Topic
History
Where the wristwatch came from, and why it looks the way it does. These pages trace the object from jewelry to military instrument to tool watch to considered purchase, and set out how watches are made today and what origin marks legally require.
16 pages on this subject.
Answers
Guides
A short history of the wristwatch
How the watch moved from pocket to wrist: jewelry, then trench kit, then tool, then quartz casualty, then collector's piece, with contested firsts flagged.
Buying a vintage watch without regretting it
Vintage watches are bought on originality, not condition. How to read a dial, spot a redial, judge a polished case and budget for what comes afterwards.
Brands
Hamilton
The Lancaster years, the move to Switzerland, Swatch Group ownership, and what the H-10 and H-50 calibers give you in the Khaki Field and the Jazzmaster.
Models
IWC Pilot's Watch Mark XX
The Mark XX added a five-day movement and 100 m over the Mark XVIII and kept the soft-iron cage. What that cage protects, and what the solid caseback costs.
Compare
Field watch vs pilot watch
Two categories people mix up. What each was procured for, how the dials and sizes differ, why pilot watches are weak on water, and which one to wear daily.