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.