Anyone have any vintage Abercrombie & Fitch watches they’d like to share? Has anyone seen one of THESE before…? Yeah, me neither (at least until I did a quick search of OF…)! But so excited to have landed it.

Decades before Abercrombie & Fitch became known for teenage fashion models, it was a high-end outfitter to sportsmen (and sportswomen) from the early 1900s through the 1960s. Billed as “The Greatest Sporting Goods Store in the World,” its famous customers included Teddy Roosevelt on safari, Charles Lindbergh flying across the Atlantic, and Admiral Byrd trekking to Antarctica. From beautiful mail-order catalogs, and retail stores in Palm Beach, San Francisco, Chicago and its flagship location on Madison Avenue in NYC, it sold fishing and camping gear, guns, tents, boating and sports equipment, radios, outdoor apparel, and yes, even watches made for sailors and yachtsmen - like this one!

This one features a stainless steel case reminiscent of vintage Mido, 35mm in diameter, with great faceted lugs and a waterproof screw back case. The movement appears to be an Adolph Schlid, but I haven’t yet been able to determine if it’s caliber 1700 or 1580 (or something else). Any insight would be appreciated. Clearly, the time only models A&F produced don’t get as much attention as the Solunar and Seafarer models made in partnership with Heuer, but damn if this simple “Shipmate” example isn’t a beauty - and in exceptionally well preserved condition! Pics below, along with a link to a quick video on instagram.

Vintage A&F….If you’ve got ‘em, let’s see ‘em!


https://www.instagram.com/reel/ChabSwdpXEL/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=


(Video link above)

 

Any excuse to post my pre-Heuer Seafarer. Most likely produced by Mido, so perhaps yours was also produced by them.

 

Probably my mistake but to my eye, the case looks very similar to a couple of Hamiltons I have.

And, your grain leather strap is what I’ve been looking for - can you tell me where you got it?

 

I’ve had this chronograph sitting in the “for service” pile for a while - 35mm and powered by an Angelus 210 movement. 1930s I believe.

 

Mine has a reference number clearly visible between the lugs, see below, but no clue what to “tie” the numbers to..haven’t been able to find a chart of Mido serials from this era… or any other manufacturer. Any help would be appreciated…!

 

Does it match anything that’s written inside the case back ? On mine the four digits between the lugs match the last four digits of the SN.

 

Shape and facets are a bit different on the A&F, but I see what you’re saying. The strap came with the watch when I received it from Vision Vintage Watches. Not sure who made it. Logo on the back below, if helpful..,

 

Nope. My inner caseback is signed by A&F, but no serial number.

 

Nice - and Breguet numerals to boot!

 

But the first A & F Shipmate was made by ......... Helvetia!

A few illustrated below, including a solid gold version, none unfortunately mine. These are the Helvetia shock and water proof watches first introduced in 1929, Helvetia cal 81 movement, these are from around 1935 as is the ad.











Have a look at my site here for more info, A & F are towards the bottom:

https://www.helvetiahistory.co.uk/1930s-sports-watches

Thanks. Carl

 

Very cool, thanks for sharing! This is exactly the sort of information I was hoping to get/learn when I created the thread. I will check out your website and study things in detail.

 

Very nice info about the Helvetia Shipmate. It fits the timeframe perfectly as the first use of Shipmate was apparently 1931.

 

Here is an A&F made by Mimo I picked up for my wife a few years....fortunately she has a very petite wrist.

 

For a second I thought you mistyped (or got autocorrected) “Mido”. But I see it really is Mimo! Interesting. And thanks for sharing!

 

Thought I’d share an actual wrist shot of the A&F in action. Wears effortlessly and beautifully!

 

If it helps, I recognised this logo. It's from SM Urban Straps

https://www.instagram.com/smurbanstraps/?hl=en

It's a brand our good forum member @vujen is doing, so worth reaching out to him if interested.

I've got a couple straps from them and I found them to be lovely. They suit my vintage watches well and the leather grain is very characterful. Highly recommended and hard to beat at the price point.

 

This one found me recently. Very interesting by Helvetia in a heavy steel case with early shock protection for the balance AND movement.