Vulcain

I am a big fan of many watch brands, but the one that I consistently seek out on eBay is a not very well known company called Vulcain. Established in 1858, they made high quality Swiss watches all through the early 20th century. They disappeared into obscurity for a while but re-emerged in 2001 with a new backer I believe. While some of their new watches are very nice (see here), I love their vintage watches the most which are often a bargain.

My first encounter with Vulcain was when I saw this watch on eBay. I had to have it, it is still probably my favourite looking watch that I own and a joy to wear. The amazing jump hour dials spin instead of having an hour and minute hand. The hour hand snaps neatly into place on the hour every hour. It has a lovely satin finish dial and is a good size watch given its age.



I also managed to pick up this Vulcain chronograph for a bargain price. I've still got to find a strap to do it justice, but I love the complicated dial with its telemeter and tachmeter in red and blue. It is in absolute mint condition for its age, certainly a very smart watch.







I also love this Vulcain Meteor, which is a good solid watch to wear day to day. It has a very elegant dial and reminds me a bit of classic Omegas, very clean and simple

Radium Dials

When the first wristwatches were being made for WW1 and WW2, it was decided that glow in the dark dials would be very useful, for obvious reasons. The new wonder substance at the time was a radioactive element called radium, as discovered by the Curies in 1898. Given the huge lack of knowledge of the effects of radiation at the time, radium was used for everything from pepping up soft drinks to bathing in for therapeutic effects.


So, by combining glue with radium, a man called William Hammer created undark, a glow in the dark paint. Hundreds of young women were hired to paint aircraft dials and watches. They used to point their paintbrush by licking it, and some even painted their teeth and fingernails for fun. This meant they ingested a huge amount of radium. Radium is a bone seeker which once ingested attached to bone material and destroys it. Suddenly, many of the women became very ill, often with jaw problems and many died from it. You can read more about this tragedy here.


There are still hundreds of thousands of radium watches out there, all still highly radioactive. The risk from wearing a radium watch is miniscule but they should be treated very carefully when opened and only professionals should try and repair / remove the paint. The danger is really only from ingesting the paint rather than the small amount of radiation that will get through the glass.

One watch in particular that I own which is still very bright is a Frankenwatch Omega. The dial, case and movement don't all quite match as the original watch but they are all Omega. The real amazing thing about this watch though is its dial, which glows exceptionally brightly, as can be seen from the photos. Lots of fun in clubs or in tunnels on the tube!