Questions on the Hamilton 23 chronograph

[RON in PA]

Is this watch lever set or pendant set?

Also, what were the years of manufacture?

Thanks in advance.

[RON in PA]

Is this watch lever set or pendant set?

Also, what were the years of manufacture?

Thanks in advance.

[Don Dahlberg]

It is pendant set. I can't remember when the first one came out, 1942 or 43. It was sold well into the late 50s perhaps later.

It was most often used in conjuction with a bubble sextant in celestial navigation in airplanes. You would start the stopwatch at some convenient time like exactly 6 minutes after the hour. When you took a reading with the bubble sextant, you actually pulled a trigger on the sextant that turned off the stopwatch. You then knew your readings started so many seconds after 6 minutes after the hour. An error just 4 seconds is an error of one nautical mile in lognitude near the equator.

Don
NAWCC Volunteer

[terry hall]

P001 was sold 3-31-1943... same day it was finished...

I don't have a detailed list, some later serial numbers could have been shipped first...

The records are located in the Library in the Hamilton Ledgers, book 376

.

[Don Dahlberg]

I am home now, so I can make a few more comments.

During WWII 17,054 were produced for the Navy, 5,000 for the Army and 135 for the Maritine Commision of Russia.

As of December 31, 1957 there were 23,932 produced and they were still in production. This is about when Hamilton stopped really keeping records, so I have no idea when production stopped and how many were finally produced.

Don Dahlberg
NAWCC Volunteer