John:

Thanks for this fantastic response. I look forward to studying it, in its full detail.

One thing surprised me, and that is your reference to the 1930s for these watches. Maybe a gross oversimplification or fundamental error (on my part), but I thought that the iconic symbol of great American watchmaking would be from the late 1800s / turn of the 20th century? Surprised that your "one watch" recommendation would be from approximately 50 years later.

In terms of the American watchmaking industry, is there a simple way to think about the differences between these two periods?

Jeff

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

: Jeff,

: This is a question I get asked all of the time and although it is
: certainly a fair question you must know that my answer is...my
: answer...and clouded by my own set of prejudices. OK, now that
: we have that out of the way, let's talk about my prejudice. As I
: said in my manifesto, I am interested in the development of
: watch technology in the US. Discarding a bunch of other
: peripheral motivations I believe that the ultimate quest of the
: American watch industry was to come up with a watch design which
: could compete with the highest quality European watches of the
: time but which could be mass produced with as little hand
: finishing as possible. To do this a manufacturer would obviously
: have to develop the machine tools the manufacturing techniques
: and the materials needed to execute this design. My belief is
: that the ultimate expressions of this quest are the Hamilton
: 992B (16 size, 21 jewels) and Hamilton 950B (16 size, 23 jewels)
: which both began production in the 1930s.

: From a techie standpoint, hese watches both have pressed in jewel
: settings instead of screwed in. They have Elinvar hairsprings
: and uncut Elinvar balance wheels. Both came only as factory
: cased watches. The 992B probably ended up being the best selling
: American made RR watch ever. The 950B is its more expensive and
: depending on your point of view somewhat more soul satisfying
: big brother. The 992B has a 3/4 plate nickle movement and the
: 950B has a bridge model nickle movement. The real difference
: between the two watches is the addition of cap jewels on either
: end of the 3d wheel pinion. This is perhaps a subtle advantage
: that can be argued for pages.

: I believe that only the 992B was offered in a stainless steel case
: which was called a "Model 15" case. Most of these
: watches were sold in heavily gold filled cases including the
: "Model A", the "Model 11", the "Model
: 2" (early bar over crown design) and "Model 17"
: (later Bar over crown). The 992B was typically supplied with a
: sunk center/sunk seconds (double sunk) dial which was signed
: "Hamilton Railway Special" above the center hole. The
: 950B was typically supplied with a double sunk dial signed
: Hamilton 23 Jewel Railway Special" above the center hole.
: Early production of both watches had much more desirable
: porcelain/glass dials and later production had (horrible)
: melamine dials.

: My choice, given your criteria including the stainless case would
: be an early 992B with a double sunk properly signed porcelain
: double sunk dial. You should be able to find one of these in
: good condition with the original brushed finish on the back of
: the case and a mint dial with original hands for $400 give or
: take.

: My personal choice would be an early production 950B in a model A
: GF case with an original porcelain art deco dial and original
: deco baton hands. These can be found for between $1,000-1,500
: depending on how lucky you are. My choice for a 992B would be
: for one in a model 11 gold filled case and a Bold Montgomery RR
: Special dial. RR watch collectors like gold filled cases and
: this gold filled is almost indestructible under normal use.

: Both of these watches in my opinion are on par with and perhaps
: better as time keepers than the best of the Pateks of the time.
: They are aesthetically pleasing but probably lack the ultimate
: finish of the Pateks. They are obviously a lot cheaper than the
: Pateks. Parts are available for both of these watches and they
: are a breeze to service because Hamilton designed them to be
: that way. My dad taught me to take apart watches using a
: Hamilton and it spoiled me for anything else.

: Here is a page of cuts from original Hamilton ads showing a lot of
: styles of these watches.

: