This watch belongs to William, and it’s a Russian Vimpel, made by Kirova. It has 23 jewels, and that’s all I know about it. Maybe one of my readers can identify the movement and shed some light on it?
I also know nothing about Russian hallmarks, but the case looks like 9ct rose gold to me.
Case and bracelet are very well made.
One of the case clamps and the winding stem are pretty rusty, but apart from that, all looks well. The movement is fully wound and not beating, so there will be dirt.
Rust and dirt on the case back.
The dial is in great condition.
I take the balance out and start taking the movement apart.
The gear train is a bit funny, with two intermediate wheels driving the third wheel.
Here are the two intermediate wheels.
The winding mechanism is not short of wheels, either 😉
All ready for the cleaning machine.
I start off with the obligatory new mainspring.
Then I put the balance jewels back in.
The wheel train is back together.
With the balance in, this won’t win a medal, but the watch will work reliably and accurately enough.
Now it’s time for the bottom plate.
The dial and hands go back on.Great looking, very elegant watch!
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Respect! Good work!
That site will give you heaps of information
http://www.2209watchmovement.com
Enjoy
How amazing to have found this. I have just inherited the exactly same watch that belonged to my mother and wanted to know its history. Thank you all for that. Would like to find a new strap for it though. Any suggestions?
Hi Martine,
I would fit a nice leather strap – maybe a light brown or reddish brown?
I got some more information on my watch here…
http://forums.watchuseek.com/f10/14k-gold-vimpel-1012974.html
May be of some use to you.
“The gear train is a bit funny, with two intermediate wheels driving the third wheel”
I think I’ve heard that this arrangement allowed the movement to be slimmer than the more conventional arrangement. The USP of this movement was its extreme slimness (ultra-slim)
Hi Christian: What causes the waviness of the timing machine traces? Is it an uneven spacing of the teeth of the escape wheel?
Looks like the fourth wheel is a bit wonky, e.g. out of centre…
Christian may i ask what brand and model of microscope you use now? also on your you tube videos what brand of curved tweezers is that? never saw one like that before.
I am using a Müller stereo inspection microscope with 10x to 40x magnification.
Those tweezers aren’t for sale any more I am afraid – just wanted to buy another set only to be told they aren’t available any more.
Thank you for replying. That stereomicroscope seems a good option are you happy with it? problem though its not available in uk and has to be ordered from germany which is a concern. If there was a problem then it has to be sent back to germany which is not convenient.
I am really happy with the microscope, but there are of course lots of stereo inspection microscopes available in the UK that you can buy. Just make sure it’s around 10x – 40x, and that the light shines onto the object, rather than coming from below.
You are always so helpful Christian. Cant seem to find a suitable microscope in uk as yet except zeiss which costs thousands. Probably i will take a chance and order from germany.
I contacted Mueller and they agree to send by courier tracking so no problem. Since im only a serious amateur i think MTX -4 C stereomicroscope 10 – 80 x would be sufficient for my occasional use. I cant find a 10 – 40 x as you mentioned.
Yes, the 10x – 80x will be fine.
Thanks everyone for the extra information. It seems that with the Vimpel name on the dial and the diamond outline around the initials on the dial the watch must date from 1961-3.
That should say diamond outline around the initials on the movement.
I guess from the era, case material – and what Marian says about it – that this is probably something of a rare beast.
Not the kind of thing I would wear, but pretty good looking 😉
http://www.ranfft.de/cgi-bin/bidfun-db.cgi?10&ranfft&&2uswk&Vympel here is more information.
poljot 2209/luch 2209
one of the most russian slim movement.3mm
greetings from Romania
Hi Marian,
Thank you for finding the movement! I knew one of my readers would be able to identify it.
here there are a lot of these movement, but first i have see in gold case.
Bugger, beat me to it!! I spent a lot of time with this movement! The luch 2209 is more often found in the UK in Poljot or Sekonda cases, and normally 5 or 10 micron gold plated (marked as Au 5 or Au10 on the case). They’re actually one of the nicer finished russian movements,with an interesting gear train (as Dr Roland Ranfft explains!) but has a number of weak spots, including shredded teeth on the winding train (due to the large loads on those very small wheels!) and particularly tangled hairsprings as the later version with the movable stud holder often lets go of the hairspring stud after a sharp bang. This means spare balances/hairsprings are like hens teeth!!
I do have mountains of spares though, if ever any body needs anything!
Lastly, useful tip when identifying luch movements (and most russian movements) is that the first 2 digits are usually the dimensions of the base plate in millimetres, hence the 2209 is 22mm 🙂
Hi Sean,
Thanks for the additional information. That gear train is quite unusual indeed…
The watch is made by 1-st Moscow Watch Factory. The caliber is 2209 Extra Flat. Rate of accuracy -20 +40 seconds a day. It was produced around 1970.
Thanks a lot, Christian. I did some research on the hallmark and I believe it signifies 14K gold. I would also be interested if anyone knows more about the movement, or the approximate date of the watch.
Yes, 583 signifies 58.3% purity, so 14k. I cant see the other numbers well enough to date, but from memory Russian hallmarks – especially during the Soviet era – were sometimes not very specific about such things.
583 is 14k indeed, and in Soviet era it was pretty accurate on the gold content as gold production was a state monopoly and rather strictly regulated.
Vympel (Вымпел) watches were produced by 1st MchZ (1st Watch Factory) in Moscow from 1961 to 1970.
Now it is rather difficult to find one in good condition, they sought after by collectors. Gold Vympel in decent condition can cost around 1000 USD in Russia.
I have one slightly deformed but original Vympel Gold , if someone is interested to buy send me an email.
my email is seektoo@gmail.com
Yes, please let me know how much you would like for it, and maybe send a photo?
Cheers,
Christian