over the same time period.  Cars from the 1930s are very different from the 1960s.  You could even argue cars from the 1950s are different than the 1960s.  You could say the same about watches.

A good example of very unique styling is the 1954 Newton.  It was produced for only two years.  It was presented on either a bracelet or a leather strap.  The bracelet included styling that matches the case extremely well.  I'm not really a bracelet-guy but I think when it comes to the Newton, the bracelet would be the way to go, as you'll see.

The Newton came in a 10K gold filled case.  The dial is sterling silver and has a quadrant-design where opposing corners are brushed in a different direction than the other two corners.  So the dial looks different depending upon how the light hits it.  The dial also features 18K solid gold numerals and markers.  It's interesting to note that the 1954 catalog ad doesn't show any numerals in the 12 position and the 1955 catalog doesn't either.

My project watch arrived in typical condition, without a strap or a bracelet.  It's in decent condition and the high points on the case don't look too worn through.  The cylinder crystal has done a good job protecting the case from wear.

With the bezel removed and the movement secured in the case back, you can start to see how the different quadrants reflect light.  The dial appears to be original and shows a bit of spotting here and there but nothing too dramatic or distracting.

Based on the timeframe, I would expect to see the Newton outfitted with either a 17 jewel 747 movement or the 730 movement that replaced it in 1955.  The two calibers are the same other than the addition of shock jewels to protect the balance on the 730... definitely a nice upgrade.  This watch features a 747 movement and it looks to be in good shape.

Looking inside the case back, it's pretty easy to identify the model if you were unsure.

Everything is taken apart and thoroughly cleaned in the ultrasonic cleaner.

If you look at my earliest blog posts and overhaul examples, I typically reassembled movements in the reverse order of taking them apart.  For example, if the balance comes off first, then it goes back on last.  I think that's generally a good process although I typically install the pallet fork after the train wheels are installed - as shown in the photo below.  This allows me to verify the train spins freely before installing the pallet fork.

There - the movement is back together and running, even if my camera has frozen it in time.  Let's see what the timer thinks.

Well, everything looks good except the beat error is a little high at 4.2ms.  The closer to zero the better but getting it dialed in on this movement is tricky and more trial and error.  I have to remove the balance from the balance cock, adjust the hairspring collet, then reinstall it and check the timing.

When the beat error is zero the two lines approach each other.  In the shot below, the two lines run closely together but they are as far apart and they can get and the beat error is 9.9ms.  This means I made the adjustment in the wrong direction.  I had a 50:50 chance and chose poorly.  At least I know which direction to go now.

Well... moving in the right direction.  My personal specs are anything below 3.0ms is "good enough".  A watch with a low beat error will run longer than a watch with a higher beat error but every attempt to make and adjustment also risks disaster.

Third try isn't necessarily the charm but it's now below 3.0 and I'm calling it good.  I really don't want to screw up a perfectly good balance in the pursuit of perfection.

The final watch is reassembled and looking good on a slightly narrow strap.  Hamilton lug widths were in standard units like 5/8" or 11/16", etc.  These translate to metric equivalents of 16m or 17.4mm.  In this case 17mm is a little narrow and an 18mm would be the better choice.  Of course, you could also try to find the original bracelet - I'm sure there's one out there somewhere.