Inspired by the recent posts by Jeff of some Abercrombie and Fitch watches made by Heuer, here is a 2444 ref that I own.

This watch is a good contender for the "engraved back: good or bad?" debate. I guess many of you out there think an engraved back is always bad, but when it supplies a bit of history, then I think it can enhance the desirability of a watch - in my opinion anyway.

This watch has seen some good use - I like the patina. But the engraving is pretty interesting. Ten minutes on google brings up some history about the Spear prize: it is the award the best graduate of the submarine school, somewhere in the northeast of the USA if I remember correctly. It seems like every year they award a watch as the spear prize, but not always an A&F (or a Heuer). The seller believed that the James Fisher that the watch was awarded to was the James Fisher mentioned as a friend and colleague in John Mcain's autobiography. I haven't done much research to see if this is correct - it seems not quite right as Mcain was a naval aviator, not a submarine specialist. But maybe they met in basic training ... the chronology of that seems possible.

It doesn't really matter, I like the history of the watch. And seeing how some military papers can massively boost the value of some Rolexes, maybe this engraving is not all bad in the minds of many collectors....