Corum Admirals Cup 947.941.55/V700 AN52 Automatic Black Dial 48mm Watch

Historical Perspectives: Audemars Piguet And The Ultra Thin Automatic Tourbillon Caliber 2870 (AKA The Thinnest Self-Winding Tourbillon Ever)
There are, let’s face it, not a whole lot of real firsts in watchmaking, which isn’t surprising when you think about its history. The lever escapement, which is found  in basically every modern watch in one form or another, blew into town in 1750; the minute repeater had basically taken on its current form by the end of the 18th century; the first perpetual calendar watch is probably one made by Thomas Mudge, in 1764.  The history of watchmaking is very much a history of small, hard-won incremental improvements that unfolded over a very long period of time, which is why watches like Audemars Piguet’s caliber 2870 automatic tourbillon – less well known for its reference number, 25643, than for the name of the movement, for reasons we’ll see shortly –  continue to be interesting, and continue to be stories worth telling. The other reason (besides intrinsic interest) that the caliber 2870 is worth remembering is because it’s one of

Can anyone identify this vintage watch?
I have had my grandfather's 14K gold Longines for about 20 years. I use it as my dress watch. Here is a pic of it on my wrist:Anyway, today I found an identical watch (but a bit cleaner) for sale in Germany. Here is a pic from the website.I never thought I would see another of these, which makes me wonder if I could learn more about it. It has no markings on the back except for the 14k mark. Has anyone ever seen one of these before? Were they common? My grandfather probably got this in the '40's or '50's. He died in 1974 when I was 4. By the end of his life he enjoyed some luxury items (he drove a Cadillac) but was not "rich". My late father told me that this was my grandfather's everyday watch (it was on a stretchy Speidel band when I got it). Anyway, any help you could provide would be greatI would love to learn more about this heirloom.

Which Seiko or Japanese watch?
Hi,I'm an English guy living in Strasbourg, France...I just thought I would introduce myself.I am new to watch collecting. I am an investor by trade but also have a hobby business dealing with very rare and highend audio equipment, the majority both to and from Japan and Asia...hence my posting here.Is there a book about Japanese and Asian watches I could buy?I have read some information about Grand Seiko and their early watches. They look very impressive but they appear to be very rare and relatively expensive. Did they change the face of watch manufacture with respect to accuracy with their quartz movement? I see that they produced a Grand Seiko Astronomical Observatory Chronometer (try saying that after a few glasses). Do you think that this is the pinnacle of rare Seiko? I would like to begin a collection but want to start on the right footing!My apologies for so many questions on a first post :) Have a nice evening.RegardsRichard

Dial restored
I'm sharing this experience as a general matter, and not Rolex specific, that's why I'm posting hereSome time ago, I started the restoration of this Rolex, heirloom from an uncle...Well, the job is almost done, the only thing that I'm still waiting is for the new crystal to arriveBut today I received back from the U.S. my restored dial, and I have to say that the job done is simply wonderful...This is how it was before it's trip to USA for restorationThis is how it looks now, after the restoration, sorry for the pics, but you get the idea (I really need a new camera )All was repaired, repainted and fixed, including the luminous markers, and honestly, I'm very happy, because as you can see, this dial has a very rare (at least to me) markers in the 6 and 9 positions.I was looking for a replacement, and couldn't find one with this kind of markers, so, the restoration was the road to walk...The job was made by Kirk Rich Dial in CaliforniaMany many thanks to Steve (member N2FHL) for giving

El Tudorino
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