In praise of ETA: An heirloom workhorse

While I was still fiddling with fake Rolexes and Breitlings back in junior high, I repeatedly stumbled upon an ugly, old watch that didn't run. It said "Klaiber Automatic - 17 Jewels Waterproof Incalboc - Swiss Made" on the dial. This was a few years ago before I knew much about any type of watch. Last year, while visiting home, I dug out the watch and learned that it was my grandfather's "getting-into-college" gift for my dad from 1982, and that it had been lying in the storage room for at least 20 years. I gave it a few winds and shakes and it didn't seem to work, so I opened the case back and immediately was greeted by a whirling noise (presumably the mainspring unwinding). With the back open, I gave it a few more winds and to my surprise, after 30 years, it ran again.

To my surprise, there was no visible corrosion in the movement which was good enough for me. The rubber gaskets had completely disintegrated and stuck onto the case and caseback and the nickel plating on the brass case had worn off significantly. The spring bars had also failed and the shoddy bracelet was very loose. To my delight, the unmodified and bare ETA 2789 movement (ancestor of the ubiquitous 2824) was the higher 25 jewel version instead of the 17 jewel as indicated on the dial. The lume even still glowed, albeit very weakly.

ETA 2789

25 Jewels!

 First thing the next day I braved the Beijing cold and searched for a watchmaker who would service the movement. The first two turned me down outright, saying "it couldn't be done", which was ludicrous since over 25 million of the movement had been made and spare parts would be easy to find. The third told me it would take 2 months, much too long since I was coming back to the US. Finally I found a shop with two southern Chinese watchmakers who would service the movement and replace the deteriorated crown for 120 dollars. "Are you in a hurry?" he asked with a thick southern accent. "Kind of, what do you mean?" I asked, slightly confused. "Well, if you're in a hurry come on Monday (in 2 days), if not, come on Tuesday." I quickly said "I'll come tuesday after work", took the receipt, and left. 

No corrosion anywhere

On Tuesday, I picked up the watch which was running strong as it did some 30 years ago. With some self adjustment I managed to get it to better than COSC (or even Patek Philippe seal) performance with a 260 degree amplitude. A new leather strap gave the watch that funky retro look.

Superb performance!

Brass base metal showing through nickel plating, case back is stainless steel

To think that my grandfather had spent what was at least several months wage on this watch is more than intriguing for me. Not only was this the dark ages of mechanical horology, it was the dark ages of China, when foreign goods could only be bought in a special store or while traveling abroad (an extremely rare phenomena at the time). I may not have been passed down a Patek or Vacheron, but thinking in context, this was arguably rarer in China than Patek in the west. It looks beat up, but at heart, it's still beating strong.