Identification request, many watches!

[shaolin]

Hello!
I'm new here, so hope i won't be a troublemaker ;)

Few years ago, my friend from South Africa gave me a gift. Box filled with watches (34 pieces to be exact). As i'm not a watch guy, i put the box on the shelf and just forgot about it ;) Recently on polish forum of nikon users, someone posted thread about watches that he has and asked us to show our stuff. That reminded me that i have this box... so i thought - maybe it's time to see what watches i have and maybe there is something special.

I'm asking you for help - is there any possibility to get any info about at least some of these watches? Is there some nice pieces or just rubbish? I know that watches aren't in a very good condition but maybe they need a visit in a watchmaker workshop ;)

Here are the links to the pics - ~2mb each. Every watch has got a number, so it should be easier to describe it.

http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/1007/zegarkipaczka1.jpg

http://img264.imageshack.us/img264/8779/zegarkipaczka2.jpg

http://img203.imageshack.us/img203/5815/zegarkipaczka3.jpg

List of watches, check the number here and on the picture:

1. Rotary, Rotamatic, 21 jewels, incabloc/waterproof, incabloc, automatic, non-magnetic, steel back, swiss 81 18 15 0184032

2. Bucherer, automatic, 21 jewels/antimagnetic, waterproof, compressor brevet, 313813, stainless steel back, swiss made

3. DelBana, 17 jewels, incabloc, waterproof, antimagnetic/waterproof, stainless steel back, incabloc, swiss made, 89, 114149

4. Tissot, Seastar PR516/without info

5. DelBana, 17 jewels, incabloc, waterproof, antimagnetic/waterproof, stainless steel back, incabloc, swiss made, 46, 114102

6. Lanco, 17 jewels, incabloc/Lanco, waterprotected, swiss made, stainless steel back, antimagnetic, 75?8 (where ? is an unknown digit)

7. RW, Roamer, Searock/Stainless steel back, 347 (?)

8. Roamer, 17 jewels/lunette, plaque orlamine, 20 (?) microns, RW, fond acier inoxydable, 3683

9. Rotary, 17 jewels, incabloc/693248+M.A. 15.3.63

10. Lanco, 17 jewels, waterprotected, shockprotected/water&shockprotected, stainless steel back, swiss made, 422

11. Avia, 15 jewels, shock protected/waterproof, stainless steel back, swiss made, antimagnetic, 2385 1

12. Roamer, 17 jewels, shock-resist/waterproof, roamer, stainless steel back, brevete, 215999, 180459, added WH 27-4-46.

13. Roamer, 17 rubis, incabloc/antimagnetic, stainless steel back

14. Seiko, Automatic, 17 jewels/SGP back st. steel, 7005-7080, water resistant, 190595, Japan-L

15. Rotary/183551

16. Delfin, Bahamas/Bahamas, waterprotected, base arno?, swiss made

17. Alpina/182686

18. Tissot/without info

19. Rotary, 17 jewels, Avenger/antimagnetic, stainless steel back, swiss, 996423, water resistant,

20. Roamer, shock-resist, water-resist, 17 jewels, antimagnetic/Roamer, stainless steel back, water resistant, brevete, swiss made, 215999, 180459

21. Olma, waterproof, 15 jewels/swiss made, stainless steel back, waterproof, 04111, love from dad and mom, xmas 1950

22. Camy, 21 jewels, incabloc/CAMY, stainless steel back, incablock

23. Delfin, 17 jewels/Lynne Barrie, 25-12-59

24. Citizen/Citizen Watch co, base metal top, 4-150872 GN, 65-2644, 608844, G.P.

25. Borea, antimagnetic/electronically timed, swiss made, antimagnetic, diamond tooled, 831

26. Gilda, 17 jewels, antimagnetic/swiss made, fonte injectee

27. Roamer, standard, 17 jewels/stainless steel back, 5900/45

28. Avia, 15 jevels/stainless steel back, swiss made, 1141 1, Daphne 26.8.49

29. Mannie Bros, Johannesburg, 17 rubis/1584661

30. Rotary/without info

31. Delfin, Edox/332 8016

32. Lanco, 15 jewels/G.L. Hodge, 2.8.1949

33. Cyma/zero info

34. Roamer 17 jewels, Popular, incabloc/stainless steel back, antimagnetic

----

PS. Sorry for my broken english... :roll:

[jedanzoom]

Nice collection you have here.To be honest,I would like to own couple of those that you showed,especially those "Roamers" from 1950s or that "Olma".

I belive that Marrick will be pleased to see this collection.

[Erik_H]

Welcome to the forum. That is a nice instant collection! Please note that any of them would require servicing (cleaning and oiling) before using them, as the oil in the movement would have dried by now.

[bjohnson]

A few unknowns but most are mid-level brands that many collectors like.

[Marrick]

Nice collection you have here.To be honest,I would like to own couple of those that you showed,especially those "Roamers" from 1950s or that "Olma".

I belive that Marrick will be pleased to see this collection.

Indeed so! There's not a lot to say, really. As has been stated, nice mid-level brands.

Rotary:

A very strong middle quality brand here in the UK - little known in the US. One reason was that in 1940 they became the official supplier to the British army (at least the major supplier). Thus a Rotary watch ended up in virtually every house in Britain. They did not make their own movements.

Roamer:

Roamer and Medana were brands of MEYER & STUDELI S.A., and MST was the brand used on their movements. See

http://www.watchcarefully.com/articles/roamer.html

Great, collectable watches as they made their own movements - and can be bought quite cheaply. No. 20 has a very nice dial.

Lanco:

Langendorf watch company. Made their own movements. Very prolific - bought by Tissot/Omega and closed down a few years later. See:

http://forums.watchuseek.com/showthread.php?t=300355&highlight=lanco

Bucherer:

see:

http://forums.watchuseek.com/showthread.php?t=272204&highlight=bucherer

Delfin:

by Edox. See:

http://forums.watchuseek.com/showthread.php?t=304024&highlight=delfin

Camy:

made funky watches; big in the Asian market. Lots of good examples about, usually very cheap. Used bought-in movements.

[shaolin]

Nice collection you have here.To be honest,I would like to own couple of those that you showed,especially those "Roamers" from 1950s or that "Olma".

I belive that Marrick will be pleased to see this collection.

:)

Welcome to the forum. That is a nice instant collection! Please note that any of them would require servicing (cleaning and oiling) before using them, as the oil in the movement would have dried by now.

I thought so, but now i have other more important expenses, so this must wait till next year.

A few unknowns but most are mid-level brands that many collectors like.

Thanks!

Indeed so! There's not a lot to say, really. As has been stated, nice mid-level brands.

Rotary:

A very strong middle quality brand here in the UK - little known in the US. One reason was that in 1940 they became the official supplier to the British army (at least the major supplier). Thus a Rotary watch ended up in virtually every house in Britain. They did not make their own movements.

Roamer:

Roamer and Medana were brands of MEYER & STUDELI S.A., and MST was the brand used on their movements. See

http://www.watchcarefully.com/articles/roamer.html

Great, collectable watches as they made their own movements - and can be bought quite cheaply. No. 20 has a very nice dial.

Lanco:

Langendorf watch company. Made their own movements. Very prolific - bought by Tissot/Omega and closed down a few years later. See:

http://forums.watchuseek.com/showthread.php?t=300355&highlight=lanco

Bucherer:

see:

http://forums.watchuseek.com/showthread.php?t=272204&highlight=bucherer

Delfin:

by Edox. See:

http://forums.watchuseek.com/showthread.php?t=304024&highlight=delfin

Camy:

made funky watches; big in the Asian market. Lots of good examples about, usually very cheap. Used bought-in movements.

Nice! Thank you very much for the info :)

I posted this message on two polish watch forums, so i'm searching for the info in many places :) but for now the best info i got from you Marrick.

Can you tell me something about the condition of my watches? I know it's hard to tell something having only pics, but i would like to know is it very bad or just bad... ;-)

When i get my watches back (i have them in my home in Wroclaw, but i live in Warsaw now) i should be able to take pictures of the mechanism of each watch. It should be easier to tell something more about them, am i right? ;)

Than you all one more time. If anybody has something to add, please do it :)

[Marrick]

:)

Can you tell me something about the condition of my watches? I know it's hard to tell something having only pics, but i would like to know is it very bad or just bad... ;-)

When i get my watches back (i have them in my home in Wroclaw, but i live in Warsaw now) i should be able to take pictures of the mechanism of each watch. It should be easier to tell something more about them, am i right? ;)

)

There are 3 main aspects regarding condition:

1) Does the watch run properly? Or does it need repairing. If they need repairing, then it is not economically worth it as the cost will exceed the value.

2) Dial condition. Dials are difficult or impossible to clean up. Some of your dials are very good - in the middle set of pictures I would say:

11 - good
12 - good
13 - very good
14 - very good
15 - very good
16 - very good
17 - poor
18 - good
19 - very good

3) Case condition. Wear to gold or chrome plated cases is inevitable on vintage watches, but excessive wear obviously makes the watch less desirable.

So:

1 - dial good; case fair
2 - dial fair; case fair
3 - dial bad; case bad
4 - dial fair; case good (looks to be stainless steel - and Tissot is a good brand)
5 - dial good; case bad
6 - dial fair; case good (stainless steel).
7 - dial good; case fair (but its a named model - Searock -so a bit more collectable (UK English) or collectible (US English)!
8 - dial very good; case very good - but ladies' models are not much collected
9 - dial very good; case fair
10 - dial good; case good

BTW, I did some work in Wroclaw some years ago. I spent quite a while there on and off. A very nice city! (Jeden Piwa Polska)

[jedanzoom]

... (Jeden Piwa Polska)


I see you learned overe there important things first.:-!

[Erik_H]

Ordering beer is always first priority.

[shaolin]

There are 3 main aspects regarding condition:

1) Does the watch run properly? Or does it need repairing. If they need repairing, then it is not economically worth it as the cost will exceed the value.

2) Dial condition. Dials are difficult or impossible to clean up. Some of your dials are very good - in the middle set of pictures I would say:

11 - good
12 - good
13 - very good
14 - very good
15 - very good
16 - very good
17 - poor
18 - good
19 - very good

3) Case condition. Wear to gold or chrome plated cases is inevitable on vintage watches, but excessive wear obviously makes the watch less desirable.

So:

1 - dial good; case fair
2 - dial fair; case fair
3 - dial bad; case bad
4 - dial fair; case good (looks to be stainless steel - and Tissot is a good brand)
5 - dial good; case bad
6 - dial fair; case good (stainless steel).
7 - dial good; case fair (but its a named model - Searock -so a bit more collectable (UK English) or collectible (US English)!
8 - dial very good; case very good - but ladies' models are not much collected
9 - dial very good; case fair
10 - dial good; case good

BTW, I did some work in Wroclaw some years ago. I spent quite a while there on and off. A very nice city! (Jeden Piwa Polska)

Thanks again! :)

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I don't remember if any worked properly and now i think that i shouldn't touch them before servicing ;) at least a bit of cleaning and oiling ;) i know and i'm prepared that service could exceed the value of the watch, but i think that just bringing back a bit of history to life could be fun :)

ad.2
I took those pics 3-4 years ago, hope that there is no fungus in my watches and that they look the same now as they did then ;)

And great that you enjoyed your time in Wroclaw :)

I see you learned overe there important things first.:-!

Ordering beer is always first priority.

Nice, everyone understand polish :D

[vinylgreek]

The collection has some decent bones that can be fleshed out over time. The world is amazing: a Polish man's South African friend gives him Swiss watches:-!

[Janne]

The collection has some decent bones that can be fleshed out over time. The world is amazing: a Polish man's South African friend gives him Swiss watches:-!

Said by a Greek living in California, and commented on by a Swede/Czech living on Grand Cayman!
Yep, a wonderful World!!!

[jedanzoom]

Said by a Greek living in California, and commented on by a Swede/Czech living on Grand Cayman!
Yep, a wonderful World!!!

:-d

[shaolin]

:-d:-d

I should get photos of the movements this week so should be easier to say more about those watches.

It was recommended to me by a friend to check a watchmaker in Wroclaw (http://www.dolinski.pl/index.php?d=informacje&id=2 - page in polish of course). Page says that is no problem to clean the dial (or maybe i should write - to refurbish it), even to replate the case. But don't know the costs (it depends on condition of the watch etc.). What do you think about it?:)

This watchmaker is the only one who has certificate to repair swiss made watches in Wroclaw and he has 40 years of experience.

[Janne]

It sounds good. If I was you, I would take one of the more damaged watches and give to him, just to test his skills.

[shaolin]

That is exactly what i thought. Maybe i will choose the one that i'm not very fond of ;) if everything goes well, i will give him other ones.

But now i'm just waiting for the pics of the movements :) and will share them.

[shaolin]

Hello ;)
It's me again :D

I managed to get watches from Wroclaw and took some pics of the movements. I know they are bad (pics) but i took them yesterday at night having 5 minutes of free time. Hope it is enough to identify ;)

Here are the links:

http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/6924/zegarkimechpaczka1.jpg
http://img38.imageshack.us/img38/3241/zegarkimechpaczka2.jpg
http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/2065/zegarkimechpaczka3.jpg

Some of the watches weren't open because i didn't know how to do it and didn't want to destroy them :)

Thanks in advance for any info! :)

[jedanzoom]

You should take them to the watchmaker,most of them have that humidity stains along the dials and movements.

[Janne]

Primarily, I would try and restore the two Delrana watches in the first link.
The Roamer (number 2 watch) and the Delfin in the second link.
Third link: Roamer (no 20) and the Olma ( 21).

Unless you are a lady, in that case my choice would be different.
Most of the watches are too "generic" in my opinion to spend any serious money on!

[sen]

hello watchuseekers

i need your help on a watch that i have for about 20 years , an old friend gave it to me as gift, i am not wearing it
it has a witnauer geneva on it , it is winding and i need your opinion , is it worth it to give it for restoration and service?

[AbslomRob]

With few exceptions, <no> mechanical watch is "Worth" restoring, from a cost perspective. Service alone will usually run you to $100+. Your watch isn't likely worth even that, unless that stone is a real diamond.

On the other hand, if the watch has <any> sentimental value to you at all, then its always worth restoring.

[sen]

With few exceptions, <no> mechanical watch is "Worth" restoring, from a cost perspective. Service alone will usually run you to $100+. Your watch isn't likely worth even that, unless that stone is a real diamond.

On the other hand, if the watch has <any> sentimental value to you at all, then its always worth restoring.

thanks Rob for your reply:thanks
i just wanted a pro advice on this watch...
i dont think the stone is diamond either o|

[polaco23]

Witam i gratulacje! ale fajne zegarki! :-!

numer 21 jest pekny! :-p i would try to clean that one first. The tissot and other roamers would be also nice wearers if they were cleaned. but none of them are going to be worth much, other than to you.

Glad to see more Poles here, im from Tomaszow Lubelski, near Lublin. ;-)

as for the ladies watches, none of them are worth enough to repair or clean, so they would be good gifts to your watchmaker! :-)

enjoy them, and you can yourself clean the cryxtals on most of them (being acrylic crystals) with specific cleaners. maybe another member could tell you a good cleaner to use. :-!

-Dominik