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Lucky14
·
That's very interesting. Canadian dials seem to be prevalent on the collectors market but I have never seen specifically marked Canadian movements. I'm not Canadian but would love to find one of those.
Calling all Pocket Watch Buffs
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Canuck
·That's very interesting. Canadian dials seem to be prevalent on the collectors market but I have never seen specifically marked Canadian movements. I'm not Canadian but would love to find one of those.
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Lucky14
·The closest I can come to movements that are perhaps considered “private label” are two Waltham movements marked Canadian Railway Time Service, although the dials are not marked CRTS. I also have two Canadian Pacific Railway marked movements, although the dials are not marked CPR. My one CRTS marked movement is behind a private label dial marked for a retailer/watch inspector G W Beall, Lindsay, Ontario. To add to the confusion on this one, the dial is also marked Waltham! These movements are all Walthams. Only rarely do I run into private label watches with both movement and dial marked as private label.
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bobertdob
·Your Waltham with the Canadian Pacific logo & beaver is fantastic! Wow! Great piece of history.
The CPR beaver logos are relatively common but expensive so I have only ever gotten one. Many of the private labels in this area turn out to be Regina/Omega products.....my 21 J Regina F. Chinnek of Napanee is the best of the bunch I have collected. You must have a significant collection...
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Canuck
·Awesome.....I congratulate you! I am familiar with the GW Beall name from Lindsay which is close by where I live but I have never had the good fortune to find one of his watches for sale here.
The CPR beaver logos are relatively common but expensive so I have only ever gotten one. Many of the private labels in this area turn out to be Regina/Omega products.....my 21 J Regina F. Chinnek of Napanee is the best of the bunch I have collected. You must have a significant collection...
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bobertdob
·The CPR logo is found on a number of different Waltham movements. I have an 1883 model with the logo on the mainspring barrel bridge. This is one of the more common ones. My other CPR is the 1892 model. It is somewhat less common, and brings a bigger price. The CPR logo is also found on the 16-size 1888, 1899, and 1908 models, as well as the 1883 and 1892 models. The 16-size models must be reasonably scarce as they bring a bigger price. Particularly the 21-jewel models. If I’m not mistaken, the CPR 1888 model is the scarcest, and brings the bigger price. When you find these watches on line, the prices are all over the yard.
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Canuck
·With the CPR 1883 model, there is never a serial number on the under side of the barrel bridge, and the damask finish on the bridge never matches the damask finish on the movement. These barrel bridges were made separately from movements and warehoused separately. When an 1883 model CPR was ordered, Waltham removed the stock bridge from a stock 1883 movement, pulled a CPR bridge from their reserve, and fitted it to the movement. All other CPR models have the logo actually engraved on the plates.
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bobertdob
·The closest I can come to movements that are perhaps considered “private label” are two Waltham movements marked Canadian Railway Time Service, although the dials are not marked CRTS. I also have two Canadian Pacific Railway marked movements, although the dials are not marked CPR. My one CRTS marked movement is behind a private label dial marked for a retailer/watch inspector G W Beall, Lindsay, Ontario. To add to the confusion on this one, the dial is also marked Waltham! These movements are all Walthams. Only rarely do I run into private label watches with both movement and dial marked as private label.
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bobertdob
·On the topic of Private LABELS some of the Jewelers here in Canada utilized very exclusive Hi End brands.....
There is an auction coming up in little over three weeks here in Ontario which includes several interesting watches both wrist and pocket watches but the most intriguing to me is a Ryrie Bros Toronto Swiss pocket watch of the size ladys typically used as pendant watches. Ryrie Bros was a reputable Jeweler in downtown Toronto who merged with Birks around 1917. The Ryrie Bros were not manufacturers but jewellers who contracted the purchase sometimes in blocks of high end Swiss and possibly American movements....The pocket watch coming up for auction looks possibly like a Ryrie Bros. Private Label Patek Filippe from about the turn of the 19th Century. Its a 16 jewel movement which is consistent with PF's 15, 16 then the premium 18 to 21 jewel higher end models. The gear train appears to be Wolfs Tooth...the bridge design is consistent with Patek Filippe's movements......the case is nice but gold filled.
This Private Label watch appears to be contracted by Ryrie and made with exclusively only their information on it. The Ryrie Bros operation as far as I know did not manufacture just contract movements. Take a look at the pics and I would appreciate your comments on whether you think it might be a Patek Filippe Private label....
There is an auction coming up in little over three weeks here in Ontario which includes several interesting watches both wrist and pocket watches but the most intriguing to me is a Ryrie Bros Toronto Swiss pocket watch of the size ladys typically used as pendant watches. Ryrie Bros was a reputable Jeweler in downtown Toronto who merged with Birks around 1917. The Ryrie Bros were not manufacturers but jewellers who contracted the purchase sometimes in blocks of high end Swiss and possibly American movements....The pocket watch coming up for auction looks possibly like a Ryrie Bros. Private Label Patek Filippe from about the turn of the 19th Century. Its a 16 jewel movement which is consistent with PF's 15, 16 then the premium 18 to 21 jewel higher end models. The gear train appears to be Wolfs Tooth...the bridge design is consistent with Patek Filippe's movements......the case is nice but gold filled.
This Private Label watch appears to be contracted by Ryrie and made with exclusively only their information on it. The Ryrie Bros operation as far as I know did not manufacture just contract movements. Take a look at the pics and I would appreciate your comments on whether you think it might be a Patek Filippe Private label....
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Canuck
·I was looking for Patek’s typical “wolf’s tooth” ratchet wheel on the subject watch. On occasion on higher grade watches, the case and movement serial numbers matched. If it was Patek, the case would likely be Swiss, and be of karat gold (18?). You didn’t say. To my untrained eye, the movement doesn’t have that high finish of a Patek. Longines, maybe? Also, if it were Patek, I would expect the train wheel spokes to be oval.
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Waltesefalcon
·If that's a wolf's tooth, it's a wolf that has gotten up in years. 🤣
When someone says wolf's tooth it needs to be sharp. Back before I became educated on such terminology I called these gears saw tooth. Here's an example I yanked from the web.
@bobertdob are you planning on bidding on that watch? If so I'd be real interested to see under the dial if you win. It looks like a quality watch, it's just a mystery as to who made it. At least, it's a mystery to a guy like me who doesn't know a lot about Swiss watches.
When someone says wolf's tooth it needs to be sharp. Back before I became educated on such terminology I called these gears saw tooth. Here's an example I yanked from the web.
@bobertdob are you planning on bidding on that watch? If so I'd be real interested to see under the dial if you win. It looks like a quality watch, it's just a mystery as to who made it. At least, it's a mystery to a guy like me who doesn't know a lot about Swiss watches.
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bobertdob
·If that's a wolf's tooth, it's a wolf that has gotten up in years. 🤣
When someone says wolf's tooth it needs to be sharp. Back before I became educated on such terminology I called these gears saw tooth. Here's an example I yanked from the web.
@bobertdob are you planning on bidding on that watch? If so I'd be real interested to see under the dial if you win. It looks like a quality watch, it's just a mystery as to who made it. At least, it's a mystery to a guy like me who doesn't know a lot about Swiss watches.
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Canuck
·I am thinking it is a Longines as per the first comment. I spent hours last evening and the serial number on the movement is too large to be patek filippe but perfect if Longines ie. dates to 1911. I investigated NAWCC blogs and found two similar movements one being a Birks and the other a US Jeweler but interestingly both these were private label as well with no inscriptions pointing to a manufacturer. I am currently of the opinion this is an O size longines private label. The auction house has shown the watch to a local watchmaker and he suggested it was in good condition but needing a cleaning. I will follow the auction and depending on the price try and buy it I think. There are a few interesing items in this online auction from Shelburne on Feb 6th. They are offering a nice early Waltham and a nice Omega 17J pocket watch and wrist watches like a Brietling and others I would be interested in......
The subject watch is marked RYRIE, of Toronto. Another firm who interestingly sold out to Birks Jewellers.
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bobertdob
·I have seen many Canadian private label watches over the decades which had Longines movements in them. I ran into a drop dead gorgeous hunter cased pocket watch this past Tuesday. The case was a near mint 14-karat hunter with a Regal trade mark, set with 4 old European cut diamonds on the case back, a 12-hour vitreous enamel dial marked DINGWALL. The movement was a nice 3/4 plate, 15-jewel Longines, in nice running condition. She had the watch hung on a beautiful 14-karat chatelaine (brooch) which her heirs had made by Birks Jewellers in Winnipeg, about 50 years ago. D R Dingwall was an early 20th century jeweller and railroad watch inspector in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Sold out to Henry Birks & Sons Jewellers circa 1933, thereafter named Birks/Dingwall. The building still stands. At one point, Dingwall employed 22 watchmakers, likely because of the city of Winnipeg having been a major railroad hub.
The subject watch is marked RYRIE, of Toronto. Another firm who interestingly sold out to Birks Jewellers.
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Canuck
·Thank you for the comments regarding Longines being active in the Canadian private label industry. I have a couple Eatons early pocket watches one being a Gallet and the other I have thought might be a Longines as it is Swiss. Other than that I have owned a couple of Longines Express Leader Railroad watches from the Quebec region but they were clearly labelled by Longines on their movements. Do you see many W Mallett
I am not familiar with Mallet. I’m from Calgary, not Winnipeg.
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TexOmega
·Possibly Agassiz Watch Co. and they were imported by Wittnaur as was Longines at the time, at least to the US.
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Waltesefalcon
·Why do you say "possibly" on the above example? Not only does it look like an Agassiz it is marked as such.
Edit: you mean the PL that bibertdob shared might be an Agassiz don't you?
Edit: you mean the PL that bibertdob shared might be an Agassiz don't you?
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Canuck
·Why do you say "possibly" on the above example? Not only does it look like an Agassiz it is marked as such.
Edit: you mean the PL that bibertdob shared might be an Agassiz don't you?
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TexOmega
·Yes, it is at least close, There were several Agassiz associated watchmakers and kinfolk through the time frame building movements.
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ghce
·With all the talk of Hamilton 940 PW's the last couple of pages one came up in my auction watchlist that my wife had added without my knowing but luckily (or not) I spotted it a couple of hours before the auction was due to close, pure luck as I haven't been watching many auctions much with health issues taking my attention away from the very pleasurable activity of watch collecting and in this case Railroad Grade Pocket Watches.
Long story short many others wanted it too as these are a rare item here in NZ ( US RR ) but in the end I snared it at a reasonable price given it is not in working order currently.
I've stated here before that I am not a huge fan of Faux train imagery on PW's but of course this IS a RR Grade without doubt and its very well used casing probably means very much a work watch even though in a Sterling Silver case.
Serial number 526944
Haven't yet got it in my hands yet so unfortunately just the sellers poor pics.
Long story short many others wanted it too as these are a rare item here in NZ ( US RR ) but in the end I snared it at a reasonable price given it is not in working order currently.
I've stated here before that I am not a huge fan of Faux train imagery on PW's but of course this IS a RR Grade without doubt and its very well used casing probably means very much a work watch even though in a Sterling Silver case.
Serial number 526944
Haven't yet got it in my hands yet so unfortunately just the sellers poor pics.