1941 Wesley

Most Hamilton models were only made for a handful of years, some as few as one but two or three year runs was not unusual.  What was unusual was a production run of over 10 years.  Some models, like the Boulton, topped even that but the list of 10 year+ watches is pretty short.

One of them would be the 1941 Wesley.  It continued to be produced through 1952, with a short hiatus for WWII production.

The Wesley was unchanged through it's production run.  The case is solid 14K yellow gold and inside you will find the 19 jewel 982M, as in Medallion, movement.

The final price of the Wesley was a mere $180, that's about $2,500 when adjusted for inflation.  It think you'd be hard pressed to find a new solid gold watch of equal quality for that amount today.

My project watch is in very nice condition but it's fully wound and not running.  That could be as simple as needing to be cleaned or it could have something broken inside.  Only one way to find out.  The metal bracelet is a Gemex brand and very nice, as far as bracelets go.  However, in my opinion, a watch of this quality deserves a fine strap.  The crystal on the watch is plastic and a new glass crystal will go a long way in improving the appearance.

The movement and dial are secured in the case back. It's a pretty tight fit and I think someone pressed down on the dial to get the movement into the case and ended up bending the dial a little.  I'll see if I can straighten it but I don't want to risk ruining the dial so I may end up leaving it alone.

The inside of the case back makes identifying the model easy.  Hamilton started putting model names in cases in the late 1940s and continued for only a few years.

The serial number of the movement dates this watch to 1951.  It also has a presentation on the back for 25 years of service in 1952.

The mainspring in the barrel is an old blue steel spring and will need to be replaced.

All the parts are cleaned and inspected.  I found the escape wheel was missing a pivot - that was the reason the watch was not running.  Hopefully now that it's replaced and everything is cleaned, the watch will run now.

Sure enough, the reassembled movement is ticking away with a nice motion.  Now we can see what the timer thinks of it.

Nothing wrong with this movement now.  It's running great.

The finished watch looks great with a new glass crystal and it runs as well as it looks.  Every collection deserves to have a solid gold model and the Wesley would be an excellent choice.