# Help Please With Pocket Watch



## Hunky (Nov 21, 2011)

Hi,

I've been going through my late mother's belongings and have found a gold pocket watch which I believed belonged to my grandfather.

The watch says it is a J.W.Benson 22 carat gold watch which seems to be keeping time OK. It is a half-hunter and has an identifying number of 272525. It has 3 hands on the main dial and 2 sub-dials. For "normal" time there is an hour and minute hand on the main dials and the seconds are on a sub-dial. The second hand on the main dial appears to be like a stop watch with minutes being recorded on the second sub-dial. Inside it has the inscription "By Warrant to H.M. the late Queen Victoria" as well as "Swiss made", "J.W.Benson" and "62 & 64 Ludgate Hill, London". I do not have a presentation case, it is in a chamois leather pouch. Also there appears to be an adjuster to correct if the time os going slow or fast.

When the half hunter cover is opened there is no glass covering over the hands - is this normal?

I was wondering if someone could tell me a bit more about it. For instance: how do I know if it's genuine; how old is it; is it common or rare; how much is it worth? Also should I have any maintenance done it before using it. It seems to keep good time and be in good working order, but probably hasn't been used since 1973 or earlier (if at all).

Many Thanks

Hunky


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## harryblakes7 (Oct 1, 2010)

Hi there.......

I won't call you "hunky" as a bit dodgy coming from a bloke!!  

It would be great to have some pics, J W Benson do 18ct watches but i have not seen a 22ct gold one, as the gold would be quite soft for a relatively modern watch. There are 22 ct gold pocket watches out there but these are 1750-1820 era really and usually repousse or engraved case

It's easy to put some pics on the screen, front page on the forum is a pinned topic which shows you how, also if you go to the "introduce yourself" forum and put a bit of background info that all helps for the community........

and welcome to the forum, :welcome:







it's a great place to be :yes:

Cheers,

Harry


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## Julian Latham (Jul 25, 2005)

J W Benson was a jewellers with a reputation for high quality. Their watch dial/movement will be labelled J W Benson but are sourced from a variety of manufacturers and will be the best available.

If you can provide clear images (dial, movement, any inscriptions on the inner side of the cover(s)) it wont take long to identify the make of the movement and (from hall marks) the date of manufacture.

It isn't common practice on this forum to give valuations as this is something of a mine field.

Armed with model details you should be able to Google/Ebay completed listings for similar watches and get some idea of the range of prices.

J W Benson watches usually command a bit of a premium due to their carefully maintained reputation for quality.

P.S. - Their should be a 'glass' protecting the face, only braille dials are made without one.


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## Julian Latham (Jul 25, 2005)

Click on this Link to a previous post with a lot of information about Bensons.


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## Hunky (Nov 21, 2011)

Whoops, It is 18 carat not 22. My mistake.

Will try and work out how to upload some photos this weekend

Thanks

Hunky


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## Roger the Dodger (Oct 5, 2009)

Hunky said:


> Will try and work out how to upload some photos this weekend
> 
> Thanks
> 
> Hunky


Hi, Hunky..(mate..you really need to change your user name... :lol: )...so many new members are baffled as to how to post pics, that I have come up with a detailed guide. I hope it helps as you are the first I've tried it on...let me know if it's of any use....

*Roger the Dodgerâ€™s Concise Guide to Posting pics to and from Photobucket.*

The first thing to do is to upload your pics onto your computer, and store them. (My Documents, My Pictures etcâ€¦I tend to put my pics on a flash drive, so theyâ€™re safe.)

Next go to Photobucket and open an account. The basic package is free and you will be able to store hundreds of pics there.

To upload a pic, go to your Photobucket album and click on the green upload bar.










A new window with a large green bar that says â€˜Select Photos and Videosâ€™ opens.










Click the bar, and a drop down window appears in the top LH corner. Select the folder where your pics areâ€¦(My Docs, My Pics, flash drive, etc) and highlight the file/s you want, then click â€˜Openâ€™ in the bottom RH corner of the window. The pics will now upload. When done, click on â€˜Save and Continue to my Albumâ€™. The pics will be arranged into a grid.

When you want to post one, hover the cursor over the pic, and a drop down box appears.










L click on the fourth option (the one with IMG at the start) and it will say â€˜copiedâ€™

Now, return to your post. Itâ€™s easier to have two tabs open so you can switch between the two quickly, especially if you want to put in several pics (up to 5 per postâ€¦if you want to add more, youâ€™ll have to start a follow on post). Put your cursor under any text you have written and R click to bring up the paste option, then L click on paste. The image URL will be pasted directly under the text, complete with the IMG tags. Press â€˜Preview postâ€™, to check everything is OK, then â€˜Add replyâ€™ when youâ€™re happy with it.

Some tipsâ€¦

Keep your pics small (1 million pixels)â€¦they take up less storage space. Some cameras have a setting for email sized pics. You only need them bigger in size if youâ€™re going to enlarge them. Donâ€™t panic if your camera wonâ€™t take small pics, the forum software will re size them anyway.

By using the 4th URL choice with the IMG tags, you donâ€™t need to use the tree icon that you may have read about in other threads, which always seems to give people trouble.

If you have several different tastes in watches, or anything else for that matter, consider creating different albums from the outsetâ€¦you will have the option to do this. (eg Normal watches, divers watches, pocket watches etc) and store your pics in the respective album. I say this because if you create a new album at a later stage, and move existing pics into it they will be deleted from your previously posted threads.


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## Shangas (Jan 27, 2008)

Hey there...'Hunky'...

Your watch sounds extremely interesting. If you post photographs, we'll be happy to help you figure out as much as we can about it. I'm not too familiar with the name, but from what I've learn on this forum, Benson watches are quite desireable.


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## Hunky (Nov 21, 2011)

Hi, thanks for all the help so far, especially to Roger the Dodger for the clear instructions on how to get pictures into a post.

I wasn't expecting any adverse reaction to my username. It is a common nickname for my family and is a play on words "Hunky Dory" given my surname is Dorey. It's no indication of my belief in my physique, in fact one person reckons anyone calling me Hunky should be done under the trade description act.

Below are three pictures I took of the watch the other day. In retrospect they aren't brilliant (especially as the inscriptions aren't readable!), but I can't take any more at the moment as I've taken the watch into a watch repairer to have a new glass and service if necessary. I gather the new "glass" may have to be perspex. Hopefully he will be able to provide me with more info as well. I'll post some better pictures when I get the watch back.




























Hunky (or Andy if you are more comfortable with that)


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## Roger the Dodger (Oct 5, 2009)

That's better! Well for a start it's what is known as a half hunter case. The watch looks as if it has its original hands, especially the double spaded hour hand that can be seen through the front crystal when the cover is closed. It appears to be crown wind and pin set (turn the crown to wind, then press the pin to the R of the crown with your nail, and turn the crown to set the time) It also appears to have a central second hand as well as the two sub dials...the one at 9 o'clock looks to be seconds, but I can't make out what the markings on the dial at 3 o'clock are ....are they hours? It may be what is referred to as a 'Doctors' watch, the pulse being checked with the large centre seconds hand, but with the two sub dials and the start/stop pusher at the 12 o'clock position, it may also be a stopwatch. Benson is a very well respected maker, and now that we've got some pics, I'm sure some other members will add their remarks.


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## Shangas (Jan 27, 2008)

Bottom dial - Seconds subdial.

Top dial - I THINK it's a power-reserve indicator. But I can't be sure.

It has a stopwatch feature, but I'm not sure if that alone makes it a doctor's watch. I believe that REAL doctor's watches had the pulsation-markings printed onto the dial.


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