Availability of genuine CCCP military watches?

wagudc · Sep 25, 2021

Bob Neville
I've seen lots of "authentic" Soviet military watches advertised on-line (army, navy, air force), most at pretty reasonable prices even taking into consideration that the quality is probably a roll of the dice. Having served in the US Army during the tail end of the Cold War, and then into the Gorbachev time when the Russians and the rest of the Eastern Block became our buddies, I appreciate the historical significance of the existence of the Soviet Union. I like the look of many of the examples I'm seeing - so many are really bold and ordinary at the same time. It's like you can feel the Marxist propaganda of the state just glancing down to see what time it is. Although I have seen the coolest looking digits on the faces of these watches.
I know there are legitimate on-line sellers to buy authentic high-end Swiss (and other) watches such as Jomashop and Bob's Watches among many others, but does anyone know of a legit seller of authentic Soviet watches?

Here are some relevant threads

https://omegaforums.net/threads/anyone-speaks-russian.94358/
https://omegaforums.net/threads/soviet-watches.111883/
https://omegaforums.net/threads/russian-watches-the-unexplored-country-or-no-mans-land.38944/

Bob Neville · Sep 25, 2021

AAAKK
I'm no expert on Soviet watches by any stretch but I picked up this 80s Vostok Amphibia for maybe 45-50 bucks a few years ago. They are a bit crude but it runs like a top. Lots of interesting dials and case styles so just be patient and find something you like and hasn't been polished to death. They made millions of them so they'll be plentiful and inexpensive for years to come. Just stick to "CCCP" dials"

I just took a closer look at this and there’s a really cool alligator skin finish on the face - do you know if that is original to this watch or is that evidence of the paint on the face aging? Either way it looks really cool!

Bob Neville · Dec 26, 2021

I decided to roll the dice and make a small investment in a few Soviet watches from a Russian source with lots of only positive feedback on eBay. He said to expect the shipping to take 4-6 weeks, so I'm expecting these to arrive mid-January based on my purchase date. $140 total for the 3 including shipping & taxes.