Talk about radium burn 😲
I’ve seen unmarked backs before, possibly surplus? The rest looks all correct.
What do you mean? Does it look all good?
No markings on the back means its not an issued watch.
From 1924 to 1945, Bulova used a symbol to identify the year the watch was made. In 1946, some watches had a symbol, while others had the last two numerals of the year. 1947, 48, and 49, had only the numerals. Beginning in 1950, the decade was identified with a letter, followed by the fourth number of the year. L and zero (0) meant 1950. M, 1960s, N, 1970s, and so on. My point being that I don’t see a date code on either the movement or the case of the subject watch. Chances are there was a date code on a previous case, but the watch may have been re-cased.
I've checked, and military watches were marked but not on the movement, and of course on the case but we have determined this is not an ordnance department case. Unless the military contract specified a date code, there would not be one. US ordnance during the largest war in history would not routintely mark anything it did not have to, nor require it of its contractors, because that was one extra step that would keep a watch back from a soldier, sailor, or pilot who had needed it.
There is also no mention of it in the manual, and if it were significant, it would be.
Was the watch recased? Anything is possible. Military-issued cases wore out a lot faster in use because military conditions are harder than your average joe. Bulova would have surplused unused cases and they might have been used to recase military watches. Or used them up and sold watches on the civilian market.
In any event, I am not disturbed by lack of a date code.
But I suspect the day that movement was finished with the Bulova date code missing, that it would not necessarily have been earmarked for a government contract.
But I believe Switzerland was neutral in WWII. Would these conventions have applied to them as well? I have never seen a Bulova watch that didn’t have a date code, either on the case, or on the movement. Or both.
Any U S made watch produced to fulfill a military contract has had a serial number. No date of course. Why would the military make the distinction with a Swiss watch. I realize we are dealing with date codes, not serial numbers, but the Bulova has neither!
