I've owned this watch for a while. I love it.
I've never seen another even remotely like it.
It has one of the ten spots in my dresser-top watchcase.
I have never worn it.
I'm not a dressy kinda guy. I'll be the first to admit that my look is, well, rumpled. I like jeans, vintage slacks, plain white shirts, heavy Doc Martens, and my British driving cap. To me, dressing up means slipping a casual black sport-coat on over my white shirt. To tell the time, I wear a 1950s Elgin Sportsman, or a 1970s Caravelle Set-O-Matic Diver.
If I have to go more formal, I strap on a 1970s Sandoz Tropicalized Flag watch, or my Benrus Sea Lord. I just can't seem to find the right time to wear this other Benrus.
Maybe I'm not 'formal' enough. Maybe I'm not classy enough. Hey, I have no problems with that. We are what we are.
So, I just don't have occasion to wear this watch. I look at it often. When you see it, I think you'll understand why.
It's an outstandingly good-looking watch. It's also unique. I've seen textured dials before. I've seen secondary dials. I've seen cases with raised decorative designs before. I've seen - though rarely - floating lugs before. I've never seen all of them together. Until I saw this watch.
Now, I'm a big fan of older Benrus'. They consistently fit my definition of 'classic'. However, I think somebody at Benrus must have been on a creative bender when they designed this watch.
Classic, it is. No argument there. It's undeniably a 1950s design.
Still, it's a little outside the norm.
It's Jazz instead of Rock 'n' Roll. It's Kerouac instead of Mailer. It's the last of the great character-rich Airliners instead of the new-fangled, sterile Jumbo-Jets.
And, sadly, it's got to go.
I can't justify keeping it any more. It needs a home with a wrist that will take it out and let it play. It's not fair to keep it penned up day after day in a dark, though comfortable, case. It needs to be worn. It deserves to be shown-off and praised. Mark my words, it will be praised.
Made of gold-tone stainless steel, the case is beautiful. The floating lugs give it a jaunty sort of attitude when it sits on your wrist, different than any other watch I've worn. The creamy, off-white dial has a very cool raised checkerboard and a bold crosshatching keeping things centered. It's becoming a little worn after over half-a-century, but that only adds to its character The tiny, secondary dial gives it the look and feel of a old-world navigator's instrument.
Inside, it's classic Benrus. A Swiss made BB4 17 jewel movement keeps things ticking. That it still works after all these years is a testament to the high-quality of the construction. Amazing.
The strap in the pictures is a 1960s vintage Calfskin Kreisler that I think suits the watch well. I'll also provide a dark mahogany leather strap if you feel like mixing things up a bit.
Now that it's almost done, I'm coming to grips a little with the sale. My breathing is easier, my heart lighter.
I'm confident that whoever is lucky enough to get this watch will treasure it as much as I have.
A watch this special certainly deserves it.
A DISTASTEFUL, IF NECESSARY, DISCLAIMER
While I strive to inform my invariably attractive and intelligent customers of any defect in part or appearance of any watch I sell, it must be understood that, for the vast majority, these are used watches that I purchased used. Many of them are at least 30 years old, and a great number are 50 or more years old. I am neither a watchmaker nor watch-mechanic, and I do not claim to have comprehensive knowledge or understanding of the workings of mechanical watches. I have no accurate or reliable method of measuring timekeeping data.
For example: If a watch crown will not turn, I put the watch aside as broken. If the crown turns but the second hand does not move, I put the watch aside as broken. If the crown turns and the second hand moves but stops after a few seconds, I put the watch aside as broken. If the crown turns, the second hand advances and keeps advancing, and the hour and minute hands advance and have continued to advance when I check again, then I put that watch in the working pile.
I will always answer any and all questions to the best of my ability. Also, I will provide additional detailed pictures of a watch at the buyer's request. I want my customers to be as informed as possible about their purchase.
Unfortunately, I have to state that while I stand behind any sale that is not as advertised and will gladly refund the purchase price- less shipping charges - upon return of the item, I cannot be responsible for unidentified problems or after-the-sale problems with these watches. Everything offered for sale by me, with the exception of items identified as New in Box, is previously owned and is sold AS-IS.
Please consider this when buying from me. I have had two customers try to return items after Six Weeks claiming broken parts, though the parts were clearly working when the watch was shipped to them. I know of few sellers, retail, wholesale, or second-hand, that will accept returns of items after six weeks of use by the customer. I try to be as fair as possible with my customers, but I expect to be dealt with fairly as well.
I want everyone who buys from me to be very happy with their purchases and get as much enjoyment from their watches as I do from mine.
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