Category Archives: Vintage Watches

Today’s Watch – Citizen Diamond Flake

Posted on June 27, 2020 by sweephand

It’s the weekend so today’s watch is a hand winder 🙂 The Diamond Flake was Japan’s thinnest watch when it was launched in 1962. The 25 or 31 jewels 0700 movement was a mere 2.75mm deep, beating the Seiko Gold … Continue reading →

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Citizen’s Case Numbers – the Mysterious Case Number Letter

Posted on June 26, 2020 by sweephand

A change today from a watch feature to something that’s always been a bit of a mystery – the letter stamped at the end of Citizen’s case numbers. Although not needed as a part number since the case number alone, … Continue reading →

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Today’s Watch – Citizen Cosmotron GX

Posted on June 25, 2020 by sweephand

Today’s piece is another battery powered model, and although it’s a Cosmotron, it’s something of an anomaly. Unlike any other Cosmotron this one does not have a magnet driven hairspring – in fact it is a ‘hummer’ – a tuning … Continue reading →

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Today’s Watch – Citizen’s First Quartz, 8811

Posted on June 23, 2020 by sweephand

Today’s watch was a very significant one for Citizen – launched in mid-1973 it was their first quartz model. Using the 8810, 8811 and 8821 movements, they were electro-mechanical calibres, like the Cosmotrons before them. In other words they were … Continue reading →

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Today’s Watch – Citizen X8 Chronometer

Posted on June 22, 2020 by sweephand

Continuing with the electric theme, today’s watch is a rare Officially Certified Chronometer version of the electro-mechanical X8 line. The 0820 movement runs at 21,600 beats per hour, has 19 jewels and mine is uniquely numbered X00294. The case is … Continue reading →

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Citizen Parawater – The Oceanic Tests

Posted on June 19, 2020 by sweephand

There’s a change today from my daily and weekend watch features, since a new video documentary has just been published about Citizen’s testing of their parawater automatics in the 1960s. And I want to leave this post at the top … Continue reading →

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Today’s Watch – Citizen Quartz 8600 ‘Blinker’

Posted on June 18, 2020 by sweephand

Citizen moved into quartz technology in a big way in the early 1970s, and their early quartz models are high quality pieces, designed to be serviced, and used for many years. They are collectable things as a result and a … Continue reading →

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Today’s Watch – Citizen X8 Chronometer, Titanium

Posted on June 17, 2020 by sweephand

Citizen was the first company in the world to make a watch case fully from titanium. Although common these days, manufacturing challenges made it difficult to work with in the early 1970s. Citizen made and sold less than 2000 of … Continue reading →

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Today’s Watch – Citizen Cosmotron, 4-480279

Posted on June 16, 2020 by sweephand

Another Cosmotron today, and one of the more unusual ones – the movement is the 4840 date only version of the 0840 calibre. The unusual bit is the crystal, since it has the ‘Citizen Electronic’ logos and minute markers printed … Continue reading →

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Today’s Watch – Citizen Cosmotron Special

Posted on June 15, 2020 by sweephand

I think we’ll have an electric week this week – starting with the last in the line of 7800 calibre Cosmotrons, the Special version. The Special, calibre number 7803, is immediately identifiable by the button at the 8 o’clock position, … Continue reading →

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