A sneek peak at new watches that I have aquired that are awaiting restoration, and which will eventually be listed for sale once restored.

The Elgin 626 is a neat little USA-made movement from the late 1940s designed specifically to power the sub-second tank-style watches popular at the time. However, the horologist who designed this movement clearly must have been a bit bored with the lack of complications, because they seemingly went out of their way to add some truly strange design features. In this post we will explore these oddities.

I generally hesitate to refinish vintage watch cases. Still, there is a point beyond which a watch case becomes so battered that it crosses the line from “vintage and charming” to “old and ugly.” For me, this case had definitely crossed over that line, so a restoration was in order. In this post I walk through the process, showing the case as it slowly transforms.

Kicking off a new blog series, we take a look at the Gruen N 710 SS. This 1960s automatic movement was manufactured for Gruen by… someone. It’s a bit of a mystery, as, beyond a stamp indicating Swiss manufacture, the movement only has Gruen markings.