Just bought a Cyma watch as detailed in the photographs
Bought it from a second hand stall selling all sorts of various items ranging from old clothes to furniture
The watch intrigued me but I knew nothing about the brand or model and the stall holder had no info. After a bit of a haggle I bought it for the grand sum of £30.
It has run for 72 hours and kept perfect time but needs a service
Research states that CYMA started in 1862 in Switzerland producing reasonable watches and that the most notable watch was called Navystar produced in the 50s.Cymaflex is a shock protection system introduced in the 1950s.
I have not found any info on this model but guess it is a 50s/60s model but may well get to know more when my watchmaker opens it up.
It is a S/S case with no markings or model numbers on the rear. The crown carries the CYMA logo.
Having only paid £30 for it I do not really care what it is worth but prices for these watches on various sites seem to fluctuate wildly
I mainly collect chronographs and dive watches so this is a bit of an oddity for me but any additional info welcomed as I intend to keep it and wear it on the rare occasions I am suited and booted

 

1862-1902
"Fusing timeless elegance with contemporary flair, Cyma timepieces are the descendants of a long tradition of watchmaking that stretches back one-and-a-half centuries. The name Cyma has its roots in the French word “cime”, meaning “summit”, which, in turn, is derived from the Latin word “cyma”, meaning “a shoot”. It is a name that reflects not only the company’s constant striving for perfection but also the inextricable link with its birthplace in the Jura Mountains of Switzerland.

Initially, it was the harshness of the climate in the high valleys of the Jura – buried for more than half the year beneath deep snow and frequently cut off from the outside world – that gave rise to watchmaking activity during the long winters of isolation. During the 18th century, the efforts of the region’s industrious and ingenious inhabitants gradually led to the establishment of fully-fledged workshops for the design and manufacture of watches, and by 1780 watchmaking had developed into a process involving 30 distinct operations.

Inheritors of the horological gene that pervades the Jura, the two brothers Joseph and Theodore Schwob decided in 1862 to set up their own watchmaking company, Cyma, focusing much of their attention on avant-garde mechanical production techniques. Indeed, with its ongoing achievements in technical innovation, Cyma was one of the companies that made Neuchâtel the renowned centre of the watchmaking industry it is today.

Some 30 years later, the brothers went into partnership with a businessman called Frederic Henri Sandoz who had created a new watch company in Le Locle, another cradle of fine Swiss watchmaking. By this time, Cyma had established itself as a pioneer in the manufacture of intricate repeater watches, high complications and chronographs. The daily production was 150 pieces."

1903-1929
"From the early 20th century onwards, the company received numerous awards, notably for its prowess in extra-slim watches. In 1903, it was awarded the coveted chronometer certificate issued by the Neuchâtel Observatory for its invention of a new extra-flat lever movement fitted inside a pocket watch. Two years later, Cyma introduced the calibre 701 with a thickness of just 3.85mm – a remarkable achievement for the time. In recognition of its watchmaking feats, the company won first prize at the World Fair in Brussels in 1910.

Output, meanwhile, had risen significantly, with some 2,500 movements being assembled daily in the workshops. From 1915, Cyma’s highly skilled designers and technicians were elaborating shock-resistant movements of unparalleled strength, along with the first waterproof models, which were finished to an equally high standard.

During the 1920s, the company was at the forefront of component interchangeability, which enabled its workshops to produce watches on a much bigger scale. By 1929, Cyma boasted the biggest workshop in Europe and employed 2,000 people to assemble 4,000 watches a day. In the same year, the company received first prize at the International Barcelona Exposition."

1930-1959
"While men’s watches still accounted for the lion’s share of the business, in 1930 Cyma made an early foray into the ladies’ market with the Captive. It quickly became known for its elegance and precision, and was adopted by the legendary French writer, Collette, who was then at the height of her fame. She described the watch in her characteristic style: “It is a captive in the most romantic sense of the word... it is bought and sold. Sensitive and compliant, it yields if you handle it masterfully, revealing its face, divulging all its secrets, and each surrender simply adds to its charms...”

In 1943, Cyma unveiled its first automatic wristwatch, endowed with a 420 calibre featuring a unidirectional rotor. This presaged the ‘Autorotor’ 485 calibre of 1957.

The brand’s reputation was further enhanced with innovative products such as an eight-day mechanical alarm clock with single winding key (1945), the Sonomatic alarm clock (1957), and the gold Time-O-Vox alarm clock watch, which received official chronometer certification in 1956. The latter was the only one with the pleasant timbre of that period to ally a 464 calibre,12 1/2 inch, with a single barrel and small second."

 

Nice to see Cyma getting a mention. Very much a "forgotten" make which generally is cheap as chips Some models with a military pedigree do command a bit of a premium. Here is one that I inherited and passed on to one of my brothers. https://omegaforums.net/threads/my-fathers-watches-final-part.30488/

 

I have tracked down an old photograph which seems to indicate that the dial and hands look original and it could be a 17 jewel movement known as R458
The more I research the more I am starting to appreciate this brand has a significant history which is at odds with how the market values the watches

 

Highly underrated brand in the vintage market.

 

+1 vastly underrated at the moment but not for much longer

 

I only have a couple of military watches and this Cyma is one of them, classic WWW styling and with a very nice and substantial chunky case which makes it one of the larger, if not the largest (?), models of the `Dirty Dozen`. I don´t wear it often but when I do it always makes me smile.

 

So sorry but perhaps we can keep a lid on it until we have had our fill of them

 

Unfortunately always the problem when we start to discuss the undervalued

Now to be perfectly honest Cyma really manufactured the biggest load of rubbish

 

A little more on this completely unremarkable and uncollectable brand here http://www.vintagewatchstraps.com/cyma.php and here https://penroseantiques.wordpress.com/2013/10/21/the-history-of-cyma-watch-company/

 

Yes total rubbish

 

Terrible photo, I know. But I'm travelling. So this photo from my files will have to do. This is a private label by Tavannes (same company) for J W Benson, an English retailer. This one is from 1933, and in a 9 karat Dennison case. The second owner gave it to me in the late 1980s, after his Samoyed dog, mistaking it for a foil wrapped candy, chewed it up quite badly. The "halo" you see around the numerals results from my having fitted a glass which was the right shape, but the wrong profile. I had to grind of the back of the crystal to fit my case.