A new start for this sales thread as requested by the Mods. The original had got a little bit messy! I have owned this watch for nearly 10 years, and it is part of the collection that I did not foresee selling. But times and needs change, so here is a very original and clean Israeli Defence Force watch with all original parts. This watch is slightly earlier than most of the Super Kontiki's issued to the IDF special forces, and has an earlier hand configuration. It also has the Gold medallion on the case back that had disappeared by 1973. The engravings are the 'drunken' or sloping M style, and totally correct, and in the right range for this watch. They also appear on Heuer and Tudor Subs from the period. These sloping M engravings ran in parallel with the watches engraved with the Tsade style stock numbers. I have read the M series were specific to the Naval special forces, but can not confirm this directly. They are certainly less common than the Tsade style. I have quite a lot of photo evidence and references for these watches which I can dig out if you have any need of collaboration for the engravings. They are very distinctive and there are no variations in style or fonts, so easy to confirm if you know what you are looking at. These are very few and far between, and decent examples very rarely come up these days. I hope this is a fair price for a great watch and it will go to a good home. The Case The case is in excellent condition with no major dings or dents, case back engraved with military issue number and the solid gold(as far as I am aware) medallion is in great shape and clear and crisp. The Dial and Hands The dial is in great condition with no marks or degradation. The lume in the applied markers has some dark spots. The original Tritium hands are very clean with no paint loss or cracking. The second hand is creamier in colour than the hour and minute hand, which is normal, as they often come from different batches/manufacturers. The Bezel The original bezel has no major scratches or dings. It is one way ratcheting/click bezel, quite stiff but turns freely once started. Luminous tritium triangle at 12 o'clock The Crown Original screw down crown functioning well. Quick set date and hacking movement for military precision! The Movement Eterna-matic 25 Jewel hi beat movement with the famous 5 bearing rotor. It is adjusted to 6 positions and temperature. The Bracelet It is presented on the original NSA sprung clasp, marked with Eterna and the 5 bearing logo. The Crystal The original mineral crystal has a chip and some scratches Price is £4500 £4250 plus £25 RMSD
Just to add, although an ambitious statement I would say this watch is unpolished. One interested party was concerned about the case back being polished. It is not, just the uneven military engraving gives that impression.
Bump and Reduction. When compared to its contemporary, the Omega SM300 this is an absolute steal! An issued special forces diving watch for less than the price of a ubiquitous Seamaster! Now £4250
Nice "correct Shayatet 13" Eterna. I have it on good authority from the gentleman who engraves these for the IDF, the sloped M is correct for S13. All of the others with the lenghty serial are for Artillery units. I'd jump on this if I didn't already have one (with 1970 vintage Eterna shark mesh band) Cheers, Buster
Thanks, that is great information and is what I have suspected myself, just through observed numbers and the earlier Tudor and Heuer’s with the same style of engravings. That mesh is very nice, very rare and a great addition.
Very cool. I was unfamiliar to this brand until I saw @Dan S sell a very nice one here. Made me start looking into them and I find them to be a great watch. Seems like they are a little under radar and I see some good deals out there on theee. This one you have I realize is more of a special addition and it looks hot, not stolen hot just hot hot.
Extra lockdown photos in the sunshine. Now on an original vintage Eterna mesh that I will add to the package for £500. They are super rare and almost impossible to find!