Here we have a good-looking example of a 1945 Timor ‘Dirty Dozen’ WWW, British Army Issue military watch. It has a well sized 36.5mm case, which is full stainless steel with the broad bevelled bezel design. It has the satin finish to the case. It also has the original broad crown to the right.
The dial is good for the age, it still has a good black tone. The luminous plots are good and well formed, having been relumed. It has bold arabic numerals which are a bright white tone. The railroad track sits around the outside, with the sunken sub-second dial above 6. The dial is signed ‘Timor’ below 12, with the Broad arrow.
The luminous Syringe hands indicate the time and have the replaced luminous in-fill. The screw back is signed with broad arrow and ‘W.W.W.’ marking, with the two serial numbers. Inside is the dust cover, with the manual wind Timor calibre 6060 movement. It has been recently serviced and keeping time to within +/- 20 seconds a day.
It is believed that there were approximately 13,000 Timor Dirty Dozen watches produced.
The model is known for its well sized (36.5mm) full stainless-steel case and its unusual font to the 4 O’clock numeral. The dial maintains its deep black tone and has the dual railroad track chapter rings for the minutes and sub-second dial.
The white signing is bright and clear. The case is in good condition for the age with the satin finish and light marking. The syringe hands are non-original.
History of Dirty Dozen:
They are affectionately known by collectors as the Dirty Dozen, after the 1960s film, which depicted the misadventures of 12 fictional soldiers during WW2. It is also a neat reference to the 12 different examples.
During the 1940s the MOD in Britain required watches to be issued to the military during WW2. They needed to be reliable, accurate and durable. The specification required that they have a black dial, clear Arabic numerals, luminous hour/minute hands, luminous plots, a railroad minute track, a sub-second dial and a shatterproof crystal.
They invited Swiss brands to build watches to these specific criteria. 12 brands were chosen. These were; Buren, Cyma, Eterna, Grana, jaeger LeCoultre, Lemania, Longines, IWC, Omega, Record, Timor and Vertex.
They were the first watch specification designed for military use, rather than the military using watches adapted from civilian design.
They were delivered in 1944 and into 1945, which meant that many of the watches may not have seen action. Comparatively, ATP issue watches were worn throughout the second world war. Despite this, the WWW watches are desirable and widely collected due to the larger sizing of the cases, the black dials and for some examples, the full Stainless cases.
They were issued under the classification of ‘General Service’, but they were issued to special units, including radio operators and artillery staff members.
The watch has the Broad Arrow (pheon) which indicates that it was British Government issue property.
The watches carry the W.W.W. stamp to the rear, which was a code established by the British Army. It simply stood for ‘Watches.Wristlet.Waterproof.’ Two serial numbers were engraved, one being the manufacturers and the second with the letter, from the military store.
Less than 20 collectors in the world have a complete set. Even though over 150,000 were produced in total, one example in particular, the Grana, has a very low production number and subsequently, a high value.
Good examples are hard to come by. They were sent back to the Corps of Royal Electrical & Mechanical Engineers (R.E.M.E), which dealt with all mechanical equipment. They had little interest in preserving originality and with so many watches needing work, the concern was to get them back on the wrist as soon as possible. This means that on the models with serial numbers on the case back and the lugs, not many match due to other backs being put on.
Post war, examples were also replaced with non-radioactive dials.
Please see the images as these compliment and aid the description provided below. A further condition report is below.
Dial:
The dial is original and is in good condition. It has a pleasing light and even speckled patina. The numerals and signing are bright and white. The railroad track is clear without wear. The plots have been relumed.
Hands:
The hands are a replacement and are not original. They are of Syringe style with the luminous in-fill. The sub-second hand is also a replacement.
Glass:
The acrylic crystal would appear to be an older replacement. It is in good condition with no marking.
Crown:
The crown is stainless steel and is original, with neat coin edge finish. It has slight marking to the face associated with ageing.
Case:
The case is stainless steel and is in good condition for the age. The case has a satin finish with small scratches, as expected with age and wear. The fixed bar lugs are good and strong.
Caseback:
The Steel screw on case back is original. It is in good condition with clear engraving and the original finish. It does have light surface scratching associated with age.
Strap:
The watch comes on a new NATO style strap.
Movement:
The movement is a Timor calibre 6060, which is based on a modified AS 1203 movement. It is a 15-jewel manual wind calibre, which has a beat rate of 18,000 BPH.
The movement has been serviced. It’s keeping time to within +/- 30 seconds a day, with an amplitude of 270 degrees and a beat error of 0.5m/s.
Case dimensions:
Case width: 36mm
Case width with crown: 39.5mm
Case length: 36.4mm
Case length lug to lug: 43.5mm
Case Depth: 11mm
Lug width: 18mm