Tag: Chronograph

Navitimer 806 Restoration: Part Two

Continuation of the Navitimer project

Having finished the service of the Navitimer movement I needed to find a stainless steel case to house it, so I began scouring the internet for one of the right vintage. I deduced that the movement was from the late 1960’s from the flat hairspring, beat corrector, and general finishing so I was on the lookout for a case with a serial number in the 1130000 – 1350000 range (which would place production between 1967 and 1970). As luck would have it the first one available happened to fall right within range. Continue reading “Navitimer 806 Restoration: Part Two”

Navitimer 806 Restoration: Part One

A 1967 Breitling restoration project

In October of 2016 I purchased a second vintage Breitling Navitimer which I knew would be a long term project. The watch consisted of only a Venus 178 movement, dial, slide rule, and hand set. I would need to service the movement and find a case and strap for it before the project was complete. I’ve continued working on this project off and on now for a little over a year and although it’s not yet complete, I have enough documented to put up a blog post or two detailing the journey thus far. Continue reading “Navitimer 806 Restoration: Part One”

Ernest Borel Valjoux 23 Movement

Resurrection of a dead chronograph movement

This post pertains to a Valjoux 23 chronograph movement which was received in the same freezer bag from China as the Universal Genève Uni-Compax I recently serviced. The bag contained multiple chronograph movements which were all in bad shape. I actually received two Valjoux 23 movements, but this one had a working balance and Incabloc shock protection thus making it the better candidate for restoration. Continue reading “Ernest Borel Valjoux 23 Movement”

Universal Genève Uni-Compax

Service of a Martel chronograph movement

Here is what I consider to be a very special piece even though it’s missing some of its most important bits. This is a Universal Genève Uni-Compax chronograph from around 1942. The movement was most probably fitted in a solid gold case which at some point went to the smelter and may not be replaceable. Regardless, I was excited to get my hands on the piece because it’s a chronograph movement I’ve not worked on before. Continue reading “Universal Genève Uni-Compax”

Favre Leuba Chronograph

Service of a Valjoux 71 Chronograph

As I was flipping through a price guide published for watch collectors I halted on a picture of a timepiece with a very interesting complication. The watch in question was produced by Favre Leuba in the early 1960’s and in addition to the standard mechanical movement it also housed an aneroid barometer for the purpose of determining altitude. The watch is known as the Bivouac and is quite rare and prized by collectors. Continue reading “Favre Leuba Chronograph”

Breitling Navitimer 806

Servicing an iconic pilot’s watch

Before joining the echelon of luxury Swiss watchmakers, Breitling was one of the earliest purveyors of chronographs for the common man.  In the late 1920’s they sold their patent portfolio to Hann-Landeron and began using movements almost exclusively from the Venus company. Chronographs from Breitling were very much in demand during the 1940’s, 50’s and 60’s. Their most popular models were the Navitimer, Top Time, and Chronomat. Continue reading “Breitling Navitimer 806”

Black Dial Pierce Navigator

Restoration of another Pierce Navigator

As anyone who has invested a little time perusing this blog will know, I have a hard time passing up an affordable chronograph that is in need of some TLC and so it is that I found myself with another Pierce Navigator in less than pristine condition. Continue reading “Black Dial Pierce Navigator”

Pierce Navigator Restoration

Restoration of a vintage single button chronograph

In sticking with the theme of repairing old chronographs, I picked up another Pierce Navigator a few months back from eBay in non-working order. This chronograph is a little bit different from the others that I have repaired in that it’s a single button chronograph. A single button chronograph is a closer relative to the stop watch since only one button is utilized for the start, stop, and resetting action. Continue reading “Pierce Navigator Restoration”

Gold Plated Pierce Navigator

Service and repair of a gold plated Pierce Navigator

Today I wrapped up service of the second Pierce Navigator chronograph that I purchased back in February of this year. This watch was purchased at the same time as the nickel plated Pierce that I serviced earlier but it took much longer to complete as there were numerous issues on the inside and it needed a bit more restoration work on the outside. Continue reading “Gold Plated Pierce Navigator”

Omega Speedmaster Professional

Restoring the original NASA Moonwatch

Four months back, convinced that I could repair a broken Omega Speedmaster for less than the cost of a new one, I took a flyer on a collection of parts that were being offered on eBay. The pieces, when assembled, would compile about ninety percent of the watch in question- a 1967 Omega Speedmaster Professional (model no. 145.012-67). Still to be acquired would be the dial, bezel, caseback, crown, pushers, and three missing hands. Continue reading “Omega Speedmaster Professional”