Horological Meandering

Let's start by the beginning.

 

Several years ago, I saw a strange watch for sale from the Sixties, at an auction.

 

It was said that it was Joe Di Maggio's own watch, and it came with the box, which is as original as the watch.

 

As I  know nothing about base ball, I knew nothing about Joe Di Maggio, but what intrigued me was the watch.

 

 

 

 

Why?

 

Not the case, which looks like a Rolex case, classic, robust, and very pleasant to see with some nice proportions, which is 35 / 36 mm big and around 13 mm thick.

 

No, the interest of this watch is in some small details, more or less discrete, by the way.

 

1/  The dial.

 

A minimalist design, not to say underated, contrasting with some mad elements of style:

 

- The lightning  applied logo is located just above the brand's name, at 12, instead of the classic 12.

 

- A rare black dial ( Credit photo: Watch To Buy ) :

 

 

 

 

- A very stylized scissor hour hand, ala Patek World Time

 

- A lightning minute hand, whose symbol can also be found on the base of the second hand.

 

 

 

 

 

Brilliant, and still very modern, for a 50 years old watch!

 

2/ The crown:

 

If you're are used to vintage divers  super compressor cases, you will be familiar with the design of the crown...

 

 

 

 

First time I see the " grid " crown on a no compressor watch!

 

You will also see, on the grid finish, the engraved " W " of Wittnauer.

 

3/ The case back:

 

Here, you have a screw in case back ,with some nice  personalized design, too, as you also find, here, the famous symbol of this watch, the lightning:

 

 

 

 

4/ The Calibre is part of the mystery of the watch.

 

This is a Wittnauer 11 EW ( Which stands for Electric Wind? ) which is, in fact a Landeron 470.

 

The second hand runs smoothly, like on a mechanical watch, but the movement  looks like a kind of Hybrid:

 

 

 

 

 

 

The arrow shaped lever, at the centre of the movement, comes at the contact of the battery, which is located in the middle of the case back.

 

And the good news is that it is not too difficult to find the battery, I tested it.

The bad news is that the battery autonomy is quite short, around two to three months... Which got me rid of this Watch.

 

The funny thing is that the beat of the movement makes such a big noise that you can hear it at one meter.

 

The precision is quite good, comparable to a good mechanical movement ( 7 seconds per day ).

 

Conclusion: I had only two non 100% mechanical watches: An old Swatch I love a lot, and this Wittnauer, which ,as previously said, looks like an hybrid watch.

 

Normally, I would not have considered getting another non mechanical watch, but when I saw it some years ago, I knew that, one day, I will have one.

 

Horologically speaking, there is nothing original,  nothing exceptional, BUT the interest is elswhere... In its design.

 

Not only this watch is well thought, I would also dare say that it is a designer watch, almost made for designers.

 

A last picture, a wrist shot, to show you how cool it is:

 

 

 

 

100 % pleasure, 0%  issues with the banker!

 

If the battery life was longer, I would have kept it. Definitely.

 

Best to all.

 

Nicolas.