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Trying to find out more about this

D
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Hi all,

Trying to understand more about this watch.
IMG_0874.JPG IMG_0875.JPG IMG_0876.JPG IMG_0877.JPG IMG_0878.JPG IMG_0880.JPG IMG_0881.JPG
I am told it was military issue and belonged to my grandfather, who volunteered in 1941. As far as I know he wore it every day until he died, so daily use for 50 years or so. He has replaced the bracelet with a home-made one as you can see. The crystal (?) might be plastic - it has stress lines through it, and seems to deflect a little when you press it. It still runs, although I'm not sure if it keeps time just yet (I only found it yesterday!). The text behind the balance wheel seems to say 30T2. It will never be for sale, just trying to find out what it is. Appreciate any help anyone can provide. Thanks
 
simomega
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Hi and welcome!

There are many more qualified than I am to give good info on this, but thought I’d weigh in with the little I know.

1. Lovely watch, and what a great connection back to your grandfather!

2. 30T2 is the movement reference. If it hasn’t been serviced in a while then don’t wind or run it too much just yet. Let us know where in the world you are and someone will recommend a watchmaker who can service it. Running it now with dried oils might not be good for parts wear. You can fit a new crystal at the same time.

3. Dennison were UK case makers for Omega and this one seems in original condition.

4. The four digit stamped code in the case back should be the reference for this model. Googling should lead you other similar ones. The small scratched markings are from previous services so the watchmaker can keep track. This is generally frowned on these days.

5. 9967104 is the serial number which dates it to around 1940… you can request (and pay about £100 for) an extract from Omega’s archive to get a better idea.

6. dial looks good to me but others will know MUCH better.

7. it really is beautiful!
Edited:
 
size11s
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Lovely watch. 13322 is the Dennison case reference, the 4 digit 2163 number is most likely a 'best fit' code and should repeat on the bezel and mid case, all 4 digits on the mid case if it has fixed lug bars, last 3 digits if spring bars seems to be common. The mid case is plated I think, the case back and bezel is stainless steel. It could be a military watch recased for sale through surplus but I am not sure about that dial and hand configuration. I think the movement is more like 1943/4.
 
watchyouwant
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Does not look like an issued military case to me. It is just a nice mid 40's watch and a great heirloom. Leave as is including the fixed bars and just have it serviced. Not polished or anything changed rgd. Dial and hands. Kind regards. Achim
 
D
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watchyouwant watchyouwant
Does not look like an issued military case to me. It is just a nice mid 40's watch and a great heirloom. Leave as is including the fixed bars and just have it serviced. Not polished or anything changed rgd. Dial and hands. Kind regards. Achim
I quite agree, I've no intention of doing anything cosmetic to it, if I'm honest I'm not even sure I want to change the crystal - 80 years of character would get cleaned away, and that seems somehow inappropriate. No, if I wanted it to look new, I'd buy a new one ;-)
 
D
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simomega simomega
Hi and welcome!

2. 30T2 is the movement reference. If it hasn’t been serviced in a while then don’t wind or run it too much just yet. Let us know where in the world you are and someone will recommend a watchmaker who can service it. Running it now with dried oils might not be good for parts wear. You can fit a new crystal at the same time.

I did wind it, and it has kept accurate time for the last 6 hours or so, but based on your advice, I'll not do it again.

4. The four digit stamped code in the case back should be the reference for this model. Googling should lead you other similar ones.

I did do that extensively yesterday, and aside from my results being skewed by a dissimilar Omega on sale for (yep, you guessed it) $2163, I found nothing of any apparent relevance.

5. 9967104 is the serial number which dates it to around 1940… you can request (and pay about £100 for) an extract from Omega’s archive to get a better idea.

Based on my previous searches, I may do that actually - £94.15 by today's exchange rate.

Thank you for your comments - much appreciated.
 
padders
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its a Dennison 13322, movement as noted from the mid 1940s and a case made in Handsworth, Birmingham UK. Dennison made this design in both steel and gold from 1939 all the way up to around 1960. I have had a couple of gold ones. The also made cases for Smiths and Rolex inc I believe the watch that made it to top of Everest. I doubt there is any mil provenance at all, that is a commonly seen dial and similar to that used on the gold versions.

The steel used on a version that old will be prone to corrosion and rust. Later on Dennison developed some effective stainless steel cases (usually marked Dennisteel) but this is probably not one so that discolouration on the back might not be easily removed. This case wont be remotely waterproof so dont get it wet. Its a nice thing but not massively valuable, think a couple of hundred quid.
 
size11s
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I keep a bit of a track of the Dennison 13322 cases, primarily as one of SmithS (failed) attempts at providing the MOD with watches was housed in them and they were used to dispose of the (SmithS 13''' military) movements post war, I have two of them. An all stainless steel version of this case is also seen with the Longines COSD movements, dials and handsets in them. I think that these cases were ordered in quite small batches from Dennison as in my list the ones that have the vestigial Omega 6B/159 dial and handset quite often show close 4 digit 'best fit' numbers. Indeed, I have 13322 case number 2155 noted as a recased 6B/159 with a movement serial fairly close to the OP's watch, and also in a plated case. I think the OP's watch has a movement in the right ballpark for a military watch and I wouldn't be surprised if it isn't a re-cased military movement. Of course the case, dial and handset aren't military.
 
padders
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With respect, speaking purely of the watch in question here, what interest is there in a mil movement in an unmarked case with a generic dial? It is bordering on Trigger's broom don't you think? I can't see it adding anything to the value even if an extract showed that it was MOD supplied, since the watch as it currently stands is obviously not a service piece.
Edited:
 
timecube
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padders padders
With respect, what interest is there in a mil movement in an unmarked case with a generic dial. It is bordering on Trigger's broom don't you think? I can't see it adding anything to the value even if an extract showed that it was MOD supplied, since the current watch is obviously not a service piece.
If it's your grandfather's mil movement in an unmarked case with a generic dial, priceless.
 
padders
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timecube timecube
If it's your grandfather's mil movement in an unmarked case with a generic dial, priceless.
True but that's not how it worked. You wouldn't have your grandfather's, you'd have someone else.
 
timecube
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padders padders
True but that's not how it worked. You wouldn't have your grandfather's, you'd have someone else.
Is OP mistaken about who owned it?
 
padders
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Perhaps you misunderstand my point, which is not that the OP's grandad owned the watch, that is not in dispute. It is that if his Grandad was issued the watch which then was handed back to MOD and repurposed, it wouldnt in any circumstances have been handed back to his grandad. Were the movement to have had had a prior military life is indeed a possibility, that it did so on the wrist of the OP's descendant is not. Edit: I should add that it could of course have seen mil service as a privately owned piece as it is now.

Repurposed or not, this is a run of the mill, slightly tatty mid 1940s 13322 in a slightly corroded steel case. Apologies if I sound like I am raining on parades but there is a fair bit of fairy dust being wrongly sprinkled here!
Edited:
 
size11s
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Padders, I agree with all you say (apart from the steel mid case ;-) its some kind of plated alloy). I am not intentionally sprinkling any kind of dust. Simply giving my objective opinion about the possible history of the watch. I have not mentioned value or the ancestors ownership.
 
D
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timecube timecube
Is OP mistaken about who owned it?
Er no, definitely my grandfather's. Its origin may be more complex, and as my father and aunt are alive still, I can inquire further. He was stationed in North Africa for most of the time, and he also sent back an Oris that he acquired in Egypt. I'm told that it was old when he got it (1942) and has a red face, but we can't find it at the moment.
 
D
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padders padders
True but that's not how it worked. You wouldn't have your grandfather's, you'd have someone else.

Based on that, I guess that the military service could have been in someone else's custody, unless he didn't hand it back of course (he was very principled, so I imagine if he was asked for it, he'd have handed it in). I will follow up on that. The £94 to Omega Archives sounds quite enticing now, looking at the serial - 99xxxxx is almost at the end of the number range, would that put it near the end of the date range (39-45) too? As the serials appear sequential and in date order, that makes logical sense.
 
padders
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Are there any markings on the rear of the caseback? Those might offer some more clues if so. It has been assumed above that this has fixed lugs but I think I see the end of a spring bar, are the bars fixed or are there holes on the lugs to remove bars? That crystal if original may be cellulose, that fades to a yellow tint so the dial might be paler than it looks at first glance.
 
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