1936 Clark

 Long and skinny was the fashion of the late 1930s.  Slender watches of all sorts populated the Hamilton lineup thanks to the 14/0 movements that were introduced in 1935.  Watches were long enough that the cases were marketed as "curved to fit the wrist".

One of the early watches was the 1936 Clark.  It was introduced in 1936 and produced through 1938.  After a year off, a very similar model called the Yorktowne was introduced.  The principle way to tell the difference is the Clark has a 14K gold filled case, while the Yorktown has a 10K gold filled case.

You could get the Clark with an applied gold numeral dial or with an inlaid black numeral dial.  Although the applied gold numeral dial features solid 18K gold numerals, you tend to find the black numeral dial is more sought after by collectors.  That's probably because you see it much less often.

I was recently asked to overhaul a Clark and I think it's a really nice example of the model.  As received, there are a couple of noteworthy aspects to it.  First, it's using an unusual style of hands.  This style is called Moderne, or sometimes Plume.  This style was used on some models but typically you'll find the Clark with Spear hands.  The second hand is a Spear style so I suspect at some point the hands were swapped for something that looked nicer.

What's really noteworthy is the case is in excellent condition.  It's not usual to see the case back with a lot of wear to the edges or around the lip for opening the case.  This one looks fantastic.  The engraving is a 1937 presentation to Arnold from Gyspy - how cool is that?

Once the back is separated from the bezel, you can see the dial.  I don't see any obvious tells that it's a refinished dial.  The numerals are a bit tarnished but I should be able to brighten them up with some rodico putty.

The 17 jewel 980 movement inside dates to 1936, making this a first year Clark.  Since Feb 1937 wasn't too long after 1936, it's a safe assumption to state this is the original movement.

Although the 14/0 sized movements were produced through 1953, the earliest examples of the 980 and 982 had a split yoke.  In about 1938 the design was changed to a single bridge that covered the minute wheel and the yoke.  In the photo below you can see the two parts.

I find that about 9 out of 10 14/0 movements have an old style blue mainspring.  These typically "set" into a tight coil and lose most of their potential energy.  Lets see what happens when I remove the spring from the barrel.

Yup, no surprise there.  I'll replace it with a white alloy Dynavar spring and it will be good to go for a "lifetime".

One of the reasons the case is in nice shape is it has a large plastic crystal installed.  It's not the correct style but it's prominent enough to keep short sleeves from rubbing the gold.  I'll replace it with a proper glass crystal.

This type of crystal is called a "cylinder" because of the high walls that arch from top to bottom.  Some models used a cylinder as part of their design but not this model.

A simple mineral glass crystal is all that's needed and was the original style used at the factory.

Although the size is "close enough", with glass crystals you typically have to shape them with wet sand paper so they fit the bezel opening perfectly.

The perimeter of the bezel has a fine layer of UV glue and once the crystal is installed I'll leave it in the sunlight to cure while the rest of the watch is completed.

Everything is cleaned and readied for reassembly.

A fresh Dynavar mainspring will power the movement for 36+ hours.

Part by part, the movement goes back together.  It doesn't look like it but the balance is swinging away with a nice motion.  Time to see what the timer thinks of it.

It's running a little fast but that's an easy adjustment.

There we go... I'll leave it here for now.

The finished watch looks much better with a proper crystal.  The bezel has some dings here and there but it doesn't show the typical wear through that you'll find with this model.  This is a great looking watch, even with the Moderne hands.