I am an Omega head, but this was gifted to me by my stepfather. I'm away for a few weeks so I can't open it, get the serial or calibre number. I serviced it and replaced the mainspring and stem, but the movement escapes me. Anyways, I'm guessing it's a late 1940's model. I have looked online and in reference books but cannot find the model. Perhaps some "Longines head" will know the answer immediately.

Omega is my favorite, but I have to give creedence to this beauty. I actually mangled the mainspring inserting it and had to put in the old one, but it's a great timekeeper with little positional delta,great amplitude, and just looks classy. It's a front loading case and I have no measuring tools, but I'm guessing 32 to 32.5mm case. Oh, I'm trying to remember it may have had 17mm lugs and I cramed 18mm. This is bothering me that I don't know the model, but I keep looking. Any info will be appreciated. When I do get home in a week or two I will show any numbers on the inside of caseback and calibre number. Thanks guys.

Sorry for lack of info and crappy photos.

 

Serial number and movement type will help date better. I would guess this is actually a late 50's to 60's model given the front loading and logo style. A lot of similar watches didn't have an actual "name". I like that yours is stainless and not plated. Much more knowledgable folks than me here, though. I have several "no-names" and have been quite happy with their time keeping. Nice watch overall.

 

The watch was cased in the U.S by the Star Watch Case Company MI, who cased a large proportion of US-bound Longines. That means the reference numbers will not correspond to the Swiss-cased reference codes. /but you can still get the date from the movement of course, or use that to get a date from Longines. It looks late 50s-60s to me too.

EDIT: Correction below

 

Looking at other examples from the 40's I can see this is probably a later model. This is my first Longines I can see damage on the dial from some careless watchmaker along the way. I spent a good amount of time cleaning, timing, and regulating this and I'm amazed at how well it keeps time, even with the same mainspring. I did't get it all the way in the barrel on the first try and when carefully taking it out it exploded and mangled itself. When can get some case numbers and movement numbers I'll post them as well. I'm gonna keep looking to see if I can find another example. I don't know the Longines market either so I'm very curious what it's worth, though I have no interest in selling it. If I can find the model maybe I can source an original crystal too. It's a PHD, not a compression fit. I drool over the WWII 12L's and hope to add one to my collection someday.

I will post pictures that do it justice and some serial numbers when I have them. Does anyone know what this 1200 wrench on the caseback refers to? Is it simply a Longines branded crystal wrench? I use the Electra-Vise, best crystal lift I've used. Oh, the movement had a PITFA split stem. Don't know what purpose this design serves but I hated it. I still have much to learn.

 

You regularly find the split-stem in monocoque case Longines. I assume this was a work around to make the stem removable without having to make any alterations to the bolt screw.

The 1200 wrench is indeed, a branded crystal wrench. They pop up online from time to time, but if you have good crystal lift then there is not much point to them.

Longines did not sign their crystals as Omega did, so it is much harder to know if you have an original one. Since your specimen was (probably) cased in the US, the original crystal might have been third-party in any case.

If you don't mind my asking, how did you manage to open the barrel without seeing the serial number?

 

I have a hard time parting with cash for original straps as well as crystals, but for this watch I would like have an original if I can source it. An original crystal simply appears more contoured with the case; it's also a better fit. The previous crystal that was yellowed and destroyed was aftermarket I have no doubt as well.

I only paid attention to the movement calibre number so I could buy a new mainspring and did not take note of any other numbers stamped on the case or on the movement. The first time I work on a movement I usually snap a few photos which makes assembly easier as far as the orientation of some bridges and levers and springs. I'm sure I have a photo of a case number and serial number, and if not I can still open the case and find it.

Come to think of it I do remember the barrel design was a little strange and difficult to open and close.

 

I would suggest getting the Longines crystal tool if you can. Original crystals for these front loaders tend to have a wider cross section at the rim than many other watches do, which means compressing them with a regular crystal lift is not ideal by any stretch, and will risk breaking/damaging the crystal.

I just serviced a very similar watch but in gold, and when the watch came to me with the wrong crystal in it, it allowed the dial/movement to flop around a bit because the width of the crystal at the lip was not wide enough. Here is the lip inside the case:



With the movement installed, you can see an old mark on the dial where the original crystal covers a portion of the dial:



Here is a generic crystal on the right, and a correct one for the Longines on the left, and you can see the difference in wall thickness:



BTW the owner had sent this to Longines originally, and part of the extortionate pricing was over $200 to have a "custom crystal" made for the watch. Of course I was able to find one with little difficulty for significantly less...

Cheers, Al