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Calling all Pocket Watch Buffs

Duracuir1
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In Ontario I believe it’s illegal to walk on the tracks.

Sadly I have supervised two collisions involving motor vehicle vs passenger train at 140kph.

In one case the vehicle was hit broadside and looked like melted cheese on a bun. It was fused to the nose of the undamaged VIA train.

The other was sent flying like a punted football, only difference is that it travelled four lengths of a football field.

Canine was required to find well, you know…

It’s almost a good thing that we don’t have the high speed trains of other parts of the world.

In any event, be careful.
 
CBM1590
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DaveK DaveK
When checking out rail lines, take a peek at the side of the rails where you can find maker’s marks, patent info and other goodies

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My leatherwork hammer that I made this summer from a spike

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And if anyone complains about railway stuff, remember that railways are always watch related 😁

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Ohhh…I gotta start looking at the rails. Thanks for the tip!

You and Steve will appreciate that I went scavenging for old leather at thrift stores yesterday. Probably going to pick up some basic tools and begin to piddle (like I need another hobby). Steve’s pocket watch lanyard (see how I looped this back into watches 😀 ) has me pondering for sure.
 
CBM1590
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Duracuir1 Duracuir1
In Ontario I believe it’s illegal to walk on the tracks.

Sadly I have supervised two collisions involving motor vehicle vs passenger train at 140kph.

In one case the vehicle was hit broadside and looked like melted cheese on a bun. It was fused to the nose of the undamaged VIA train.

The other was sent flying like a punted football, only difference is that it travelled four lengths of a football field.

Canine was required to find well, you know…

It’s almost a good thing that we don’t have the high speed trains of other parts of the world.

In any event, be careful.
Illegal to be on tracks here as well. I’m always careful (and discrete). The bridge shot I posted above was taken from the caboose of a vintage train that runs a section of the North Carolina mountains.
 
Duracuir1
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CBM1590 CBM1590
Ohhh…I gotta start looking at the rails. Thanks for the tip!

You and Steve will appreciate that I went scavenging for old leather at thrift stores yesterday. Probably going to pick up some basic tools and begin to piddle (like I need another hobby). Steve’s pocket watch lanyard (see how I looped this back into watches 😀 ) has me pondering for sure.
The lanyards are super easy to make with minimal investment.

And yes, back to watches!
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Canuck
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CPR 2816, built in Montreal in 1930, rebuilt 1999-2001. Millions spent on this to achieve what you see. Mothballed for several years when Hunter Harrison assumed presidency of the CPR. Returned to the rails after his son-in-law assumed the presidency. Yayyy!
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Canuck
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More Breguet numerals……….on my Hamilton grade 952, worn over New Years as advertised. Currently gaining 3 seconds per day. Pretty good for a 110 year old watch! On my @Duracuir1 lanyard.

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noelekal
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Long as we're on the subject of locomotives, here's the 1919 Baldwin Pacific 4-6-2 in the local park of our long time hometown.

Photo taken nearly 20 years ago before we moved away. Mrs. noelekal and Silas the dog who loved his doggy-mommy. We lived four blocks west of the locomotive at Hulen park so walked there often.

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=194388

Cleburne, Texas was the home of the Santa Fe Shops as the locals called it. The Shops hugely impacted the local economy for several generations. As a young loan officer I made a jillion consumer loans to Santa Fe employees, had them as friends and neighbors, and attended church with them.

Cleburne must have been chock full of pocket watches too. I had a friend who was my first small commercial lending customer who owned a local pawn shop. He was "ate up" with pocket watches, had a monumental personal collection, kept cases of additional pocket watches out for sale in his shop, and tried to educate me and influence me to collect pocket watches, especially railroad grades. I was sorely tempted, but had (still have) too many collecting interests so only ever bought one watch from him during those years. I didn't appreciate the opportunity I had. Wished I'd taken advantage of the "deals" he would have offered me at 1980 prices.

I suppose the relatives and descendants of railroad employees who settled in Cleburne must have been hauling those watches into J. D.'s pawn shop and cashing in on them by the late 1970s to the early 1990s.

I only live 30 miles from Cleburne at present and our youngest son and wife live there so I nose about up there from time to time. There are no longer good pocket watch sources that I've uncovered in the pawn shops and antique shops.

So, now 40-something years later I finally dipped a toe into pocket watches, something in which I had a budding interest, but not nurtured interest long ago.

More than you'd ever want to know about Cleburne's Santa Fe Shops.

https://www.google.com/search?clien...ate=ive&vld=cid:ffa751c6,vid:fKZnM5hxJIw,st:0


Waltesefalcon and me, we're Hamilton 992 brothers.





 
TexOmega
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TexOmega TexOmega
I would say a 992 or a 992B should be a cornerstone in a PW collection. Hamilton produced the 992 from roughly 1900 to 1940 and the 992B from 1940 to 1969 when they closed their doors.

Iconic, workingman's American RR grade watches and they sold as many as they could produce because they were designed well, durable, easily serviced by qualified WM and always at a modest, middle class price point.

Plentiful now, so finding one in your price range should be easy. $200-$300 should bring an extremely nice example with a double sunk porcelain dial with no damage, and an excellent movement. I always evaluate the screw heads in any pictures to see if a ham-fisted amateur with incorrect tools decided to play WM.

Case material(gold) will increase price accordingly.

If you must have a very nice GF Hamilton Case in the era of your movement(no evidence of being recased), expect to pay a bit more, maybe $50.

And...........if you can be happy with a double sunk porcelain dial with a minor hairline or two and a tired looking GF case, the price will drop to $100-150. and sometimes less.

Over the years, I have bought many because there are variations, etc but this is the PW that my dad's uncle had that I remember crawling up into his lap and watching him wind this cool, giant thing that ticked real loud...Dad eventually received it, then me. It will stay in the family. This watch started it all for me.



@CDM1590


Well done Grasshopper



2 more like my Uncles
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Canuck
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I just checked my photo files to find that all of my pocket watch dials have the following fonts. Roman, Breguet, Boxcar, Block, or Roman. I do have one Illinois with Gothic font.
 
Fallout Boy
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Hi @ all, I "found" in the www-universe a John Jefferies spindle watch (silver) . May I ask: worth to buy?

jefferies 1.jpg jefferies 2.jpg jefferies 3.jpg


did not find much on www ......

btw: he offers also these two:

jef 2.jpg jef 1.jpg
 
Bernhard J
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I would say forget the last one. The case would seem to belong to a repeater and it is imo unlikely that the rather low quality movement is a repeater.

Both, the first and the second are nice (provided that dial and hands of the second one are in good condition) and you might decide according to your personal taste and the respective prices.

I myself would prefer the second one, because it is a few decades older than the first one.

Or, buy both ... 😁

Cheers, Bernhard
 
Fallout Boy
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2nd one is not working (Geo Beifield London)
, 3rd one is indeed a repeater (probably need some help)
 
Canuck
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Perhaps the same John Jeffries who ma de Harrison’s H4 chronometer?
 
Bernhard J
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Fallout Boy Fallout Boy
2nd one is not working (Geo Beifield London)

The watch @Duracuir1 had bought was thought not to work ... 😎

OK, then the first one seems best for a non-DIYer, it looks as if it is in a nice condition and will provide long term joy. If you have expertise and skills, I would suggest the repeater, potentially as a project. If the price is low.
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