1972 Day 'N Date ST-5501

A lot of Hamilton collectors draw a line in the sands of time at 1969.  This is the year Hamilton ceased manufacturing US-made movements in Lancaster PA.  Production was moved to Switzerland but models for the US continued to be made.  All of the models featured Swiss-made calibers but considering a very large proportion of the 1960's models featured Swiss-made movements, was the 1970's really that much different?  

Probably.

One of the big reasons the 1970's was different was the design aesthetic changed dramatically - as did, I suppose, fashion in general.  It's not my favorite decade, to be honest.

Watches in the 1970s can often be big and chunky... not to scale of some of the tuna fish cans you find nowadays but the styling was much larger than the sleek designs of the 1960s.

The 1970s also introduced the first Electronic and Quartz models - not that I'm a huge fan of those either.

Hamilton introduced their first calendar models in the early 1950s but the first models to also feature the day of the week were introduced in the1970s.  You could get them in automatic (self winding), stem wound, and electronic models.  One of the stem wound models was the Day 'N Date ST-5501.

 

The  Day 'N Date ST-5501 was introduced in the 1972 catalog and it was presented in a stainless steel case with a quick change II movement.  The catalog doesn't do the red dial justice, it's much more striking in person.  The catalog image doesn't show the sweep second hand - but it does have one.  The model was also offered in 1973.

My Day 'N Date ST-5501 project watch arrived without it's original bracelet.  It looks like it's definitely had it's fair dose of use and abuse.  I can't say I've seen too many other original Hamilton watches with a red dial - this is a first for me.

The back of the case has the model number 800002-3 so this model could also be known by that number as well as the model name.

This crystal has had the snot polished out of it.  It actually is dished out, it's been that polished. 

Once the back is removed you can see the caliber 800 tucked inside.  This movement is based on an ETA 2769 caliber - helpful to know if you need to find a part.  The movement appears to tick but it's got some tension in the barrel and it's not running.  I don't see any watchmaker's marks inside the case but I can see the train bridge is missing a screw... it's not inside so that's a little odd.

The perimeter has a bit of rust thanks to water getting inside.  Some of this might come off in the ultrasonic but this is a good reminder to keep vintage watches far away from water - even if you think they're "waterproof".  If you see moisture inside the crystal you need to open the watch and let it dry out immediately.

I pry out the levers that hold the dial feet in place.  You can see the two small tabs sticking out of opposing sides of the movement.  Now I can lift the hands and dial off.

Once the dial is out of the way you can see the business-end of the day and date complications.  The center day wheel will lift off the front of the movement.

 

The main plate gets a little more complicated now.  The bits on the left of the movement drive the outer date wheel and the inner day wheel in opposing directions.  The date wheel moves clockwise and the day wheel moves counterclockwise.   The bits on the right side of the main plate helps to center the day wheel and includes the parts needed for the quick change setting.

Screw by screw, part by part, the various parts are removed so they can be thoroughly cleaned.

Great care has to be taken with the u-shaped spring that indexes the date wheel.  This part is always under tension and likes to disappear when you try to remove it or install it.  Looking for this spring when it vanishes can double the amount of time it takes to serviced this type of movement.

Once all the parts are removed from the front of the movement I can do the same to the back - that's much easier and pretty much every ETA sweep second movement is the same (or similar, anyway).

Everything is cleaned and ready to be reassembled.  There are a lot more parts to this model than most vintage Hamiltons.  With care and patience they will all go back in place.

First I reassemble the basic movement.  This movement has a very strange quirk.  With two screws in the train bridge, the wheels will lock up.  With only one screw, the wheels spin freely.  I could try to add a shim to the other screw but since it came missing a screw, perhaps that's the way it was originally (I doubt it).

It's running very nicely but I should be able to reduce the beat error to near zero.

There... I'll leave it running a smidgeon fast.  Watches tend to settle down a little after they run a while.

The dial goes back in place and now I can set the time forward until the day and date change.  They don't flip together so I will set the hands at midnight once the day changes.

The reassembled movement goes back into the case.  It's much shinier now and runs great.

A new crystal completes the restoration.  I think the red dial is very interesting.  Probably more of a casual watch than a dress watch but definitely very cool.