# Certina Blue Ribbon



## Marrick (May 2, 2007)

My first Certina! 

Blue Ribbon model, 27 jewel Certina 25 - 65 automatic. Very clean.

*From the Certina site about the Blue Ribbon model introduced 1961: *

_ Thanks to its having produced the most resistant watch in the world, Certina is now also amongst the world's greatest names in watchmaking.Introduced to the public and other professionals at the MUBA, the Blue Ribbon watch and its extraordinarily flat automatic movement are big hits. Named after the coveted title for the record-setting transatlantic steamship crossings of the Queen Mary, the Normandie and the United States, the Blue Ribbon rides a wave of success._

Does anyone know if there is a table of Certina serial numbers anywhere on the web?


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## Freddo_in_Oz (Apr 22, 2007)

Marrick,
That is a beautiful watch!
I love Certinas. Until the quartz era they were always the best quality watch you could buy for a reasonable price.
Sorry, no idea on reference sites. Since the brand is now part of the Swatch juggernaut maybe they can give you some info.
John


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## Marrick (May 2, 2007)

Freddo_in_Oz said:


> Marrick,
> That is a beautiful watch!
> I love Certinas. Until the quartz era they were always the best quality watch you could buy for a reasonable price.
> Sorry, no idea on reference sites. Since the brand is now part of the Swatch juggernaut maybe they can give you some info.
> John


Thank you Freddo - think how good Axel or Pacifichrono would have made it look! I only spotted it an hour before it finished on ebay. It was headed 'Watch' so I think most collectors had missed it. Got it for £20 (44 AUD); which I am rather pleased about.


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## Ray MacDonald (Apr 30, 2005)

Here's an article on Certina which says that production records are not readily available, sadly. :-(
http://www.watchcarefully.com/articles/certina.html


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## Marrick (May 2, 2007)

Ray MacDonald said:


> Here's an article on Certina which says that production records are not readily available, sadly. :-(
> http://www.watchcarefully.com/articles/certina.html


Thanks Ray. Not that it matters that much - but its always nice to be able to say '1965' rather than 'sometime in the 1960's'. Anyway, its a great article. Cheers.:-!


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## Axel66 (Sep 28, 2006)

Congrats!

And thanks for the compliment. I'm still hunting for a steel Blue Ribbon. But I'm not in a hurry, specially since I should pic-up my first DS-2 automatic tomorrow!

But your BR is really an elegant looking watch. Something like that would really pair up with my Waterking:








even if the Waterking is handwound and most likely from the early 70's.

Cheers,

Axel


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## Marrick (May 2, 2007)

Looking forward to another super picture!


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## Hartmut Richter (Feb 13, 2006)

Very nice watch. Not quite original by the looks of it: the 25-65 had no date feature. This was found in the 25-651. The rotor has the non-date code which suggests that the original rotor was replaced at some time, either by Certina (after their stocks of original items had expired?!) or by someone else. Only other explanation is that Certina wasn't that picky when they assembled the original.

Off topic point (from a sailor and die-hard fans of tall ships): the original blue ribbon was given not to steam liners sailing the Atlantic in which you simply had to shovel some coal onto a fire but to the clipper ship that could bring the first tea of the the season to London. Rather more difficult than switching on an engine, I would say - especially when you remember that a ship the size of the Cutty Sark had a standard crew of only 28 and at worst had to make do with 19 men.....

Hartmut Richter


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## Marrick (May 2, 2007)

Hartmut Richter said:


> Very nice watch. Not quite original by the looks of it: the 25-65 had no date feature. This was found in the 25-651. The rotor has the non-date code which suggests that the original rotor was replaced at some time, either by Certina (after their stocks of original items had expired?!) or by someone else. Only other explanation is that Certina wasn't that picky when they assembled the original.
> 
> Off topic point (from a sailor and die-hard fans of tall ships): the original blue ribbon was given not to steam liners sailing the Atlantic in which you simply had to shovel some coal onto a fire but to the clipper ship that could bring the first tea of the the season to London. Rather more difficult than switching on an engine, I would say - especially when you remember that a ship the size of the Cutty Sark had a standard crew of only 28 and at worst had to make do with 19 men.....
> 
> Hartmut Richter


Thank you Hartmut - I hadn't noticed. The date function works fine - and quick sets at 23-24 like the Ranfft entry says it should. So as you say, it must be just the wrong rotor. I can live with that!

With regards to the Blue Ribbon (or Riband) you are - of course - quite right. Lots of stuff here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Riband

But its a bit odd that Certina used the name in the 60's when the events referred to were in the 30's and 50's. Never mind!


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## Axel66 (Sep 28, 2006)

Marrick said:


> Looking forward to another super picture!


Maybe you like that one as well:









Cheers,

Axel


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## Marrick (May 2, 2007)

Of course - its lovely. I'm getting quite fond of Certinas now. Cheers. b-)


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## Jeager (Mar 23, 2013)

I've got a 1974 Gold Certina Blue Ribbon watch with it's original receipt. It was my fathers watch, and he paid 738 $ for it back then. He later put a gold "brick" type band on it, and I have the receipt for that as well. I need to get that band fitted to my wrist, and that is not something you can do easlly.
I'll get some pictures posted soon, but it is a cool watch.


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## Marrick (May 2, 2007)

It sounds nice - looking forward to seeing the pictures.:-!


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## TurboHarm (Aug 24, 2014)

Hello Guys..Looking at a Certina blue ribbon in Europe its asking price is $350.00 euros is that a good deal or what are they worth at a solid deal price? anyone know out there? The wave model it has 2 small waves on the face with writing..IT has a really nice looking bracelet and looks in excellent shape? Please advise...turboharm


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## Shum (May 24, 2013)

TurboHarm said:


> Hello Guys..Looking at a Certina blue ribbon in Europe its asking price is $350.00 euros is that a good deal or what are they worth at a solid deal price? anyone know out there? The wave model it has 2 small waves on the face with writing..IT has a really nice looking bracelet and looks in excellent shape? Please advise...turboharm


That is a lot of money for a Blue Ribbon but then I haven't seen the watch in question as there are limited versions that then are more sort after. A bog standard Blue Ribbon you can get for under $100.


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## smeagal (Mar 1, 2014)

View attachment 7182178
View attachment 7182210
View attachment 7182242
I have had this blue ribbon for a couple of days now and keeps good time is it worth while getting the dial restored the case is in very good condition using the chart I date it to 1963


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## Tony C. (Dec 9, 2006)

Congratulations! In my view, Certina represents particularly good value in the vintage market. As a related aside, I was recently in Schaffhausen where a vintage IWC of mine was being serviced. It was not being serviced by IWC, but by a watchmaker who worked for the company years ago, and has been independent for a long time. We happened to be talking about other brands that were active in the 1950s and '60s, and, unsolicited, he mentioned that he holds the Certina automatics of that period in very high regard! This coming from a man who has worked on countless IWC cal. 85x movements, one of the best automatics ever produced.

Cheers,

Tony C.


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## Shum (May 24, 2013)

I can't see the pictures.

Certina sure are undervalued and the automatics are a bit special. The low prices for Certina watches make them a great brand to collect as you get a lot for your money and for us with a spartan budget you can get a very nice collection.


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## smeagal (Mar 1, 2014)

Shum said:


> I can't see the pictures.
> Certina sure are undervalued and the automatics are a bit special. The low prices for Certina watches make them a great brand to collect as you get a lot for your money and for us with a spartan budget you can get a very nice collection.[/QUOTE
> View attachment 7189418
> ]
> ...


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## Shum (May 24, 2013)

Looks like it just could be dirt. Certina was very proud when they launched the Blue Ribbon as it was one of the thinnest automatics to date.

If you open the watch to clean the dial don't use water near the text as they could be transfer stickers as Certina often used these. And I think you have a front loader to boot.


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## smeagal (Mar 1, 2014)

Shum said:


> Looks like it just could be dirt. Certina was very proud when they launched the Blue Ribbon as it was one of the thinnest automatics to date.
> 
> If you open the watch to clean the dial don't use water near the text as they could be transfer stickers as Certina often used these. And I think you have a front loader to boot.


Will check thanks


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