Bulova ‘Prince’ Cal.7AK c1944 Sterling Silver

Bulova

Bulova was founded and incorporated as the J.Bulova Company in 1875 by Bohemian immigrant Joseph Bulova. It was reincorporated under the name Bulova Watch Company in 1923, became part of the Loews Corporation in 1979. Throughout its history, Bulova developed a reputation for technological innovation and for adapting to the changing needs of customers and the evolving trends of the market.

Description

The Bulova with the two dials is often referred to as a ‘doctors watch’ or ‘duo-dial’. The rectangular second dial enables the wearer to time heartbeats, etc., more accurately. The watch we have here is an incredible example of a Bulova ‘prince’ watch from c1944. This watch carries an original, unrestored, and untouched silver-white dial along with a very high-grade calibre 7AK and 21 jewel hand wound movement, all of which are housed by an incredible rectangular sterling silver case. Simply outstanding.

The Dial

As mentioned above, this rare Bulova was made with a purpose. This particular example has an original, unrestored, and untouched silver-white dial with original blued steel hands that sweep 1 – 12 standard Arabic numerals. This watch is particularly special because the hours are shown on the top dial, the minutes are read in the centre of the dial, and finally, the subsidiary seconds dial is on the bottom half of the dial. All of these many aspects piece together this wonderful watch perfectly.

The dial is simply signed with ‘Bulova’ at the very top of the dial below 12.

This dial is original and unrestored and 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 unusually good 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 that 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 high-grade Bulova calibre 7AK, 21 jewel, hand-wound movement is in incredibly clean and sparkling condition and has just been fully overhauled and serviced by our expert vintage specialist watchmaker.

The movement has been fully overhauled by our Master Watchmaker. This means stripping the watch down to all its component parts, careful inspection under high magnification, replacement where necessary with only genuine parts, then careful reassembly, oiling and adjustment to manufacturer specification, before final calibration in 5 positions. This watch winds, sets and runs accurately and reliably within +15 seconds per day. Please bear in mind this is outstanding for any watch of this age. We are therefore highly confident in offering a 12 months warranty with this watch movement*.

This particular movement is in beautiful condition and with similar care and regular servicing, say every 3 to 4 years, we would fully expect this watch to continue to run very happily for another 50+ years! We are therefore totally confident in offering this watch with our 12 months’ written warranty*.

The movement is simply signed ‘Bulova Watch Co’ and ‘7AK’.

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

The Watch Case

This watch has a particularly elegantly shaped case with attractive rounded lugs in sterling silver. It measures 23mm across, excluding the correct unsigned crown, and 35mm from top to bottom. This may seem a little small, but it is, in fact, quite a large watch for the period, especially when one considers it is 49mm across the diagonal, including the lugs. The two-piece case is not hinged, but is opened using the bottom lip and swings open, revealing the dial. The movement can then be removed without any tools by holding the upper case and gently lifting the case back away from the main case – not recommended for the inexperienced or faint at heart.

When acquiring such a rectangular or square watch, it is important to ensure the case shows no wear, no fatigue cracks or pinholes, particularly around the hinge and corner areas. This type of case is prone to wear and damage in these areas, which is another reason these watches are rare, as cases become beyond repair and restoration. Fortunately, this example has been extremely well cared for and very lightly used, so besides our usual careful examination and cleaning, the case has required little work apart from some very light hand-polishing.

The inside of the case back is correctly signed with the case serial number 869019 and the correct sterling silver hallmark .935.

As always, 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 black leather strap and plain stainless steel buckle. 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 is no original paperwork with this watch, the reference numbers, markings, signatures and hallmarks are all correct, dating the watch to c1944.

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 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”.

This watch comes complete with a high quality hardwood presentation box.

Payment and Delivery

If you would like to pay by bank transfer, we will be pleased to assist you with this and pass on a 3% saving to you. Paying by bank transfer for a 3% saving will not affect your 12 months warranty. 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

This is a truly rare and collectable example of a 1940s vintage Bulova ‘Prince’ hand-wound watch which is ready to wear and completely practical for everyday use. If treated with care, it will make an excellent investment or heirloom piece and even though vintage prices have risen markedly recently, we still feel good examples such as this are still undervalued. As each year goes by and the world market for vintage watches continues to expand, prices will continue to climb ever higher.

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 watches.

Thank you.