# Question About Illinois Pocket Watch



## Rich K. (May 17, 2011)

I just bought this 12s Illinois pocket watch on Ebay. Cost was $38.50, shipping included:



















The movement is marked "The Marquis Autocrat", "Adjusted 3 Positions", "17 Jewels", and "Motor Barrel",and the serial number 4,881,488, besides the company name. The movement is in good, running order and is immaculate, though at some point I should probably get it cleaned and oiled just as a preventative measure.

The case has a snap-on back, and the bow has a lot of wear on one side, speaking of many years of carry. The inside of the case-back has the logo of the Keystone company, but there are no karat markings or silver hallmarks - only the word "METAL". There is also a tiny set of numbers and letters scratched inside the case back, which I am guessing is a jeweler's service ledger mark.

About the only thing I have been able to find out about this watch is the date of manufacture (1927). All of the other watches of this model that I have seen online have white gold or yellow gold cases. These apparently had a unique-sized case and were cased at the factory (again, so I have read), so I am guessing this is the original case.

By the way, the crystal isn't as scratched up as it looks in the photo. I just suck at close-up photos.

So, here are my main questions:

what grade is my movement (I have heard there were several)

What is my case likely made of? Did these ever come in nickel cases?

Did I pay too much for it?

Thanks!


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## AlanJohn (Mar 17, 2011)

You got a real bargain there.Where was I when you were bidding LOL.


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## Rich K. (May 17, 2011)

I just made a "best offer", and she took it right off. She said it was her dad's watch, and she found it in a box of his stuff after he died. She obviously knew nothing about watches - she didn't even know how to get the case-back off.


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## harryblakes7 (Oct 1, 2010)

Lovely watch, It is a Model 3, 12 Size, extra thin version, 3/4 plate.

Interesting that it is marked 17 Jewels. With a motor barrel it should be marked 19 Jewels, as that is how many it has!!

The case would probably be Nickel steel or something similar. When it was purchased he could have the same movement in a Gold Filled case, or Solid Gold, just depends how much he wanted to pay.......

And yes you certainly got a bargain, especially a "Motor Barrel" You probably know this, but it is jewelled so that the power of the mainspring can be transmitted to the centre wheel with virtually no power loss due to friction, compared to a normal pocket watch where you would have to polish the mainspring barrel to a high degree, and then not really get close, a superb feat of American watchmaking. I think American Pocket watches are some of the best ever made! British "Liverpool Windows" watches comes close....

Being a high grade movement, it could well have a Gold train, which is the gears are coated / made of solid gold which reduces friction further still when meshing as gold will mesh smoother than brass.

Someone else maybe able to help out with the case material..... hope that helps


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## Rich K. (May 17, 2011)

harryblakes7 said:


> Lovely watch, It is a Model 3, 12 Size, extra thin version, 3/4 plate.
> 
> Interesting that it is marked 17 Jewels. With a motor barrel it should be marked 19 Jewels, as that is how many it has!!
> 
> ...


I believe the center wheel is gold. The case might be stainless steel - believe it or not, that was considered to be a "fashion metal" in the 1920's and 1930's. The case back has the look of brushed stainless to me, but then I'm no expert.

The watch definitely needs to be cleaned, as it is losing about 2 minutes per day with the regulator on the fastest setting, but I am not really surprised. The lady who sold it said she found it in a box of her father's stuff from his younger years, so the oil is very probably gummed up.


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## harryblakes7 (Oct 1, 2010)

Yep, they did some with Gold centre wheels, and some with all the wheels gold.....

Brushed Stainless steel sounds good!! It should still be bright after a good polish.

The movement after a good service should have excellent timekeeping and will be at least on the + / - 5 sec's a day after running and testing, will be very surprised if not....


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