Classic Heuers

Heuer Diver 980.032 L back in service

2011-10-17T19:26:00.003+02:00

1980s Heuer 980.032 L after restauration.

I started with a non running basket case missing it's bezel. I had to find a replacement vintage ESA movement (not easy). The original movement was rusted solid. No chance to make it running again. I found the right movement and swithed the name plate so the new movement was signed Heuer.
Then I had to get new minute and hour hands, the original was rusted to pieces. I got hold of two new ones of the black correct type. Problem was that the lume was way to white. 20 minutes in the kitchen oven at 200 C and a quick dip in coffee made the lume match the dial perfect.
A NOS bezel was next part missing. I got one throught Chronotrader, I had one for ref. 844, and traded it for the one I needed. At last I put on a jubilee bracelet, and the watch was ready for use again.
I think a sad looking basket case bought very cheap on Ebay turned out to be a nice classic Heuer in the end.

Heuer 980.032L diver project

2011-09-03T15:54:00.008+02:00

This diver have had a hard life. The bezel is completely missing, and the movement looks very bad and corroded. The dial is miscolored in the middle.

The good news is that the case looks ok. The crystal is scratch free, and the Heuer signed original crown is in place.

My plan is to bring this one back to life. I think I can rescue the movement if I totally dismantle it and give it a good clean. I do have some spare parts if I need to replace some parts.

The big 42mm diver are very popular among heuer collectors and this ref. 980.032 L is quite rare.

The bezel will be harder to find, but I have some ideas about how I can solve this problem. A NOS bezel would look wrong on a watch like this with a lot of patina.

I will update you readers when I start to work on this project.

Stay tuned....

Aged with beauty - Heuer ref 5402

2011-05-28T20:54:00.013+02:00

This is a very old Heuer chronograph. It was not difficult to find out how old it was. It has a engraving on the back with the year 1940. The copper colored dial has a lot of patina and adds a lot of charater to this old clunker.

The pin like blued hands match the art deco style dial perfect. The ultra thin hands give the watch a special look. I has a sort of 1930s art deco feeling. Very cool.

Inside ticks a unsigned Landeron 13. This is the correct movement for a Heuer from this age. This is normal for Heuer chronographs made earlier than 1945. Heuer did not sign most of their movement and case back prior to 1945. This watch seems to be all original and untouched for many years.

The snap on case back has a mystery engraving "G.H.R.P. from the SOO STAFF 1940". If anyone knows the meaning please make contact.

Shown at left in a Heuer 1945 catalogue.

The mystery is solved. This is a railroad watch from Soo Line Railroads in the US. The Soo Line Railroad (reporting mark) is the primary United States railroad subsidary of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CP), controlled through the Soo Line Cooporation, and one of seven U.S Class 1 railroads.

Great find from Sweden

2011-04-02T01:31:00.016+02:00

This a nice old clunker. I think this is a ref. 2457 as pictured in a 1946 Heuer catalogue. I got these pictures from Classic Heuers reader Michael Carlson from Sweden. He got this nice watch from his old uncle. He bought it new in Germany in the 1940s. The movement is most likely Valjoux 72, or it might be Valjoux 71. I am not 100% sure. I need a better picture to be certain. The caseback is stamped 14K and 585 gold. The movement is not signed, this is probably not a problem. Early Heuers did not have signed movement. It was not until after 1945 that all movement was signed. Ref 2457 is pictured on the left 1946 Heuer catalogue.

Ref. 16061 Super rare 19870's LCD chronograph

2011-03-16T22:59:00.006+01:00

This is one rare beast. A typical late 1970's LCD chronograph. The case is square like most chronographs of this type.

The ref. 16061 is a eletronic LCD chronograph with splitsecond and memory. I also shows date, day and moth at the push of a button.

This was not a cheap watch back in 1979. A period catalogue shows a 195.00 USD price tag.

For that price you get a minarel glass and a steel bracelet.

Heuer Verona ref 110.213

2011-01-18T00:29:00.007+01:00

This is a rare Heuer. The Verona is a more dress type of chronograph. Not as big and colorfull as many of Heuer's more well known chronographs from the 1970's.

The ref. 110.213 is all grey with steel and black hands. I think it's a elegant watch. I bet it will look nice together with a nice suit.
The movement is the famous Heuer calibre 12 Automatic chronograph.
Verona was never sold with bracelet. It was sold with a black leather strap.

The Verona is listed in a 1978 Heuer catalogue.

Pewter PVD ref. 982.013

2010-09-12T02:32:00.007+02:00

Grey, but not dull vintage Heuer diver.

This a rare Pewter PVD Heuer diver. I have never seen it in any catalogues. Only known listing is in a German pricelist from 1985.
This one is the normal sized mens watch at 38mm. There is a Pewter fullsize 42mm version as well.

The price in 1985 was 580 DM. This watches come with Tropic 18mm strap or Pewter PVD 18mm Jubelee bracelet with Heuer signed clasp. I wear mine on a Tropic strap or a grey NATO band. I don't have to original bracelet. They are hard to find.

The case back on mine has the great looking Heuer logo engraved. The very first of these Heuer diver had a plain case back. No Heuer logo, just the ref. number stamped in.

The movement is ESA 536.121. This is a thick early quartz movement. Some are signed with the Heuer shield logo, others are not. This is normal. Parts is difficult to find, so try to find a working watch if you are looking for vintage Heuer divers.

Big and chunky Montreal

2010-07-19T18:48:00.011+02:00

This is my Heuer Montreal Ref 110.503 W (White). It's probably Heuers biggest watch. It's thick and heavy, and I love it. The white Montreal is the rarest one and is quite popular among collectors.

The Montreal was available in seven versions powered by the Caliber 12 movement:

- stainless steel, blue dial with white registers (applied markers);
- stainless steel, black dial with white registers (applied markers);
- stainless steel, white dial with black registers (applied markers);
- gold-plated case with champagne dial and registers (applied markers);
- stainless steel, blue dial with blue registers (painted markers);
- stainless steel, black dial with black registers (painted markers); and
- black (PVD) case with black dial and black registers (painted markers)

I was lucky to find a NOS two piece NSA bracelet with a Heuer signed buckle.

Four Montreals in a 1972 Heuer catalogue.

One for the ladies ref. 756

2010-06-12T23:12:00.017+02:00

Once again I write about a very rare diver. This is the ref. 756 ladies automatic diver. This is the very first serial production diver from Heuer along with the French made ref. 844. It's a tiny little watch at just 28mm. This first edition ladies diver had a very cool black and red bezel, and the dial is printed "Ebauche Suisse" at the bottom. The later ref. 756 has an all black bezel and "Swiss Made" on the dial.

She was "cover girl" on the 1979 Heuer catalogue together with the ref. 844.

The automatic movement is not signed Heuer. I have not managed to identify the maker. The original strap is a 14mm Tropic strap with a original Heuer 12mm buckle. Very cool and rare combination.

Another scan from the 1979 catalogue.

These small automatic ladies divers are very rare. This is the only one I have seen in the six years I have been collecting Heuers. I have seen a few of the later black bezel Heuer / Tag Heuer version, but only this one of the first edition.

A classic beauty

2010-05-12T20:12:00.011+02:00

This is the most beautyful little Heuer I have owned. It's just 33mm and is powerd by a nice Valjoux 23. The bezel is rose gold with matching crown and pushers.

The bridge is signed Ed. Heuer & Co and the Heuer logo shield. This movement is in very nice condition. Not bad for a watch from the 1940s.

Snap on case back is signed Ed. Heuer & Co and with the Heuer logo.

A nice classic Heuer that have moved to a new home. It did not get the wrist time it deserved due to it's small size. So I sold it to get a bigger Heuer... I almost regret it when I look at the pictures, it's just so nice looking.

Very rare Heuer diver

2010-03-20T02:20:00.010+01:00

The Ref. 980.004 / 1

This is the rare Heuer ref. 980.004/1. With original full length bracelet. This bracelet was not signed on clasp. A large 40mm rarely seen Heuer.

It's from the 1980's and have the new slimmer ETA 955.114 movement. The same movement used in the updated TagHeuer 1000 diver series with a N behind the referance number.

I like the black Date/Day window, that's a nice detail.

It was shown in the 1982 Heuer diver watch catalogue. My watch moved to a new owner as I found the design a little to simple.

German watchmaker Sinn made their own version with an automtic movement.

Tag Heuer 989.113N

2010-03-02T20:12:00.012+01:00

This is the watch that started my interest for Heuer and Tag Heuer. I found this watch in a pawn shop in Belfast in Northern Ireland while I was there on a assignment as a photojournalist back in 2005. A deal was made and I never looked back. I quickly moved from Tag Heuers to vintage Heuer so this diver is no longer a part of my collection. I often regret selling it, I is a very nice diver in a all grey design.

The ref.number is 989.113N. The "N" indicates that this is a watch made after the merge with Tag in 1986 and that the movement is a ETA 955.112. This movement is much slimmer than the earlier ETA/ESA quartz movements used in the Heuer diver watches. The case back on this Tag is much lower in profile.

Great luminous face and black hands.

Original jubilee bracelet with Tag Heuer signed clasp.

These Tag Heuer / Heuer 1000 diver watches is great value for money. I highly recommend one if you are looking for a daily beater.

Super Autavia

2010-01-10T19:35:00.013+01:00

Super Autavia the ultimate timer.

The Super Autavia is the most complex of the dash-mounted Heuers, a true chronograph that combines time-of-day and a stopwatch. Powered by a rare Valjoux 76 movement the Super Autavia was introduced in 1958.

This one is the first model with dials with baton markers not numerals as on later models. The bezel is coin-edged and the hour hand is thinner than on the later versions.

All Super Autavias are rare. This one is extra rare as it’s the first model and co-branded with Abercrombie & Fitch. Founded in New York City in 1892, Abercrombie & Fitch was a store devoted to apparel, equipment and supplies for all sorts of outdoor sports - from fishing to climbing to the most exotic of adventures. Heuer manufactured several interesting chronographs for Abercrombie & Fitch, and the full line of dash-mounted timers was also sold under the Abercrombie & Fitch name.

The beautyful Valjoux 76. That's a very nice movement.

In 1965 the movement was changed to Valjoux 5 and the style of the case was made to match the style of the other dash-mounted Heuers. The final variation of the Super Autavia featured a true 24-hour indication, with a unique red and blue bezel that allowed a start time to be marked or a second time zone to be tracked. The Super Autavia maintained its dignity, this top of the line chronograph was never produced in a plastic case.

The Super Autavia functions like this:

Time of Day is read as on a standard clock, with white hands for hours and minutes, and a seconds register at the bottom of the dial at 6:00. Heuer referred to this as the Super Autavia’s “White System”.

When the crown is pulled out, the movement stops instantly, allowing synchronization with a radio time signal or other source of “official” time (hack movement). Pushing down the crown to its normal position starts the movement again.

Time of Trip (Stopwatch) is indicated by what Heuer called the “Red System” – hours and half hours are read by the red-tipped hour hand against the red divisions on the turning bezel; minutes are read by the red hand on the small minute dial (at 12:00 o’clock); and seconds (accurate to 1/5 seconds) are read by the red center second hand.

The button in the crown starts and stops the stopwatch; the right pusher resets stopwatch hands to zero when stopwatch has been stopped. No flyback.

Thanks to Paul (Foilguy) at MWR (The Military Watch Resource) http://www.broadarrow.net/ for some pictures I could play with in Photoshop :-)

More info at http://www.onthedash.com/

2009-12-30T21:27:00.011+01:00

Heuer 3000 Chronograph

This is my NOS (New Old Stock) Heuer 3000 Chronograph ref 232.206. The 3000 series was one of the last Heuer design to be launch. 3000 watches can be found with Heuer only, or with Tag Heuer logo. A few have a mix of the two logos.

These early quartz chronographs has a rather interesting movement. In the automatic version, the movement is a very high quality 40 jewels unadjusted LWO 283. This is a scarce early transitional model which is an ETA 2892-2 with piggyback Dubois Depraz module. This movement was used in Heuer and Tag Heuer produced from the early 80's and shortly after the start of the Tag-Heuer in 1985. The quartz version has the same mechanical chronograph modul from Dubois Depraz mounted on a ETA 555.112 quartz movement.

My watch has the very rare original grey leather strap and buckle. Most of these chronograph was delivered with a bracelet.

The 3000 chronograph family shown in a 1984 Heuer catalogue.

Norwegian Issued Heuer Flyback

2009-09-24T20:19:00.024+02:00

Here's my RNoAF (Royal Norwegian Airforce) Heuer flyback chronograph.

One of my colleagues in his 50's came up to me one day at work and said he had found a old watch in a drawer that might be of interest for me.... He knew of my love for Heuer. And out of his pocket comes a Norwegian issued Heuer Bund. Do you want this old watch? He asked..... yes I did :-) He would not accept any money for it, but said ok to a symbolic sum after some persuasion. He got the watch when he was serving his time in the Norwegian Airforce as a photographer in the late 1970's. It was a gift from a friend that worked with supplies. He got it when they was phaseing some of them out.

My friend was stationed at Rygge Air Base in the late 1970s. Based at Rygge was the 336 Squadron with their Northrop F-5 Freedom Fighters. The first F-5 arrived at Rygge in 1965 and stayed in active duty untill 2000 when the squadron was closed. My Heuer came from Rygge and was most likely worn by a F-5 pilot.

The dial is the "T-only" with a tiny "T" appearing just above "6". There's five different versions of dials.

The back is stamped LUFTFORSVARET and a number that ends with /76. This indicates that it was issued in 1976. The majority of these watches have the word “Bundeswehr” engraved on the back as they were issued to German servicemen from 1968 until the late 1970’s (Bundes Wehr means ‘Federal Defence’ in German).

The calibre in my watch is the Valjoux cal. 230; a hand wound 17 jewel calibre with a rate of 18,000 bph.

In a regular chronograph calibre the chronograph mechanism must be stopped before it can be reset. In a flyback chronograph, the mechanism can be reset while it is still running, making it particularly useful for timing consecutive short interval events. This is achieved by the addition of a additional lever in the chronograph mechanism. When the reset button is pressed the flyback lever lifts the coupling clutch from the chronograph centre wheel allowing the mechanism to reset.

As well as having a flyback function this calibre also hacks, which means that the movement stops when setting the time so it can be set to exactly to the right second. This important on a military watch.

A Norwegian F-5 over the snowy mountains.

The workplace for a F-5 pilot.

The famous "Tiger" F-5 from the Norwegian Airforce.

If you like to read more about these military Heuer Flyback Chronographs check out:

http://www.onthedash.com/Guide/_Chronographs/67.Bundeswehr/http://brown-snout.com/horology/articles/heuer_bundeswehr_chrono/

Thanks to Richhard Askham of http://thewatchspotblog.com/ for his service of my Heuer and for the use of the pictures of the movement.

Heuer ref. 345 restoration

2009-08-15T21:58:00.018+02:00

Finally my old three register Heuer chronograph is ready to wear again. I got this wonderful old clunker very cheap on Ebay a couple of years ago. It was in a sad state. The movement was soaked in hobbyoil, and the dial was totally messed up by the oil. The good thing was that the case was good, and the movement looked complete.

This is what it looked like after I removed the blued steel hands.

After a year I found a nice used correct dial on the web, and I could send the watch to my watchmaker. After a few weeks I got my Heuer back. What a beauty! It's hard to belive that this watch is from the late 1930's, and is more than 70 years old.....

The movement needed some work. The mainspring had ’set’. This condition usually occurs with older steel mainsprings that have been coiled up in the mainspring barrel for too long. A modern alloy mainspring in good condition should have an ‘S’ form as pictured below, the old steel mainspring is pictured inset.

Secondly, the sliding gear spring was broken. This spring provides pressure on the sliding gear to ensure that the chronograph finger can advance the chronograph mechanism when engaged.

With the movement, Valjoux 71, cleaned and back up and running, it was just a matter of straightening the centre second hand and the old movement was in great shape again.

The original crown is still in very good shape.

The old blued steel hands had some rust damage, but I think they add a nice patina to the watch. So I did not replace them.

The bridge is signed "Ed Heuer & Co" in a very cool font. This was used before the Heuer logo was standard on all bridges. It was not untill 1945 that Heuer signed all movements with the Heuer logo.

Thanks to Richard Askham for great work on the movement and for use of the two pictures of the work done. Check out his exellent blog http://thewatchspotblog.com/

Heuer Camaro ref. 73445

2009-07-09T01:06:00.016+02:00

This is my 1971/72 Heuer Camaro ref. 73445. I'm not normally a big fan of golden watches, and this baby is gold plated, but it has grown to me. I have learned to like this all original Heuer. The condition is very nice for a gold plated watch. There's no wear to the plating, just an nice overall patina. Dial and hands is also in perfect condition.

The movement is a Valjoux 7734 with a bridge signed HEUER LEONIDAS S.A. The inside of the case back is also signed with the same name. Earlier ref. numbers had Valjoux 92, and Valjoux 7730. The three register Camaro had Valjoux 72 and later Valjoux 7736.

This watch even has the very rare original two piece bracelet from NSA in Heuer Monaco style. This is the only Camaro I have seen with this bracelet. I also have a period vintage brown rally strap with a genuine vintage Heuer gold buckle. The buckle has the sun symbol on the inside, a proof for a genuine vintage buckle and not a re-issue.

NSA bracelet in Monaco style.

Heuer 1971/72 catalogue with the two register Valjoux 7734 driven Camaros.

New Life - Landeron 13 Heuer

2009-06-17T22:38:00.007+02:00

I sold my old incomplete Heuer Landeron 13 movement to S. Craig Bergsma of http://www.chronodeco.com/ .

I never managed to find the missing parts or a suitable case, so I sold it on Ebay. Craig is a watchmaker and managed to find the missing parts and a nice vintage case of the correct period.

The result is nice and looks correct. The oval pushers and vintage crown add nice detail.

For the original post about the movement see: http://classicheuers.blogspot.com/2008/09/gold-dialed-valjoux-23.html

Thanks Craig for giving this rare early Heuer movement a new life. See www.chronodeco.com to see more of Craigs work on rare vintage watches.

1950's Heuer Automatic

2009-06-02T21:19:00.009+02:00

This a sweet litte Heuer from the 1950's. It's a mans watch but by today standard it's very small. The diamater is only 32mm.

The case is stainless stel with a screw in case back. The watch is signed four times, dial, movement plus outside and inside of the case back. The serial number is stamped between the lug, but no ref. number can be found anywhere. It's very difficult to find informations about these automatics, they do not appear in any catalogue I have seen.

The movement is A.S. 1361 automatic with sweep second.

Size: 11.5''', Dm= 25.6mm, H= 5.7mm. 17 or 21 jewel. sf = 18000 A/h, power reserve 36h.

I have a few of these small Heuers, all with different dials. This one has a lot of patina, but I like it. I makes me think of this little machine's almost 60 year long life.....

Autavia Ref. 1163 V

2009-05-04T21:05:00.018+02:00

This is one of the best known Heuer chronographs, the 1163 Viceroy. This version was produced as a promotional item for Viceroy cigarettes in the 1970's. While the 1163T Autavia of the period was selling for $200, enthusiasts would buy the 1163V for $88 by sending in Viceroy coupons / proofs of purchase.

The Viceroy model (Reference 1163V) is recognized by the tachymeter bezel, the economy dial with red dots by the applied markers and white elements incorporated into the markers, brushed steel hands with red tips and luminous inserts.

This is one of the Viceroy adverts that promoted this very good deal.

The case is standard 1163 with domed plastic crystal and pushers fully visible from front, and partially hidden from the back.

The case is stamped 1163 V between the lugs. Strap size is standard 20mm. The Viceroy was sold with a black rally strap.

My Viceroy has the original vintage Heuer buckle. The originals is easy identified by the "sun" stamped on the back. The re-issue buckles from the modern Carrera and Monaco do not have this symbol.

For more info check out http://www.onthedash.com/docs/CompareViceroys.shtml

Orange Diver ref. 980.007

2009-03-28T16:59:00.020+01:00

This is my favorite vintage Heuer diver. The bright orange dial is just very cool. And the big full size 42mm case makes this a very visible watch thats get a lot of comments when you wear it.

As you ca see on the picture above, the writing on the dial is a mix of English and French. On the French made ref. 844 (http://classicheuers.blogspot.com/2009/01/heuer-844-french-made-diver.html) all text is in French: 200 METRES / Professionel. On this Swiss Made watch the print on the dial says: 200 METRES / Professional. The depth rate is still French, but professional is now in English..

The movement on these early diver is ESA 536.121. This is a quite fragile movement, and it's very common to see non working examples of these diver for sale on Ebay. The can often be picked up very cheap. But be avare, it's very difficult to find parts for this movement. Even a used replacement can be very difficult to find.

If your movement fails, and you don't have a spare or the parts needed I got the solution for you. A automatic ETA 2824 is a straith fit. The base is the same, so the hands, dial and stem will fit. If you are a little handy, you can do the swap yourself in no time. I have done it without problems.

The caseback is just plain, without the HEUER shield logo. They are stamped with ref.number and serial number. Later Heuer divers have more well made case backs with the HEUER logo in the middle. The screw in crown is unsigned.

It made it as "covergirl" in this 1981 Heuer catalogue....

Issued Heuer split second timer

2009-03-08T00:35:00.019+01:00

Lovely blued steel hands..... a very nice touch.

This is a issued Heuer stopwatch from the 1950's. I thought I had bougth a cool military issued Heuer, but some research of the GPO engravings on the back led me to the British Post service "General Post Office". Not as exciting as a war veteran, but still kind a cool.

The markings on the back says 6 GPO, BAU 53, 60107. 53 stand for 1953, the year it was issued. There is a website about GPO Watches, check out: http://www.britishtelephones.com/clocks/watches.htm

My watch is number 6, described as:

"Watch No. 6 is an 8-hour, high-grade, keyless, lever stop-watch of the permanent-motion type with a continuously operating seconds hand at the bottom of the dial, and two stop-start centre seconds fly-back hands with an associated revolution register at the top of the dial. The centre-seconds hands make one complete revolution in 100 seconds over a scale marked in half-second divisions and the revolution register integrates the revolutions of the upper centre-seconds hand up to a period of 3000 seconds. i.e. 30 revolutions."

This Heuer split stopwatch, was issued for the accurate measurement and timing of the electro-mechanical call timing equipment.

The movement is a lovely finished Valjoux 57. Fully signed, and with a very loud ticking sound. The second hand at six, is constantly running, even if the stopwatch is not engaged.

The bridge and case is signed Ed.Heuer & Co, Switzerland.

Monaco 73633 G

2009-02-24T13:33:00.016+01:00

This a cool classic Heuer. A manual version of the famous Heuer Monaco made famous from the film "Le Mans" starring Steve Mc Queen. He used the more common blue dialed 1133 B version with the automatic caliber 12. This manual Monaco is driven by a Valjoux 7736 and have a all grey dial.The ref. 73633 is known in three different versions. The blue dialed 73633 B with white subdials. And the two different dials on the 73633 G, one all grey, and the other with black/dark grey subdials. The all grey is belived to be the earliest of the two.

This Monaco is in good orignal condition. Very nice dial and hands. The case has not been polished. The back is stamped with the Heuer logo and Tool No. 033, the special tool required to open the waterproof case.

It even have the original bracelet. That is a nice bonus. They are rare, and very expensive if you can find one.

The ref. 73633 G and B is listed in this 1972 Heuer catalogue.

Original crown and pushers in nice condition. Most of the original finish is still visible.

The only litle fault I can see is a tiny missing lume part from from the hour hand. All in all is this a very fine example of one of Heuers coolest chronographs. A real classic...

Heuer 844 French made diver.

2009-01-16T14:08:00.023+01:00

This is one of the first Heuer made diver watches. The 844 model was made for Heuer in 1979-80 in France by G. Monnin. This was the first trial run for Heuer into the divers watch market. Heuer did not think it would be worth while tooling up for something like that so they purchased already existing models in France. As you can see the divers watch market was very successful, that they started to gear up in 1980's with swiss made movement.

The dial is printed with "MADE IN : FRANCE" on the bottom, and say : "METRES" and : "PROFESSIONEL" as opposed to : anglicized "METERS" and "PROFESSIONAL" versions of that. The hands are of cathedral type. There is also red 24 hour numeral on the dial. The case back is plain with no Heuer logo. And is stamped 844 rather crudely. "ETANCHE ACIER - 20 ATM - AUTOMATIC" is also stamped around the edge.The movement is Felsa FE 4611A and is signed G. Monnin France on the rotor. Later Swiss made Heuer divers have movements from ETA.

Inside of case back is signed G. Monnin France.

It's a full size 42mm big diver with 24hour dial and screw in unsigned crown. I like it a lot. Looks cool on a NATO strap.

Autavia caliber 15 Ref. 1563

2008-12-29T20:56:00.030+01:00

Here's my Autavia Ref. 1563 with caliber 15. The caliber 15 version was a economic version of the Caliber 12. The hour register was replaced with a small running seconds hand at 10. To the right is the same 30min register as found in caliber 11/12.

The case is the same as Autavia 1163, and is stamped 1163, not 1563 between the lugs at 12. This is normal, I have never seen a Autavia stamped 1563.

The Autavia 1562 was listed in catalogues in the early 1970's. There was two versions, black and white. And two different bezels, tachymeter or hour/minutes. The crystal is plastic and can easily be polished to remove scratches.
The pushers is fully visible from front, and partially obstructed from back. This indicates that the case is a 1163 and was made by Schimtz.

The caseback is signed Heuer - Leonidas SA inside.

Autavia Ref. 7763 MH

2008-11-24T18:36:00.020+01:00

The Ref. 7763 Autavia is one of my favorites. It was my first vintage Heuer, and really kick off my interest for vintage watches. It's the second generation Autavia with snap-back case 30 min. register, and is driven by a Valjoux 7730. The back is marked with "Autavia" and the Heuer logo.

There is two versions, 7763 TH with tachymeter bezel, and 7763 MH, with Miles/Hour bezel. They was listed in the catalogues from 1968-1971. It's quite big at 40,5mm, lug size is 20mm.

To the left is Ref. 7763 as pictured in a Heuer catalogue from 1970. The price back then was US 105$ with Corfam strap, and US 120$ with a stainless steel bracelet.

The case is stainless steel, and is super water resistant, tested at 330 feet, or 100 meter. The turning bezel (MH) has combined 60 minute and 12 hour division. The dial is black with two white register, running second to the left, and 30 min. counter to the right.

The Valjoux 7730 movement is signed Heuer-Leonidas on the bridge. The case back is also signed Heuer-Leonidas on the inside.

The ref. number 7763 is stamped between the lugs.

Art Deco Heuer

2008-10-25T00:21:00.010+02:00

This is a rare one, an Art Deco styled very early 14k. gold Heuer mens watch. It is not signed Heuer anywhere, this is a Rose watch, signed “Rose W. Co” on case and movement. The watch is small, only 18mm x 30mm. To small for a man today. It is in very good original condition, even if it’s nearly 100 years old. Not bad.

In April 1912 Heuer was renamed “Heuer & co., Rose Watch co.” Charles-Auguste and Jules-Edouard at the urging of their American partner decided to use the trade name "ROSE WATCH COMPANY" on all watch movements imported into the USA. Due to high customs tariff on complete Swiss watches during this time period, Heuer would send a complete movement without a case. The movement was then installed in a US-made case.

In 1922, after ten years, Heuer stopped using the “Rose”-name. So from 1912-1922, all Heuer watches sold in USA was signed “Rose W. Co.”. A full range of pocket-, mens-, ladies watches and chronographs was marketed.

Autavia Ref. 1563

2008-10-24T00:45:00.005+02:00

Here's my latest member of my collection. A Heuer Autavia Ref. 1563 from around 1971.

The bezel have a lot of wear, and will soon be replaced with a better one. The watch keeps good time, and I love those orange hands. I will post more when I put on the new bezel.

Mystery 2Heuer2 logo

2008-10-15T22:21:00.009+02:00

I have a vintage Heuer up/down chronograph with a strange Heuer logo. I posted some pictures of the watch a couple of years ago at the Heuer forum, but no one had an answer. I have since then tried to collect as much info as possible, and have found some information. I have seen some claims that this was a military model, and most owners date them to late 1930's (1938) or very early 1940's.
The movement is the same on all 2HEUER2 I have found. An unsigned Venus 170. I know that Heuer produced an up/down chronograph with Valjoux 77 later, that is fully signed. None of the Val.77's that I have seen has the 2HEUER2 logo. The 2Heuer2 has Nickel case, the later Valjoux 77 has steel case.

THE ANSWER

I have just found a Heuer advert from 1942 that shows the little chronograph. This is the first time ever, I have seen any information about these chronographs. The are not military, but Heuers cheapest chronograph offer.

In the down left corner of the ad. is a little black up/down chronograph with the 2Heuer2 logo. It is listed as Ref. 3249 Nickel/Steel case back priced at Fr. 93,- It seems like it was a low-price model. A regular left/right steel chronograph with Valjoux movement was Fr. 198,-

There is at least two different dial design for Ref.3249, one with telemeter and tachymeter, and one, like mine, with a seconds scale.

This should confirm that these are genuine early Heuer Chronographs. Heuer did not sign all movements untill 1945.

Heuer triple date Ref. 1806

2008-10-01T23:00:00.007+02:00

This is Heuers 90 year anniversary watch. It was also promoted as Heuers "Half of a Millenium" watch, as it was launced in 1950.
The ref. number is 1806 and was available in chrome, steel or goldplated. Mine is chrome and has a lot of wear.

The movement is a hammer automatic from AS. The caseback is snap on made of steel.

I love that blue "snake" hand that shows the date.

Heuer ref. 349

2008-09-26T20:17:00.012+02:00

I have own this early Heuer chronograph for some years now, but have not known much about it. When I put on a NOS pigskin-strap with the correct vintage look last week I deceided to do some research.

The movement is an early Valjoux 22, with an unsigned bridge. This is no problem, several early Heuers have unsigned movements. From 1945, Heuer signed all movements.

In a 1938 Heuer catalogue I found the movement listed as ref. 349.

In a 1945 Heuer catalogue I found the right case. There's only on problem, they are listed as steel case, and have wrong ref. number. But over the three there is listed a ref.349 with Nickel Case - steel back. No picture. This matches my chronograph, Val.22 and Nickel Case, steel caseback. My watch has the same shape of the case, pushers and crown.

I think I have a match, and that this is a Ref.349 dated from somewhere between 1938 to the mid 1940's.

Gold dialed Landeron 13 not Valjoux 23

2008-09-12T15:04:00.008+02:00

UPDATE!
I belived that this was a Valjoux 23, but it's a Landeron 13.

I have had this lovely golden Heuer dial and movement for some time now. I even have the original gold duaphine hands and crown. What I need is a Heuer case for a Landeron 13. It would be great to put this movement in a proper Heuer case again. It's a Landeron 13 and is correctly signed with the Heuer logo and production number on the main bridge. The production number is 400817, and the watch is most likely from the first half of the 1940's due to the "small" style Heuer logo used on in the 1930's-40's.

Heuer ref. 3641

2008-09-03T13:46:00.002+02:00

This is the rarely seen ref. 3641 from 1968/69. It was a cheaper alternative to the more famous Carrera model, and have a chrome case instead of stainless steel. The movement, valjoux 92, and the hands, are the same as on the Carrera.

A nice and cheaper alternative to a late 1960s Heuer Carrera. It's even rarer. Most of the ones I have seen have the name of a retailer on the lower part of the dial. Mine has Meister, a Sviss retailer. I have also seen the name Gubelin on others.

Check out www.onthedash.com page on my watch: http://onthedash.com/Guide/_Chronographs/60s_Chronographs/62.Reference_3641/

Classic Heuer

2008-01-08T11:23:00.001+01:00

This blog will contain information and pictures of my classic Heuer watches. Dating from around 1912 to the 1980s when Heuer became Tag Heuer.

Heuer Monaco , Autavia , Montreal , Carrera , Daytona , Monza , Skipper , Calculator , Cortina , Silverstone , Verona , Tripledate , Camaro .