Garrard Model Ref.6914 9ct 1969

Garrard

The House of Garrard is the longest serving jeweller in the world with origins that can be traced back to 1735, when Master Silversmith George Wicks opened a store on Panton Street in the heart of London’s West End. It was in this year that the firm received its first royal commission from Frederick, Prince of Wales. Garrard was also the first official Crown Jeweller of the UK, charged with the upkeep of the British Crown Jewels from 1843 to 2007 and responsible for the creation of many tiaras and jewels still worn by the British royal family today.

During the middle part of the last century, Garrard was also a fine watchmaker and during the second world war also made timing instruments for Lancaster and Wellington bomber aircraft.

Garrard watches are well regarded for their accuracy and reliability and their watches represent excellent value today.

Description

Here we have a classic gentleman’s automatic dress watch with a Royal association from Garrard UK, full of 1960s style and elegance and in truly ‘timewarp’ condition. The watch has a stunning original and unrestored silver dial, complete with a date function and an immaculate case and movement.

This would make the perfect watch for either office use or evening wear. It has received a full inspection and service, and a gentle hand-polish by our restoration team and is in excellent condition and complete with its original Garrard presentation box.

The Dial

The completely original, unrestored and untouched silver dial looks simply amazing and far better than the photographs do it justice. Gilt ‘baton’ and ‘arrowhead’ hour indices with standard Arabic numerals at ’12’ are matched with the original gilt stick hands. This dial is simple, yet stunning and completed with a perfectly proportioned date window at 3.

The dial is signed ‘Garrard’ just below 12, with ‘Automatic’ just above 6 and ‘Swiss Movement’ at the very bottom, below 6.

As this dial is in original, unrestored condition, this has been left untouched by our restoration team due to its superb condition. Usually, we restore the dials of the watches we sell, however we decided in this case to leave it alone, due to its unusual condition and to retain its originality and charm for those who prefer this. It also helps to contrast with almost all of the other watch dials you see on our website, which have been restored. The hands, likewise, have also been left in their original untouched condition.

Please note, studio lights, professional-grade digital cameras, and macro lenses can be very unkind to an unrestored vintage watch dial. Also the dial here measures less than 1.25 inches across, so the image you’re seeing may be between 5 – 25 times larger than the watch itself. Therefore please keep in mind you are seeing many tiny flaws which cannot be seen, or will be very hard to see with the naked eye, even under close examination. Suffice to say, on the wrist, in natural light, this dial looks much better and carries a great deal more charm than the photographs portray.

The Movement

The Garrard ETA 2783, 25 Jewel automatic movement is in tip-top condition having just completed a full overhaul and service by our watchmaker. It is running perfectly and has been calibrated in 5 positions to run within +9 seconds per day which is outstanding for any mechanical watch and has been checked and confirmed on our electronic watch timegrapher. This movement also has a power reserve of 37 hours when fully wound which is within expectations for this movement. With care and regular servicing, we would fully expect this watch to continue to run very happily for many more decades to come. We are therefore totally confident in offering this watch with our 12 months’ written warranty*.

The movement is signed ‘Garrard’, ‘25 Jewels’ and ‘Swiss’ with the Calibre number 2783.

*Please note – our 12 months’ warranty is only applicable if the list price is paid.

The Watch Case

The 9ct watch case measures 34mm in diameter, excluding the original crown. The case is of a sturdy classic three-piece design which presses together with a very solid and reassuring click.

The case has been cleaned and lightly hand-polished. It shows no dings, scratches or other marks visible to the naked eye. In fact, no matter how closely you might wish to examine the case it shows no signs of anything other than very light and careful use.

In keeping with many other brands of the time including Rolex and Omega, the case is signed ‘D.S&S’, as the case was made for Garrard by D. Shackman & Sons. Shackman & Sons were very high quality case-makers and one of three English case-makers used by many of the top watch brands. The case also carries London UK 9ct hallmarks which date this watch to 1969.

Please note – as ever, our standard advice applies: vintage watches should be kept clean and dry at all times.

The Strap & Buckle

The watch is fitted with a high quality brown calf leather strap and plain gold-plated buckle which we feel suits this watch very well. However, if a different colour or style of strap is preferred, please let us know and we will do our best to oblige free of charge. We carry tan, conker, dark brown and black in stock in plain padded leather, crocodile skin or lizard skin. We can also obtain most types and colours from our partners at ‘Watch Obsession’ within 48hrs. Please take a look at their huge range of straps if you wish here.

Box and Papers

Although there are no original papers with this watch, the reference numbers, markings, signatures and hallmarks are all correct, dating this watch to 1969.

Detailed particulars will be included with our purchase receipt for your interest and security. A separate insurance valuation for the replacement value of this watch will also be provided at the time of sale along with our unique ‘Lifetime Authenticity Guarantee’ which states: “If this watch proves to be anything less than 100% genuine, authentic and original, a full refund will be given at any time”.

The original Garrard presentation box is included in the sale of this watch.

Payment and Delivery

If you would like to pay by bank transfer, we will be pleased to assist you with this. Similarly, if you wish to pay by International SWIFT or Bank Wire Transfer we will provide you with our BIC / Swift number and our IBAN number.

Please check the import duties and any taxes your government may apply, these are different for each country and, unfortunately, out of our control.

We understand there may be some ‘loopholes’ that may help you avoid these charges; however, attempting to use these could impact our ongoing ability to serve our growing international customer base.

For those who happen to visit London on occasion, we are, of course, more than happy to store your watch until we can meet you in our offices in Kensington, London, and hand your watch directly to you there.

As with all our watches, this watch will be sold under our 14 days no-quibble sale or return policy.

In Conclusion

The is an immaculate and collectable gentleman’s dress watch from one of the world’s oldest and most respected jewellers. This will not only make an excellent dress watch, but also provide an excellent investment as well as be something to use, wear, treasure and enjoy!

A word on our prices – We always try our hardest to acquire the very highest quality watches we can find, before restoring them to the highest possible standards. We then offer these at the fairest prices we can, taking into account our pre and post-sales care and service. This approach means we will never be the cheapest, but nor will we be the most expensive. Indeed there are some well-known stores in West London which are highly successful charging between two to three times the price you see here. We, therefore, consider our prices to be fair, given the quality of watches we have to offer.

Please note, we also welcome part exchanges. If you have a watch or a small collection for sale, please contact us as we will be happy to discuss this.

We will also be happy to Service your watch, Repair your watch or Restore your watch, all at ‘sensible’ prices. Please see here.

If you have any questions please call us on 020 7727 7095 or if calling from overseas on +44 207 727 7095.

Please take a look at our other fine vintage gold watches.

Thank you.