This Raymond Weil doesn’t only have a dramatic tigers eye dial, but also has a manual wind movement. Model reference 1601.
HOW DO WE DATE THIS WATCH?
There is no 100% reliable way to date any Raymond Weil watch unless you have sales paperwork, so we have to use other evidence. Raymond Weil was founded in 1976, and the movement used in this watch started production in the same year. We are assuming this watch was made shortly after the company was founded, as it doesn’t use the quartz movements that quickly became standard.
CONDITION
Raymond Weil launched at a time where Swiss watch companies were closing weekly. The period is commonly called the quartz crisis, but the fast rise in the price of gold, this investment in technology such as quartz, LED and LCD and the rise of watches being imported from the far east all contributed. Raymond Weil found staff from closing companies. They avoided some of the issues those companies faced by buying in movements (so no R&D investment needed) and not using gold cases. And the company has gone from strength to strength.
This watch has a gold plated case and bracelet, and those are not real diamonds. But it is still a Swiss made watch, with a Swiss FHF69N 17 jewel manual wind movement. The stand out feature is the Tigers Eye dial. when you look very closely you can see this has crazing on the dial (sometimes called a spider dial as it resembles a web) – very unusual but very nice too. The stones are all present and correct, and the movement working nicely. The case does have some plate wear, but the cabochon polished stone in the crown is not cracked or chipped. The Hirsch Lizard leather strap is lightly used, and could be swapped for a new leather strap if preferred.*
*Lizard straps can not be exported from the UK under the CITES agreement, so if you buy this from outside the UK we will fit a new leather strap automatically.
This watch will be supplied with the original presentation box, papers and our Certificate of Authenticity.
Please see the HD video for more detail. All photos and videos are part of the description and are of the actual watch unless mentioned. We do not photoshop any pictures, and the images are copyright of birthyearwatches.com and should not be used without permission.
SIZE
Width with crown 27.9 mm
Width without crown 24.6 mm
Between lugs 14 mm
Lug to lug length 32.7 mm
Case Thickness 8.2 mm
All sizes are approximate.
The watch is photographed on a wrist of 150mm/6 inches.
Included with this watch is a 2 month guarantee and free delivery to UK addresses. If you live outside the UK we can still deliver to most countries. Please see our Worldwide Shipping information, or Contact Us. Payment can be made by most credit or debit cards, bank transfer or PayPal.
From 1st September 2021 we will be planting a tree for every watch we sell, working with the International Tree Foundation (Est 1922) to make this business positive on carbon. By buying anything pre owned you are effectively reusing what already exists, but this takes it further and makes us feel good.
