1918 WW1 / Trench Watch Elgin Rare White Star Dial "Foch"

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1918 WW1 / Trench Watch Elgin Rare White Star Dial "Foch"

Name: 1918 WW1 / Trench Watch Elgin Rare White Star Dial "Foch"
Brand: Elgin
Rating: 5 (3 reviews)

About the Item

1918 Elgin "Offset Foch Rare White Star" Trench Watch. The Elgin “Star Series…….. Let me clear up the confusion. Not all Elgin black star dial watches are called a "Pershing", this is a very common mistake by the general public. The name "Pershing" was given to a very specific style of this watch in February 1919. If you want to get VERY technical a "Pershing" has a cushion case design with spring bar lugs, NOT a round trench watch case design. If it has a round trench watch case design and the movement dates back to before February 1919 its proper name is an "Elgin Black Star Dial Trench Watch". Read below the history of the "Elgin Star Series" you will see that the dial choice I am offering was only available for one year, 1917, it makes it a compelling watch to collect. This has had the following; Case was hand polished Total mechanical service NOS crystal New Open End Watch Band Dial and hands were professionally refinished to original status. Stem and crown adjustment A little history about the "Elgin Star Series The dials pictured below were placed in the order in which they came out, from left to right. A couple of these dials are pretty rare while others are not all that hard to come by but they are still extremely desirable. There is nothing else in the world like a black enamel dial American trench watch! The rarest of the 5 is the one on the far right, the enamel "white star dial", there are only about 7 of these known to exist The "Star Dial Series" began in production in November of 1917 and ended in June of 1920. The very first dial to come out in this series was the one on the far left, it came out in November 1917 and was shortly followed by the dial 2nd from the left. The white dials came out before the black dials. The 2 white dials on the far left were only made in metal, these were never produced as enamel dials. The small font black enamel dial in the middle came out in May of 1918 but it saw a pretty short run of only about 3 months. The US Army did not like the small font so Elgin made it bigger for them in July of 1918, so this was the 4th dial in the series, the large font black star dial. You can clearly see the font size difference between the 2 black dials. The black dials were only made of enamel, these were never made as metal dials. The last dial on the far right is somewhat of a mystery, why so few are known to exist is puzzling, it might have been a prototype dial that never saw mass production. In February of 1919 this exact same round case design was given the name "Foch". The third in this series was called the "Kitchener" and it had a squared trench watch case design with rounded corners, also given its name in February of 1919. These three designs were the most popular of their time so only these three designs were named but other case styles were certainly available. All three were available in Nickel, Gold Filled and Sterling Silver Brand new in 1916 the prices ranged from $18.50 up to $31.00 depending on the case material.! ! Elgin had several different styles of the "Star Dial" including the "White Star Dial" which came in out in 1917 before the "Black Star Dial". The white dials were only available in metal, not in enamel. The black dials were only available in enamel, not in metal. This white dial is much harder to come by as far fewer of these were manufactured compared to the black dials What are WW1 or Trench watches? They were created using 3/0 and 0 size pocket watch movements and installing into watch cases that were meant to worn on the wrist. They often have some of the following characteristics: Fixed or Wire Lug: No traditional spring bar attachment as found in today’s watches. Case Material: It or often Solid Gold / Sterling Silver / Silverode or Gold Filled.. The case lid snaps snug on the case. The Case back opens at a 90 degree angle. This is important to note as many cases were badly damaged by their owners by pulling back the case back lid too far and damaging the hinge assembly. This watch case has been taken care of throughout its 100 years, it is in remarkable shape. *For more practical purposes, a special alloy was developed which went by several different names, such as, "Silveroid, Silverore, Silverode or Silverine. "Silveroid" appears to have become the standard name for this metal that consisted of 45% nickel, 54% copper and 1% manganese. This metal was fairly hard wearing and could withstand the rigors of everyday use, for instance on the Railroads. Case Manufactures: There were many case manufacturers that made cases for Trench Watches. Some of the more well know were: Keystone, Depollier and Sons, Dennison (English Manufacturer) Illinois (not affiliated with the Illinois Watch Company) Depollier and Sons, Wadsworth, Fahys, Philadelphia, Fortune and many more The case is the generic “silverine” , commonly made by the Wadsworth case manufacturing company. The case is remarkable condition considering It is almost 102 years young. I have gently polished the case to bring backs its luster and bright finish. It has a brand new crystal installed. The band is 16MM brand new oily leather open ended band with a high polished stainless steel tang buckle I purposely left the dial untouched; I wanted to insure the originality of this dial since it was only made for 1 year! 1917. While it is a little rough, I left it as it is to reflect where it’s been in almost 100 years. IT has true grit and character. The case measures: 31.5 MM Wide 31.5 MM Long (without lugs) I took great care to restore this watch to reflect a by gone time. It took me almost 7 months to restore this watch from the ground up. I wanted to insure as much originality as possible. The movement is a 3/0 size, manufactured in 1918, it is the 7 Jewel. Grade: 462 Manufacturer: Elgin Manufacturer Location: Elgin, Illinois Movement Serial Number: 20931891 Grade: 462 Model: 2 Estimated Production Year: 1918 Run Quantity: 10,000 Grade/Model Run: 3 of 133 Grade/Model Total Production: 997,000 Size: 3/0s Jewels: 7j Movement Configuration: Hunting Movement Finish: Nickel Movement Setting: Pendant Plate: 3/4 Plate Double Roller: Yes Barrel: Going Balance Type: Expansion Balance Jewel Material: Ruby Train: Quick Regulator: Plain Hairspring: Breguet Standard Dial Type: Single-Sunk Adjusted: No Railroad Grade: No Please use the pictures as part of your description. Please ask questions as I will do my best to answer them. I will package this like a china doll to insure safe arrival. I ship on Wednesdays, please keep that in mind if you purchase this.

Creator:
Elgin
Case Material:
Sterling Silver
Strap Material:
Leather
Case Shape:
Cushion
Movement:
Case Dimensions:
Width: 1.23 in (31 mm)Diameter: 1.23 in (31 mm)
Style:
Art Deco
Place of Origin:
United States
Period:
1910-1919
Date of Manufacture:
1918
Condition:
Replacements made: New open end watch band NOS crystal. Repaired: Complete Tear Down Service Dial was Professionally restored Case was carefully restored. Wear consistent with age and use. Complete Tear Down Service Dial was Professionally restored Case was carefully restored.
Seller Location:
Raleigh, NC
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU3149222883632

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