The graphics of the vintage IWC logo

Hello Guys

I am having a discussion with some friends on the shape of the initial "I" in the International Watch Company logo on the original dials of pre-1960 IWC wristwatches.

There is agreement that the lower part tends to be less "complex" in the earlier models. See my simple drawing:

[](smg.photobucket.com/user/FdG_pictures/media/le-I.jpg.html)

But regarding the top of the "I", have you ever seen the shape as in "A" in any original dial, rather than the common one in "B" ?

[](smg.photobucket.com/user/FdG_pictures/media/THe-I-in-WC.jpg.html)

Any good comment is highly appreciated

Ciao
Franco

Yep(A)is the short answer Franco, it made an appearance somtime in the early sixties and confusingly was'nt shy of running alongside the production of other known dial signature types. Seen plenty of the style in battered watches nobody wanted in the late '80's..the watches were correct enough...with dials battered in direct correlation to the movements and cases (every single one of them from memory)...that's not to say i've not viewed it nos in the late '80's, just that the nos examples were much less seldom (like you would expect). That said i'd puzzle over the dial style in a watch post 65-ish and i'd never presume because the style was used it should get a walk-thru to being original

ps..Though the I's did make a re-appearance in the anything go's '70's..the style is teamed with a slopeing Schaffhausen...opposed to the stood-upright earlier 60's offerings.

Well, I gave up collecting all those scripts :-)

But this is my tiny collection.

Regards

HEBE

Hebe...your 666 (^) did'nt have that dial on it when you first bought it did it?

Thought i recalled you once highlighting a stunningly original silvered singer dialled non date

Wow, your memory is very good !

Indeed, that ref. 666 has got a dial refresh at IWC, but it has gone many years ago.

But this one is still in my collection.

Old dial and ONLY new SL dots and hands.

Ahhh....that's more like it...shame about the lume mind (wink wink)

Well, the tritium lume began to crumble :-(

That can cause a lot of problems and so I decided to take the SL lume.

Coming back in topic, you say that appeared in the 60s. What if you see it in a Cal 88 or Cal 89 of the early 50s. Wouldn't you think of a redial mounted some 15-20 yrs after production of the watch?

No....not always, especially if the dial itself was showing no signs of ever having been re-done (the art world say look at the signature last), besides the early 50's production date.. even if the watch was sold 3 minutes after production only equates to ten yrs. The country it was sold into would/could also play a bit part in how many units of manual wind watches it could swallow, especially in them booming auto yrs (depending where you where on the globe).

ps...when i highlighted an early '70's untouched auto with an INTERNATINAL WATCH CO dial on this forum recently i never for a millisecond thought redial because of some surplus dealer spouting the signature style was his dreamscape for cobbling together white mk's....a decade 'after' the watch was manafactured...redial never entered me thoughts.

www.frizzellweb.com/larry/inge/Inge-c853-FW.jpg

There is a good pic of a parcel of nos Schaffhausen dials in the vintage catalogue (somewhere), highlighting the style A/B, unfortunately it's just a picture and cannot speak to determine economies of scale but any collectors viewing large volumes of watches will no doubt varify the A style dial does seem to have been used in lower quantitys.

www.iwc.com/forum/en/discussion/63667/

www.xupes.com/Xupes-Exclusive/Product-Details/8224/IWC/Vintage-88-Stainless-Steel-88-1287951.html

I once knew somebody who would'nt trust the A style of dial and then i discovered it was late variants of the dial devoid of a flat topped A in shaffhausen, never did discover if these were wrong or simply a bit crummy looking