Sunburst Green Sowar

 Though not my favourite dial this is a nice well running watch in good condition. This is 1960/70s I think and I would guess made for the middle east market.

Another FHF movement (372 I think), this watch hasn't seen much wear and the cuvette has kept it clean inside. I don't know if the placing of smaller movements inside large cases is a common practice but most West End Watches of this era seem to do this

Looks like it's probably been serviced recently, it has a brand new strap on it (I probably paid less than the strap cost for it), though it does have at least one bridge screw missing

The non-quick set date demonstrates very clearly to me why they invented quick set...

Note no "PRIMA" on the dial (probably not enough room).

A teeny tiny Sowar Prima

This watch I bought for my wife. I've not put any scale in the pictures so it's hard to tell but it is less that half of any of my other watches in diameter (~19mm, 8 3/4" apparently). The second hand is so small it's hard to make it out with the naked eye.

I've done no more than take the back off this and haven't needed to. I don't know if it's been serviced recently but it's keeping good time and running fine (there is a note that says it had it's stem replaced in 1999). The strap even looks original (though definitely needs replacing). I haven't identified the movement yet but I suspect it's some kind of late 30s/40s FHF.

The green between 10 and 12 o'clock in the first picture is not an illusion. It's copper corrosion in the paint. Not a lot I can do about it unfortunately. You can see a bit more on the case in the second pic. I suspect it's got wet at some point.

It is of the same style as the "CSI" Sowars, but has not been stamped as such. It does have "Brit Pat. 386 505" inside the caseback, which is a bit different and according to the patent office was registered in May 1932 by Taubert et Fils: "Improvements in Fluid Tight watches". Not completely fluid tight judging by the verdigris...

Note the slightly different numbers stamped on the different sides of the caseback.

And now for something completely different...

It's a jump hour watch! Popular in the seventies I'm told, but seeing a mechanical one these days is pretty rare. It has a FHF 72 movement, with the requisite bits added for the jumping hour wheel. I can't find another example of this on the internet.

Another ebay bargain(ish), this one wasn't working when I received it and quick look inside showed that it's not been well treated in it's lifetime. The immediate problem was that the screw holding the jump-hour wheel was not only the wrong size but had been cross-threaded. However many other screws were wrong, one to the extent that it was also probably stopping the hour wheel moving properly, and two jewel caps (albeit unnecessary ones) had been removed.

I've replaced the offending screws and cleaned and oiled it and it now works ok. Not brilliantly: it seems it is very susceptible to small knocks that make the hour wheel jump and it also occasionally gets stuck between numbers, but that is probably just wear. Looking at the design of the jump hour mechanism I suspect it was never great. It looks very flimsy. The paint on the dials is flaking and dirty, and unlikely to be replaceable. It does look very different on the wrist though.

The bridges were very tarnished and I experimentally polished them with yellow Dialux. They came out very nicely but the Dremel I have is far too powerful for the job. The pieces heated up with in seconds to skin burning temperature.

Yes, it does have a very silly crown on it.