Please help ID this Girard-Perregaux I got from the pawn shop. Real or fake?

[ryanmanyes]

Dear WIS's,

I saw this in the window display of a pawn shop, and for £180 I decided to take a punt. I know absolutely nothing about this watch so if anyone could help shed some light I would love that. Real, fake, model name, ref. no., year of production/era, value etc etc. Don't hold back guys, I'm prepared to hear the worst. I bought this as a complete punt; it came without a box or any papers, and I suspect the £180 I paid for it was probably over the odds and is junk.


I'm still a major WIS newbie (this is my first post on WUS) and I know nothing about the Girard-Perregaux brand. E.g. where does GP's prestige level rank? Any info/background on the brand would be useful also. According to AskMen's 'Watch Snob' Girard-Perregaux is 'haute horology' and comparable to JLC or IWC, and although some of the modern examples I've googled certainly pertains to that, there are many vintage models on ebay around the $200 mark - significantly cheaper than vintage JLC or IWCs.


One final thing, there is some (forgive my ignorance) arabic looking text on the dial, can anyone tell me why a swiss made watch has foreign text on the dial, and, long shot, can anyone translate???


A few watch details: the case diameter is 35mm; and there is a number stamped on the caseback 75711277; the crystal seems to be a plastic; and is a manual wind.


Hope someone can help :)

[John MS]

The price would be a warning for me. To me the dial looks poorly done but it could be a redial. And who knows maybe GP did produce a movement that looks like that. However the only way to tell for sure is for a dealer or knowlegable repair person to inspect it in person.

[ImitationOfLife]

Try posting this over in the Vintage section.

[stuffler,mike]

Have seen similar movements. However, I am missing the seconds hand. Inner back engraving is ok. not sure about the dial. 6 and 12 marker do not correctly match with the bezel markers, not correctly centered.

[rfortson]

I'm guessing it's a 50's vintage that has been redialed. Not sure if GP maintains records on older watches (I think they don't), but you might send a note to the factory and see what they say.

[Rdenney]

One thing to remember, that guys on the vintage forum will probably also say: Girard-Perregaux wasn't the high-end brand back in the 60's that it is today. It was on the same level as many other workaday brands of good watches of the day, and even partnered with Zodiac, Doxa, Favre-Leuba, and Eberhard on an automatic version of the AS1687.

This looks like a variation on the G-P Caliber 18, which is based on the Peseux 330. The Incablock is correct. I didn't realize there was a version without a seconds hand. I would think the movement looks good.

The case is rolled gold/gold-filled, as denoted by the steel back. I guess I would expected some perlage on the inside of the back. Everything else you describe seems normal for a watch of this vintage, which is late 50's or early 60's.

Rick "thinking the price was reasonable, but not stunning, if the watch is servicable" Denney

[Rdenney]

Have seen similar movements. However, I am missing the seconds hand. Inner back engraving is ok. not sure about the dial. 6 and 12 marker do not correctly match with the bezel markers, not correctly centered.

I saw that, too, but I think the picture was taken slightly from one side, and the dial and marker ring are at different heights, causing a small parallax error. In other words, I think it would line up if looked exactly straight on.

Rick "thinking the dial looks pretty normal except for the lower marking" Denney

[rfortson]

One thing to remember, that guys on the vintage forum will probably also say: Girard-Perregaux wasn't the high-end brand back in the 60's that it is today. It was on the same level as many other workaday brands of good watches of the day, and even partnered with Zodiac, Doxa, Favre-Leuba, and Eberhard on an automatic version of the AS1687.

This looks like a variation on the G-P Caliber 18, which is based on the Peseux 330. The Incablock is correct. I didn't realize there was a version without a seconds hand. I would think the movement looks good.

The case is rolled gold/gold-filled, as denoted by the steel back. I guess I would expected some perlage on the inside of the back. Everything else you describe seems normal for a watch of this vintage, which is late 50's or early 60's.

Rick "thinking the price was reasonable, but not stunning, if the watch is servicable" Denney

Rick, just to slightly hijack this thread, I've wondered about how/whether current brand value inflates older value. A vintage Rolex is certainly inflated in value based on current perception of the brand, so why wouldn't the same be true for GP? I have a Gyromatic that is in great shape, from the early 60's (I guess). I got it for an "impulse purchase" price at an NAWCC show. Same thing for a Universal Geneve from the late 50's. Why do you think these watches are still a bargain, compared to other vintage pieces like a Rolex? Of course, old Omegas are still pretty cheap compared to the new watches.

Anyway, this is something I've been wondering and you were the first to comment on it.

[ryanmanyes]

Cheers guys for all the input so far. I have posted a copy of this on the vintage forum too - someone noticed that the dots on the dial don't perfectly align with the markers, so I am guessing that it has been redialled - once upon a time. Perhaps this explains the arabic text; it was redialled as a gift for someone in the middle east? I dunno.

The watch definitely doesn't have a super quality feel to it so I can't imagine it was ever marketed as a high end luxury item - it definitely has more of an 'everyday' feel to it.

Fake or not I'm still rather pleased with it. It's a bit unusual, and my plan is to get a nice funky nato strap on it to wear for fun and enjoy it.

[ryanmanyes]

Interesting point. Boy would I like a time machine so I could buy up a load of Rolex's lol