In this article of our FAQ series, we want to talk about an issue that crosses the mind of pretty much every potential or new vintage watch owner. Are vintage watches waterproof?
If you want to use a vintage watch on a daily basis, it’s very important that you know its capabilities and limitations.
Although you might think it’s a silly thing to ask, rest assured that it isn’t. Better ask the way, than to go astray. No matter how silly you think the question is, we’re happy to help.
Another Pontiac on the bench. A lovely 1950s gold-plated dress watch with a two-tone or bullseye dial.
It has an ETA 1260 movement that I encountered in a Pontiac before. In a gold-plated Pontiac Nageur to be exact. Most ETA 1260 movements have 17 jewels but this is an earlier version with 15 jewels.
The watch didn’t run at all (not that strange if you see which parts I had to replace). It’s worth the repairs though because apart from the chipped bezel, it’s in great condition.
This is an interview with Stefan Ketelaars.
Stefan is one of those guys with a magic touch who can create anything he sets his mind to. He started with refurbishing vintage watches and then moved to skeletonizing existing watch movements.
Constantly setting goals and raising the bar, he now creates watches with his own complications.
It’s a common question.
Many believe, that it was the 145.022, powered by the cal. 861. As a result, they refer to the cal. 861 and cal. 1861 Speedmasters as Moonwatches. Technically, the 145.022 was indeed worn on the Moon, so perhaps it deserves the nickname by extension.
If by “Moonwatch” you mean the Speedmasters worn by Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, it’s a different answer.
I have seen many people asking, what strap would their watch originally have been sold on. The truth is: unless you can find the original advertisement or catalog entry for your watch, there’s no real way of knowing.
So, can you assume that a watch would’ve been fitted with a particular type of strap? Well, yes.
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