Help Identifying Waltham pocketwatch

[doug sinclair]

Carla,

Welcome to the National Association of Watch & Clock Collectors Message Board. The NAWCC is an international group of approximately 27,000 members worldwide whose interests span the full spectrum of time and time keepers. We're glad you found us, and we hope you'll bookmark the site, and visit often now that you have developed an interest.

Without having had a chance to examine your watch, I'll go out on a limb a bit and suggest that it has been re-cased. Recased watches are seen frequently in the field of watch collecting. Cases protected the movement to a degree, but they were exposed to all the dirt and abuse that the watch was exposed to, and eventually, the case wore out, or became damaged to the point it could no longer be used. Sometimes the movement may have been put into a new case, but more often, they were put into a used case that came from a donor watch. Clues of a re-case are occasionally visible with the back removed. The case flange that surrounds the movement will often bear extra marks from a previous movement. The case screws are the two large headed screws at the outer edge of the movement approximately 180 degrees apart that overlap on the case flange. They often leave a mark on that flange. These marks are not always to be found, as there is a possibility that the previous movement might have had the case screws located in the same place.

Congratulations on your new acquisition.

[Kent]

Carla:

Only a small percentage of American watches (or Swiss watches for the North American market) were cased at the factories prior to the mid-1920's. Most watch companies just made movements (the "works") in industry standard sizes. The case companies made cases in those same sizes. The practice at that time was to go to a jeweler, select the quality of the movement and then pick out the desired style and quality of case. The jeweler would then fit the movement to the case in a matter of moments.

As my friend Doug pointed out, its not unusual for a case to wear out. If the watch was originally bought in 1915, its not surprising that it was ready for a new case 13 years later. Many of us are used to seeing cases guaranteed for 20, or 25 years, but ones that would last a shorter time before the gold would wear through to the brass are not uncommon.

Or, since the watch movement was expensive, perhaps it was originally placed in an inexpensive case. Your family watch has a high grade movement, one frequently used by railroaders. (To learn more about railroad time service and railroad standard watches, see "Just What Is A Railroad Watch?" On the Pocket Horology, NAWCC Chapter 174 Website (http://www.pockethorology.org/).) A brakeman just starting out was likely to have had a limited budget. In fact, railroaders frequently bought watches "on the tick," making a down payment and having weekly amounts deducted from their pay. After 13 years, the owner could have risen high enough to be able to afford a better case.

You can see where your family watch movement was in the Waltham line by looking at a 1917 distributor's catalog:
<span class="ev_code_brown">www.elginwatches.org/scans/sales_catalogs/1917_Oskamp-Nolting/m_pg_W4.html</span>
(you should copy this address and paste it in your browser address bar - <span class="ev_code_blue">if this doesn't work the first time, try opening a new window for your browser, one without a previous visit to the NAWCC website</span>)

Keep in mind that in 1914, Henry Ford shocked the industrial world by almost doubling his assembly line workers' pay to $5.00/day. A young railroad brakeman probably didn't make that much. And then, he would have had to pay for a case as well.

You have a very nice watch, proudly keep it in the family. I suggest that you try to learn more about the original owner and what his relationship was to you. This informaiton should be passed down with the watch.

Good luck,
Kent

[Sheila Gilbert]

Carla,
Because the case was probably replaced.
(short version)