1961 Accumatic VIII-B

If you've seen some of my earlier postings you will probably recall that Hamilton used "B" designations to identify when a model had a significant change versus prior models - usually a change in movements.  Sometimes the B designation was shown in the catalogs and sometimes it wasn't.

One of the times it was shown was with the Accumatic VIII.  The Accumatic VIII was introduced in 1959 and then two years later the Accumatic VIII-B replaced it.  Looking at the catalog images, it's not really clear what changed so I'm going to guess it's the movement inside.

As you can tell from the descriptions, the model came in a stainless steel case with a choice of dials, white or black.  The dial and hands have luminous material applied to glow in the dark.

I'm not sure what movement should be inside the VIII or the VIII-B - so that's a bit of a mystery.

However, I did recently pick up what I believe is an Accumatic VIII (or B) and it has a Swiss-made Hamilton 679 movement inside.  The 679 is an uncommon grade, as far as I know.  In fact, I've only seen this one.  It's based on an ETA 2465 automatic which dates back to 1955 so it's in the right era (late 1950's / early 1960s).

As received, the watch was in decent overall shape.  Stainless steel cases can usually withstand a beating better than gold filled or plated cases.  The watch came on a Speidel expansion bracelet with a scrolling calendar window from 1972, which was interesting to see.

The case has a stainless back like a dinner plate that is held in place with a threaded ring.

The inside of the case back says "Made in Germany" - another first for me.  I don't recall ever seeing that before.

Here's the 679 movement inside the case, held in place by a movement ring with a gasket on top to seal against the back "plate".

While all the parts are being cleaned, I'll turn my attention to the crystal.  This one is scratched up and cracked so it will need to be replaced.

GS PHD-style (high dome) are my usual go-to choice for replacing crystals.  The number on the left is the diameter in millimeters (28.9).  The other number is the GS size.  They go in 1/4 increments so the next size is a 25-3/4.  You need to measure the bezel opening and then add a little, as the crystal is compressed into bezel opening with a special tool.

All the parts are now cleaned and dried so they are ready to go back together.

When the rotor is not installed, the movement is your basic manual winding movement - so you can wind it up and get it running before the rotor goes back on.   Here you can see the balance spinning away.

Uh-oh… based on my timer something is going on in the balance to make some "noise".  It could be dust, lint or something along those lines.  I'll have to pull the balance off and re-clean it.

Ah, that's more like it.  Now the noise is gone but it's running a smidge slow.

A little tweaking to the regulator gets the timing to be just right.  The beat error of 1.5ms is not too bad. It could be better, or it could be worse - but it's not easily adjusted on this watch so I'll call it "just right".

Two screws will hold the rotor assembly onto the back, once everything is lined up so the gears will wind the watch.

And here's the finished product all polished up with a new brown leather strap.  The catalog ad says the numerals and markers should be "white" but this dial looks more yellow to me.  There was no indication that the dial was redone so I'm not really sure what's going on there.

The Hamilton logo is straight, where the catalog says it should be curved - it could be that I've misidentified this watch but I'm fairly sure it's an Accumatic VIII.

Feel free to let me know what you think it is.

UPDATE:  I now think this is a 1962 VIII-B.  Check out the 1962 catalog image and the shape of the Hamilton logo on the dial.

1962 Perry

Hamilton liked to reuse some model names multiple times, which is interesting since there are a number of common names that were never used. Why the same name was used over and over is a mystery to me.

In 1962 Hamilton introduced their third Perry - which draws no inspiration from the prior two Perry models from 1948 and 1931.  The third Perry was produced from 1962 through 1964.

The 1962 version of the Perry came in a 10K gold filled case and had a choice of two dial patterns, an all marker dial or an applied gold numeral version.  The hand style is called "baton".

Under the dial is Hamilton's flagship movement, the 22 jewel 770 grade.

I recently purchased a Perry with the AGN dial.  It came on an interesting bracelet but it's not original to the watch and the gold was worn through so I won't bother reinstalling it.

Sometimes it's not obvious how a case opens up.  Looking at it from the front, one might imagine it's a one-piece case that opens through the crystal.  But this crystal is glass so that's a clue that it opens differently.  Sure enough, there is a little lip between the upper lugs and the bezel just pops off.

Here's a shot of the dial with the bezel removed.  You can see the minute markers are "pearlized dots" in which they are actually recessed into the dial with a little gold enamel to make them shine.

Initially I wasn't sure what movement I would find in the Perry and it would be easy to expect a round Swiss-made movement so I was very pleased to see a 770 under the hood.

The 770 is a wonderful movement - shock jeweled, lots of cap jewels to keep dirt out and it goes together very easily… it's just a great design overall.

As you can see below, the 10K gold filled case is very solid and has a recess cut out for the 12/0 sized 770 to fit snugly inside.

After cleaning and oiling the movement, you can see how I adjusted the timekeeping with the regulator.  The initial rate is shown in the center and indicates about 60 seconds fast based on the angle of the two lines.  Then I made a change on the right side of the screen, which wrapped over to the left side of the screen.  I continued to tweak the regulator until the length of the hairspring was just enough to run at 8 seconds fast per day, with good amplitude.

And here's the finished product on a fresh black lizard strap and with a new crystal installed.  I think the Perry is a very striking looking wrist watch.  This is the first one I've ever seen and I'm surprised there aren't more of them.  Now to find a marker-dial version!

1932 Mount Vernon

Ever hear the expression, "Even a blind squirrel finds a nut every now and again?"  Well, I recently landed a very rare watch that I figured I would never see in person.

The 1932 Mount Vernon is truly a rare watch.  According to Rene Rondeau's original guide book, only a little more than 1,400 were produced in white gold filled over the two years that it was available.  Yellow gold filled examples were more plentiful - if you consider 1,721 plentiful.

The Mount Vernon is rare in it's own right but seeing as how it's also a gold filled model, surely time has taken it's toll on more than a few examples that were produced.

The case came in white or yellow gold filled and only a black enamel dial was produced.  The hand style is called "spade".

In addition, the Mount Vernon is one of three models (than I can think of) to have used a "notched strap".  That means that the strap is held on by a threaded rod.

Behind the dial you will find a 6/0 sized, 17 jewel 987F movement.

Well, as I said above, I recently acquired a Mount Vernon and although it didn't come cheap (to me anyway) I think I did well on my purchase.  As received, it was was quite dirty - so dirty I really couldn't tell what condition the case was going to be in when I bought it.

The case back is interesting too - it's rather thick compared to other models from the period and it's contoured in the center to curve to the wrist.

The dial is in great shape and I suspect it's been redone but redoing a dial like this is fairly straightforward and they often turn out perfectly.  Other than the back of the second hand rubbing in the register, it looks problem-free to my eye.

The 987F movement was running when I received it but the movement has a fine haze over it - which is a good sign it hasn't been cleaned in quite a while.  It's important to keep a running movement cleaned and oiled - as a movement that runs without oil is slowly wearing itself out.

While everything is in the ultrasonic being thoroughly cleaned, I'll turn my attention to replacing the strap.  You can see below that the strap is held in place by a threaded rod that goes through both the strap and the case.

The movement's regulator was set to the slow side.  You can see in the shot below how the watch sped up as I moved it over to the fast side.  When the two lines are horizontal the watch is running at 18,000 beats per hour, or 5 ticks per second.  Right now it's running just a little fast… 8 seconds per day fast.

Servicing any watch is tricky - you never know how it is going to go.  Servicing a watch and then having to trim a perfectly good new lizard strap so that it fits the notch in the case is even more tricky.  But I think the results were well worth it.  She's a beauty and the case is excellent!

UPDATE Nov 16, 2014 -

Here's a photo of a yellow Mount Vernon that I had the opportunity to restore.  The hour hand is not quite correct but they're at least close.