Hi! I recently bought a vintage IWC cal 852 from a vintage watch store.
The watch has been polished, and according to the dealer, the crown and the
strap have been replaced, otherwise all parts are original.
I would like to know the authenticity of this watch, and whether the dealer's
statement is true.
Thanks!
From the photos you included, it appears to be authentic. The only way to be
certain is to send it to IWC in Switzerland where, for a fee, they will
provide an excerpt from their archives.
I will say the signature on the dial looks a bit sloppy, suggesting that the
dial has been refinished. But sometimes the constant polishing of an acrylic
crystal will make what is seen through it appear distorted.
Very classic, handsome watch you have, by the way. Congratulations.
Hi Yjuso,
everything looks fine, but from what i see the dial is redone. Check the
minute markers on the circumfence they look somehow suspicious.
Also for an IWC from the 50ties the dial looks to good to be true.
very nice watch anyhow.
-Cromagnonman
Thank you for the good advice! I believe the signature came out a little
sloppy in the photo because of the resolution, but I will check on that.
The history of Cal. 852 is one to remember.
It was the first calibre in which Albert Pellaton built his famous Pellaton
automatic winding system. This calibre was used in the first vintage
Ingenieurs.
In the decade following, cal. 852 was improved many times : cal. 8521( with
date), cal.853, 8531, 8541, 8541B.
These calibres were hall marked by the independant press as among the best
automatic movements ever made in Switzerland.
Regards,
Adria,
(alwaysiwc).
Hi vintage Forumers,
to shine a light on the first automatic movements constructed by Albert
Pellaton in Schaffhausen.
From juergen Kings article in Watch 3/2001 i took the following snip:
It all started with Cal. 81 in 1950 that was an automatic movement with a
small second hand at 6 o clock position. Only 1800 movements of Cal. 81 where
produced, and even Jurgen King wasn't in possession any picture of a Cal. 81
movement or complete watch. In the Watch 3/2001 he asked the reders of the IWC
publication if anybody would have such a watch or an image of it.
Still in 19501 the Cal. 85 was introduced which is a center second automatic
movement. There are rumours that all remaining Cal 81 movements where "modded"
into center Second cal. 85 movements. 8400 movements of calibre 85 where
produced.
In 1951 the Cal.852 was introduced as a successor to the Cal85. That means the
Pellaton Automatic design has quickly evolved into the Cal 852 of which 50400
movements have been produced up until 1959
br
Cromagnonman
Hello.
I won't open a new thread, but I'll ask here what you think about this watch, cal 852. Could the black hands be original?
Highly likely ( double chamfer befits the model) blackened down to customer request ( legibility) is my best bet, back then buying a gold automatic gave you more leeway, IWC were staunch, they'd look after their customers, they had parts going back 47 centuries..was the shout.
*nice lot
Thank you for your reply. I sent the watch for service, and the watchmaker will examine the hands under a microscope. The inside, the holes, and the other side should provide the answer. I've never seen a dial like this on an IWC, and if the black hands turned out to be original, factory-made, I'd be happy. And let's not forget the Cal 852 (Pellaton) movement, the one from the first Ingenieur version.
Some hand kits were powdered ( the tech term escapes me) in about this late 852/3 period.
Thanks again, that's good news. Now all that's left is to wait for the watchmaker to "examine" the hands under a microscope to see if they look factory black. If IWC powder-coated them at the time, the likelihood is higher. Some collectors laughed at me for collecting watches for so many years, but I wanted something impossible when I said that the black hands looked very consistent with the dial.
