Hello good people! I stumbled upon this old Compax, did some homework on it and am eager to hear the the wisdom of the UG gurus over here. I might buy it, so no trade has been made yet. It would be my first venture into the Universal Geneve space What I figured so far: * The serial number in the 708,000 hints that it's a 1938 production year - or at least the case/caseback is * Crown is unsigned - from what I got this is as it should be for such an early Compax * The movement is a caliber 283, the case is 32/33mm. I could live with it, since I'm very thinwristed and feel home between 34-36mm * Blued straight hands seem authentic and nice condition * The roman numeral at 12 o'clock position is somewhat irritating. These dials seem to be very rare, two examples on the net I found were different, with the "XII" being a more bold font. The whole patina and those fine lines however seem authentic to me - but that's gut feeling. * The hour subdial has correct radial indicators, no groves in the subdials seem ok for that time as well. * Dial doesn't say "SWISS" at the bottom, afaik that's correct for such an early piece * Case seems to have been hardly polished, if at all. Quite some scratches from opening the case back however. Is there any alarm coming from your radars on this piece - e.g. early redial? Such an early 1938 with roman numeral in original, good state would be quite something in my book Any reasonable thoughts on authenticity are highly appreciated! Thanks & cheers!
I'm not knowledgeable enough to weigh in on your redial question, but this piece is super cool if it all checks out. Good luck!
I hope it's not a redial or a recase - that is such a bad ass watch. The big XII is so dope, love everything about this one even the size. Would you mind sharing (ballpark) how much the seller wants?
Looks original and in good condition. If you can live with the size and it seems you can, this will make a lovely addition to your collection. Keep us posted.
I got another photo where it's fine. Might be parallax? The watch got serviced very recently, function is reported to be without issues. Thanks for notification though! Will ask the seller specifically about that. Thanks for your feedback so far!
That is a very appealing watch. Just one thing bugging me about the printing; the ‘Compax’ has faded noticeably more than the rest of the dial. Is this purely due to lighter stamping at the factory level?
Between the patina, the scratched crystal and the lack of sharp focus, I can’t be sure either. I’d want to examine the dial with the crystal removed and a loupe in hand to be sure.
That's what I hope What I learned meanwhile is, that the lugs at 12 have female springbars, on the side common springbars, since the nib broke on one lug. That's something a watchmaker has to work on, when I receive it. Want to adjust it so it has regular springbar mounts on both sides, no mishmash. What really sings to me is that patina coming from a 80+ year old watch, while not being beat up. It's also significant in the sense that this belongs to the first generation of wrist watch chronographs that founded the chrono as we generally still have (and want) them today, with dual pushers and a column-wheel construction, as opposed to the earlier versions with monopushers. Another important for me personally is, that there's no radium inside. Throw in blued hands and a highly respectable brand (have been longing for a UG for quite some time) and I had to have it. Just a few random thoughts I've had working in the back room of my mind.
While I cannot be sure as I am very much a newbie, it still looks cracking! Also, I share your sentiment of smaller watches as I share a small wrist as well.
That looks very nice indeed and I wouldn't worry about the size. I'll have to check whether it's the same case reference as mine when I get home.