Bring a Loupe: A Breitling SuperOcean Ref. 1004, A Tudor Big Crown Submariner Ref. 7924, And A Sharp 1940s Movado Calatrava

October 12, 2018

We're back at it this week with another stacked selection, including several rare and important pioneering dive watches. From Tudor we've got one of the nicest Big Crowns to have surfaced in recent memory, and from Breitling, the dive watch that started it all for them. For those that choose to?stay on land, we've also included a few dressier pieces as well, with an Omega originally sold in Portugal, an uncommon Universal Genve, and a simple Movado in remarkable condition. Buyer Beware is back too, with a shady-at-best chronograph. Here's the lowdown.? 1940s Movado Calatrava In True New Old Stock Condition You can tell a lot about a manufacture by the looks of their time-only calibers, and from your first glance at the hand-wound caliber 75, you can instantly tell that Movado wasnt messing around in the 1940s. The movement stuns from architectural and aesthetic standpoints, and it is quite an efficient mechanism, too. While on the hunt for watches this week, I came across a time only Calatrava-style piece from Movado that just so happened to be powered by the aforementioned caliber. Oh, and its actually new old stock, with the box and hangtags all included.In the past weve discussed how the term "New Old Stock" gets thrown around all too often, but yet again, weve chanced upon a watch worthy of the title. This was a watch most likely intended to be sold via a Madrid-based watch retailer called Calvo, as one of the included original hang tags bears that name, but for some reason the watch looks to have never been worn. In addition to the case's sharply defined lines, the brushed finished on the caseback doesn't show a single mark or scuff on it.? Whether youre a scholarly collector looking to admire a never-worn watch, or someone who simply wants to wear a great looking, 35mm time-only piece with a legendary Movado caliber inside, theres a lot of watch here for the money.?A seller on eBay based in Boston, Massachusetts, is selling this Movado for $2,499 (a notable number in the watch world). You can also make an offer. See the full listing here. Universal Genve Ref. 100110 In 18k Rose Gold Our next watch the week is something of an unusual abstract design. If youre not a die-hard Universal Genve obsessive, this is going to be a bit of an acquired taste. As the saying goes, not everybody likes licorice, but the people who like licorice really like licorice. I think this watch is very much the same.During the 1950s, Universal Geneve produced whats admittedly a bit of an oddball of a watch, but one worthy of your consideration, no less. This is the ref. 100110, which features a borderline medallion-esque bezel, which is much larger than the minuscule black and gold dial itself. Even more unconventional is the fact that the date window sits below the dial, and has its own aperture in the bezel.? Everything on this watch checks out, as youd expect, given that Universal Genve didnt produce all that many pieces. Given the rarity, and the fact that we cant remember the last time one of these came up for sale, its advisable that you chase this one down while youve got a shot (if it's to your taste, that is).This watch is available from Heritage Auctions and bidding on this watch starts at $1,500, plus buyers premium. The live auction takes place on October 24. Find the full listing here. Breitling SuperOcean Ref. 1004 With Original Bracelet As someone who appreciates vintage dive watches, both obscure and mainstream, Ive always been fascinated with the numerous bezel designs that came out of the late 1950s and '60s. No vintage dive watch bezel discussion would be complete without mentioning Breitlings famed SuperOcean either. The SuperOcean family might mean one thing in the world of modern Breitling, but this piece comes from the back catalo C in fact, it's the reference that launched the line back in 1957.This was essentially Breitlings answer to the dive watch frenzy that the watch world was experiencing in the wake of the Fifty Fathoms, Submariner, Seamaster 300, and Deep Sea Alarm, among others. Fit with a concave bezel crafted out of Bakelite, this watch has a very bold look, with dagger-shaped luminous markers on the dial too. That slick bezel also serves to protect the domed acrylic crystal and all the radium found on the original black dial underneath.? The bezel on this example is perfectly intact, and the dial and hands look honest and original. But whats really outstanding is the presence of the original mesh bracelet, which is now both extremely hard to find and a signature trait of the SuperOcean line at large. You cant ask for much more, can you?European Watch Company in Boston is selling this example of the ref. 1004 for $22,500. Click here for the full listing. Tudor Big Crown Submariner Ref. 7924 Big Crowns are in many ways the pinnacles of Submariner collecting. Anyone who has had the distinct pleasure of wearing an example for even mere moments will know why too. Not only do the watches themselves embody early dive watch perfection, but they are legitimately rare watches too. You dont see them surfacing for sale every other day. Often imitated, but never duplicated, there are many a questionable Big Crown circulating today, making truly honest examples beyond sought after.Heritage Auctions out of New York currently has this stunning example of the ref. 7924, which is of course the second Submariner reference to have ever been produced by Tudor, for just a single year in 1958. Coming directly from the family of the original owner, this is an honest, fresh-to-market piece, and an impressively preserved one, at that. Everything on the watch is original, and in terrific shape, looking exactly as youd expect a well-kept watch of this era to appear. Whats worth noting is that the watch doesnt necessarily look too perfect, with spot-on custard colored lume, which is a good thing, as this further speaks to the originality of the piece and the fact that it hasnt been modified to yield a higher price at auction. All in all, its a world class example of one of the most iconic watches of all time. Well excitedly be following the bidding on this one, for sure.?Heritage Auction has the pieces listed as part of their October 24 auction, and bidding starts at $40,000 plus buyers premium. Click here for the full scoop. Omega Ref. 3950 With Portuguese Provenance Beginning in 1951, Omega started production of a new, square shaped timepiece known as the ref. 3950, which they would produce for just three short years, ceasing in 1954. The watch was powered by the watchmakers already established and revered automatic caliber 342 movement, but it could be said that the true appeal was the ornate, 30.5mm rose gold case featuring an unusual lug shape and a square-ish profile.This has long been one of my favorite time-only pieces from Omega, and with good reason. On the wrist it just has incredible presence that's hard to describe here. While not exactly an easy watch to pull off, the ref. 3950 has loads of style, and it shows. While on the hunt, I was instantly drawn to this beyond clean example, which even includes the original certificate from Portugal, along with the corresponding import hallmarks on its case.? The dial on this particular watch is pretty much perfect, which can be said with a decent amount of confidence since the seller has conveniently photographed the dial outside of the case. Though its not necessarily your run-of-the-mill vintage Omega, the Portuguese import hallmarks and included papers are impossibly cool, and help tell the watchs story while reflecting the policies of their original intended market.Gary Haftel of Exposing Time is selling this example of the ref. 3950 on Instagram for $8,000.?Click here to see the original post. Buyer Beware: Herms Military Monopusher Chronograph Picking up where we left off last week, it could be said that as far as dials with retailer signatures go, few are more highly coveted than those signed by the Parisian luxury goods house Herms. They just about never pop up for sale, and when they do, they certainly dont go unnoticed (nor do they go for cheap). Having said all this, the watch in question here is not the real deal. Allow me to walk you through a series of red flags.?Lets start with the case. As the seller does state, its chrome plated with a stainless steel caseback. This would be fine on plenty of watches, but not one signed Herms. The few known vintage chronographs retailed by Herms came from top quality watchmakers including Rolex and Universal Geeve, and were, as youd expect, produced in either stainless steel or precious metals. Were talking about Herms here, after all C chrome-plate doesn't exactly fit.Next up, direct your attention towards the Herms signature itself, along with the dial as a whole. For a watch supposedly manufactured in the 1930s, the typeface is far too modern, and the inclusion of the word Paris is unusual. Its also the only Herms signature on the entire watch. Ultimately, what weve got here is a refinished dial on a pieced-together watch, that has nothing to do with Herms. It might be tempting, but there's nothing to see here. Keep moving.