More About Nivada Watches…

Several posts ago, I talked about Croton Nivada Grenchen Swiss Watches. Here, I want to say a few more words about a Nivada watch that I find particularly interesting.

It is this amazing Nivada Blue C1 Profile. I am guessing you haven’t seen anything like it before, especially among the high grade Swiss watches made for men. Look at that absolutely awesome oval-shaped blue dial, with white stick hands and markers. The dial is signed: Nivada, C1 Profile, Swiss Made.

It is housed in a stainless steel oval futuristic cushion case. This comes from the optimistic era in which people were breaking new ground in design, inspired by such things as the space program and the new directions in fashion that prompted everyone from Paris couturiers to Carnaby Street to lead the way in how people dressed. It was new, it was young, it was fresh, and it still feels that way all these years later.

It is hard to find any examples of the Nivada Profile line. And harder still to find them in this nearly new condition. It is a joy to wear and always draws fascinating comments.

We are glad to have this watch for sale in our online vintage watch shop. Visit by clicking the link on this page!

Tissot Swiss Watches – Since 1853

Go back with me to 1853… That’s the year Levi Straus & Co. was founded, President Franklin Pierce was inaugurated, Victoria and Albert’s son Prince Leopold was born, and potato chips were first served by George Crum at Saratoga Springs, New York. It’s the year Vincent Van Gogh, Cecil Rhodes, Lillie Langtree, and Stanford White first saw the light of day. And…

On June 1st of 1853, the Tissot Watch Company was founded.

Tissot SA is a luxury Swiss watchmaker. The company was founded in Le Locle, Switzerland by Charles-Félicien Tissot and his son, Charles-Émile Tissot. Long successful on its own, Tissot eventually merged with Omega in 1930, and ever since, both brands have produced luxury watches. It is fair to say, “Think Omega when you say Tissot”. But here’s the thing: a Tissot vintage watch can be had for significantly less than an Omega watch of similar vintage and quality. (A word to the wise among all of you vintage watch collectors out there!)

Highly admired, the Tissot brand continues in business today. You can purchase a new Tissot Watch (not to be confused with the brand Mathey-Tissot) nowadays, and you will pay a pretty penny to do so.

Among its many accomplishments, Tissot was the first watch company to introduce specific antimagnetic methods, because in the 1930s, as the first household appliances arrived in people’s homes, mechanical watches began to go crazy. Tissot immediately understood that movements had to change, to withstand the machines that they would come in contact with.

Some notable celebrities who have been seen wearing Tissot watches include actor George Clooney, basketball player LeBron James, and singer Justin Bieber.

We always try to have a fine selection of vintage Tissot Watches in our online vintage watch shop, so that you can be among this illustrious company. You can see our current Tissot Watches following the link on this page.

Croton Watches – Great Value on These “Sleeper” Vintage Watches

Collectors of vintage watches soon become familiar with a number of makers of quality, and tend to focus on them. Sometimes this limits their collecting horizons. Today I am going to talk about Croton Watches, which are high grade, excellent quality watches that are often overlooked, even by seasoned collectors. What that means is there are bargains to be had from this brand, as well as long-term enjoyment.

A little background:

We begin in Switzerland…with Nivada Grenchen.

Nivada Grenchen timepieces have been in the watchmaking industry since 1926. In that year, Jacob Schnieder first created this watchmaking company, in the town of Granges (Grenchen). In the United States, the Croton Watch Company, Inc. distributed all Nivada Grenchen watches.

These watches, therefore, can carry a variety of signatures on the dial and case. Some are signed Nivada. Some are signed Nivada Grenchen, some are signed Croton, and some watches use all three names.

The Croton Company continues in business today, and can boast more than 132 years of single-family ownership. From its headquarters in New Jersey, it has become famous worldwide for their line of classic watches and timekeeping advances.

Due to their very long history, you will find Croton watches from every era of the 20th century and indeed up to today. You will find dress watches and sports watches, watches designed for outdoor and water activities as well as for more formal occasions. What these watches have in common is a commitment to the highest standards in designing and building watches that work with dependability.

So now the secret is out…

You can usually find a selection of Croton Nivada Grenchen watches in our online vintage watch shop. Just use the link you see on this page.

Elgin Ridgewood Watch – A Symphony in Black and White

In an earlier post, I promised I would do a piece on the Elgin Ridgewood model. Here it is. I think the design speaks for itself. A bold 1950s design in black and white. Not only does the dial have a central rectangle in black, but look if you will at those amazing black enamel lugs. Marvelous!

This is one of the “Holy Grail” Elgin models, the scarce and highly desirable “Ridgewood”. 

This Ridgewood boasts a superb original black dial in the center that contrasts with a brushed silver border, with applied gold numerals and squares for the hour markers. And there is a Sub Second Dial at the six portion. Signed: Elgin 19 (jewels, that is).

As for the case: Jazzy 10K Rolled Gold Art Deco style rectangular case with black enamel rectangular inset corners. Unique design that is instantly recognizable. Domed faceted crystal. Inside case back is signed: 5532, Cased and Timed by Elgin National Watch Co. 10K Gold Filled, Wadsworth, U404462.

” … A watch so fine it speaks proudly of Elgin craftsmanship,” said the original 1953 advertisement for the Elgin Ridgewood.

These are getting to be impossible to find. 

The Elgin National Watch Company was a major US watch maker from 1864 to 1968. For more than 100 years the company’s manufacturing complex in Elgin, Illinois, was the largest site dedicated to watchmaking in the world.

The Bulova Rite Angle is a “Grail” Watch for Many Collectors

All of the fine watchmakers, whether in the USA or abroad, made some models that stand out from the rest. Collectors look for them eagerly and hopefully, and because they are so desirable, they call them their “Grail” Watches, as in the Holy Grail. Part of watch collecting is the hunt, and an enjoyable if sometimes frustrating hunt it can be.

There are a handful of Bulova models that Bulova collectors have in mind when they go out hunting… The original Lone Eagle being first and foremost. Next might be the Photo Flip Watch, or this one, the Rite Angle. They are all so handsome and unusual and increasingly hard to find, that this collector is always delighted to come across one in good condition.

You see at once what makes this watch different from almost any other watch (I say almost because actually Patek Philippe made one very similar. Just try to find and afford that one, friends! Ha!). The distinctive feature of the Rite Angle is that case which positions the 12 end of the watch higher on the wrist than the 6 end. The concept was to angle the dial in such a way that it was easier to read the time at a glance. The design proved to be quite popular, and Bulova made about a half dozen variations including dial style and color, and even a version with etched sides for the bezel.

This particular model conveys the purest version of the Rite Angle. We are glad it is in the shop at present, but we don’t expect it to stay there very long. The collectors are circling…!

Hamilton Wilshire Watch – Registered Edition

I have done two previous posts about the beautiful Hamilton Wilshire Watch. The most recent was in 2022, when I featured a Wilshire from the 1930s, that is when they were introduced.

Here is the updated Wilshire. It looks exactly like the 1930s version, with its handsome rectangular case and flexible driver’s lugs, and that is not accidental, Hamilton used the same molds to create this reissue. The key difference, as I have noted elsewhere, is that these more recent reissues are powered by a quartz battery movement. Offering that kind of convenience combined with the timeless appeal of the original, has been very well-received by the watch buying public.

This watch is now old enough to quaintly as “vintage”. And would you be surprised if I told you that the registered edition model actually commands as high or higher a price than the original?

This particular model is in our shop just now.

The watch still has its original Hamilton hang tag, and original stock sticker on the back. 

Hamilton’s Swiss quartz reissue of their iconic 1938 “Wilshire” driver’s watch. All the style of the Art Deco era, with the convenient of a quartz battery movement. Eagerly collected!

The Hamilton “Wilshire” model was featured in the film “To Catch a Thief” worn by Cary Grant.

Vintage WWII Period Men’s BIFORA Rectangle Copper Dial MILITARY Wristwatch. Art Deco 11 Jewels Anker, Late 1930s, Sub Second Hand, Superb

Absolutely stunning Copper / Salmon / Coral Dial. Sub Seconds Dial located at the 6. Black Hour Markers and Blued Steel Hands. Dial is signed: Anker, 11 Rubis, with the B in a circle Bifora logo. 

Salmon Dial Watches were all the rage in the period circa 1938-1943… They look fabulous with any skin tone. Salmon Dial Watches are getting harder and harder to find. This is an extra-stunning example of that bygone era.

Bifora Watches were made in Schwaebisch Gmuend, Germany. “Anker” indicated a particular type of movement protection, and the word was a trademark of the Andreas Huber Company. 

The Elgin Ardmore – Quite Special

In our last post, we featured the Hamilton “Ardmore”. Lo and behold, Hamilton’s largest USA rival, Elgin, also had an “Ardmore” model. This is one of two sibling Elgin models that use rectangular fancy lugs to help make a very distinctive and handsome design. (The other is the Ridgewood, which I will talk about in a future post).

The Elgin “Ardmore” is all about horizontal lines. On the dial, on the bezel, and on those chunky rectangular lugs. It makes for quite a statement on the wrist. It is fair to say that the look is Art Deco meets Mid Century. The watch has a sense of movement and excitement that is comparable to the cars of the fifties, with their long low lines (in comparison to what came before) and their sense of the dramatic (think fins and so forth). Elgin could be counted on to appeal to the latest design trends, and the “Ardmore” succeeds in this, brilliantly.

Ardmore Model – 17 Jewels 673 caliber movement Manual Winding Mechanical Watch; super snazzy Horizontal pinstripes on the case and on the dial; 10 karat rolled gold case; the case back is stainless steel and free of any scratches or engraving.

First known date of sale: March 3, 1955. Last known date of sale: November 28, 1957.

Vintage watch collectors will never go wrong choosing a fine old Elgin like this one.

Hamilton Ardmore Watch Registered Edition

Vintage Hamilton Watches are always in demand, for both their beauty of construction and the dependability of timekeeping. Long known as America’s most prestigious watchmakers, the company was headquartered in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, for most of the 20th century.

Beginning in the 1980s and continuing to this day, Hamilton has been reissuing some of their most famous and beloved models. They utilize the same design as the original models, which means today’s buyers have access to the classic era of fine watchmaking. The same look and quality as the 1920-1950 models. With a difference. Instead of being powered by a high grade manual winding movement, these Hamilton Registered Edition watches are powered by quartz battery movements. Many people prefer the ease of ownership these battery models afford them.

Not long ago, someone did a study of which of these Hamilton Registered Edition models are the most popular. Among the top, was the “Ardmore”. Hamilton has reissued this 1930’s model with several different dial designs. Here you see the dial with golden “exploding” Roman Numeral hour markers. It offers dignified timekeeping with a bit of flair.

In 1937, Hamilton released the original “Ardmore” which was made to compete with the Gruen Curvex. This watch of exceptional quality is the authentic reissue of that Hamilton mid 30s design. Part of Hamilton’s curved-to-fit-the-wrist lineup. 

Hamilton Wilshire with Flexible Lugs – Driver’s Watch

This is Hamilton’s “Wilshire” Model. Evoking the famous Wilshire Boulevard, in Los Angeles and the elegant Beverly-Wilshire Hotel that shares its name.

Features:
– Desirable Swinging Lugs Drivers Watch
– Gleaming 14k gold filled front and back
– Sterling silver butter finish dial
– Dial is signed Hamilton 
– Handsome 18k gold applied numerals 
– Dramatically domed crystal – newly installed, factory correct
– The movement is signed: Hamilton U. S. A., 17 Jewels, 980, G254872
– Inside case back is signed: Hamilton W Co, Lancaster PA, 14K Gold Filled, 551279
– The small seconds hand is missing on this one, needs to be added

The designation of a driver’s watch comes from the shape and movement of the lugs, which attach the watch to its band or strap. Most lugs on most watches – vintage or new – are fixed and do not move. But the lugs on a driver’s watch are hinged so that the watch fits the curve of the wrist at the wrist’s edge. Which is where it is meant to be worn. When on the edge of the wrist, the watch is in just the right position for the driver to quickly check the time, without taking his hands off the steering wheel. In the days before power steering, this was especially important. See the photo of the watch on the side of the wrist. 

Hamilton Watch Company of Lancaster, Pennsylvania was the preeminent USA maker of high-grade watches throughout most of the 20th century. They brought out new models every year, just at car manufactures do. They named each model for the ambiance it created, or in honor of a particular person or place. For instance, there were “Coronado” watches and there were “Piping Rock” watches from Hamilton. Or they were named “Conrad” or “Gary” or “Otis”, and so forth.

It is an all-original, elegant American made watch for men, created in the late 1930s to early 1940’s in a 14K gold filled rectangular design case. And it has those long ‘driver’s watch” swivel lugs. The watch is powered by a Hamilton caliber 980 17 jewels manual wind movement. It has a distinct presence even though it is somewhat small in comparison to watches of today. 

Fun Fact: An identical Wilshire Hamilton Watch was owned by the celebrated architect, Frank Lloyd Wright.