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J_pilot
·Hi all,
First time poster here, but a massive Longines fan with a small collection of pieces I find wearable and interesting in some way or another.
This afternoon I stumbled across a very clean looking officer’s .925 trench watch with a serial that dates it to 1915. It’s a piece that I find very appealing for a few reasons, but I don’t want to get too deep into talking price with the seller until I consulted with the experts!
What do you all think about the originality of this watch (specifically dial, handset, crown), and what would you value it at, in todays market? Details as below:
DETAILS:
first off, apologies for the lack of pics, I have just the one taken on my own wrist, and while the seller was able to open the back and bezel, I didn’t have the presence of mind to ask for a picture when he did.
CASE/CROWN: ~32mm .925 silver, externally heavily oxidized to black, which I particularly like. Interior was exceptionally clean and untarnished. Lug width was about 16mm, and it had a hinged caseback and dust covers with hallmarks and stamped serial that matched the movement (3,3XX,XXX range). There were no “Swiss” or “Longines” signatures on the case, leading me to believe it was produced locally for the movement. The crown was particularly interesting as it perfectly matched the case patina and looked very at-home on the case, but does not match many of the more “onion-style” crowns I’ve seen on contemporary examples. Caseback hinge was tight, case was clean with no sign of repairs. Crystal was acrylic, in good shape.
DIAL/HANDSET: this is where I’m curious for your opinions. The dial was near perfect, with the exception of the very odd fading at 4 and 5 o-clock. I am super weirded out with this, as I would not expect this on an enamel dial of this period, but your thoughts/theories appreciated. Under a loupe there was no sign whatsoever of repairs, not even any hairlines. If this dial were painted post-firing, do you think it’s odd that just one region has the damage? Otherwise, the handset looks “right” to me, but I’m happy to be corrected! I’ve attached a photo I found of a similar example with the same dial but a spade handset (serial on that example is later too - 1918).
MOVEMENT: I just had a glance at the movement but it was a cal. 13.33 with a crown push/pull setting. It had a silver finish, and was quite clean with no visible marring to the screwheads. Winding and setting felt nice and tight. I’ve attached a picture of the same caliber (in much worse shape) for reference.
Sorry for the wordy description, but hopefully it gives you a fuller idea of the watch than just the one photo. Thanks!
First time poster here, but a massive Longines fan with a small collection of pieces I find wearable and interesting in some way or another.
This afternoon I stumbled across a very clean looking officer’s .925 trench watch with a serial that dates it to 1915. It’s a piece that I find very appealing for a few reasons, but I don’t want to get too deep into talking price with the seller until I consulted with the experts!
What do you all think about the originality of this watch (specifically dial, handset, crown), and what would you value it at, in todays market? Details as below:
DETAILS:
first off, apologies for the lack of pics, I have just the one taken on my own wrist, and while the seller was able to open the back and bezel, I didn’t have the presence of mind to ask for a picture when he did.
CASE/CROWN: ~32mm .925 silver, externally heavily oxidized to black, which I particularly like. Interior was exceptionally clean and untarnished. Lug width was about 16mm, and it had a hinged caseback and dust covers with hallmarks and stamped serial that matched the movement (3,3XX,XXX range). There were no “Swiss” or “Longines” signatures on the case, leading me to believe it was produced locally for the movement. The crown was particularly interesting as it perfectly matched the case patina and looked very at-home on the case, but does not match many of the more “onion-style” crowns I’ve seen on contemporary examples. Caseback hinge was tight, case was clean with no sign of repairs. Crystal was acrylic, in good shape.
DIAL/HANDSET: this is where I’m curious for your opinions. The dial was near perfect, with the exception of the very odd fading at 4 and 5 o-clock. I am super weirded out with this, as I would not expect this on an enamel dial of this period, but your thoughts/theories appreciated. Under a loupe there was no sign whatsoever of repairs, not even any hairlines. If this dial were painted post-firing, do you think it’s odd that just one region has the damage? Otherwise, the handset looks “right” to me, but I’m happy to be corrected! I’ve attached a photo I found of a similar example with the same dial but a spade handset (serial on that example is later too - 1918).
MOVEMENT: I just had a glance at the movement but it was a cal. 13.33 with a crown push/pull setting. It had a silver finish, and was quite clean with no visible marring to the screwheads. Winding and setting felt nice and tight. I’ve attached a picture of the same caliber (in much worse shape) for reference.
Sorry for the wordy description, but hopefully it gives you a fuller idea of the watch than just the one photo. Thanks!
Edited:
