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Omega Speedmaster MKII 1970 Custom PVD Coated

ATG-Wa-118-Speedmaster-PVD

Omega Speedmaster MKII 1970 Custom

Well what can I say about this beautiful watch. Have you ever seen such a cool looking Omega. Omega have hardly ever produced a coated watch, there are a couple of Seamasters from the 70’s known as ‘Anakin’ after it was worn by Luke Skywalker in the Empire Strikes Back but that was it really.

The Speedmaster MKII was produced from 1969 and this ‘Exotic dial’ version was made in 1969, 72 and 74 I believe. This version’s movement serial number puts it just inside 1970 so it is 36 years old and when it came to me it looked it as well.

The case was in terrible condition as the finish was very accurate ‘rough’ brushed stainless steel meeting polished steel with a sharp edge. The years had worn the edges and some one had rubbed it down so my choice was kill or cure and I think I have cured it… what do you think?

This is a one of a kind and I don’t think there is another – and it is very cool on the wrist!

NB: This watch is a customize vintage watch and was 'never' manufactured by Omega in 1970 PVD coated.

Purchases from ATG are to be made with Paypal or Credit Transfer - Please email me with order and destination and I will send you a Paypal invoice or call 0788 4000 563

Cost: £1950

LE Phare - mid 60's - French - 45 min. Dive Chronograph

ATG-Wa-167-lephare-mil

Purchases from ATG are to be made with Paypal or Credit Transfer - Please email me with order and destination and I will send you a Paypal invoice.

When I think of the birth of recreational sport diving I think of the, surfing and the Beach Boys, etc. However in France recreational diving really took off  in 1965 former astronaut Scott Carpenter and other divers spend a month at 60 meters off the coast of southern France in an underwater habitat called Conshelf Three (Conshelf – Continental Shelf).

French brands like Aquastar,Duarte came to be, Cousteau’s dive team wore new divers by Lip and Nivada Grenchen other companies like LE Phare & Difor sprung up who produced these neat little steel Dive

Chronographs.

Very cool indeed!

Cost: £675

LeJour Military 1964 Manual Chronograph

ATG-Wa-166-lejour-military

Lejour seems to have been a French design company producing designs for the French market. Like Yema they produced good looking Dive watches and chronographs made from generic ebauche movements unlike Yema who produced the first all French chronometer I don't think they ever actually manufactured watches or movements themselves but they sure put their name to some very distinctive chronograph dial designs. Tidal indicators, 12 hour Rally style watches and of course PVD military 12 hour chronographs.

This is an early one with a gloss dial and military looking markers. Very, very cool indeed!

Cost: £675

Junghans Olympic 1972 Manual wind Chronograph with Date

ATG-Wa-164-junghans

Junghans originally came from the family name Jurgensen established 1740 in where they manufactured Marine Chronometers. Through three generations their renown culminated in being knighted by the Legion d'Honneur and Royal order of Danenborg. In 1912 with the death Jacques Alfred Jurgensen the brand was sold through several owners before coming under the owner ship of Edouard Heuer &Ce in 1919.

Heuer owned them until 1936 when they were acquired by Aisenstein - Woronock & Sons Inc. Heuer had started raising the brand profile and there was a turn in the now Black Forest based companies attitude to quality when the began producing certified chronometers with the J83 movement, military pilot chronographs in the 50’s  fitted with the cal.88 14 ligne lever movement.

In 1967 Junghans launched the 'Astro Chron' Germany's first quartz regulated clock and then went on to produce Radio frequency controlled watches known as ‘Mega’ which by 1990 meant that you could get the exact time anywhere within 1,500 k of the  DCF long-wave transmitter broadcasting the ‘Federal Republic of Germany’s Legal time’.

In 1972 Munich Olympics Junghans was an official timekeeper.

Cost: £665

Yema (Souse Marine) 45 min. Manual wind Chronograph 1972

ATG-Wa-161-yema

Yema were the premier watch making company of their day in France.

Originally founded in Besançon which according to Googlemaps is 84km from LA Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, the home of European watch making. They claimed their watches "stand out from the rest by virtue of their specific design and technological characteristics". Started by Henry Louis Belmont in 1948 they became famous for the sporting characteristics and technical applications of their watches. They were the first French company to produce a chronometer tested movement but during the 70's quartz invasion they like so many other companies became marginalised and were bought by the Seiko in 1988.

The firm was recently bought and has started to produce watches again under the Yema name in Europe.

Yema Translation
Sous - under *Marine - Navy -

 Please contact Alistair on + 44 788 4000 563 or email info@atgvintagewatches.com if you would like to make a purchase.

Cost: £700

Nivada ChronoKing Manual Chronograph 1970 val.23

ATG-Wa-159-Nivada

Grenchen (French: Granges) is a municipality in the district of Lebern in the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland.

It is located at the foot of the Jura mountains between Solothurn and Biel. With over 16,000 inhabitants, it is one of the larger towns of the canton of Solothurn. The city is well known for its watch industry, that has been present for more than 150 years.

Watch companies still based there include, Breitling, the movement manufacturer ETA, Eterna and of course Nivada.

This model of watch was made in the 60's under many brands that where obviously partners, Nivad, Nivada Grenchen, Croton the watch has always had the same statement (as it is a statement) on the dial.

Please contact Alistair on + 44 788 4000 563 or email info@atgvintagewatches.com if you would like to make a purchase.

Cost: £750

Tissot 3 reg. Lemania 12 HR manual Chronograph 1964

ATG-Wa-156-tissot

Tissot Chronograph - Dawn of the 60's

In 1853 in Le locle, Switzerland Charles-Felicien Tissot and his son Charles-Emile founded a watch dealership whose aim was to supply the world with quality Timepieces. Marketed mainly in Tsarist Russia and the USA the father travelled ceaselessly while the son over saw the business at home. In 1883 Charles handed over the business to his 23 year old son also Charles who progressed the business for the next 20 year when in 1904 Tissot made the so-called Tsars watch for an officer in the Imperial guard and by 1915 they were producing watches for the Russia nobility.


The 1917 October revolution meant the collapse of that Eastern market and left Tissot in need of clients. While manufacturing their own pocket and watch movements by 1925 Paul Tissot had become Director of Omega and in 1930 the two companies merged with the establishment of ‘SSIH’ Societe Suisse por L’Industrie Horlogere with headquarters in Geneva. 1940 brought the introduction of their PR 500 automatic hammer movement watch and at this time their chronographs were powered by movements from their now sister company Lemania as this one is with a Lemania 1281 movement. Fore runner of the movement found in the Omega Speedmaster.

Tissot have been synonymous this century providing timing for the Olympic Games.

Please contact Alistair on + 44 788 4000 563 or email info@atgvintagewatches.com if you would like to make a purchase.

Cost: £895

Zodiac Mugello Rally Timer 1967

ATG-Wa-162-Zodiac

This watch is another one of those Iconic looking 60’s styled watches from one of the brands of the 60’s. This watch I believe was made in conjunction with Heuer as there is almost exactly the same watch branded Heuer.

As far back as the Sea Wolf  in produced 1953 Zodiac were producing tough sport watches. You have to go back to 1908 when the name Zodiac was trade marked under Swiss law by the son of the founder Monsieur Aristide Calame. Previous to that time Monsieur Calame and his small workshop team produced watches for their own collection and innovative ‘one off’ creative pieces for bespoke commissions.

They produced watches for the Juergensen Dynasty and others and in 1930 produced one of their own automatic movements based on the in house movement they had been fitting to their own line of pocket and wristwatches. Early 30’s brought a sales crisis as they went ahead and presented the Autographic which was an automatic watch with a power indicator which way ahead of its time and was a design not prevalent until LeCoultre marketed the same thing in the 50’s.



Zodiac produced the Dynatron electronic watch in 1968 but could keep up sales against the quartz revolution and by 1982 they were absorbed by the Zenith watch company only to in to bankruptcy in 1997. However today they are back in business and produce dive watches just like they did 50 years ago.

Please contact Alistair on + 44 788 4000 563 or email info@atgvintagewatches.com if you would like to make a purchase.

Cost: £575

Duval Manual Wind Race Timer 1970 Landeron 189

ATG-Wa-163-duval

Baylor was an interesting brand as it was the in house marc of the famous Zales jewellery chain based in Texas were Baylor University is located. This was a company that ‘really’ tried to produce cool watches even though they were not considered a high end manufacturer. Duval appear to have been a secondary jeweller that Zales also supplied or it may have been a spin off business.

I could only find details of a class action suite brought by the retail workers for Duval for unfair working conditions. I have also seen Bumper auto watches by Duval and they made triple date chronographs using the val. 72 movement as well as alarm watches.

Baylor who in partnership with Heuer produced a chronometer in the 60’s called the Viscount which Heuer also applied its name to so the dial read Baylor and then below the Heuer shield was printed. This must be a product of that relationship as the case is exactly the same as a Heuer Camaro although a nicer look in my opinion.

 Please contact Alistair on + 44 788 4000 563 or email info@atgvintagewatches.com if you would like to make a purchase.

Cost: £550

Universal Geneve 'Compur' 30 1941

ATG-Wa-153-UG-1941

Universal have made some of the best technically and most beautiful watches of the 20th century and this is one of them. They invented the wrist chronograph and were the manufacturers of stylish technical watches for the elite of Europe.

This is one of the 'first' Pilot watches of the last century.

Named the Compur 30

I have since discovered some interesting information about this watch.

In Pre War Germany during The Reich's Air Ministry of the Luftwaffe was established on March 1st the 1935. This was known as the RLM and this was the place were all materials tested for use by the Luftwaffe came...

Hanhart, Lange, Stowa and Universal Geneve, this Swiss watches being procured from Switzerland through Berlin. They were tested at the Airforce training area at Lipezk the USSSR a secret place operating from 1925 to 1938.

All watches shipped for testing were engraved RLM with Chronographs being RLM-NAV.

The military version of this Universal Geneve Compur 30 was tested here and given the serial. RLM-NAV 5484 cal. 281

This is the civilian version of this watch with the cal. 381 movement from 1941

Ref: Konrad Knirim

Cost: £1250