This week, Bring A Loupe showcases some great chronographs, from an early Heuer Autavia currently doing wonders on eBay to an attractive pink-gold Eberhard. The chronograph selection does not stop with those two stars – an Excelsior Park and a Breitling Top Time also made the list. In addition, you will discover a coveted Rolex Red Submariner, full set (just the way you, and we, like it) and a great Memovox from Jaeger-LeCoultre. This is your Bring A Loupe for January 29, 2016.
A Heuer Autavia 2446H, With First Execution Dial And Second Execution Hands
This Autavia constitutes one of the most exciting eBay listings this week. It was quickly spotted by Heuer aficionados and consequently bidding rose significantly. One interesting thing – the seller formally stated that he won't accept any outside offers, which means this listing provides a golden opportunity to follow the current market price of early Autavias. Looking at this example, you might first notice that the dial condition is not stellar, and that the minute hand has lost its lume. Yet, its core rarity trumps those points: this Autavia reference 2446 indeed offers a first execution dial – the one with oversized sub-dials – and second execution hands – those differ from the notorious full lume hands used at first, but come before the more common baton hands of the later versions. Its bezel shows the hours, hence the 2446H reference describing this specific combination.
You can find this early Autavia on eBay here – at the time of publishing bidding was already over $25,000.
An Excelsior Park EP4 Chronograph With Two-Tone Dial
You might not be familiar with Excelsior Park but this company was a reference for chronographs during the better part of the 20th century, with clients none other than Zenith, Girard-Perregaux and Gallet. They also produced watches under their own branding, such as this very attractive one featuring their reputable in-house caliber EP-4. Here, even with an imperfect picture, the two-tone dial looks stunning, nicely complemented by the blued hands. And the 36 mm stainless-steel case remained in a great condition for a watch over 50 years old.
A Belgian collector is offering this great Excelsior Park chronograph for 1,950 Euros (or around $2,150) here; this seems to be the smart pick of the week.
A Breitling Top Time Reference 810 – A Nice Panda Originally Sold In The U.S.
The dial of this Top Time never fails to evoke the great Heuer Autavia 2447SN, but I feel this Top Time has obvious merits on its own, starting with its nicely sized 38 mm case. Top Times are often perceived as a cheaper offering from Breitling launched in the mid-1960s, and the line was actually more geared towards a younger market. Therefore, it offered a sportier look than most of Breitling's more functionally oriented watches, such as the Navitimer and the AVI/Co-pilot models. This allows us to find here an attractive panda dial at a fraction of what it would cost on any similar looking Heuer. You should also note the WOG stamp on the bridge of the movement – this is an import code for a Breitling originally sold in the U.S. through their local branch, Wakmann Watch Co.
Bidding for this attractive Breitling is currently around $1,750 on eBay here.
A Rolex Red Submariner Reference 1680 – Comes Full Set
Looking for a Red Submariner is often a tricky process, as many "white" Submariners were later "red-ified" to increase their value. The most important check starts with the serial number: it is typically accepted that a Red Sub should fall within the 2.07-4.00M range for serial number, so if you are outside that range there's already reason to be skeptical. As is often the case with vintage Rolex, there is also a typology of dial versions, which in this range is a very deep dive – and with enough minutely differentiated details that Sherlock Holmes would be challenged to come to the right deduction about authenticity. The dial of this 2.3M Red Sub is therefore a Mark II: as described here, it notably features a meters first, open 6’s, and a thin font on the depth rating. Speaking of the dial, it has taken on the coveted brownish patina, that is also called "tropical." And to top it off, this watch comes with the original box and papers, as well as the receipt from its last service in 2008.
The Italian dealer Tempus Orologi offers this reassuringly complete Red Sub here.
An Eberhard Chronograph From The 1940s With 39 MM Case
While I would usually not recommend any gold-plated watch, I will make an exception today for this stunning Eberhard. The blued hands go so well with the gold-plated case and the rose dial. Its large size further adds to the interest of this piece: with a 39 mm diameter, the case is exceptionally large for a watch from the 1940s. Note that it is described as a monopusher, and this is somewhat correct despite the two pushers that surround the crown: with vintage Eberhard the top pusher starts and fully resets the chronograph while the lower pusher – actually functioning more like a slider – completely stops the function.
A U.S. collector is offering this lovely Eberhard here.
A Jaeger-LeCoultre Memovox Reference E855 With Black Dial
We really enjoyed wearing a Memovox in the past and our reasons for loving them stand to this day. At 37 mm, it is a well-proportioned watch and the alarm function is incredibly charming, and sometimes even useful, as long as you're not a very a heavy sleeper. The Memovox is obviously a very significant watch for Jaeger-LeCoultre; the automatic version demonstrating the technical excellence of the manufacture from the mid-1950s onwards. It features a date, and judging from the combination of dauphine hands and long indexes, the present reference is a later version – probably from the early 1960s. The full Jaeger-LeCoultre signature and its black dial – rarer to find than the silver ones – make it very desirable. And you truly get a winner if you consider its overall crispiness – look at the stainless-steel case, and the two JLC-signed crowns.
Matthew Bain is offering this Memovox for $5,900 here.
Bidder Beware: A Universal Geneve Tri-Compax With A Bad Re-Dial
It is not the first re-dialed Tri-Compax featured here, and unfortunately, it probably won't be the last. Here, you get the usual telltales, and we will start with the most obvious ones. As it often happens with re-dials, the print is too fresh – it lacks the fading that age usually produces. This is amplified in the sub-dials, where the numbers and tracks seem crude in comparison to the expected quality of Universal Geneve’s dials. And, of course, the logo is absolutely atrocious: the font, the placement, and its size are incorrect. Oh, and the box is from much, much later than the watch.
In short, this is one to clearly avoid. If you are curious, you can find this badly re-dialed Tri-Compax on eBay here.
