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IWC's earliest wristwatch? NOT....

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  • last reply by samumikk 11 Nov 2016
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    Moderator
    14 Dec 2015, 6:38 p.m.
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    i1139.photobucket.com/albums/n558/michaelfriedberg/5411dba7e83262e14eff6190c11ca43f7_zpsgdqsau3l.jpg

    i1139.photobucket.com/albums/n558/michaelfriedberg/575859a8dd9bde2f0d1777c6e95a756b7_zpszwpsxzbk.jpg

    i1139.photobucket.com/albums/n558/michaelfriedberg/32e6c02b3750239bafbf11e135f5e4ff1_zps40fsboar.jpg

    I saw this watch on the Net and noticed something unusual --it had a very low serial number. 1890s. I wondered for a moment if it could be one of IWC's earliest wristwatches.

    It had a proper calibre 64 movement, consisted with an articles I wrote almost 15 years' ago (click here). And the lugs looked "old" --possibly not a later addition.

    But, unfortunately, it's not. David Seyffer told me that he found the watch in the archives, as a half-hunter from 1895, and even the case decoration was noted. But as he says "unfortunately there is no comment referring to a wristwatch".

    Dry run. But if anyone has a really old IWC wristwatch, I'd be interested in seeing it here.

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    Master
    14 Dec 2015, 7:49 p.m.
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    Dear Michael

    It is a very interesting discussion: The earliest wrist watch IWC built.

    I have also quite a number of "wrist" watches with early case and movement numbers. I had checked some of them with the books. The result was quite frustrating: All of them were sold as PW and then changed to Wrist watches.
    For me it is very unlikely there are "real" wrist watches with case and movement numbers below 450'000 (maybe even 550'000).
    Crosss checking with early sales catalogs the catalog 1911 does not show any wrist watches, only 1914 they are shown.
    What is funny, the movement is called "Kal. 63" but showing a Savonette arrangement. So here it seems someone thought "open face" is "Kal 63", even when the crown is at 3.

    www.iwcforum.com/Catalogs/1914/0207009.jpg

    kind regards

    Ralph

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    Moderator
    15 Dec 2015, 4:04 a.m.
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    Ralph, many thanks for your post.

    Here's a Borgel-cased IWC with its movement dated 1913:
    i1139.photobucket.com/albums/n558/michaelfriedberg/2e406d288734c7cef5a254d0f21527c1_zpsjpid90oq.jpg

    I would suspect that it was produced as a wristwatch, and I have heard of other Borgel-cased IWCs that were earlier. I suspect the first ones were in the UK, as trench watches, and possibly cased there.

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    Master
    15 Dec 2015, 8:29 p.m.
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    Hi Michael,
    Fifteen years ago Jürgen King presented in "Watch International" a series about all wrist watch calibers. According to him the first IWC wrist watch was equipped with cal.64, originally meant and also sold as a ladies Savonette.
    Cal. 64 was produced between 1892-1917. But this does not mean that the production of the caliber was synchronous with delivery of the complete wrist watch. The watch with the Borgel case you depict here is exactly the one that has been documented as the first IWC wrist watch in his series.
    Kind regards,
    Adrian,
    (alwaysiwc).

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    Master
    15 Dec 2015, 11:08 p.m.
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    Fantastic discussion.

    MF - will you do the purist thing, and restore the watch to its original form of a pocket watch? You know I would ....

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    Moderator
    15 Dec 2015, 11:46 p.m.
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    I didn't buy it. If I had, I'm not sure what I would have done. Sorry!

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    Apprentice
    6 Feb 2016, 4:30 p.m.
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    Apprentice
    6 Feb 2016, 4:37 p.m.
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    Hi Ralph.

    I have a IWC silver wristwatch, cal 64, produced in 1915, and sold in Denmark in 1917. Both movement and case is produced at IWC factory ( matching numbers, confirmed by IWC museum )

    It's properly one og the first serial produced wristwatch from IWC, and considered a "genuine" IWC, as it is not cased in UK, but at the IWC factory.

    Movement; IWC cal. 64, sn 627xxx
    Case Hallmarks; IWC Scafusia sn 704xxx

    But looking at the German advertisement that you have postet, you are right that it can't be a cal 63. It must be at cal. 64 as mine as it has "pin set"

    Br
    Jan

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    Apprentice
    19 Oct 2016, 8:43 p.m.
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    Would you please post a photo of this watch?

    Thanks!

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    Master
    20 Oct 2016, 3 p.m.
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    First IWC wristwatch, very intersting discussion. Keep the info and pictures coming.

    Cheers Chris

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    Apprentice
    11 Nov 2016, 6:17 p.m.
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