I say from the outset that this will probably be one of the shortest reviews of an actual watch to date! Why? Well, quite simply, the first portion deals with some initial issues that occurred, then the later screed deals with the watch proper. The latter is short – simply because there is just so little information on the model! I have tried numerous sources – including Movado, but it would seem that even back in the day it fell under the radar.
I obtained the watch from Birth Year Watches about six months ago, after having undertaken my periodic “scan” of what was available. I was quite taken by the rather unusual case design, and the generally good overall condition of the piece. It was also not very expensive – a little over a few hundred pounds if I recall. When I first received it, all seemed OK and so wore off and on for a few weeks. Eventually I decided that the thin and light tan/orangy coloured strap it had come on needed to be changed as, frankly, it really did suit the gold case finish and the dress style image of the watch. No, something in black would be the order of the day. My first port of call was Watchgecko, who offer a wide range of decent quality straps (and bracelets) at reasonable cost. I identified something suitable – which by the way also needed to have a pretty decent curve at the lug end as the case is pretty circular. I got the strap, but alas, it was not curved enough, plus the depth of leather near the case was too think. A scratch of my thinning pate led me to the only real solution – I would have to go to David at The Watch Tailor for a bespoke strap. To be honest, I had wanted to avoid this as the watch was not really worth the cost, but by this time I was on a bit of a crusade!
I shall not go into all the details – but the eventual manufacture of the strap turned out not to be as straightforward as, say, my previous Ebel straps with David. Anyway, at a second attempt we got there in the end – kind of! Although it fitted better, it was still a strain on the bars (albeit curved too of course), so that they kept popping out! To compound my angst, another and more serious problem manifested. I was adjusting the watch one day – after having refitted the straps for the nth time, when the crown – along with the two stage stem, just shot out. Great! I managed to wiggle it in and it worked once, but when trying again, the same thing occurred. I did consider trying to sort out myself, but, being a front-loading case watch, I knew I was not up to it.
I was naturally pretty hacked off by now, and it was in such a frame of mind that I sent out a plea to Rich at The Watch Spot. If anyone could help he would! We chatted and I subsequently sent him the watch, initially both hoping that it would just be a case of reconnecting a loose screw back into the movement. However, after Rich got the watch and examined the stem, worse was to come. The final stage of the stem has two raised collars so that it can be clamped in, but Rich discovered that the lower one had a chunk missing, hence, the intermittent failure. After some searching, Rich could not source a replacement. I too scavenged my sources – including Movado (and their UK repairer), but all to no avail. In the end we had a crisis meeting to decide to either give up or continue searching. To be thwarted by such a miniscule component was hugely irritating, so Rich offered to deepen his search. Frankly, by now I had become pretty depressed about the whole thing, but when suddenly Rich came back with good news, I brightened. One of his US contacts had the part! The question was the cost? The tiny part was not cheap, plus there was the postage on top of course, so, I was looking at some £100. As I had now come so far, I asked Rich to proceed. He got the part pretty quickly and also cleaned the watch up a bit. In terms of running, the electronic watch readings were pretty good – aside from being out by some 40 seconds a day, but with adjustment, this was reduced to nearer 10 seconds. All done – phew!!
Ah, now the strap. Well, I had told Rich all about this, and being pretty resourceful he had sorted it! How so? Well, he told be that the bars – whilst on the face of it the right width, ended up not being so due to the bend needed. As such, the sprung ends only just went into the holes. This, plus the tension still needed to pop them in with the strap on, was just too much. As such Rich used some longer bars and then bent them carefully to the right shape, and, hey presto, success! That, you may say was all pretty obvious, but I say not really, so a pat on the back to Rich. I now have the watch back, fully functioning and looking great and actually able to wear!
Now to the watch proper: As already mentioned, there is not a whole bunch say over the model’s history. Even in a Movado book, apparently, it is all but absent! I can though glean from it’s movement history (which is online), that the timeline indicates a birth window of between 1966-70. With a bit more probing and supposition, it is probably from about 1968. That’s it folks – nothing more on who designed the watch or how it came into being!
Turning to the case, it is I suppose what you would call semi-elliptical (roundish!), and finished in a polished gold plate. The size, at 39x35x10mm, means that it is of a useful legible size and slim enough to slip under the cuff. The crown – with its Movado “dial in hand” logo, is neatly recessed, so from the top is all but invisible. One nice point to note is that the case was made by F Borgal, who also made cases for some very high-end brands. Additionally, the crystal (or plexiglass) is original as it has the Movado logo finely etched into it.
The dial is really nice, with a silver finish and light horizontal brushing. The hour markers are, I suppose, cuboid-like, with black tops and slanting gold edges inboard. There are tiny dots outboard of these – which I think are/were lumed, but whose power has almost gone. The main hands are gold finished batons with black and lumed inserts, and the second hand is a plain gold needle. The date window at 3 o’clock is classy being gold framed, and of a useful size.
Turning the watch over reveals a stainless steel back, with Movado President noted, and the Hand. The number 160 is also noted.
Regarding the movement, this is Movado’s own automatic 388 calibre. It is Incabloc and beats at some 21,600 vph, has around 47 hours of power, and all smoothed by 28 jewels. A quick set date also features. Rich kindly took a picture when he had cracked the watch open, so you can see there is nothing too remarkable here.
Finally, the strap and the bars appear to be working OK, with the black crocodile being much more suitable. I do wonder however whether the watch came on a bracelet originally in order to fit that round case better. Anyway, it is a super comfy wear!
In conclusion, clearly my overall expense increased somewhat – to let us say around £650. There are few of these on the market (mainly in a steel finish) and even less in good condition – which I feel mine now is. As such I think I am about breaking even. Anyway, I like the watch, with its dressy disco volante (flying saucer) type shape eschewing lugs, and the very clear and restrained dial. It’s subtle yet classy. Yes, a bit of a performance, but in the end worth it!
Words/Images: The Writer (except if otherwise noted).