West End Watch Co. Queen Anne Trench Style

Just scored this very nice watch from the 1920s.

41mm including crown.. case made from what is referred to as nickel silver..

Advertising from 1920s is interesting as no verification that these watches were issued, but certainly plenty were bought by the officers and soldiers to be worn during the Great War..

Vintage watch collecting - a new direction

My watch collecting has taken a turn in direction of late starting with the vintage Royal Orient Calendar..

I have been finding an interest in vintages watches in general..

So now I will start to post about some of these watches..

Orient do yellow so well..

Scored this Orient that I had my eye for a while now.. The yellow on the dial really 'pops'..

New strap for the M-Force

I had a friend make this great leather strap for my M-Force.

Orient 200m Diver reassembled

So here is the final result of the reluming project..  I will try to put up some photos of reluming the hands later but will need someone else to take the photos as I do them..

Orient 200m Diver - Relume project

Over the next week or so I will post about my current project to relume this Orient 200m Diver..

After removing the dial from the watch you can clearly see from the photo below that the dial was in need of a relume..

I removed the old lume using a very small jewellers screwdriver and a steady hand..

Then using a watch oiler, I carefully dropped lume onto the markers and left it to dry for a while..

Then I slowly built up the lume drop by drop..

Here is shot to give an idea of the lume colour..

Now while the lume dries and cures, I will have a go at doing the hands..  More to follow..

Orient Classic Re-edition Automatic CER24003W

Just in from Malaysia is this new Orient Classic Automatic.. classic style..  bigger watch..  pie pan dial.. gorgeous..

Specifications:

Diameter - 43mm incl crown 40mm without
Lug to Lug - 46mm
Lugwidth - 21mm
Thickness - 12mm

Mechanical Movement : ORIENT caliber 48743 Made in Japan
Self-winding movement
21 jewels
21,600/hour vibrations
Date indicator

Stainless steel case
Box crystal glass
Screw caseback
Genuine leather strap
Water resistant to 30m

Size comparison against the Royal Calendar Orient from 1961..

Orient Quartz Alarm Chronograph PTA0H001C

Picked this one up from an online auction. Uses Orient HFA00 quartz movement which is the rebranded Seiko 7T32.  As with the Seiko 7T32 the second hand sweeps at 5 beats per second when activated.

Specifications:

• Diameter - 40mm (42mm with crown
• Lug to lug - 45mm
• Lug width - 20mm
• Thickness - 10mm
• Movement - Quartz HFA00

Royal Calendar Orient

The Royal Orients were introduced in 1958. The Orient Watch Company produced their first watches with a calendar complication in 1961. This is the Royal Calendar Orient.

Specifications:

Case diameter with crown is 37mm
Lug to lug is 44mm
Lugwidth is 18mm
Case thickness is 9mm

Calibre 'N' with 21 jewels

Handwind

Orient Mako modding continued..

Still working on the Orient Mako mod..

Had this Orient that I never wear.. Didn't really like the bezel on it..

Same handset as these M-Force models..

So here is the movement transplanted into my Orient Mako case..

I am liking this better than the others mainly because of the nice clean dial..

and finally, with new seconds hand and strap..

My first Orient Mako Mod..

Orient Black Mako with custom dial and on a black leather strap with red stitching..

New shoes make a difference..

Put a leather strap on the Orient M-Force 200m Air Diver. Quite a different look.

Return of the M-Force - WV0011EL 200m Air Diver

What a great come back for the Orient M-Force range. A 200m ISO certified Air Diver with great wrist presence.
































Specifications

Mechanical Movement : ORIENT caliber 40N5A Made in Japan
Self-winding movement
Hacking & Hand-winding
Enhanced shock proof
22 jewels21600/hour vibrations
Power reserve indicator
Date indicator
Stainless steel case and bracelet
One-way rotating bezel
Sapphire crystal
Screw caseback
Screwed-down crown
Diameter 46.00mm
Thickness 13.30mm
Water resistant to 200m(Certificated by ISO 6425 diver’ s watches, ISO 764 antimagnetic watches and ISO 1413 shock-resistant watches)

Despite the size and heft of this watch it sits very comfortably on the wrist, even my small one. It doesn't leave you feeling as if you have been lifting weights all day as some other watches do. The bracelet is wide enough to help with this. For those that have worn an Orient Beast you will know what I mean by this as the bracelet on the Beast, in my opinion, was not wide enough for the size of the watch.

The bracelet is made of solid links and is attached to the watch using wide spring bars. The end links are not solid and there is not divers extension on the clasp, but I don't believe this detracts from the watch, as if I was going diving with it, I would put it on a rubber or silicon strap. Uses the same pin and collrs as the Seiko Monster bracelet.

The lume is good and lasts all night. Maybe not on a par with the Seiko Monster, but good enough for the job.

As with all the newer Orient automatics, this one has hacking and handwinding. A useful feature and it is nice to see the Power Reserve indicator moving towards 40 as you wind the ultrasmooth mechanism.

The bezel is easy to rotate but not as free as the Orient Star Revolver. It is unidirectional and has 120 clicks.

A recommended buy.