1932 Hamilton Bok - Tycoon Series 400 Grade

What time is it when an elephant sits on your watch?  Time to get a new watch, right?

What time is it when an elephant sits on your watch in 1932?  Probably not a great time to buy an 18K gold watch... or so it would seem.

In 1928 Hamilton purchased the Illinois Watch Company - a premier watch brand in it's own right.  Illinois would continue to make watches but the Great Depression took it's toll on everything, including the watch industry.  It wasn't a great time to sell high-end watches, but they tried.

One of the really interesting pocket watch lines is the Tycoon series with the 21 jewel grade 400 movement.   The grade 400 was based on excess Illinois grade 528 movements left over in inventory.

The Tycoon models were second only to the 23 jewel "masterpiece" models with the 922 movement, although that can really be debated.  They were considerably thinner than anything else in Hamilton's lineup and in many ways were ahead of their time... as you'll see in a bit.

About 2,300 grade 400 movements were made in total.  The first 800 used existing Illinois grade 528 movements and you'll find the Illinois serial number stamped on the main plate under the dial on Hamilton 400 movements with serial numbers between H1000 and H1800.

The later 1,500 grade 400s also have a number stamped on the main plate.  Although those numbers also have 7 digits, they start with the number 540 and the last four digits are the same as the movement Hamilton serial number HXXXX in the range of H2000 through H3500.  The 540XXXX serial numbers don't show up as an Illinois serial number and the overall construction is slightly different, so they are believed to be uniquely Hamilton-produced movements.

Although most collectors today favor the larger 16 size or 18 size railroad grade pocket watches, the 21 jewel 12 size 400 models dress pocket watches typically command a premium.  That's partly because of the case material but also because of the overall scarcity of the models - not to mention it's a very attractive looking movement.

The Tycoon series came in solid 18K gold cases in white, yellow or green gold, depending on the model.  The Tycoon line was produced through 1934.

The Great Depression hit the high end watch market hard and eventually the remaining inventory of grade 400 movements was used in award watches with gold filled cases.  By that time the newer 12 size grades like the 917, 921 and 923 were being produced and the 400 inventory needed to be phased out.

Up until now I had actually never seen a 400 series movement first hand so I was happy to take on a project from a fellow collector when he managed to find one.

The model he landed was a Bok.  The Bok is likely named after Edward Bok, a well known editor of the Ladies Home Journal and Pulitzer Prize recipient from the 1920s.  You can thank Edward Bok for the term "living room" - as prior to that the space in your home was typically referred to "the parlor" or "drawing room".

The Bok is a futuristic model in my opinion.  Why?... well you could say the model was the inspiration for Hamilton pocket watches for the next 30 years.  In fact, at first glance, if you didn't know any better, you'd expect the Bok to contain a 917 or 921 movement,

As received, my project watch looks like it was stored in a time capsule.  It's got some light wear, so it's not "showroom new" but all of the edges are sharp - especially for being solid 18K yellow gold.  The sterling silver dial has "raised gold numerals" and a pearlized track, you'd expect this watch to have been made in the 1940's or 50's... no?

The 400 is also Hamilton's first positive set men's pocket watch movement.  That means the stem is retained in the movement and not in the case.

The case back is engraved with the original owner's initials.

Check out this movement... very pretty, isn't it?  It has solid gold jewel settings.

You don't find too many 18K gold pocket watches in Hamilton's line up.  Only platinum would be higher end.

The first thing I noticed is there are no dial feet screws on the circumference of the main plate.  There are none on the back either.  What's holding this dial on? Hmmm...  I've never seen this sort of set up before.

Well, it took some research and an email to a professional watchmaker friend to determine that the dial is held on by friction.  The dial has a lip going around it like the lid of Pringles can.  Supposedly all I have to do is pop it off without totally screwing up the dial... should be nothing to it - right?

Eventually I realized if I held the movement in my movement holder I could use my hand press tool to slowly work my way around the perimeter of the main plate and pop the dial off.  I decided to remove the balance first - just in case - as the last thing I needed to do is break the balance staff.

Success... the dial landed gently on my work surface and in a Pinocchio sort of way is saying, "There are no feet on me..."  I've never seen this type of dial set up on any other Hamilton model.  Hopefully it will go back on as easily.

Sure enough, this is an early 400 grade and you can see the Illinois serial number that dates this main plate to the early 1920's.

While the main plate is facing up, I'll go ahead and take the cannon pinion and setting wheels off.

On the back side, the balance is already removed, so with the mainspring tension fully let off I can start to disassemble the gear train.

Notice this five-tooth click... very unique for a Hamilton model.

With the crown wheel and ratchet wheel removed you can see the barrel bridge is ready to be unscrewed and lifted away.

This barrel set up is called a motor barrel.  The arbor floats in two jewels, one on each end.

Next to come off is the train bridge for the center wheel and 3rd wheel.

The center and 3rd wheels are free to be removed.  Two more screws secure the bridge for the 4th wheel and escape wheel.  That comes off next.

Finally I can remove the pallet bridge and all the parts will be ready to be cleaned in the ultrasonic.

So far so good.  Everything is cleaned and dried.  Now I just have to put it all back together.

The train is back in place. Next on is the barrel and it's bridge.

At this point I can wind the watch and energize the mainspring.  I could put the balance on next but before I do that I want to put the dial-side parts back on, including the dial.  That way I don't risk goofing up the balance when I try to pop the dial back in place.

All the setting parts are back in place, including the cannon pinion and hour wheel.  Now I just need to press the dial back on and make sure the second hand bit is centered in the hole.

Here we go... wish me luck.

Going nice and easy got the job done.  You'll see in my photos that I'm wearing finger cots to make sure that I don't get any finger prints on the dial.

Now the balance can go back on.   Once everything is in position the watch should start running.

Hooray!  Running nicely, just a smidgen fast.  The micro regulator on the balance cock makes it hard to adjust the watch when it's installed in the case so I'll slow it down now.

There... 5 seconds fast per day with great amplitude and an acceptable beat error.  Nothing wrong with this watch's time keeping.

At this point the movement can go back into the case and then I'll put the hands on.

My project Bok even came with it's original box... or is that it's Boks?  Regardless, this is a super nice dress pocket watch and a definite keeper.  Too bad it's not mine.

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1954 Kenmore

Everybody loves puppies.  Who wouldn't? They're so cute and cuddly and they usually grow up to be man's best fried.  They say the reason a dog has so many friends is he wags his tail instead of his tongue.

But that doesn't mean there aren't any ugly dogs.   There are even competitions to find the ugliest dog, like the 2015 World's Ugliest Dog winner... Quasi Modo.   Good call, that is one ugly dog but I'm sure he's still lovable, and that's what really counts.

Well, it stands to reason that out of the 1,100+ Hamilton models there has to be one that would win the "least attractive" award.  Of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder so getting agreement of which model is the "top dog" could be a challenge.

The Hamilton lineup in the mid 1950's has a lot of uniquely designed cases.  It's almost as if the company was in it's "awkward teen years" with models with ears and teeth that were too big for their noses and foreheads.

If I had to vote it would be for the 1954 Kenmore.  To my eye, it looks like the Hamilton equivalent of a blowfish, but I think that's mostly because of the bracelet it was paired with.  It was produced for three years so a lot of people must have liked it.

Not much changed over the three years of production other than the price... it was increased by over 10%!

Being made from 1954 through 1956, the Kenmore spans the transition from the 8/0 sized 747 movement to the 730 movement with shock jewels.  So you'll find examples with either grade.  If there's a 747 under the hood then it's an earlier 1954 version.

Regardless of the movement, the Kenmore is a fine watch with a 10K gold filled case and a sterling silver dial with 18K numerals and markers.

You could get the Kenmore on a strap or with a bracelet and the bracelet really brought the model's cooky look to life.

My Kenmore project watch arrived in the typical "some attention required" condition.  The Speidel bracelet doesn't look too bad with the watch but it's not original.  Obviously the crystal will need to be replaced.  Once the layer of "old man funk" is removed, I bet the case will clean up great.  Time will tell - pun intended.

The case back and the back of the lugs are sharp and undamaged.

The sterling silver dial has a brushed butler finish that goes in different directions so it looks two-toned depending on how the light hits it.  This dial is very dirty but there are no obvious distractions.

The 730 movement is identical to the 747 movement with the exception of the incabloc shock jewels to protect the balance staff.  It's been a while since this movement has had a bath, that's for sure.

The inside of the case back makes identification of the model easy.  There are a few watchmakers' marks inside to indicate the previous owner took good care of this watch.

US-made movements had two different length cannon pinion and hour wheel options so that spherical dials or flat dials could be used.  Sometimes dials are flat and sometimes they are domed.  Domed dials require a longer cannon pinion and hour wheel to get the hands further from the main plate.  The Kenmore has the longer setup.

While everything is being cleaned, I will prep a new glass crystal for installation.

Everything is cleaned, dried and ready for reassembly.

The movement is back to running nicely and is installed in the timer to find out how well it's ticking.

Everything looks great except for the beat error.  The 4.9ms beat error means the balance swings further to one side than the other.  That's corrected by repositioning the hairspring on the balance, effectively centering the balance impulse jewel with the pallet fork.  It's a tricky exercise with this type of balance but 4.9ms is too high to let slide.  My target is less than zero but I usually will accept anything under 3.0 if it's this style of balance.  Every attempt at adjustment is also an opportunity to goof up the hairspring.  So I don't like to do it if I don't have to.

Success... this movement is now right on the money.

Such an odd-looking watch deserves an unusual strap - in this case ostrich skin.  As I predicted, the case turned out great.  The new crystal allows you to see the dial much better and although the dial isn't "new", it doesn't look too bad either.  Maybe this isn't Hamilton's least attractive model after all?

I restored a Kenmore a few years ago though, and this one had it's original bracelet.  Ugly watch or thing of beauty... You be the judge.

1964 Thin-o-matic T-412

Most Thin-o-matics use micro-rotor movements to achieve their "thin-ness".  In addition to being thin, micro-rotors tend to be larger too.  So Thin-o-matics can have a pleasing "wrist presence" as a dress watch, even by today's standards.

However, not all Thin-o-matic models used micro-rotors.  There are a few models that used an ETA-based movement with a traditional oscillating weight mechanism on top of the basic manual-winding movement.  One of the models is the 1964 T-412.  It was produced through 1967.

The T-412 came in a 10K yellow gold filled case - hence the 400-series number.  It's style harkens back to Hamilton's very first wrist watch, the Men's Cushion from 40 years earlier since it has a cushion shaped case with a round bezel opening.  Of course, that's where the similarities stopped.

Inside the T-412 you will find a Hamilton 623 movement with 17 jewels.  This movement was made by ETA, although I don't know the ETA calibre specifically.

I was able to snag a very nice T-412 project watch recently, and I was happy to get it since I haven't done one of these movements yet.  I try to show the overall process for each movement in a close to step-by-step fashion and put the posts in my "overhaul examples" folder on the right of the screen.  So I'll go into a little more detail than usual on this post.

As received the project watch is in great shape.  It could stand a new crystal and some polishing of the case but dial looks superb.

A non-micro-rotor Thin-o-matic is easy to spot since the back is not flat.  This pie-pan shape is a tell tale sign that there's a ETA movement under the hood.  This case is a one-piece design and opens through the crystal with a tool I call "the claw".

The 623 looks very familiar to the other 1960's ETA grades like the 689, 689A, 694, etc. but note the large teeth on the crown wheel (near the stem).  This type of wheel is still used today on ETA movements but it wasn't used on the 689, etc.

In the 1960s a lot of models got two numbers inside the case back.  One is unique to the specific watch and the other is unique to the model.  The number near the bottom of the case  is the model number for this watch and the last two digits (64) are the year of the model.  The upper number is unique to this specific watch and there's probably a T-412 ending with 33 and 34 out there somewhere too.

No, you're not seeing double.  Here's a shot of the 623 (left) next to a 689A on the right.  They're both 11.5 ligne movements and look very similar.

From another angle you can see the 623 is considerably thinner and a lot of the difference is in the rotor assembly.

Once the dial and hands are removed, the crown wheel lifts off and then the set bridge that covers the setting wheel and the larger minute wheel to the left of it.  Now the setting wheel, minute wheel and the cannon pinion can lift right off.  You can see how in this movement the 3rd wheel is what actually moves the hands... just like on the larger ETA automatics.

With the parts removed from the from, I can turn my attention to the back.  Two screws hold the rotor assembly in place.  Once they are removed the automatic portion of the watch can be lifted straight up and off.

One difference between the 689 and the 623 is the 623 has a screw that holds the carrier to the oscillating weight with a very large head than on the 689, et al.  All of the silver portion in the center of the assembly is the screw head.

With the rotor out of the way you get a good look at the corse-toothed crown wheel and the traditional toothed golden colored ratchet wheel.  The latter has finer teeth and engages one of the winding wheels from the rotor assembly.  Check out the size of the glucyur balance wheel.  Is it just me or is that thing huge? (relatively speaking)

With the mainspring relieved, I remove the three screws holding the barrel bridge on and then pull the mainspring barrel beneath it.

Two screws hold the train bridge on so that comes off next and provides access to the four train wheels.  Notice the "center wheel" is actually off to the side and, ironically, is the furthest wheel from the center.  This is why the 3rd wheel actually drives the cannon pinion.  The 4th wheel does go through the center though - and it drives the second hand.

Next off is the balance and the pallet fork below it.

Typically the ebauche calibre is stamped on the main plate under the balance.  In the shot below, all I see is H and Cal 73.  So this is a Hamilton calibre 73... for what that's worth.  There may be a 21 jewel version of the 623 that uses the same main plate - like the Hamilton 64 and the 694A.

Everything is ready to be reassembled with fresh lubricants.

The four train wheels go in first, with oil in all the jewels.  The the train bridge goes on top and I carefully tweak each wheel until the bridge falls into place and the four wheels spin with no resistance.

With the train bridge installed, the next part on is the pallet fork.  Each jewel and pallet stones get a tiny amount of oil and the pallet bridge goes into place.

Now I can install the mainspring barrel and put the barrel bridge back on.

With a few turns to the mainspring, the watch is energized and I can put the balance back on.  If everything is lined up correctly, the watch will start running and I can secure the balance cock.

There - so far so good.  It's off to the timer to find out how it's performing.

Well... that's not so good.  The two lines are far apart and a little bumpy.  I'll reclean the hairspring and run it past the demagnetizer.

Getting warmer but still looking a little bumpy.  Once more into the cleaner.

There, much better.  The amplitude of 233 is fine.  I haven't wound the watch up very much yet.

Now I can put the crown, minute wheel and setting wheel back on... each gets a dollop of oil.  Then I'll flip the watch over and put the oscillating weight back on.

The dial and hands go back on next.  I need to put the hands on with the assembly in the case so I can use the crown to set the hour hand to midnight and then put the minute hand on top.

The last thing to go on is a fresh PHD high dome crystal in 28.1mm.

With a very nice genuine alligator strap, this T-412 is ready for some more wrist time.  A new crystal and gentle buffing of the case has returned this watch to showroom condition.  This is a very nice T-412 for sure.

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