More VCMs

[Martin]

Why the dials say 18 Zuan and the movements 17 remains a mystery to me.

Could it be an added 'module' for the date function, requiring an extra jewel, on top op the standard 17 Zuan movement?

[saskwatch]

Could it be an added 'module' for the date function, requiring an extra jewel, on top op the standard 17 Zuan movement?

I think it's possible, but I don't have enough technical knowledge to give a properly-informed opinion. The only other 18-jewel tongji watch I've seen was made by Wuhan Watch Factory. It's also a calendar model.



It has quick-set date. At least I think it does; the calendar function doesn't work.

[saskwatch]

Meihualu pocket watches were made in Jilin. They were unique because they featured an oversized tongji and a centre second hand. Better quality movements were handpicked for military and railway use. This railway version, my second, is a nice example.



On the back is the China Rail logo, two characters (I don’t know what they mean), and a number.



I didn’t open it for a movement photo, but this time I thought to “borrow” the seller’s.




Under normal circumstances I wouldn’t give this Zuan Shi a second look because the dial isn’t clean enough.



When I saw the back, however...



I’d never heard of a railway Zuan Shi before. I don’t know what the two large characters mean, but the smaller text spells the name of the factory, Shanghai No. 4.





The movement’s date code is SM1-84-1 – January 1984.

[saskwatch]

Cultural Revolution era watches are my favourites. The history, including the rapid expansion of the Chinese watch industry and the introduction of the tongji, fascinates me. Perhaps more importantly, I like the design aesthetics.

Yongjiu (Forever) brand watches were made by Qiqihar Watch Factory, reputedly China’s northernmost.



This one meets all of the criteria of what a Yongjiu “should” be. Plain caseback...



...unsigned crown...



...and what appears to be an SL1A movement, probably made in Liaoning. It appears unlikely that Qiqihar ever manufactured movements. The date code is 6902 – February 1969.




A few years later, the tongji became the dominant movement used by the Chinese watch industry. Early versions appeal to me both because of their history and the fact that they appear to be the highest quality examples. Beijing was one of the first factories to produce them. Their first mass-produced watch containing the tongji was the SZB-1. Some collectors call SZB-1s Tiananmen watches because the brand name doesn’t appear on the dial.



This is a typical example with one exception – the text on the lower part of the dial. Normally it looks more like this...



...although in more common white or silver-coloured dials the text is in black, and rarely in red. For example:



Everything else about this watch is seen often with other SZB-1s. Sundial caseback...



...ZB crown...



...and a ZB-1 tongji.



Beijing Watch Factory normally didn’t use date codes, but for a short time they signed their tongjis with the letter B followed by a two-digit number. The only numbers I’ve seen are 73 and 74, presumably indicating manufacture dates of 1973 and 1974. I’ve heard of Beijing movements signed with B72 too, but I haven’t seen one. This movement is signed B74, but up close the 4 doesn’t look much like a 4.

[saskwatch]

I think I’ve mentioned a few (dozen) times that I like ZuanShi/Diamond brand SM1A-K watches. A couple more found their way here. The first is in a beaten-up chrome-plated case, but the textured dial is remarkable.



The factory name, Shanghai Stopwatch Factory, appears on the caseback, indicating manufacture before the factory’s name change, which I believe occurred in the first half of 1978.







The SM1A-K movement doesn’t have a date code. If the movement and dial have been together for the entire life of the watch, it suggests that the English language Diamond brand name was introduced no later than 1977.




My other new SM1A-K is one of the I’m-buying-something-else-from-the-seller-and-there’s-no-added-shipping-cost watches I’ve bought often.



The factory name on the caseback, Shanghai No. 4 Watch Factory, indicates that it was manufactured later than the Diamond. 152 is probably the most common batch number.







The movement code is SM1-802: February 1980. It’s the same code as a 152 I’ve owned for a long time. The print on the dials is the same, but the other one has a textured dial and different indices. There must have been hundreds of dial variations over the time SM1A-Ks were manufactured.

[saskwatch]

More rare brands.

Zhaozhouqiao watches were named for a 1400-year-old stone bridge near Shijiazhuang, the city in which they were made.



They’re difficult to find, and when they’re available for sale it’s usually at an exorbitant price. This Zhaozhouqiao, however, was relatively affordable. It isn’t as clean as AlbertaTime’s beautiful example.



Everything about the watch appears to be historically “correct”, although I’m not sure about the crown. AlbertaTime said the crown on his is accurate, but he didn’t say whether it’s signed or not.







The date code on the ZJS tongji is CB.


ShanJuan brand watches were named for a well-known cave system near Yixing, the city in which they were made and one of many in Jiangsu which had a watch factory.



This is the only ShanJuan I’ve ever seen for sale.





A Shanghai crown, by far the most common replacement crown seen on VCMs. For all I know it might be “correct” with some of these small factory productions, but that could be just wishful thinking.



I have no clue what movement “should” be found in a ShanJuan. The letters ZHQ, the tongji code of Hongqi Watch Factory in Xian, appear under the balance of this one. Unlike all of the other ZHQ movements I’ve seen, it doesn’t have a date code.