Although Citizen’s first (and now rare!) automatic watch used the familiar ‘swinging’ or ‘oscillating’ weight type of rotor when it was launched in 1958, the company designed and used its own circular geared rotor in the early to mid-1960s. It used this design in the ‘Jet’ and ‘Super Jet’ models, and it is known as the ‘Jet rotor’.
In the mid-1960s the Jet movements were dropped in favour of swinging weight designs – I have read somewhere that the Jets were a little less reliable, but I’m not sure if this was actually the case. Perhaps more important was the trend to slimmer designs to which the swinging weight was better suited.
The Jet movements all ran at 18,000 beats per hour, and generally can be hand wound – the exceptions (as far as I know) being the 0320/0321 and 1130/1/2/3 movements with 17 and 19 jewels. This includes the ‘Rookie’ models, some of which have small, recessed crowns as a result. I’m not sure at this stage whether the 1120 movement with 19 jewels has hand winding or not.
Some movements had an ‘Easy Change’ quick set mechanism for the date, which involves pulling the crown in and out when in the time setting position – this has the disadvantage that the date can be accidentally changed if the crown is pulled a little too hard when the time has to be adjusted. As far as I know, all the later (41xx) movements had the Easy Change feature as well as hand winding capability.
The later models had day windows, which can only be set by winding back and forth between 12 and 9.
The Jet models are all part of the ’03’ movement ‘family’, which comprises three groups starting with the 03xx models first seen in October 1961, followed by the 11xx (January 1962) and completed by the 41xx (1964). Interestingly this last group includes one hand winding model – the Seven – which uses the 23 jewel 4000 movement (see here for a look at that one: https://sweep-hand.org/2011/06/29/this-weeks-featured-watch-9-the-seven/)
NB: The ‘Seven’ description on these models, and indeed on other lines, for example the Crystal Seven, appears to be used where both day and date windows are present.
The movements look pretty well the same, and I had originally thought that the 41xx calibers could be identified by having just four screws on the rotor, compared with six on the earlier 03xx and 11xx versions. That was based on the Museum book which only shows 4 screwed rotors in the 41xx section – my Monthly (4120) model also has 4 screws. However I have seen a number of 41xx models since with six screws which look authentic and have correctly marked rotors (e.g. ‘Autodater Seven’), so it now appears that either variant can be correct:
Before summarising the movements and models, here’s a quick video showing how the rotor moves, it winds in both directions: http://s282.photobucket.com/albums/kk252/Sweephand/Jet%20Auto%20Dater%2017j/?action=view¤t=MVI_0537.mp4
The following summary is correct to the best of my knowledge at the moment – I’ll add and amend if and when other / more information comes to light.
________________________________________________________________
Movement & Model Summary:
Movement # Model Name(s) Jeweling Date/Day First Production
0310 Jet Automatic 21, 23, 25 None October 1961
0320, 0321 Jet Rookie 17, 19 None 1962
0340, 0341 Super Jet, Super Precision 35 None 1963
1120, 1121 Jet Auto Dater, Newmaster, 19, 21, 23, Date January 1962 120m, Para200mWater 27, 35
1130, 1131, Jet Auto Dater, Rookie, 17, 19 Date 1962 1132, 1133 Para400Water, 40m
1150 Super Jet Auto Dater, 39 Date 1963 Super Auto Dater 80m/150m
1160, 1161 Super Jet Auto Dater 39 Date 1963 (Easy Change)
1170 Jet Auto Dater 27 Date 1962 (Easy Change)
4101, 4102, 4103 Auto Dater Seven, 40m 25 Date & Day 1964
4111, 4112, 4113 Auto Dater Seven, 40m, 19 Date & Day 1964 Ceto
4130 Auto Dater Seven , 40m 35 Date & Day 1964
4120, 4121 Auto Dater Seven Monthly 19 Date, Day & Month 1964
(NB: I think all 41xx movements had ‘Easy Change’ quick set for date)
_______________________________________________________________
Movement Dimensions:
Width: Depth:
0310, 0320/1, 0340/1 29.00mm 4.65mm
1120/1, 11300/1/2/3 29.00mm 5.00mm
1150, 1160/1, 1170 29.00mm 5.34mm
All 41xx Movements 29.00mm 6.39mm
________________________________________________________________
If you’re interested in the architecture of the movement, here are schematics showing how it is put together.
Schematic 1 -Rotor Side:
Schematic 2 – Dial Side (11xx Variants):
Schematic 3 – Dial Side (41xx Variants, excluding ‘Monthly’):
___________________________________________________________________
Gallery:
Here are just a few examples to illustrate the range of models that used the Jet movements, with acknowledgement to sellers on Yahoo Japan for the images:
Jet Automatic: 
Jet Automatic: 
Jet Automatic: 
Rookie: 
Super Jet: 
Auto Dater: 
Auto Dater: 
Super Jet: 
Auto Dater 7: 
Auto Dater 7: 
Some models have special case backs, e.g.:
Auto Dater: 
Auto Dater 7: 
Super Jet: 
Super Jet: 
And finally from my own collection:
1120 Auto Dater: 
1130 Auto Dater: 
4101 Auto Dater 7:
4120 Monthly: 
Super Jet: 
Sweephand's Vintage Citizen Watch Blog 
Hi,
What is the easiest way to open a snap cover on Super Jet Auto Dater. There is no lip or notch to go by.
Hi Albert,
there should be a fine notch in the case back – depending what position the back is in, it may be between the lugs so will be hidden by the strap or bracelet. In fact I think that this is the correct position, with the notch at the 6 o’clock point. The notch is rather fine, so will be clearer under a loupe. I have found careful use of a small (watch repairer’s) screwdriver, small enough obviously to engage in the notch and then twisted rather than pushed too much, works on this type of case back. My knife type case opener is not really thin enough, and is more likely to slip and cause damage.
Stephen
Thank you Stephan.
I inspected the case under the magnifying glass and it looks so tight as if it was a single piece. No sign of notch. Is there a way to access it from the front, through the crystal?
Albert
That’s interesting Albert – I have only my Super Auto Dater to go by, and a number of photos, but of course they won’t show the type of back clearly. I’ve looked again at some more reference material, and Super Jets were made with a one-piece case as well as the more usual snap on type, so clearly it looks like you have one of these. I’ve seen the one-piece case on the Super Jet diver, I guess this would make it a more water resistant design. Sometimes this is indicated by a mark on the case back, an ‘X’ in a circle like on this one:
I’m not a watch repairer, so I’ve never opened up a one piece case, but there are tools for this, one being a ‘claw’ which pulls the crystal off. A competent watch repairer should be able to do that.
Have you any pics of the watch you could link to – it would be nice to see it, there are not that many about 🙂 If not can you describe it and the markings on the back?
Regards,
Stephen
Hi Stephen, do you know if the Jet family watch came with a signed buckle or it is usually plain in 1960s? Thanks!
Hi Wilson – good question! I’m not sure whether the Jets would originally fitted with signed buckles – or whether some were, e.g. the Super Jets and others were not. Leather straps and their buckles are likely to have worn out and been replaced over the years so finding fully original examples is going to be very rare. I’ve not got or seen any original catalogs or adverts for the Jets, which may have shed some light on this. However, there were definitely signed Citizen buckles from the 1950s and 1960s, so I reckon it is likely that they did use them on the Jets. Here’s a pic from a Japanese auction of a number of vintage leather straps and buckles, which went for a great deal of money if I remember correctly:
Where Jets were fitted with bracelets, I would think they may well have had signed clasps at least sometimes, although one or two of my 1960s watches (not Jets) have original bracelets with non-signed clasps, although they are clearly marked ‘Citizen’ inside. Here’s an example of a 1960s signed clasp with the earlier mark that would have been used when Jets were in production:
So I’m afraid I can’t give a clear cut answer – my gut feeling is that it is likely that signed buckles and clasps would have been used, but not necessarily on all models, may be on the more expensive ones.
Stephen
Hi, I’ve recently bought citizen jet. It looks a bit of frankensteined, here’s a pic.
the bigger problem is that original caseback was replaced with a caseback fom the regular GN-4W-S. it’s slightly lower then the original, and rotor gets caught if the case is fully tightened. Do you know where I can search for the original caseback, is there a number code for such spare part?
Hi, and thanks for visiting my blog. First of all, it is very hard to find parts for many of the vintage Citizen models, and especially so for the Jet automatics. Finding a ‘donor’ watch would be the way to go. Unfortunately the code to identify the correct case and back would be stamped on the case back, so finding the right case is quite a challenge if the back has been changed. However, I’m afraid your concern that your watch is ‘frankensteined’ may be well founded 😦 Apart from some very rare Jet divers, the Jet models have press on case backs as far as I know, which suggests to me that the case itself is not correct for a Jet model, rather than just the case back. The hand set doesn’t look right to me either, and there are questions about the dial too 😦 Where did you get the watch?
Stephen
Thanks for reply, I like vintage Citizens a lot, though I can’t afford collecting them as much as I’d like to. Your blog is a great source. I bought it rather cheap from some online seller from Malaysia. I was interested in rotor movement (there’s early 23 jevels movement inside, running strong http://i58.tinypic.com/13zzle8.jpg ), at least this is something that can’t be forged : ) . What are your suspicions about the dial? I think it’s pretty hard to repaint sunburst dial with fine print.
Good to hear the movement is running well 🙂 My concerns about the dial are that first I haven’t seen this dial design before on a Jet, although I’m sure I’ve not seen every design that Citizen made. The other concern is the printing on the lower part of the dial – it doesn’t look fine enough, and the spacing / proportions don’t look quite right. Also the style of the ‘A’ and ‘t’ in automatic is different from the usual style, and the ‘j’ in jewels is lower case rather than the usual upper case. The space between ’23’ and ‘j’ also looks too big as is vertical the space between ‘Automatic’ and ’23 jewels’. I can’t see the printing so clearly on the upper part of the dial so I can’t comment on that. Here’s my example of the plain Jet dial for comparison, I hope you can see what I mean:
Sorry I’m pointing out some possible problems, I don’t like having to do that 😦
Stephen
thanks again. do you think it’s worth it to compliment this watch with proper case (I think I can get one from japan in NOS state) and hands, or this is a lost cause?
I have seen ‘Jet’ cases for sale on Yahoo Japan, so it could be possible I suppose. Have you seen the hands for sale? I have seen dials too. Do you think it might be a safer bet to look for a complete Jet model on Yahoo Japan? They can be found at reasonable prices in decent condition. That might be better than buying parts and finding they don’t all fit together properly!
Stephen
so, I have a NOS case now, but can’t find the hands. Any advice? May be some other models have the same hands? As for the dial. I think I’ll leave this one as is
Hi trxtr, good to hear you found a case 🙂 The hand set size for these is 152/100/18 – that means the holes measure 1.52mm for the hour hand, 1.00mm for the minute hand and 0.18mm for the second hand. All the Jet models have these sizes, and I believe the part number for the originals is A58-40222. The original hands would be ‘dauphin’ style, like these:
I’ve had a look around for modern replacements in this style, but not been able to find the correct sizes I’m afraid. They only to go up to 150/90/17 and I don’t know whether they would be the right length. So I would think a donor watch is the likeliest solution, but finding a cheap parts watch is not easy. I’ve had a look on Yahoo Japan, but nothing on there is suitable at the moment.
Stephen
thank you, that was helpful
You’re welcome, I hope you can find some hands.
Stephen
Ik heb een oud horloge Resistant Citizen automatic BLG 6501 4-652347 TA 30600411. 61-0780. Wat moet ik hiermee? Roos
Hoi Roos, Bedankt voor het bezoeken van mijn blog en excuses voor mijn late antwoord. U hebt een burger ‘Blackie’ van juni 1973, met een gouden vergulde bezel en met een 6501 beweging binnen. Dit heeft dag en datum op de wijzerplaat. Deze bewegingen werden geproduceerd voor een paar jaar in de vroege jaren 1970. Mijn voorbeeld van een 6501 model is hier: https://sweep-hand.org/2011/10/19/this-weeks-featured-watch-15-6501-with-tungsten-bezel/
De Online Vertaler doen niet te goed werk van het vertalen van uw vraag, dus ik weet niet als ik het heb beantwoord!
(Hi Rose, thanks for visiting my blog and apologies for my late reply. You have a Citizen ‘Blackie’ from June 1973, with a gold plated bezel and with a 6501 movement inside. This has day and date on the dial. These movements were produced for a few years in the early 1970s. My example of a 6501 model is here: https://sweep-hand.org/2011/10/19/this-weeks-featured-watch-15-6501-with-tungsten-bezel/
The on-line translator didn’t do too good a job of translating your question, so I don’t know if I have answered it!)
Stephen
Hello. I was wondering if you could help me figure out if this watch looked legit or not. Great blog! Very helpful! http://www.ebay.com/itm/161620384783?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
Hi Jeremy, thanks for visiting my blog and for your kind comments. As far as I can tell it is an authentic model, but with some major caveats. The dial has been re-finished, which the seller (to his credit) explains in his description. Black dials are unusual on this age of watch, silver would be much more typical so that may betray some artistic licence on behalf of the re-finisher, as well as the gold coloured ‘7’ logo. I’m afraid I can’t be sure whether or not the hour markers and hands are original. It is very shiny! This suggests it has been heavily polished to remove scratches and dings. This process has taken away the crispness of the original lines, particularly evident on the fluted bezel which has been seriously smoothed down. Compare for example with this one:
I can’t be sure, but it looks to me that it may also have been plated after polishing. It is so shiny – mirror like – that it may have been chrome plated. The case back also indicates heavy polishing.
There is no movement picture, but the description tells us that the date is set by pulling the crown in and out, which indicates a Jet movement is inside.
So, as far as your ‘is it legit’ question, I would say it is probably an original model, i.e. not a ‘franken’ that has been cobbled together, but it has undergone serious, and in my view heavy handed ‘refurbishment’ some of which is not described by the seller which takes it a good way away from its original character.
Hope this helps!
Stephen
Thanks so much. Your knowledge is impressive!
You’re welcome Jeremy
Just got a 21jewel 6 ruby autodater. The dial is average condition but the movement is very clean.
Thank you for such a great article on the jet.it has been most helpful.
Hi Chris – congrats on your purchase and glad the article has helped.
Stephen
I’ve recently bought Citizen Auto Dater with Jet movement, and after a lot of time spent trying to open it I can confirm it has a monocoque design. You have to pry the bezel and lift the crystal. There’s no front lever to release the stem like in monocoque Cosmotrons 7803, but a split stem. Surprisingly, it doesn’t have (x) mark on a back case.
Hi Trxtr – thanks for the helpful info and link to the pic. Although the ‘x’ mark indicates a monocoque case, I know they don’t always have the mark. Not exactly helpful of Citizen!
Stephen
the worst part is the case LOOKS as if it’s a snapback. there’s that particular circular line on the back, I’d swear you can pry it open
I share the frustration! I had the same problem with a Cosmotron GX. I don’t know why Citizen didn’t always mark the back with ‘x’
Stephen
Hello,
I have recently bought a lovely Auto Dater and have been reading your info on the ‘jet’ movements. My watch has both day & date windows which from your tables would likely indicate a later movement ie 4xxx. However the rotor has ‘6’ screws which would indicate an earlier movement ie 03xx or 11xx. I am new to your blog so not sure how to attach pictures so I will provide info re my watch which might be useful. Dial says Citizen Auto Dater, 19 (jewels), 7 (in a crown), para40water. Case says Parawater, Star,ADSG-51401-Y, CGP which all circle a 7 in a crown with Citizen Auto Dater & serial number 41103187. Any idea which movement this may be, or can I find it written anywhere on the watch? PS. I enjoy your blog/site & have recently signed up, thank you.
Andrew (from Australia).
Hello . I don’t understand the plane icon and 3 stars.
I can mailbox for you
Thanks for visiting my blog – email sent (on 12th May). Stephen
Beste Stephen,
Ik heb een Citizen Superjet Autodater 14K 39jewels, graag wil ik wat foto’s naar je sturen om je mening te vragen. Kun je mij via email mij replyen.
Bedankt voor het bezoeken van mijn blog – e-mail verzonden. Stephen
Greetings
I got a beautiful citizen airmaster jet autodater caliber sunburst silvery dial watch .I want to know is everything right about it and the worth of this watch
Hi Ggandeep, thanks for visiting my blog. I need to see pics of your watch to be able to advise properly. I’ll email you so you can send them to me. Stephen
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Any idea where I could find a split stem for a seven model, 24 jewels, front loader ?
I didn’t not find a part number yet.
thanks for visiting my blog – can you please let me know which model/s you have (marked on the back) – might be able to find part numbers from that information – thanks. Stephen
I’ve bought one a few years ago for 5 dollars when someone sold it to us in our shop.I kept the watch for myself and loved it as my daily driver. I believe mine is a 62 model and it’s the 27 jewel parawater autodater version, but what I’m wondering is if the bezel on mine is authentic as it has a ribbed design rather than the smooth bezel which I usually see when I search for jet models. I simply love the simple yet elegant design and I can still take this watch swimming without the fear of water getting inside.
Hi Tristan, apologies for such a late reply. Jets did sometimes come with a ribbed bezel, so yours is probably fine 🙂
thank you for the reply, and I did some searching and indeed found some samples with ribbed bezels. I guess there were plenty of jet models back then with all sorts of designs. Still looking for more jet watches locally here but looks like I have better luck finding them on japanese online auction sites.
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Hello,
I have vintage Citizen Jet Rookie, time only dial, with unsigned crown. The crown is fitted into the case without popping up. On all the pictures I found on internet for this model I didn’t see any markings on the crown, but I couldn’t find reliable information if the crown is unmarked originally, or this could be a replacement. Do you have some information on the crown for this model?
Here is a picture of the same model like mine (as I cannot upload pictures here):
https://www.carousell.sg/p/citizen-jet-rookie-para-water-17-jewels-automatic-watch-1963-s-183485443/
Thank you for your help
Anatoli
Hi Anatoli, thanks for visiting my blog. An unsigned crown is fine on a Rookie, that should be no problem. Since they can’t be hand wound, and the crown is only used for setting the time or date on date models, it’s likely that it hasn’t been replaced due to wear. My example is just about NOS, has a more prominent crown since it has a date complication, and has an unsigned crown: https://sweep-hand.org/2013/12/07/this-weeks-featured-watch-54-the-jet-rookie/
Stephen
Thank you Stephen, you are doing great job with this blog!
Now I like my watch even more 🙂
You’re welcome Anatoli, and thank you for your kind comment 🙂 Stephen
just got a citizen jet , first generation from 1962 with the cal. 0312 movt. great watch. your blog is great .
Hi Stephan,
this is a really interesting stuff! Thanks so much for all the interesting details. My Citizen is an Auto Dater 7, 19J’s, para 40m
with screwed-on back. Runs perfectly but 2 things are missing: the 2 tiny frames around day and date. Do you have a clue where I could find those?
Best regards,
Dietrich
Hi Dietrich, thanks for visiting my blog. I think the only way to sort the dial out would be to find a replacement of the same kind – I don’t think I’ve ever seen day/date frames sold separately, and they don’t have their own part numbers. There should be a dial code near the 6 o’clock marker, which you could search for, or use the model/case number. Stephen
Hi Steven,
thank you so much for your kind reply to my request. I’ll give it a try even though these dials seemingly are rare. I am very glad you mentioned these wonderful watches. Love their beautiful design and movements, which are accurate, reliable & tough.
Let’s keep in contact! Greetings 🖖!
You’re welcome – hope you are able to resolve the issue with your dial, Stephen