If you were a watch designer you had a lot of opportunity to be creative. Obviously you had the shape of the case to play with, but you could also utilize the strap or bracelet, the shape of the bezel opening, the material of construction, the design of the crystal, the dial, and even the hands to play with. For example, Electric models often has a special second hand with with lightening bolt incorporated.
Of course, traditional fashion could dictate the rules a designer might adhere to. After all, the design had to appeal to customers to a degree that enough watches would be sold to justify the design.
In fair balance, all the watches couldn't look the same, or even look like every other watch brand's line up, otherwise it would just be a matter of price (which eventually became the situation).
The 1950s must have been a fun period for Hamilton designers. They has a lot of models to work with. To put it in perspective, in 1935 there were 23 wrist watches in the model line up. Twenty years later there would be 88, and it would continue to grow for the next 15 years!
One of the 88 models offered in 1955 is the Automatic K-454. It's a very popular model and you'll see why. It was offered for three years. It features a 10K gold filled bezel and a stainless steel back.
The K-454 is also known as the Sputnik to watch collectors. The Sputnik was a Russian satellite launched in 1957 that featured four prominent antennas protruding from a round sphere. The K-454 design featured four golden arms radiating from the center of the dial at the 1, 5, 7 and 11 positions that continued out the bezel as the lugs for the bracelet or strap. The other hours had less prominent lines radiating outward.
It's a great design.
My project watch is well worn and definitely in need of some love. I can see the crystal has a crack but otherwise it's not too bad. The watch is not running. The lugs on this model are fairly delicate and easily bent out of shape. It's not unusual for one of them to be missing so you have to be very careful not to damage them.
The case back is typical for an Automatic K-model and unscrews from the bezel with a case wrench.
The Automatic K-series used three four different movements but the predominant caliber is the 661. This movement was made by Kurth Freres (Certina) and was used in other watch brands as well. The inside of the case back helps to identify the model. This movement is in good shape. The only issue I see is there's a screw missing from the train bridge (the empty hole next to the stem). That will be easy to replace.
The dial and hands are in nice shape. The hands and hour markers are luminous.
I found some rust under the winding wheel. It's not too bad and it's a good thing this watch is being serviced.
I'll measure the old crystal to get an idea of what size crystal to install.
Everything is cleaned and ready to be reassembled. I actually found the missing screw inside the movement. That's most likely why the watch was not working - it would easily stop the movement if it got into the right place. I have all the parts to reassemble the movement.
The basics of the movement are back together and the balance is ticking away with a nice motion. Check out how much shinier everything is now that it's cleaned.
Not too shabby performance for an 70 year old watch.
Two case screws and braces secure the movement to the inside of the case and it's ready to close up.
The finished watch is a huge improvement over what I started with. A new crystal and deep cleaning goes a long way. I also relumed the hands and dial markers. This watch is ready for more wrist time.
No comments:
Post a Comment