1920s Regatta Yachting Chronograph, Benzie of Cowes

1920s regatta yachting chronograph, Benzie of Cowes.

The watch has a Minerva stem-winding movement which is working nicely. The movement is protected by an inner hinged cover which has a little scratching where it has been prised open in the past.

The watch measures 63mm diameter excluding the winding crown and the loop. The case is nickel and it is in good condition with just very minor marking.

The watch glass has a couple of minor marks, nothing serious.

The dial is signed “The Leader” and it also has the name of the original retailer, Benzie of Cowes. Benzies was established in 1862 as The Yachtsman Jeweller and they went on to earn eight Royal Warrants. The company is still trading today and they claim to “offer a noble service to royalty and yachting aristocracy”.

The enamel dial has a faint hairline running through number 10 but you need to look closely to see it.

Breguet style hands, a constant seconds dial at 6 o'clock and a 30 minute recorder at 12 o'clock. The first five minutes on the top subsidiary dial are highlighted in red. This is because a regatta start time is decided aboard the jury boat, according to various factors including the weather. There is a first signal typically five or ten minutes before the start and then a second preparatory signal say five or three minutes before the start, and another one minute before. The second signal enables the user to synchronise to perfection.

The chronograph function should not be left constantly running all the time as this will affect the time keeping.

The chrono feature is operated by pressing the top button to start, again to stop and again to re-set to zero.

The watch comes in a new presentation box.

ALL PRICES INCLUDE UK POSTAGE (because of GPSR legislation, we no longer post items less than 100 years old to Europe, including Northern Ireland).

Please contact us regarding international shipping.

All of our watches are checked over before listing, and are also checked for accuracy which is usually within around +/- two to three minutes over 24 hours (unless otherwise stated), which is considered respectable for a vintage watch.

We are a VAT registered company and all purchases are covered by Consumer Regulations.

Credit / debit card purchases up to £300 can be made over the telephone on 01386 750238 or you can proceed via the 'Purchase Antique' button on each listing page. Alternatively, there is a Paypal payment link if you scroll down the page and we also accept bank transfers.

We are an on-line only business and do not have facilities for callers. Our offices are open from Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm.

With regards to appraisals / valuations, we receive a huge number of information requests each day and unfortunately do not have the manpower to deal with them all individually. Our advice would be to contact a local auctioneer for a full appraisal.