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My Father's Helbros

My mother wanted me to have my father' Helbros. It was his dress watch for decades, worn only when he wore a suit. It's quartz, and I think it dates from the late 1970s. My mother thinks we got it from him with S&H Green Stamps, but I don't remember.

This is where I wish I could take good up-close photos. The only markings on the watch are "Helbros" and "Hong Kong" on the dial. The back has "Base Metal Bezel Stainless Steel back."
On the inside is "Helbros 780 Swiss Case."

The mechanism is unlike any I've ever seen. There's a metal cover and what appears to be an adjustment over the movement. However, two tiny copper-wound solenoids are visible. The case back gasket looks odd and is misshapen. Whomever last changed the battery didn't have it on correctly, and it's warped and hard. Would have to replace before I even considered wearing it. The watch had an Energizer 394 battery, held in place by a metal strap unlike any I've seen before. One end has an eye and serves as a pivot, and the other is only a half-moon, which means you can loosen both screws and slide the strap back. It's also slightly bent to act as a spring to hold the watch tight.

I'm not going to tell my mother, but the watch shows a good bit of wear. The silver plating is missing from the end of the stem, and there's a number of tiny dings right around the crystal. The crystal itself has a crack on the edge that doesn't extend into the face, and doesn't go through it. The watch has great sentimental value, but that's it. I would wear it as a dress watch, if I replace the case back O ring, but mostly because it was my father's. I did have to adjust the band - my father was slightly taller, but I'm larger framed, and couldn't get the band over my hand. It's one of those with a clasp-type buckle that you adjust by moving the spring pins. I had to run them all the way out before they would fit.

The watch does work. I replace the battery tonight, and it's running just fine. Set it, and the date and the day, and we'll see how it works. But since the inside looked clean, I think the movement is still in perfect condition, but we will see.
 

ajkel64

Check Out Chick
Staff member
Nice to have a family heirloom to wear around. I have finished up with watches from Uncles, Aunts, Grandparents, Cousins. When I was much younger (teens) one Aunt gave me a particularly horrible digital watch that I disliked. I used to wear it to her place when we visited her and she thought that I wore it all the time.
 
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