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$35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Create and participate in challenges related to the watch hobby.
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Sporkboy
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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by Sporkboy »

[mention]TheJohnP[/mention] You crushed this challenge as well. Very nice watch and I am amazed with what have been posted so far. Who knew that a mechanical field watch was less than $35 away.
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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by Sporkboy »

5979FCA3-F30D-4265-9790-03BD287998F2.jpeg
Watch Make/Model//Reference: Mayak / Маяк Ref. ЧН-1123К
Why You Picked it For This Challenge:While easily being identifiable as a field watch, this model has a few elements jumped out at me. The small seconds at 6 is reminiscent of WWI trench watches while the inner ‘horseshoe’ minute track gives a little more visual interest to an otherwise standard field watch layout sans outer minute track. If you squint, you might just see a little bit of that ‘tuxedo’ styling that appears to be suddenly popular. The scallop in the bezel gives the case a little bit more flair which may allow the watch to be at home in slightly more dressy situation while still delivering all of the function that a field watch delivers.

The well loved condition of this watch combined with it being made in Soviet Russia let my mind run wild with the possiblities of who the former owners of this watch were, what they did and what the appropriate Russian curse would be for when your watch crown is so worn down that it is difficult to wind.

The 16mm lugs posed a problem as I had very few options on hand. The bund strap that came with it looked terrible on my wrist. It was also so long that I needed to add another hold, which I was nearly able to do with the buckle pin. The band I felt suited this watch was a metal expansion bracelet. A passthrough strap would work better in reducing the gap between the strap and the lugs, but none of the 16mm NATOs I have looked right. I also like the idea of wearing a Soviet watch on a bracelet clearly marked USA.

You may not know of Mayak, so a bit of history is in order. From 1955 to 1962, there were a number of brands making similar watches coming out of the Petrodvorets Watch Factory, amongst these was Mayak. In 1962 these brands were consolidated into a single brand that you may have heard about, Raketa (meaning rocket) that tied in nicely to Russia’s space exploration efforts. The upside to all this is that the window for this watch to have been manufactured is fairly small.

Cost: $16 + $10 shipping
Purchase Listing:
57F36087-5C45-4C5D-A0D2-4820CF75D0E5.jpeg
Maintenance/Repairs Done:
-Cleaned case
-Removed loose lume that had fallen out of the hands
-Cleaned dial lightly with tack putty
-Polished crystal
-Fashioned new gasket from old bicycle inner-tube
-Lubricated stem tube

Watch Details (dimensions, movement, features, etc.):
Size- 32mm without crown
Lugs- 16mm
Movement- Petrodvorets (Raketa) 2603

http://www.ranfft.de/cgi-bin/bidfun-db. ... aketa_2603
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Last edited by Sporkboy on Tue Jul 07, 2020 7:35 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Animal Mother
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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by Animal Mother »

Lovely watch [mention]Sporkboy[/mention] . That case shape, wow. And I really love the 20/40/60 second divisions in the seconds sub-dial. Another cracking entry. I even like the bund.
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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by peskydonut »

First off, let me say that this thing can't hold a candle to the entries shown so far.

This damn watch put me through the ringer. :evil: :evil: :evil:

I polished the heck out of the crystal (twice!) before realizing that what I was seeing wasn't scratches, but a ton of dust and lint under the crystal. Not to worry, I have a Jaxa wrench and rodico.

I then spent the next 2 hours sweating, grunting, and swearing, trying to get the damn thing open. At several points I nearly took a hammer to it. The caseback would barely turn, but never loosened. I put a ton of gouges on the back, but eventually had to walk away and move on with my life.

The watch is pretty small at 34mm, 41mm L2L, 18mm lugs. It runs and sets fine, but unfortunately the caseback now looks it was on the wrong side of a porcupine in heat.

I will leave you with some photos, dust and all.

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Movement shot from the eBay listing
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PIF Offer
At this point, I just need this watch out of my life. Please DM if you're interested in giving it a home. I can ship CONUS at my expense, but can also ship internationally if you want to throw a few bucks to cover the difference. By the way, in case offering up this watch disqualifies the entry, I'm quite alright with it.
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Sporkboy
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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by Sporkboy »

[mention]peskydonut[/mention] I am sorry that you had such a hard time with this watch, I know that can be frustrating, maybe you and [mention]watchpalooza[/mention] can start a Stuck Caseback Club or something.

I can understand wanting to put the watch behind you and there is nothing against offering a watch as a PIF in the rules, so it should be allowable. If you were trying to trade the watch for votes then that is against the spirit of the rules, and I would frown upon that.
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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by peskydonut »

Sporkboy wrote: Mon Jul 06, 2020 8:30 pm @peskydonut I am sorry that you had such a hard time with this watch, I know that can be frustrating, maybe you and @watchpalooza can start a Stuck Caseback Club or something.

I can understand wanting to put the watch behind you and there is nothing against offering a watch as a PIF in the rules, so it should be allowable. If you were trying to trade the watch for votes then that is against the spirit of the rules, and I would frown upon that.
I appreciate that. No, definitely not trying to buy votes here. Truth be told, I considered pulling out of the competition and just splitting this post between Rejects and PIF thread, but I got lazy :)

Shortly after committing to this challenge I decided to start saving for another watch (unrelated to the challenge). To avoid "death by a thousand cuts", I opted not to pursue additional, perhaps more interesting entry pieces. So, I guess I kind of phoned this one in. Sorry guys.

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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by WPybus »

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Wow the first 2 entries are amazing..... here’s my attempt!
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I wanted something with an old English brand and hopefully a Swiss movement and this little fella came in at £25..... ($31) Seller wanted £50 but accepted £25!
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I just think it looks great, ticks all the boxes for a field watch and boy does it tick loudly!

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All the necessary field watch criteria- antimagnetic, incabloc, water resistant
Yes it’s small by modern standards but perfectly formed!
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I wanted a brand with a bit of history and Kendal and Dent certainly have that, they are well known for their pocket watches and appear to have cashed in on the fame of the English watch makers L Kendall and E Dent; oddly two brands that have been restarted in the past few years offering high end chronometer watches and clocks. My Kendal and Dent mainly imported Swiss made wristwatches and also sold a large number of pocket watches that they claimed to be under licence to the Admiralty and are known for that as well as being sued by the widow of Mr E Dent who tried to copyright the name after her husbands death. (I’m sure there is someone reading this who knows more than me!! Sorry there is no picture of the internals, I’m away at the moment but if I get home before the challenge ends I’ll pop the back!
B6B3385F-8DED-4029-BA7A-8DFD901953B6.jpeg
The main reason I chose this watch is if I saw it for sale ‘new’ with automatic movement, incabloc, antimagnetic, that dial layout and design and it was 38mm or 40mm I would buy it in a flash- it’s a classic look and so why not enjoy the original!!
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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by MoT »

Great entries so far! Voting is going to be tough.

Here's my quick and dirty entry.

Overall Picture of Watch

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Watch Make/Model//Reference

Roamer with MST372 in Type I two-piece patent case.

Why You Picked it For This Challenge:

Honestly? I stumbled across it. Knowing a little bit about Roamer, I knew I had to have it. I sniped it at the last second for $31. Even with shipping I was still under the upper-cost limit. Phew!

Cost:

$31. $35.75 with shipping.

Purchase Listing:

Image

Maintenance/Repairs Done (if any):

Um...none. I sorta cleaned the case a bit, and put a different strap from my collection on it.

Watch Details (dimensions, movement, features, etc.):

Post-war Roamer with an MST372. 35mm wide and 40mm lug-to-lug. Just about average for watches at the time, and definitely in the "sweet spot" in terms of period field watches.

Roamer has a long history. Up until the 1970s everything was made in-house: Hands, dials, cases, movements, crystals, the lot. This one is a classic example of that (though the original stiched pigskin strap is missing). The single-axis shock protection dates this one to 1944-1950.

It sports the innovative (for the time) and patented two-piece "Type I" waterproof case. These were originally rated to 50m resistance, which for 1935 (when the patent was issued) is impressive.

The case can be somewhat confusing for those unfamiliar to open. It is a split-stem, and once it is removed, you use your thumbs and push the entire case through the back of the bezel. From there you can remove the crystal, the rehaut/reflector ring, and then the movement drops out the front.

Here is a period brochure (in German) explaining the disassembly process. (The case-knife method is for the Type II cases that have a spot for a blade. The Type I cases do not have the spot.)

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Here is the disassembly process of mine:

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Movement:

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Lume, with and without UV flashlight:

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Final thoughts:

I bought this early on in the buying period, and I have been itching to share it. I like it a lot more than I thought I would, and I wear it pretty frequently. It winds and sets beautifully and it keeps outstanding time, too! It's within roughly 10 seconds over a 24 hour period. Fantastic for such an old piece with no service history to be found.

Thanks for looking! I'm excited to see the other entries!
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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by Split-Time »

[mention]WPybus[/mention]'s entry and my entry could have been separated at birth!

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I found this watch on eBay and got it for $22.25 ($24.03 after shipping) which is a price that I was very happy with. It came on an expansion bracelet that I was less than enthusiastic about. We were discussing the challenge on the Discord channel and I mentioned how narrow the lugs were. I could have grabbed my calipers, but without even seeing the watch [mention]watchpalooza[/mention] replied that they were probably 16mm. Who needs tools when you have friends like that :lol:. Within a couple of minutes [mention]ManOnTime[/mention] posted a link to a Esslinger listing for a 16mm strap that was $3.48. The lesson is that we have a lot of learning, sharing and laughing taking place on whatever Discord is...you should check it out if you have not. If you have trouble logging in, just give me a shout 8-) .

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Inside the caseback there appears to be something like a logo, or initials and "12/44" etched by hand. There are also a couple of other words or letters that I cannot make up. I just discovered this tonight so I will investigate further. I don't know what era this watch is from, but if someone put that there during a service in 1944, or as a gift, it makes the watch worth more than $25 to me.

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Here is the wrist shot. The watch is 32mm and I think it does just fine under a shirt sleeve where it's small size is not as obvious. When I wear this I find myself asking why I put up with watches that I enjoy but have legibility issues. Even at it's small size this is easy to read at a glance. It has been running great as far as I can tell.

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I am thankful for [mention]Sporkboy[/mention] for the idea and for hosting the challenge. I am also thankful for each participant for making this fun, and for everyone who has shared or even asked a question along the way. I'm soaking up all of the knowledge that I can. This watch won't be in the running but it is a keeper in my collection, and I never would have looked if not for this challenge.
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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by TheJohnP »

[mention]Split-Time[/mention] thinking your watch is older. The 12/44 does appear to be a service mark from a watchmaker. Common practice that you'll see in vintage casebacks. So if it was serviced in 1944, likely bought and worn before that.
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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by Split-Time »

TheJohnP wrote: Wed Jul 08, 2020 7:20 am @Split-Time thinking your watch is older. The 12/44 does appear to be a service mark from a watchmaker. Common practice that you'll see in vintage casebacks. So if it was serviced in 1944, likely bought and worn before that.
That is great to know! Thank you! You just ratcheted up my appreciation for the watch.
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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by Animal Mother »

More stunning entries. All of these watches, although old, small, simple, cheap are stunning in their own right and are a wonderful example of form follows function.
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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by DogOnTime »

Definitely an awesome blast from the past. Thanks to everyone for sharing.
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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by Guyinwatch »

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It feels like cheating if I don't use this as my entry, but cheating because I'm using this as my entry. It was the first of two I bought for the challenge, and well, you'll see.
Picture of watch
20200709_094626.jpg
Make/model/reference:
Some sort of bizarre, elaborate fake running on a Orient 1942 movement (ghost day!)

19mm lug width
36mm case
12.25 mm height (may disqualify me if other things do not)
43mm lug to lug

I picked this one because it was the first watch i ordered, a day early, for the challenge. And it is extremely wearable. i saw it in a watch lot on ebay and it looked ok from a distance. It was listed as an Elgin, although the name on the dial couldn't be read in original listing. I messaged the seller to see if he would sell just this by itself and he agreed. $35 + 10 shipping
notelgin.png
Once i received it, i knew something was up. The case had a spot that looked torched.
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The caseback said 'Ord Dept USA OC193100' but it was in too good of a condition. I researched what i could and found out "OC" was used on actual Ordinance Department watches by the US military to denote a 5 to 7 jewel movement (nope!) without waterproofing (check!). Also, it would be a model with a sub seconds dial. No clue what this watch was, but learned some more about military watches.
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Your eyes have deceived you!!! Take another gander, that rotor does not say watch and i don't believe Elgin made an automatic winding watch for any military. Somebody took the time to do all of this and i am not sure why.
I can't really identify movements by looking at them, but I know 'ELGIN WACH TCO' never existed (on our plane of time anyway). So i had to figure out what the movement was with my internet search capabilities. Initially, i believed it to be a Seiko 7526, but something was a bit off. Google lens led me to the Orient 1942 dive watch movement with day and date. The button at 2 o'clock would be used to set the date, but my watch had no button, but, wait, aha!! the torched-looking spot from earlier. Somebody removed the button and covered the hole. You can see where it would be just above the stem in this photo
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Somebody turned this vintage $35 vintage orient diver into whatever it currently is (a $35 mechanical field watch!).


Maintenance/repairs:
Threw a strap i owned on it.
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Final thoughts:
Not sure if i am breaking any rules for the contest and won't be too bummed if i get disqualified, as i learned about military and vintage watches and watch movements in the past 2 months. Browsing through vintage watches broadened the scope of watches that are appealing to me, so, more watches for me for less. Thanks for the Challenge.
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Last edited by Guyinwatch on Sat Jul 11, 2020 9:53 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: $35 Mechanical Field Watch Challenge

Post by TheJohnP »

Just for the backbending attempts to turn that into an Elgin field watch by some unknown forger, this has some very intrinsic intrigue.
Well played [mention]Guyinwatch[/mention], well played.
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Far and wide I will find 'em and I ride 'em
Bricks and mortar get my licks just for kicks
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Retail, wholesale never fail
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Run or hide just for fun deals I find
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