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Should I take it?

2K views 21 replies 10 participants last post by  Esrange 
#1 ·
I got the chance to buy 2 vintage mens Bulovas in their original boxes for 20$ a pop
But I gota drive like 30 minutes to get them. They both work but one has a cracked crystal. Is it worth it?
 
#3 ·
Really, how often do we get a chance to examine vintage pieces BEFORE we pay for them? I'd go for it (literally as well as figuratively),
but then...I don't mind driving.
 
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#4 ·
If they both run, what is not to like if you want to add them to your mix or, try to resell them? I would at least take a look, hard to say what else they might dig out if they know you are coming.......:001_smile:
 
#5 ·
Reselling......maybe :lol:

I'll be going up there tomorrow, I have busniess close by anyway. He mentioned something about a Patek Philippe pocket watch over the phone too..
 
#6 ·
The one on the left is called an Excellency FF and should have a 21j 7ap USA movement. The other one is commonly called a knotted lug Bulova. I'm not sure what it's real model name is but Gruen also offered a similar case. It probably has a 10ak USA movement. I've never seen them with boxes. I believe you should make a profit, even with the gas, time and all. Joel
 
#8 ·
Well I picked them up yesterday.

They're not in as good of shape I had thought, the boxes have some wear and the twisted lug doesn't have any springs for the band. It also has a bit of rust on the winding stem??

Both watches are 21 jewels, I think the twisted lug one is a 10AE or something, I didn't take the movements out for pictures unfortunately. I do know that both movements are very clean and shiney!

Both watches have a bit of wear, the square one has a liiiiitle bit of brassing, the knotted lug might be ok though.

Both work as advertised and seem to keep decent time. While it wasn't as sweet of a deal as I thought it was, I suppose I could at the very least double my money.













 
#9 ·
Well I picked them up yesterday.

They're not in as good of shape I had thought, the boxes have some wear and the twisted lug doesn't have any springs for the band. It also has a bit of rust on the winding stem??

Both watches are 21 jewels, I think the twisted lug one is a 10AE or something, I didn't take the movements out for pictures unfortunately. I do know that both movements are very clean and shiney!

Both watches have a bit of wear, the square one has a liiiiitle bit of brassing, the knotted lug might be ok though.

Both work as advertised and seem to keep decent time. While it wasn't as sweet of a deal as I thought it was, I suppose I could at the very least double













I, unfortunately, know little to nothing about Bulovas but these seem like " Fantastic Finds" to me . Please send the details to me at fred@illinoiswatches.com.

Thanks
FJF
 
#10 ·
......Wait, wait.......esrange....you drove 30 whole miles ( all by yourself ?) and paid 20 bucks each for those 2 Bulovas? .........yikes ! .....h*** I wooda gone just for the knotted lugs one ! .....

those boxes are great ......so stylish ......


and did you get the watch that was on the table with the chewed up tan band ? .....I thought that one looked interesting too .....


you got a great deal .......and tween you , me and the fence post.......I could easily get 125 to 150 for the knotted lugs one alone ......and 21 jewels ? .....
 
#11 ·
I'll get movement shots tomorrow, I promise!

And yes, both have 21 jewel movements. I wish I had my camera on when I took the movements out...gaaaahh!

I got all 4 actually for 45$, but the black and tan-banned ones were kids watches. The black one is a '65 Snoopy that still works (kinda cool, I need to take a picture of it). The one w/ the tan band is some sort of hop along Cassey or something
 
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#12 ·
Now THAT'S a deal to be proud of ! ......

and that tan banded one ....prolly the Hopalong Cassidy huh ? .....got news for ya ....betcha that one, in 1/2 way decent condition and running will fetch a pretty penny ....when you put a new band on it ....be sure you keep and polish up the original buckle and metal keeper......they look a lot like the carved western style sterling silver watch buckles and keepers I used to have .....sorta like regular fancy belt buckles in miniature .....


it is also most probably NOT silver, but it is the same style ......and who knows maybe it's nickel and will come back nicely with a bit of polish .....


put those on another tan band and you're as near to original as one can get ......


Hopalong Cassidy was even a bit before my time .......very early 50s for TV , and I think he also made serial shorts for the movies.....and he was extremely popular .....


usually I don't much care for character watches......but one like that ....it looks cool ......



so don't just toss that band or the watch in the trash ....you just might have something there.......
 
#14 ·
As promised! Got movement pictures and some of the other 2 watches.


The snoopy watch is neat, instead of a second hand there's a little plane that flys around the dial. The watch kinda works, if you wind up and give it a little shake it'll run for a few minutes, then stop.




The other watch doesn't work. The guy I got it from said it was a Hopalong Cassity or something, his sidekick or whatever. I don't know anything about the show. I'm saving the little clasp and stuff, the tan leather is so dry it's crumbling.




The movements are cleeeeean! I did my best to get movement shots. Both movements work beautifully by the way!






 
#15 ·
Dale Evans was Mrs. Roy Rogers, so it's not directly related to Hopalong Cassidy, but the same genre. Too bad about that tooled band, but you've got the buckle and keeper, which can probably be sewn into a new band. Stan did somthing like that last year, IIRC, on an actual Hopalong Cassidy watch.

The Bulovas look great!
 
#16 ·
From what I can dig up, Bulova started making movements in the US sometime in the 30’s. Probably starting with the 10AN which they had been making in Switzerland since 1925. Their next Anerican movement was the 7AK witch was exclusively made here. From 10AN production they moved on to the 10AE in the late 30’s, the 10AX just before the war, and the 10AK and 10AKCSH through the war until 1950. The 7AK seems to be solely a 21j movement but the rest were made in a variety of jewel counts with 21 being the highest. It’s quite a challenge collecting Bulova movements especially keeping the US and Swiss productions straight. I’ve seen many comments that Elgin made the only US manufactured self-winding movement but Bulova built at least 5 of its automatic movements in the US including 2 that had date complications. I believe they were all based on Swiss designs however so Elgin holds that honor alone. Joel
 
#17 ·
I’ve seen many comments that Elgin made the only US manufactured self-winding movement but Bulova built at least 5 of its automatic movements in the US including 2 that had date complications. I believe they were all based on Swiss designs however so Elgin holds that honor alone. Joel
That's why I usually say Elgin made the only US-designed and built automatics.

There are a lot of claims in horology that either don't hold up under close scrutiny, or as here have to be more carefully qualified. I got into a discussion on a Bulova board regarding who made the first railroad-approved wristwatch. The claim there was that it was Bulova's Accutron in 1962. I posted a clipping from New York Central's corporate magazine, from January 1961, announcing the acceptance of Elgin's BW Raymond wristwatch for use on the New York Central line. (One fellow responded that it was STILL Bulova in 1962, because some website said so).

And it turns out even that wasn't REALLY the first railroad approved wristwatch, because at least on line had previously approved a Swiss-built Ball wristwatch.

The folks who actually lived all this history we watch collectors now study didn't do it to make things easy for us to decode. They did it to make a buck! :lol:
 
#19 ·
i don't know

if anyone has mentioned this- a quick re-reading of the thread doesn't reveal it- but, the bulova marked "bulova movement" on the dial is possibly re-cased in a non-bulova case. in the past, if a case had worn out, watchmakers or jewelers would case them up in jobber cases and have them redialed to read "movement". i don't know much about the vintage bulova market, but it may have an effect on your resale.
 
#20 ·
I'm embarrased to say that I was so distracted by the lugs and box that I missed the fine print. Here's a link to some pics and discussion about the model. Seems Bulova calls it the Ashford. Popular enough style that was widely copied. Even by Benrus as our masthead photo shows. Took me a while to remember where I had seen it outside of Ebay. Joel
 
#21 · (Edited)
Awww, oh well. Does it have any value other then the movement?

Just looked at the back, has the usual markings except for 'Bulova' and a date code.

The square watch has 'Bulova' on the back but no date that I can see
 
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