# Raketa 24 Hour



## aezakmi42 (Dec 28, 2010)

I should never have bought that broken Molnija pocket watch at that junk vendor's stall - I feared even then that it might be the start of an obsession. I've always been drawn to unusual or uncommon mechanical things - it started with a couple of typewriters, and now the sprawling, confusing world of Russian/Soviet mechanical watches has entranced me.

But I fear that I've stumbled raw and unprepared into a large and unfamiliar land, giddy with the weird thrill of novelty and naive to the ever-lurking dangers of fakes, scams and other dodgy deals. So it is to you, the great people of Watchuseek forums, that I turn in this grim hour of sober realisation, seeking guidance in this new, financially hazardous environment.

But enough of my unhinged rambling, I'll come to the point; my first foray into the multitudinous world of eBay was in search of a Russian 24-hour mechanical watch, and it was there, after no small amount of searching, that I discovered this very handsome-looking specimen of the apparently-much-renown Raketa 24-hour wristwatch:








It bore all the details I wanted; the all-cyrillic labelling, the even-numbered main face, the second timezone internal bezel, the CCCP State Mark of Quality - but I barely even know what sort of thing I've gone and purchased!

My limited online research of the Raketa 24-hour watch has left me with confused impressions - it seems to be a kind both famous and infamous. On one hand, they supposedly keep excellent time for cheap Russian mechanicals, they are very reliable and are genuinely made in Russia. On the other hand, they're said to be less waterproof than toilet paper and about as durable, nobody can decide if the factory is bankrupt or not, and what's more, the Raketa company themselves seem to be asserting that practically every 24-hour Raketa available for under $100 is either a fake or a Frankenstein, and that 'old Soviet stock' is a myth.

So now that I've bought this thing, and even now it is winging its way to the Land Down Under via air-mail from Kiev, I don't quite know what to expect. The seller openly concedes that this is not a new-old-stock watch, it is second-hand and previously worn, which I take as a positive sign. So is this watch likely to be genuinely Soviet-made? Is it likely to work well? The seller claims that this watch has 21 jewels rather than the more usual (perhaps?) 17 or 19 - is this just a lie? What, in short, should I have known before I bought this?

P.S: I apologise for the ridiculous long-windedness of this post, I'm not good at keeping it short


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## Dennis Smith (Feb 15, 2006)

Keep us posted on this watch. I enjoyed your post. I know as much about Russian watches as you do. I also find much of it confusing. It seems you do need to have patience and work a bit to find realy nice ones...like the one you have coming.


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## pyjujiop (Dec 7, 2009)

That looks like a perfectly fine pre-owned Raketa 24-hour watch from the Soviet era. It should keep good time and work well as long as you don't expose it to water. Other than that, they're durable enough. That's why so many of them still exist today and work well, more than two decades after they were made.

The movement in that watch is the Raketa 2628.H, which has 19 jewels. I don't think the seller was misleading you, he probably just has no idea. How many jewels a watch has doesn't necessarily mean it's better. This site: movements1 will help you identify Russian movements.

I don't think the modern Raketa company really has any connection to the Soviet-era Raketa other than that they are called Raketa and operate out of Petrodvoretz. They're trying to revive the legendary name and I wish them well, but they aren't the last word on "made in USSR" Raketa watches.


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## aezakmi42 (Dec 28, 2010)

Thanks pyjujiop, that's good information to know. I was a bit confused by the seller's claim of 21 jewels, because he had a number of similar Raketas available, and they were correctly listed as 19-jewel. He seems like a reliable sort of salesman though, so I'm inclined to believe it was an honest mistake on his part.

Regarding the Raketa company, I think most of the recent furore has been in regards to the multitude of Raketas sold as 'new', eg:
This red one
Or this white, rotating bezel one
That second one is almost certainly a fake of some kind - the face is not well finished at all, and the odd mix of Russian and English labelling on the same watch is a dead give-away.

I prefer the style and character of the more 'antique' watches anyway; so for me it's a double bonus to know that these older ones are the most likely to be genuine and good-quality.

@Dennis Smith: I'll keep you posted on the watch - hopefully it'll be here soon, and we can see if it lives up to the seller's pictures!

Also, can anyone advise me on how to tell when watches like this need a service, and how much it's likely to cost? I've only owned cheap quartz watches before and they generally don't require that much maintenance. I know a few professional watch repairers around Brisbane city, I asked one about my busted Molnija and he gave the rather discouraging quote of $260 to get it working, but to be fair, it does need a whole new balance wheel and spring. (Speaking of which, if anyone out there has a broken Molnija 3602 I'd be more than happy to donate mine for parts, it's in very good cosmetic condition.)


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## Seele (Jan 9, 2010)

aezakmi42,

There's been a lot of claims and counterclaims regarding Raketa and its manufacturer, but we can be certain of a few things.

The proliferation of fraudulent pieces was due to scatty management during the later Soviet days, when quantities of watch components - especially completed 24-hour movements - escaped through the factory back doors "unofficially". These components became the bases of the fraudulent pieces, being assembled by any Joe Bloggs who had a screwdriver. Of course, the shortage of some parts would induce them to make replicas parts, or even total fantasies for appealing to unsuspecting customers. Consider this: the factory - along with a fair number of staff members - got blown to smithereens by enemy action, if the company actually made dials celebrating WWII German war machineries, the manager would have spent the last few years bouncing around in a padded room!

Needless to say the fraudulent pieces were made with minimal care - if any at all; at the Russian Forum we get reports of fundamental faults like the hands tower propping up the crystal so it could not be seated properly, etc.

The best way to get a new Raketa 24-hour watch is to buy from an authorized dealer, such as M-watches. Their online catalogue is also a resource, so you can compare suspicious examples against them. If I am to get a new one, it's a no brainer: ADs get my vote, unless I am absolutely certain that the example in question is totally straight.

But your example is genuine, it is actually a design I like a lot: nicknamed "Polar Explorer" it is also great for international travellers too. This design has been revived in the new collection, with good water resistance performance.

pyjujiop, compared to many "revived brands" such as Graham and perhaps a dozen others, I feel the current company does continue the bloodline since 1721; administrations come and go, but it has more of a claim - at the very least - to be the same on-going establishment.


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## aezakmi42 (Dec 28, 2010)

There's certainly a lot of weird watches out there - I even encountered a 24-hour mechanism in one of those enormous Zlatoust diver cases (and not even a real one, by the looks):








That's so utterly bizarre I'd almost be tempted to buy it, if it weren't $300. (There were cheaper ones on eBay some weeks ago, but I missed them). There must have been a hell of a lot of 2623.H movements escaping the official factory; it seems like, as you say, every clod and their dog with access to spare parts and a screwdriver has been busily knocking out Russian Frankensteins for the past few decades. I've just purchased a 'Luch' branded slim pocket watch that's powered by a Poljot 2209 gold-plated wristwatch movement (for a very reasonable price, I might add), I have my suspicions about that one, too! It's a weird and confusing world, right enough.

It's reassuring to know my watch is genuine, and now I know what to call it, too. I think one of the features that I like most about this particular model is the main dial having even numbers (starting at 2, rather than the 1, 3, 5, etc layout that seems more usual on 24 Raketas); to my eye that seems like a more natural, readable way to format the dial. The plain-numbered internal bezel (as opposed to all the cities and obscure Antarctic stations) also drew my eye; since I'm planning to travel overseas as much as I can in the near future, the second time zone feature should be very useful for me. You can probably tell, I'm anxious for it to arrive!


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## Seele (Jan 9, 2010)

The Luch you mentioned might not be as frankensteinian as it appears. The 2209 movement was a Poljot design, first used in the ultra-thin Vympel, then the series was re-named Poljot De Luxe (which also included auto-wind watches with and without date). Later on Poljot sold the design to Luch, who carried on building this movement and watches to employ it.

The "Zlatoustesque" diver sure seems very dodgy indeed and is as fake as they come; even if it is very cheap I would avoid it; I'd say even a Zlatoust-build "tourist version" would be more desirable, but of course the company is getting back into the wristwatch business as we speak.


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## DanC (Dec 25, 2010)

Seele said:


> The best way to get a new Raketa 24-hour watch is to buy from an authorized dealer, such as M-watches. Their online catalogue is also a resource, so you can compare suspicious examples against them. If I am to get a new one, it's a no brainer: ADs get my vote, unless I am absolutely certain that the example in question is totally straight.


Looks like M-watches is sold out at the moment. Do you know of any other sources?

Thanks,
Dan


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## djsm (Dec 11, 2014)

aezakmi42 said:


> There's certainly a lot of weird watches out there - I even encountered a 24-hour mechanism in one of those enormous Zlatoust diver cases (and not even a real one, by the looks):
> 
> 
> 
> ...


There are a lot of franken 24 h raketas around. I am interested in some cheap ones, but it bothers me the dials.

Why .... dials?

You know this is a .... theme isnt it? Maybe awkward to wear in some situations.


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