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LRF ANTIQUE WATCHES
TRENCH WATCHES for SALE
LISTINGS UPDATED: March 26, 2024
Below is the 1st video I assisted Waltham Watches with for their new
Waltham "Field & Marine" Watch and overall Waltham history.
I'm the narrator and project historical advisor.
1918 WWI OFFSET CROWN Elgin "White Star Dial" Trench Watch, Sterling Silver Wadsworth Case, Original Factory Crown, 7 Jewel Movement, Hand Made Khaki Strap with a Slider Buckle
Up Up for sale today is an exceptionally beautiful and extremely desirable 1918 WWI OFFSET CROWN Elgin "White Star Dial" Trench Watch that features a 7 jewel movement, sterling silver Wadsworth case, the original factory crown and a hand made Khaki strap with a slider buckle! This absolutely remarkable piece of American craftsmanship is in superb condition for being 106 years old! Our Great Grandfathers knew how to make things that would last for generations! The 7 jewel movement was just completely taken apart and serviced in February of 2024, a brand new mainspring has also been installed. It's in superb running condition and keeping excellent time. This watch has been tested on a professional timegraph 5000 Machine for accuracy so rest assured! Take another look at picture number three again, this movement is clean as a whistle and stunning in its beauty! I'm sure that you have noticed by now that this is not your ordinary trench watch case by a long shot! This is an OFFSET CROWN sterling silver trench watch case that was manufactured by the Wadsworth Watch Case Company, circa 1918. The bezel and case back both snap together crisply, just as they should. This case is highly prized by collectors for its beauty and design features. Plus, this case still has the original factory crown! The case has NOT been polished, just cleaned up a bit. This watch is simply incredible! The metal dial on this trench watch, that was first introduced on October 27, 1917, is among the most desirable that Elgin ever produced, the military "White Star Dial"! The dial features a butler face, shadow box numerals, 48 stars as minute markers (there were 48 states in 1917), the correct blue steel center reservoir Elgin military hands for this dial, the Eagle & Shield near the center, signed "ELGIN USA". There were 5 dials in Elgin's "Star Dial Series", this is dial #1 of the 5 dials in the series. This historic and iconic WWI Elgin Trench Watch has been fitted with a hand made Khaki Strap that absolutely makes the watch! The 16mm strap features a stainless steel "slider buckle" for the perfect fit every time you wear it! Take a look at the wrist shot picture again, this watch looks stunning on the wrist! The strap will fit a wrist up to about 8 inches. Here are the movement details: 1918 Elgin, serial number 21787306, size 3/0s, 7 jewels, grade 463. The case measures 38mm lug tip to lug tip, 31mm going across not including the original factory crown with a nice and wide 16mm lug width. The glass crystal was seated with UV cement and a UV curing machine. I also installed a brand new inner sleeve inside of the crown tube, the crown now has a nice firm "pop", just as it should. This watch is ready to be worn and shown off, it will surely get noticed! I put a lot of time, effort and research hours into this OFFSET CROWN Elgin "White Star Dial" Trench Watch, I'm sure that you will appreciate the quality and quantity of work that has been done. Solid old world craftsmanship at its finest! You would be seriously hard pressed to find a finer example of this 1918 WWI Elgin "White Star Dial" Trench Watch featuring a 7 jewel movement, Wadsworth sterling silver case, the original factory crown, a hand made Khaki strap with a SS slider buckle. this one sets the bar!
This Offset Crown Elgin Trench Watch has been SOLD.
American Made Trench Watch Evaluation Service
Considering making a purchase of an American made WWI era trench watch? I'd be happy to evaluate the watch for you. I've written three hardbound books about American made trench watches and I'm the recipient of the NAWCC Museum Research Award in this field. I'll give you extremely detailed information about the trench watch from the crown, dial, hands, case, movement, strap and any possible shrapnel guards attached to the watch. I will identify everything about the watch that is correct and and incorrect. Over the past 100+ years many parts on these watches have been changed, just to get them up and running once again. But, having an incorrect crown or mis-matched set of hands on a trench watch can seriously devalue the timepiece. I will NOT put a dollar amount on the watch as the movement performance will not be able to be ascertained through photographs. What you pay for the watch is between you and the seller. I will also evaluate entire collections, contact for collection pricing. I will need clear pictures of the case, dial, hands, movement and inside of the case back for a full evaluation. It's better to spend $50.00 on my evaluation services before you make a purchase! You certainly don't want to find out down the road that the watch is worth a fraction of what you paid for it due to incorrect parts that are not original to the timepiece.
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I will evaluate American made trench watches from the following manufacturers.
Elgin, Waltham, Depollier, Illinois, Hamilton, Hampden, Ingersoll
Once you purchase my evaluation services please email me the required pictures.
$50.00 PER WATCH EVALUATION
1919 Waltham Depollier "THERMO" Waterproof Watch, Depollier Developed Waterproof Technology, 36mm Threaded .830 Silver Hermetic Case, Original Factory Screw Down Crown, High End 15 Jewel Movement, Factory Military Grade Yellow Crystal with a Hand Made
Tan KHAKI STRAP and Sterling Silver Slider Clasp
This 1919 Waltham Depollier "THERMO" Waterproof Watch is HEAVILY featured in my latest book.
"The Inconvenient Truth about the World's First Waterproof Watch,
The Story of Charles Depollier and his Waterproof Trench Watches of the Great War"
341 pages, hardbound, ISBN: 978-0-578-29133-8
Up for sale today is a watch that has been missing from the historical record for decades. This is the HIGH END version of the Waltham Depollier "Field & Marine" Waterproof Watch. The Field & Marine" was made of nickel. This highly elusive model was named the 1919 Waltham Depollier 'THERMO" Waterproof Watch. The Waltham Depollier "THERMO" Waterproof Watches were only made in .830 silver and 14k solid gold. This is the SILVER version! The side of the case reads "DEPOLLIER WATERPROOF WATCH TRADEMARK". This absolutely remarkable piece of American craftsmanship is in SUPERB condition and has been mechanically restored! Hard to believe that this waterproof watch is 103 years old! All modern dive watches and waterproof watches today can be traced back to this model, the technology developed by Depollier started it all! Our Grandfather's knew how to make things that would last for generations! The movement was just completely taken apart and serviced on 1-18-2022, a brand new mainspring has also been installed. It's in superb running condition and keeping excellent time. This watch has been tested on a professional timegraph 5000 Machine for accuracy so rest assured! Take another look at picture number three again, this 15 jewel movement is clean as a whistle and stunning in its beauty! I'm sure that you have noticed by now that this is not your ordinary trench watch case by a long shot! This is a .830 SILVER waterproof trench watch case that was manufactured by J. Depollier & Son in 1919. The FIVE Depollier patent dates that made this waterproof watch possible are stamped on the inside of the case back, 1916 - 1919. Case number: 289. Years of R&D by Depollier went into this case design! This is a fully hermetic waterproof case so the bezel and case back are both threaded, the threading is in excellent condition! Nobody over the past 103 years has tried to open the case the wrong way by prying it open. So many of these cases have been destroyed by somebody trying to improperly pry the case open but this one is just superb. This case is highly prized by collectors for its beauty & design features and incredible historical importance. This waterproof technology developed by Charles Depollier was tested by Lieutenant Colonel Mauborgne of the United States Army Signal Corps in 1918 and it passed the tests with flying colors. He was the Chief of the United States Army Signal Corps Engineering & Research Division when he tested this watch design. He would soon thereafter purchase 10,000 of them for the US Army. Lieutenant Colonel Mauborgne would later become a TWO STAR Major General and the Chief Signal Officer of the United States Army. Depollier developed the world's first waterproof wrist watch that actually worked and kept the water out! Plus, this case still has the original factory silver crown! The case has not been polished, just cleaned. This watch is simply incredible! The enamel dial on this trench watch is among the most desirable that Waltham ever produced, the Shadow Box Military Dial! The dial features a white face, shadow box numerals, outer minute markers, the correct blue steel skeleton hands for this dial and is signed "WALTHAM" near the center. The dial and skeleton hands have been re-lumed using safe modern material. Very nice dark brown color for that very desirable vintage look! This historic and iconic American trench watch has been fitted with a hand made 16mm tan KHAKI STRAP and a sterling silver slider clasp that absolutely makes the watch! Take a look at picture number two again, this watch looks stunning on the wrist! The strap will fit a wrist up to 8.5 inches. It will have a bit of wear on it because I seriously could not resist wearing this one for a few days, can you blame me? It's kind of like Ferris Bueller and that Ferrari, if you had access to one would you just leave it in a garage? I think not! Here are the movement details: 1919 Waltham, 15 jewels, size 3/0s, serial number 21413784, grade 365, model 1907. The high end movement features a solid gold center wheel, solid gold raised jewel chatons and solid gold balance wheel screws! They just don't make them like this anymore! The case measures a whopping 44mm lug tip to lug tip, 36mm not including the original factory crown with a nice and wide 16mm lug diameter. The case weighs an incredible 39.6 grams of .830 silver without the movement or 1.39 ounces. That is a lot of silver considering your run of the mill WWI sterling silver trench watch case only weighs about 12 grams. This EXTREMELY RARE "THERMO" model still has a yellow military crystal. Charles Depollier wrote a booklet back in 1917 titled "The Watch in the Trenches", on pages 13-14 he discusses the need for a dark colored crystal. This was intended to lessen the brightness of the radium lume. You certainly didn't want an enemy sniper taking you out from across "no-man's land". The original dark yellow crystal has some scratches, but nothing that I would consider major. This watch winds and sets exactly as it should and the screw down crown locks into place just as it should! It has no issues. The two shoulders that the crown screws down into are also in excellent condition. This watch is ready to be worn and shown off, it will surely get noticed! I put a lot of time and effort into this Waltham Depollier, I'm sure that you will appreciate the quality and quantity of work that has been done. Solid old World craftsmanship at its finest! You would be seriously hard pressed to find a ANOTHER example of this 1919 Waltham Depollier "THERMO" Waterproof Watch featuring a high end 15 jewel movement, re-lumed shadow box military dial & hands, factory original yellow military grade crystal, screw down crown, Depollier .830 silver case with the five Depollier patent dates stamped into the case back with a hand made tan KHAKI STRAP with a slider clasp. All sales are final, no returns.
This Waltham Depollier "THERMO" Waterproof Watch has been SOLD!
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