Anyway, this free pint,

Black leather one if it’s an original

 

I would have thought the jaeger-lecoultre would be the most valuable and possibly the small watch with the turquoise bezel which looks either French or Russian. It actually looks like it could be Faberge which would make it worth, well, I dare not think. Could also be cartier. Or it could be crap, I don't know.

 

Only allowed one answer brush

 

Only allowed one answer Jay

 

You said there were two answers and I've given you those two. The jaeger-lecoultre is the known, the turquoise bezel the potential.

 

Ok Jay. I see what you mean now mate

 

From the left the 3rd upper one

 

I'm going with the one with the yellow face. Right of picture

 

I think that's ten answers. So here are the answers, the antiques roadshow comes to the bbs. Jay if you are not an antique dealer you missed your calling. You only get one pint though LoL

The most valuable at present is the Black Jaeger-leCoultre usually referred to as an "Unteroffizier" worth around £800 to £1200 in its condition. It dates from the 1940s and was typically bought by junior officers of the Wehrmacht. Ones that crop up in the UK with known histories were often "liberated" from German POWs

The one with the blue bezel has the most potential value. In 1905 a german orphan Hans Wilsdorf began making expensive watches in London with money from his brother in law, Mr Davis. The watches were called Wilsdorf and Davies. Around 1908 Hans realised that the name wasn't going to catch on and stopped briefly putting any name on his watches apart from W and D on the movements. This is one such watch dated 1909. He thrashed around with a dozen other names before arriving at "Rolex" meaning the watch is in effect a prototype Rolex. This only makes it worth around £300 though. I paid £90 and wouldn't have bought it at auction if I hadn't just read a book on Rolex with a picture of it in. The auctioneer didn't know what is was either. However, the bezel is actually a special type of enamel incorporating gold characters called cloisonne. The greatest exponent of which was Faberge. There is also a cypher on the back of the watch that is possibly royal. If relevant experts declare it as Faberge it will be worth well north of £10,000. If it isn't I will keep it because I admire Hans and it is nice to have a watch he probably had a direct hand in. By WW2 he had moved to Switzerland but personally replaced any Rolex watches stolen from British POWs (pilots bought them) including the chronograph used in the great escape. He also set up a foundation and a large part of the profits from Rolex goes to charity.

The black face beige strap is a 1967 Ollech and Wajs pilots watch. A rare Swiss maker who bought parts from Breitling on condition they didn't sell them in Breitling markets. Virtually all these watches were sold at PX stores at US air bases in and around Vietnam, meaning this watch is almost certainly a Vietnam War pilots watch. Worth around £600 to £750

The large Seiko with the gold numbers on the bezel is one of my daily wearers. It is known as a tiger turtle and is only a year old but is of a type that dates back to the early seventies (and famously worn by Mick Jagger)

The yellow dialled Seiko is a march 1983 7A28 chronograph. This is the first quartz chrono you could buy in the world and was the type worn by James Bond in View to a Kill. Worth around £500. If it had a white dial to be exactly like Bond's add another £300

Dreamboy picked up on the one on the left with no strap. That is an Asian market 1973 Seiko 5 with a numbered dial (rather than batons) and was a type bought by US troops in Vietnam as the issued watches failed in the jungles/paddy fields/humidity but only worth around £100

The ladies Gucci and Longines were part of a job lot and are going on eBay at £50 to £200

I'll make a note of the right answers and when we get back to games we can have a meet up in Brammahs where I'll buy you a pint and bore you about my latest acquisition. You'll probably gather I am as much into te history behind the watches as the horology itself

 

Was mine a good guess.

 

Thanks for doing this Darfield, a pleasant distraction indeed

 

Yes, you spotted the age in the JLC.

 

Don't know if that's a reply to me, didn't know the age but the strap looked military thought r.a.f without reading the face JLC.

 

Cheers mate, I'm glad you enjoyed it. I have more this is a random assembly I was messing about with instead of doing DIY so my wife had a go at me.

 

Sorry your wife had a go at you, but this is more interesting than DIY isn't it?

 

Yes it is jeff. JLC supplied the British army in WW2 it was one of 12 companies who produced watches to ministry specification. They are highly collectable and a tray of all 12 is worth around £35k to £40k. I don't touch them though because the lume is radium and is radioactive when it breaks down (which it invariably does). They reckon wearing one for a day is like having 20 X-Rays so if you did, whilst your watch would no longer glow in the dark, you probably would.

 

That's really interesting thanks for the info.

 

Interesting that Darfield. Thanks for posting.

Did you see the Comex Submariners that appeared on Antiques Roadshow a few months ago? Guy who owned them had worn them in his job as a diver - worth a mint. Not your field though as non-military.

I’ll take a Diet Coke by the way - have to drive to matches.

 

I did see it and I don't just collect military stuff. The only thing I tend to avoid is Rolex as the auctioneers buyers premiums are ridiculous, the world is full of high grade fakes and franken watches and I think the prices will dip in the next couple of years (could be wrong on that). I wouldnt have that kind of money though for any watch TBH. I am watching one at auction next week that has guide price of £150,000 which I think would be a record for a Submariner, wont be buying it though

 

Ok, the one with the blue ring.