Thread: Pocket Watches

I have an old watch from 1876, made by the illinois watch co. If I could find the cord for the camera/computer I would post the pick. Its a nice big heavy keywind, and damned accurate, dont use it so much anymore, the jeweler I grew up with passed on about 10 yrs ago, if something happened to the watch I wouldnt know who to trust with it.

Don't know too much about mine. It's marked "Jenson, Hertzer & Jeck" "Nashville" and "swiss made". Haven't had the back off of it in years, so I've forgotten how many jewels it has. A late friend of the family gave it to me many years ago, and it stayed in the safety deposit box for a number of years afterward. It still runs and keeps good time. It's a manual winder, not quartz or self-wind.

Originally Posted by Chady

I'm still curious as to which watch you think so highly of, that its the finest ever to be made.
Anyhoo if you truly believe that PP skimps on materials in a watch that takes 5 years of research to make and 4 years to manufacture, I don't think we can get any further.

I don't know why you mention Rolex in this regard as most who think its be finest watch in the world are people who don't really bother to learn much about watches.
But I guess you could say they are the best at high end mass marketing.
ETA being efficient at manufacturing stable movements.
PP carrying the current flagship of extraordinary complication with their 89.

Do you really think it takes 4 years to make any watch? back in the 1700s before the industrial revolution when watches were really handmade one by one it didn't take a fraction of that time to turn out a watch.

We are talking apples and oranges here. I'm not talking about complications in watches and I don't think there is any such thing as the best watch ever made. Even patek scrimps now. At one time they finished both sides of the plates on their watches. Now they only do one. Their quality is nothing like it used to be. Also there are many small scale watchmakers doing custom jobs out there who surpass patek. I agree right now they are the best production maker out there but take a patek pocketwatch from say 1910 and compare it to say a hamilton 950 pocketwatch and the patek looks sick.

I'd collect pocketwatches too if I had the money...alas, I don't. I do, however, have this little Soviet number I picked up at a flea market. Still runs, albeit a bit fast.

Originally Posted by Noam

I'd collect pocketwatches too if I had the money...alas, I don't. I do, however, have this little Soviet number I picked up at a flea market. Still runs, albeit a bit fast.

If you pull the back off that its a miracle it runs at all the parts are so crude however, run it does and it will probably outlast a watch costing 10x. I have one myself I bought new about 10 years ago. They sold new for $39.00. It still keeps good time.

@Bigspendur, werent the swiss movements simply cheaper versions of the American?Cant remember where I heard that.

I had an Illinois Bunn Special 60 hour and a few Hamilton 992 lever set railroad watches and wore one on a regular basis thirty years ago. Now I wear one of those new fangled LED readout wrist watches. More convenient and lots of functions. The old lever set 16 size were lovely watches though.

Gents,
I carry a 1901 zentith, steel cased fob watch on my belt, RM Williams pouch, wrist watches only get wreck if you are a cowboy. I have a lovely silver cased Sirdar knob wind, with a lovely silver (antique ) chain, on the other end I carry my cased Reminton CB revolvers' key. Have also a key wind watch with no second hand, its original chain and key , with a British farthing coin stamped 1885. Came from my mother in laws late uncle, (She is in her 80s) it has a chain drive which broke the other day, but fortunatly can be fixed by my local watch maker.
I don't collect per say but have them for sentimental reasons. They get worn when I go out in sunday best ie Victorian era waist coat and frock coat.
If you have a mechanical watch and there are watch makers about they can allways be kept in repair. Seems rather sad that these marvels of fine mechanics have been superseded by souless little didgitals !!

Cheers
Gordon