A new one in my collection : CK 2179 US Army

Posts
1,314
Likes
3,646
Hi,

Went to a watch fair on Sunday and I couldn't resist this nice CK2179 with US Army marking. I need to find a correct crown in good condition, otherwide dial and marking look OK to me but I would appreciate all comments.
16121104202419182114700842.jpg

16121104202619182114700843.jpg

16121104202819182114700844.jpg
Take care,
 
Posts
4,103
Likes
9,227
Hi

Nice watch and Its uncommon with a 2179/2 I have typically seen them with 2179/3 . Dont hold your breath on fining a replacement crown. The tub size is way oversized and finding any crown to replace it will be a challenge...

The dial on your is in great condition the lacquer used on these dials did not hold up , maybe it was not UV stable !!

enjoy it at 35 mm and a steel screwback case ...

Please keep in mind most of the 2179 we find in the wild are for civilian consumption... a small amount were purchased by the US ARMY...

@gatorcpa did research on his US basket ball watch years ago... That is in fact I introduced myself to him to correct some of his assumptions... but that is another story.

Good Hunting

Bill Sohne
 
Posts
7,597
Likes
21,790
Looks nice… it's interesting because the bezel on this one looks flatter (and nicer) than on some of the other models on line (maybe because it's a rarer variant as Bill says?).
Don't know how you do it. Every fair you seem to find something spot on. And now your military stash is growing ...

Please keep in mind most of the 2179 we find in the wild are for civilian consumption... a small amount were purchased by the US ARMY...

Hey @Bill Sohne, are you saying even those marked "US army" at the back could be civilian? (that's interesting).
 
Posts
12,537
Likes
16,887
Images are particularly grainy on my computer. But it looks pretty good to me. I think that an original crown will be difficult to find for this model.

Jules Borel says they have it:

http://cgi.julesborel.com/cgi-bin/matcgi2?ref=\]ZETESMXo

However, I don't know if there is a difference between the crown for this watch and the ones on the "civilian" watches with different dials.

Here's mine for comparison:

DSCN1928.jpg

DSCN1925.jpg

No US Army on mine, but the family of the original owner said that this engraving referred to a US military basketball tournament held after WWII ended:

DSCN1924.jpg

I never was able to prove direct provenance to my owner, only that there was a tournament held in Wiesbaden in March 1946. This watch is a Ref. 2179/5.

What Bill is referring to is that I didn't understand the differences between the Ref. 2384 (the other reference for these US Army watches with the same dial) and this Ref. 2179.

Hey @Bill Sohne, are you saying even those marked "US army" at the back could be civilian? (that's interesting).
What he is saying that if it's not marked "US Army" on the back, it is probably not an issued military watch. This dial style was not exclusive to the engraved watches delivered to the US Army in 1944 and 1945.

Hope this helps,
gatorcpa
 
Posts
4,103
Likes
9,227
ALSO on the OP stamping the letter are wider apart then I remember them to be... were tighter together and very lightly stamped...

2384 is also a great case style.

Best

bill

Hi
Well... actually two thoughts...

1) 2179 was a civilian model not like a WWW or a RAF 53 that was Military only. I have examples over the years that were told to dist in France , and other Countries....

2) Omega records imply that they were sold to the US
Images are particularly grainy on my computer. But it looks pretty good to me. I think that an original crown will be difficult to find for this model.

Jules Borel says they have it:

http://cgi.julesborel.com/cgi-bin/matcgi2?ref=\]ZETESMXo

However, I don't know if there is a difference between the crown for this watch and the ones on the "civilian" watches with different dials.

Here's mine for comparison:

DSCN1928.jpg

DSCN1925.jpg

No US Army on mine, but the family of the original owner said that this engraving referred to a US military basketball tournament held after WWII ended:

DSCN1924.jpg

I never was able to prove direct provenance to my owner, only that there was a tournament held in Wiesbaden in March 1946. This watch is a Ref. 2179/5.

What Bill is referring to is that I didn't understand the differences between the Ref. 2384 (the other reference for these US Army watches with the same dial) and this Ref. 2179.


What he is saying that if it's not marked "US Army" on the back, it is probably not an issued military watch. This dial style was not exclusive to the engraved watches delivered to the US Army in 1944 and 1945.

Hope this helps,
gatorcpa
 
Posts
2,876
Likes
1,956
I need to find a correct crown in good condition,
Beside Jules Borel, Cousins UK also have 2 different crowns available for the 2179, one with tube size of 2.2mm. Can you measure the tube size on your watch?
 
Posts
4,440
Likes
11,289
I believe I have a couple of crowns at home - remind me in a week and I will look for you! Here is my 2179, unfortunately no US Army markings. Out of all the ones I've owned this one has the cleanest dial.

 
Posts
4,103
Likes
9,227
Hi
Well... actually two thoughts...

1) 2179 was a civilian model not like a WWW or a RAF 53 that was Military only. I have examples over the years that were told to dist in France , and other Countries....

2) Omega records imply that they were sold to the US
For @Bill Sohne's benefit, here's another Ref. 2179-2 with engraving.

http://www.classicwatch.com/asp/howtoorder.asp?Where=(Ref='rx2258')&User=76&ManCode=86&Model=U.S. Army

The heavier engravings are found on the Ref. 2384:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-194...-Manual-Watch-30T2SC-ref-2384-1-/371807848233

s-l1600.jpg

s-l1600.jpg

Really nice watches,
gatorcpa


HI @gatorcpa

I have to disagree, that is not heavy or deep stamping.. but the letter spacing is much tighter then the OP example.

When i get a chance will dig thru a box to find some of mine...

Best

bill
 
This website may earn commission from Ebay sales.
Posts
3,319
Likes
7,040
There are also differences in the profile of 2179 (below) and 2384 (above):

 
Posts
4,103
Likes
9,227
There are also differences in the profile of 2179 (below) and 2384 (above):

totally true... the 2179 is my favorite version personally.
 
Posts
12,537
Likes
16,887
HI @gatorcpa

I have to disagree, that is not heavy or deep stamping.. but the letter spacing is much tighter then the OP example
Never said it was deep, just deeper than the Ref. 2179.

On those 2179's, I'll bet there are many examples that were US Army issued watches where the engraving was simply polished off.
gatorcpa
 
Posts
9
Likes
4
any one throw light on this model?
looking on this page I figured out its a 30T2SC, similar face to the us army one but the face numbers are vertical not arranged around the face, it has swiss6made at the bottom of the face, the numbers and hands are luminous except the second hand.
I measured the strap width as 18mm.
Not much history with the watch as I just inherited it from my father who got it after his Swedish neighbor died about 10 years ago along with a 1952 Tissot antimagnetique that is in very ratty condition and not working.
The Omega looks in almost as new condition and working perfectly with very light scuff marks and no stamping on the outer case.
I don't have the tools yet to take the back cover off and don't want to damage it trying to get the serial number.
I have seen several similar watches but none with these features.
 
Posts
5,270
Likes
8,978
Hi,

Went to a watch fair on Sunday and I couldn't resist this nice CK2179 with US Army marking. I need to find a correct crown in good condition, otherwide dial and marking look OK to me but I would appreciate all comments.
16121104202419182114700842.jpg

16121104202619182114700843.jpg

16121104202819182114700844.jpg
Take care,

I`m quite happy with the engraving. there are a few out there. not much time to look, but this one popped up: https://www.sekaimon.com/itemdetail/233214255208?country=GB . i`ve seen both styles, but tried to stick to this Font here. very shallow. the closer spaced one looked too new to me. the history was always a bit sketchy; order was very close the the end of WW2 and delivery was after the war ended. many show the history of sold in Germany to the US troops and bought via the PX stores. only a few became engraved with US army. had a mini research done in the 90`s with John Diethelm from the Factory. very nice watch; i never found an example with a great dial. therefore sold them all. One Day...... kind regards. achim
 
Posts
3,454
Likes
7,941
only a few became engraved with US army.
i never found an example with a great dial.
My lacquer has deteriorated but I still like it. I feel good about the crown and case but would love input.
 
Posts
5,270
Likes
8,978
can`t see the crown properly. does it have a step in it? case is great . kind regards. achim