1920s IWC 'S&Co' movement, gold hunter case. Is this... real?

Complete novice here, so bear with me!

About 30 years ago I bought this watch that claims to be an old IWC from the
1920's (?) I'd paid little attention to it till recently, and wondered if the
experts here can help a bit:

I believe it might largely be a 1920's IWC, with the 'S&Co' and 'Peereless'
movement in there - Caliber 64, if my google skills are working. Case says its
9ct gold, and is a double backed 'Hunter' type (right?) Has the 'CN' mark in
there, apprently correct for this vintage IWC watch.

Dial looks too clean to me, but then... I see some of the old enamel dials of
this period, and they can be surprisingly clean. I still suspect a redial, but
have not removed the movement to see the back etc.

The back is engraved for Crockers, which is a very large olde-worlde pub in
London (still going!).

This is outside of my wheelhouse - I'm into 40s/50s military IWC. But
somehow... a smart flea market trader talked me into buying this!

Any thoughts/ advice/ input? Thanks!

The movement number indicates that it was made 1918.

Concerning the Stauffer Watches I recommend the website of David Boettcher who
has been writing here years ago:
www.vintagewatchstraps.com/IWC.php#StaufferIWC There are pages for
IWC, Stauffer, hallmarks etc. That could be interesting for you. The CN
Hallmark is for Charles Nicolet a former director of Stauffer & Co in London.
All cases in gold or silver imported by Stauffer after June 1907 were
hallmarked CN.

I also have a watch with a calibre 64 from 1918. Often these Staufer watches
came with own dials which did not mention IWC. So I am not sure if the dial or
at least the writing on your watch is original. But as far as I know calibre
and case are original.

Thanks so much for the confirmation. I kind of agree with what you say.

Original case and movement, all correct to the period. The dial may well also
be original, will find out more when I can take it apart.

I really should offer it to Crockers, the London pub/ restaurant themselves -
you never know!

Hello Merriman,

Some more information about your watch.

It is absolutely an IWC cal. 64.

Around 1920 the wrist watch started to march into horology and finally defeat
the pocket watch.

IWC made at that time cal. 64 as a ladies pendant watch.

It was derived as a small version of the cal. 52.

The company decided to take the ladies cal 64 and soldered 'fixed bars' to the
case to apply a watch strap.

By that the first IWC wrist watch ever had been created..

J.Stauffer was the largest importer of IWC ( and other) watches in the UK and
in the case you can read 'CN' from Charles Nicolet.

He took over the Stauffer company. What is unusual is the IWC logo on the
dial.

For IWC watches, J.Stauffer used blank dials without any script. Also on the
movement there was no visible indication that it was an IWC.

It is assumed that the stamp from Stauffer was applied in Schaffhausen and not
in the UK.

Kind regards,

Adrian,

(alwaysiwc).

Whenever things go a little bit english we often see this style of dial
signature...bum bum.

Hi, I was digging around trying to find info on Stuaffer and Co / IWC to help decide to bid on a 'unbranded Swiss watch' on eBay. I've just bought it.

But, check out the serial numbers!

Who knows the stories these brothers have to tell

The same watch getting fixed

youtu.be/rOwerwT7H2I?si=zvOf_uf-yw-u5-jd

The watch was sold in 1921 to Stauffer & Sons, apparently as wristwatch. It appears all original apart from the dial. Stauffer never had dials signed International Watch Co. Try with some alcohol. If the markings can be removed with alcohol the dial is original, "International Watch Co." applied later on. In case the markings can't be removed it is probably a dial from another watch from that time swapped on this watch.

Regards

Th. Koenig

Thanks for the restoration video. Very interesting - including the adaptations over the last 102 years.

I think that I read one day that later Stauffer & Sons watches could have IWC-signed dials. But for sure not in 1921.

Watches bought by Stauffer were never marked IWC (except under the balance cock). Only in the late 1920ies, when Ed. Harrop took up the role as IWC's general agent for the UK and the British Empire, the watches were branded "International Watch Co.". You can verify that clearly in contemporary issues of the Horological Journal, when Ed. Harrop published that he can supply spares for IWC until then unbranded sold by Stauffer & Sons.

Regards

Th.Koenig

Thank you very much for the information. That helps me with the dial of my Stauffer - Borgel - IWC.

The number of the movement shows that it is a cal 64 made in 1918.

I am not sure if the numbers of the cases used for the "Stauffer - IWCs" were also in IWC's registers. In the case of my watch it would make sense as the case was produced around 1924, if the case number can be used for "dating" as with ordinary IWC watches.

The hallmarks show "Charles Nicolet", 18 carat gold, Glasgow as the town of import and an import date between the summer of 1924 up to summer of 1925.

As 1925 is before Edward Harrop was leading Stauffer, my dial should not show the text International Watch & Co Schaffhausen.

Here are two photos of the watch.

Great post and thread. How incredible to see these exmples, especially with the sequential serial numbers!