1969 Mystery Model

 I think it's interesting to imagine day to day life in the Hamilton factory in 1969... especially if you worked at the company for a long time.

For example, in 1929 Hamilton produced 11 different wrist watch models, arguably more if you consider the variety of gold / gold filled types.  They also manufactured a myriad pocket watch movements and models as well.

By the end of the 1960s, the factory in Lancaster, Pa was turning out over 180 different models, with other plans on the way.  You can imagine the factory was a hectic place to work.

The Hamilton Watch Company was more than just watches though.  It had diversified into several areas and had acquired other companies along the way.  One of the companies acquired, Buren Watch Company, was the Swiss maker that manufactured the micro-rotor automatics and some of the manual movements used in the Thinline model line.  Hamilton executives decided to cease production efforts in Lancaster and move production to their Swiss factory.  This was the end of the golden era of watchmaking in the United States.

You know that wasn't a quick decision and I'm sure the impact within the factory, and within the surrounding Lancaster area, was profound.  That was a LOT of change to digest, no doubt.

One of the things you'd have to consider would be what to do with the significant inventory of work in progress from Lancaster that didn't make it into finished goods?  Surely, a good portion of inventory would be maintained to service and maintain existing customer sales, but that's more of a spare parts thing.  What about completed movements?

I think one of the prevailing theories is Hamilton created, or licensed, several uncatalogued models that utilized excess US-made inventory.  Probably the best known example of this is the Liberty Coin.

The Liberty Coin is well known and documented.  It was offered in solid gold as well as in an rolled gold plated case.  One of the many unique features of the Coin is there is no second hand.  However, another interesting point is the dial calls out the number of jewels in the movement - 22 jewels, indicating the 770 was used.  Referencing the number of jewels on the dial was not a common occurrence.

Over time I've come across a number of mysterious Hamilton models, like this one using a 736 movement that feature the number of jewels on the dial.  The cases are often marked Hamilton but lack the details that are typically included within the case - like "Hamilton Watch Co, Lancaster PA".

I recently came across another example.

Like the Coin, this watch says Hamilton 22 Jewels on the dial.  The dial is embossed (stamped), with a nice radial finish.  Oddly, the crown sticks out from the case like it wasn't fitted properly.  It looks like it's in the setting position but this is actually the winding position.

The back of the case says 14K Hamilton, and the font used for Hamilton is similar to other "mystery" watches I've seen.

This watch came in an authentic Hamilton box and is paired with a period-correct Hamilton strap.

The watch opens through the crystal so the first step is to separate the two-piece stem.  The female side is retained in the crown.  There's still some thread showing in the stem hub and the crown has a long tube, so I should be able to shorten the assembly to tuck the crown closer to the case.

I'm not sure what style I would describe the hour and minute hands, they're sort of a mixture of styles, but they match and that's all that's important.

The only 22 jewel men's movement was the 770 and that's what you'll find behind the dial and within a movement ring to secure the assembly in the case.

The inside of the case back is unremarkable, other than a serial number.  There's no case maker or even evidence of prior service marks.  Typically I'd expect to see at least "Hamilton Watch Company, Lancaster PA" or I'd suspect foul play - but this is typical of watches like the Liberty Coin, et al.

The 770 is an interesting caliber.  It's regarded as the best that Lancaster ever produced.  What I find interesting is over the 15 years that the movement was manufactured, the balance was changed.  Earlier movements used a traditional weighted balance and in the mid 1960s the balance design was changed to a weight-free Glucydur balance.  What's interesting is other movements made the same change - but thier calibers were also changed.  For example, the 730 movement became the 731, and the 735 movement became the 736.  Why wasn't the 770 movement renamed something like the 771?

While the parts are in the ultrasonic, I'll work on the crown.  The first step is to make sure the crown will actually sit closer to the case.  There's a lot that goes into selecting a crown, especially a waterproof crown.  It has to sit on the stem tube so the gasket will seal.  This one appears to sit fine, so it's really a matter of stem length.  Hopefully I can shorten it a little further.

Everything is ready to be reassembled.

Check out the underside of the Glucydyr balance.  It was dynamically poised at the factory with tiny amounts of material removed to ensure the wheel is perfectly balanced.

The reassembled movement is ticking away but the beat error is way out of spec.  I'll have to remove the balance and adjust the hairspring to better align the impulse jewel with the pallet fork.

Adjusting the beat error is tricky business, especially on a movement with a fixed hairspring stud.  I was able to get the beat error down to 2.5ms and that's within my personal specs of 3.0ms or less.  Every attempt risks disaster and I've learned over years of experience to quit while you're ahead.  Now I can tweak the beat rate down a smidgeon and get it closer or zero seconds per day.  The amplitude is fine, without a crown, I haven't wound the movement fully yet.

The reassembled watch is all cleaned up and looks as good as it did when it left the factory, or whatever body assembled all of these watches, when the factory closed up shop.  There's no production details for these types of watches but based on the scarcity of the Liberty Coin, I think this is a very rare Hamilton model.
 

1910 975 Pocketwatch

Just like dinosaurs once ruled the world, there was a time when pocket watches were the primary portable time keeper for the common man.  If you didn't have a pocket watch, you had to rely on a clock.

Hamilton was formed in 1892 with a singular purpose - to create the best pocket watches possible.

Of course, "best" is a relative measure so perhaps a better objective would be to be best compared to what any other manufacturer could make, when given the same objectives.

The objectives were not always singular.  Sometimes, like on a railroad, the need for accuracy over several days was the objective.  That's a difficult measure to achieve, and not all applications required that degree of accuracy. 

Another objective could be the quality of workmanship and maintainability.  That could include premium materials, like solid gold, or it could include sturdy structures like alloy steel.

Needless to say, the result was a broad array of movements at various price points.  However, the level of quality was so consistent that it was said you could disassemble 100 working movements of a given caliber, mix up all the parts, and then reassemble 100 working movements using all of the combined parts.  That's what enabled watchmakers from around the country to support the regular maintenance needs of the watch industry.

For men, in the early years Hamilton pocket watches came in two sizes... 18 size and 16 size, the latter being slightly smaller.  Size 16 was the minimum size to meet railroad requirements.

The entry-level 16 size pocket watch was the 974 in open faced configuration or the 975 for hunter cased use.  The 974 and 974 was produced from 1900 through 1924.

24 years was a long time and the movement evolved over the years so that not all 974 / 975s are identical.  However, for the most part the majority of the wear parts are the same.

I've had my project watch waiting in the wings for several years and I finally got a spare minute (or two) to service it.

An open faced configuration requires the 12 to be at the pendant position.  This would allow you to look at the hands and the position of the crown and have a relatively quick idea of what time it is.

A hunter cased configuration was typically installed in a clamshell case with a metal cover over the dial.  This type of design protected the crystal and the dial from damage when out in the field.  You'd activate lifting the cover by pressing the top of the crown with your thumb (like a stop watch) and when the cover lifted you'd see the dial with the 3 at the pendant position.  This led to hunter cased movements to sometimes be called "side winders", since the crown is on the side of the dial.

My project watch is cased in an open faced case.  It features a double sunk enamel dial.  That implies the dial has three levels, the outside steps down to center and the center steps down again into the seconds register.  The hands are a very narrow, whip design.

The case back screws on and has a place available for initials but is otherwise decoratively engraved.

Unscrewing the case back reveals the movement inside.  I can tell by the dull sheen of the jewel settings that it's been many years since this watch was cleaned.  I can also see that's it's missing a barrel bridge screw, but is otherwise complete.  The serial number dates this movement to 1910.

The crystal is held in place with a metal bezel that also screws onto the case.  With the bezel removed, you can see some old cracks in the enamel near the 10.  That's not too unusual with an 116 year old dial.  There are two case screws on the back that hold the movement in the case.  Once I remove them, the movement will lift out the front of the case.

The 975 movement is "negative set" which means the stem for winding and setting the time is retained in the case pendant.  The stem is square shaped and fits into similarly square shaped hole in the movement.  It pushes against a rod that presses against springs that move the keyless works from the setting position to the winding position.

One of the evolutions that occurred over time was the number of dial feet.  Originally four feet held the dial in place, like this dial.  Eventually one of the feet was dropped and only three dial feet were used.  This means that not all dials are interchangable.

Getting the movement into the movement holder, I can see the balance cock screw is standing proud of the bridge.  That means the missing screw is actually the balance cock screw and the screw shown would normally be for the open hole of the barrel bridge.  I'll have to look for a donor screw in my stash.

With the dial removed, you can see the keyless works that allows the pendant to set the time.  When not installed in the case, the springs shown hold the movement in the setting position.  You can see the clutch is up against the setting wheels.

Everything is disassembled and cleaned.  I like working on pocket watches, the parts are large and there's a lot of space inside to see what's going on.  They have their challenges, of course, but if you wanted to learn the fundamentals of how a watch works, a pocket watch is a good subject.

Everything gets put back into place with a little oil.  All of the appropriate screws are in their proper spaces.  At this point I can install the movement in the case and use the crown to wind the mainspring.  Then I can add the balance and the watch should start running.

Voila... with the balance in place the watch is now ticking away with a nice motion.  Notice the correct screw is sitting flush with the balance cock.

The movement is installed in the timer and the timer listens to the ticking... everything is looking promising.

A tweak here, a tweak there, and I eventually get the timing dialed in... good beat rate, good amplitude, good beat error.

The reassembled movement goes back into it's case and the watch looks pretty much like it did at the start - however, now it's clean, properly oiled, and running great.  Not bad for a 116 year old pocket watch.

1958 Carlyle, Coburn, or both?

 Somethings never change, I guess.  Way back in 2014 I restored a watch that I believed to be a 1958 Carlyle that turned out to be a Coburn.  It's easily confused because the two models have very similar designs and different dials, depending on the year.

In 1958 the Carlyle had a dial with 12 and 6 and markers in the other positions.

In 1959 the Carlyle was offered with the original dial as well as an all-numeral dial.

In it's final year, 1961, just the all numeral dial was offered - if it was available at all - the catalog says "sold out".

On the other hand, the 1958 Coburn was introduced, also with an embossed dial but with numerals in the even spaces and markers on the odd spaces.

Note the shape of the lugs... they appear longer than the Carlyle and look like the horns on a steer.

In 1960 the dial was changed to numerals at 12, 3, 6 and 9 as well as offered in white or a black.

This was the version that I found in 2014 and mistakenly identified as a Carlyle when it was, in fact, a 1960 Coburn.

And just for fun, here's the earlier 1958 Coburn...

My friend, Mark, at vintagehamilton.com has an all-numeral dial version of the Carlyle listed for sale... at least at the moment.  Note the shape of the lugs... they sort of swoop outward and appear a little shorter than a Coburn.

So here we go again... I've got a project watch with what would appear to be a Coburn case but possibly the Carlyle dial.  Well, it's got all numerals and the same font numerals, at that, but the dial is actually highly textured.  This is a detail that the catalogs sometimes omit - but Mark's all numeral Carlyle dial is not textured.

It turns out, Michael Harding at Timeperiodwatches.com  has an example of a Carlyle with this textured all-numeral dial.  So the plot thickens...

So what model do I have?  Perhaps is a "Corlyle" and even the Hamilton factory mixed things up from time to time.

Regardless, my project watch will benefit from a trip to the spa and that starts with removing the aftermarket bracelet and opening the case.  There's a bit of a corroded gap where the bezel and back separate. 

With the bezel removed, you can see the highly textured, scalloped dial.  It's really a thing of beauty and, fortunately, it's in good shape, as getting this type of dial refinished properly would be extremely difficult.

Tucked behind the dial is a 17 jewel 673 movement.

Two dial foot screws secure the dial in place.  Removing the dial reveals the main plate of the movement.  Now I can start stripping the parts.

Everything is disassembled and thoroughly cleaned.  Now it's time to put it back together with fresh lubrication.

The 673 is a breeze to reassemble and in no time it's back together and ticking away with a nice motion.

According to the timer, this watch is running great.

The finished watch turned out great.  A new crystal is a huge improvement and a fresh strap is a great alternative to the one-size-fits-all Speidel bracelet.

Not a bad looking "Corlyle" - don't you think?