# The Glycine Airman SST Thread



## Emre

Re-cap: The Super Sonic Transportation was still a dream to come true in 1960s.Mankind wanted to make a passenger jet which could hit Mach 1.The desire spread allover Europe,United States and Russia.

Aerospatiale and the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) co-developed 'Concorde' under an Anglo-French treaty.
Boeing in the US developed the 2707.
Russia developed the Tupolev TU 144

Concorde presented two protoypes in the June 1969 Air Show in France along with the Russian Tupolev TU-144.The TU 144 crash during the show has negatively affected both investors and raised public concerns for the SSTs. Minds shifted due to the sonic-boom,take-off noise and pollution these SSTs were causing.This,along with funding problems has caused the American Senate to cancel the Boeing SST project in 1971.

Concorde,had to improve the addressed concerns for the SST and had to wait 7 more years until the first scheduled flights in 1976.

With ups and downs,overall the SST was the dream of the mankind which came through and made it also into our beloved watches.This is the background story of our Glycine Airman SST ( aka 'Pumpkin' ) case-back markings.

I've ran into a video which I wanted to share to mark this thread.It's the Boeing 2707 promo film from 1967 (7.33 min Youtube link ).






Let's see your Airman SST watches.


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## kakefe

my lovely chrono...

Sent from my SM-N900 using Tapatalk


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## Robotaz

That video is priceless! Thank you for posting.

I'll be back to post my glamour shot later when I get home.


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## Robotaz




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## Aquavit

Great thread Emre and most incredible video - my how times have changed!

It seems we have moved backward in civil aviation, glorified buses travelling at one third of SST speed with none of the glamour and excitement of earlier days of flying. The whole experience has become depressing, so much so for me that I choose no longer to fly anywhere.

Anyway here's my SST, sadly not a pumpkin or vintage model but the current interpretation SST12:


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## Emre

Nice pumpkin chronos gents,thanks for sharing.Stephen, I always thought that the blue and white dial Airman SSTs are very cool.

The slotted crowns for the inner rotating bezel were developed after first production cross hatched crowns causing unintentional turns.So the user should use his strong nails or coin to change the second time zone.

Let's crown your beautiful timepieces with some related material from 1969 and 1970:








1969 Advertisement








Popular Science Magazine 1970.Google books direct access to the whole magazine ( page 81 and 82 ): Popular Science - Google Books

We have also an Airman SST in NAWCC Museum,wrist watches timeline display 









Thank you Adam, guest curator at NAWCC Museum.Another Glycine timepiece is EMSA in the early automatic watches section.

Let' em come, these wonderful timepieces.


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## Aquavit

Emre, your knowledge and resourcefulness never ceases to amaze me :-!


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## Robotaz

What's the Pepsi bezel watch in the ad?

*edit* it's a Seiko. Nice watch.


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## Emre

Thank you Stephen for your kind words,you are spoiling me 

The years when Airman SST was born,were very fruitful for the world of horlogerie.The first automatic chronographs have been introduced in 1969.Also the battery operated watches started to dominate the market in the same era.Most,if not all Swiss,Japanese and American watchmakers manufactured quartz,electronic,LCD,LED watches including Glycine. 
So unfortunately not after a long time of that magazine publish those watches were facing economical challenges.The quartz Airman started also to appear in that years.
All in all,if we still have these watches around there is one more point to appreciate them,they are real survivors in design,adaptation and function.

I also have a pair of SSTs. One is by my watchmaker,the hacking mechanism is being restored which is a painful and delicate job.Will share photos once I receive it.


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## Dennis Smith

Love SSTs. Don't own one at the moment but have had many.


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## Aquavit

Very cool to see someone using these as a tool rather than man jewellery :-!

An interesting comparison in Dennis' post where the difference in the dial layout between the earlier non-chrono and the chrono SST can be seen.

This highlights what is, IMO, a retrograde step in the current SST models. The inner ring of text, which is where we read GMT from, uses smaller numbers and is set at a different angle to the outer bezel text. The "mis-aligned" text confuses the eye and being smaller is also more difficult to read.

The earlier model SST's are much easier to read having similar size text that runs the same way on both inner and outer rings. Because of the difficulty in reading caused by this I find I have to ignore the inner numerals and take the time from the outer bezel, which sort of negates the idea of having two time zones available at a glance.


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## Dennis Smith

Aquavit said:


> Very cool to see someone using these as a tool rather than man jewellery :-!
> 
> An interesting comparison in Dennis' post where the difference in the dial layout between the earlier non-chrono and the chrono SST can be seen.
> 
> This highlights what is, IMO, a retrograde step in the current SST models. The inner ring of text, which is where we read GMT from, uses smaller numbers and is set at a different angle to the outer bezel text. The "mis-aligned" text confuses the eye and being smaller is also more difficult to read.
> 
> The earlier model SST's are much easier to read having similar size text that runs the same way on both inner and outer rings. Because of the difficulty in reading caused by this I find I have to ignore the inner numerals and take the time from the outer bezel, which sort of negates the idea of having two time zones available at a glance.


Yep, why I eventually sold the chrono. They did a really good job with the SST-06. Much better in this regard than the new SST12


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## happyscrappyheropup

SST purist chrono


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## giokkk67

Hello to all the SST fans! 

I wish to thank you Emre for the amazing video and for all the efforts he does to skill our knowledge on th SST history.

I've been quite lucky to buy a NOS pumpkin SST 06 about a month ago,they are tough to find nowadays.
Great watch,far better compared to the SST 12,I agree with Aquavit,it's difficult to read the time at a glance on th SST 12.

If only Glycine had made the SST 06 in 42mm and not in 44mm it would have been simply perfect,something similat to the original SST.


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## Aquavit

> If only Glycine had made the SST 06 in 42mm and not in 44mm it would have been simply perfect,something similat to the original SST.


Yes, there's always something not quite right it seems. What we need is for Glycine to do a re-issue of the SST faithful to the original (as per the recent Airman 1), same size and dial layout with acrylic crystal.


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## giokkk67

Aquavit said:


> Yes, there's always something not quite right it seems. What we need is for Glycine to do a re-issue of the SST faithfull to the original (as per the recent Airman 1), same size and dial layout with acrylic crystal.


That's a great idea Aquavit,we should ask as a whole Glycine forum to the factory to do the original SST pumpkin re-issue.
Would be interesting to do a poll in the forum to see which kind of response we could get about this "watchuseek" SST project!!


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## Dennis Smith

Yes! Although I would prefer to see it with domed sapphire (for those who prefer acrylic it's really not that hard to get a vintage SST pumpkin).


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## Aquavit

Dennis Smith said:


> Yes! Although I would prefer to see it with domed sapphire (for those who prefer acrylic it's really not that hard to get a vintage SST pumpkin).


Yes, but have you seen the prices!


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## Emre

I think our passion raises the prices 

Here is one of my SST,which is in the hangar having the hacking pin restored.Looking forward to wrap on my wrist,it's already a strong candidate for a daily performer.Waiting is a part of this game,no?


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## happyscrappyheropup

Looks great, Emre. I'm sure it will be worth the wait.


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## Aquavit

Emre said:


> I think our passion raises the prices


I blame Emre for buying up all the vintage stock :-d


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## Emre

Not really, I have only 6 Glycine Airman watches ( 2 SST ) within the whole herd.

The good thing is thanks to Matt,next generation vintage Airman collectors or wearers will have more hack intact Airman watches than we saw.

Here is my second,the Airman chronograph with Valjoux 724 movement:


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## efauser

Hope I came to the right place. While visiting my parents for Thanksgiving today, my father and I started discussing watches. He went into a drawer and pulled out a box of watches. Here's what he pulled out: 2 Timex winders; a Timex Electric; his Waltham A-17 from when he joined the USAF in the mid-50s; his Glycine Airman SST; my Seiko Seahorse (now I know where that went) that he sent me when he was in Viet Nam; his father's Waltham pocket watch and his mother's Lady Hamilton in 14K white gold. As you can see from the photos, the Airman needs a little work. I would like to be able to get it serviced and get the chapter ring (?) replaced. I have no idea what he did with the bracelet. Any suggestions?


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## Emre

Woow nice find efauser,so that's how a tool watch looks eh  
The original SST bracelets surface sometimes in ebay but the inner rotating bezel would be challenging,unless you find a donor SST which is not impossible but might take some time.Will keep heads up for you.


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## efauser

I certainly appreciate your help.


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## Emre

So here is my other SST.

Just arrived from Matt who restored the hacking mechanism, now will travel to Holland for movement service and gasket changes.

It's going to make a half world tour before I can wear it:


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## Dennis Smith

Beauty. Probably my all time favorite Glycine.


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## Emre

If the SST was for one mach passenger jet,here we have 3 mach.

My SST came back from SPA,meanwhile got another one in a trade,so with the SST 06 they became 72 hours of orange therapy

Two vintage Airman SST and a modern SST 06, 'Pumpkin' power:


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## Denke27

Wonderful watches!

Here's my SST06 on black NATO-strap, all the scratches and scars on the watch are genuine, I wear my watches. 



(Photocredits to my friend and photographer Rickard Eriksson)


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## bristnj

I just recently purchased a SST - "Pumpkin". I am totally enamored with these! Unfortunately, it won't arrive for a week or so (will post pics then) . I was looking to see if there was any information on how the "pin" hacking feature works. Does anyone have a few pictures they could share along with a brief explanation? Thanks!!! Jeff


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## Emre

Congrats on your new purchase. Post photos when you receive it We love 'em here.

For hacking photos,explanation,possible concerns and their solutions we have this thread:

https://www.watchuseek.com/f18/vintage-glycine-airman-hacking-problems-check-1032264.html


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## MediumRB

My run-of-the-mill SST-12 on a NATO strap.

Note the authentically misaligned 24-hour hand. Is it half-fast or half-slow? Only I know.
I saw a thread a couple years ago about getting it fixed - simple enough for a local watchmaker to handle?


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## Emre

Nice combo with that band MediumRB,looks great.

Yes the GMT hand misalignment should be an easy fix for a competent local watchmaker. But it's wise to explain how the 24 hour dial and watch works before you hand it over. My local guys never saw before a 24 hour watch and my first service with them made my watch switch date at 12 o'clock noon ( it was a 12 on top model and they even didn't look at the dial before working on it ). They fixed it later though but waste of time meanwhile...


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## Robotaz

Isn't it just positioning it correctly?


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## MediumRB

Robotaz said:


> Isn't it just positioning it correctly?


The 24-hour hand cannot be finely positioned- it jumps from hour to hour as you go to set it. One could position the rotating index bezel to match exactly with the position of the 24-hour hand as desired, but then the fixed index bezel would not be aligned with that. So pick your misalignments, I guess. But it would be better for all of it to line up correctly,


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## Emre

efauser said:


> Hope I came to the right place. While visiting my parents for Thanksgiving today, my father and I started discussing watches. He went into a drawer and pulled out a box of watches. Here's what he pulled out: 2 Timex winders; a Timex Electric; his Waltham A-17 from when he joined the USAF in the mid-50s; his Glycine Airman SST; my Seiko Seahorse (now I know where that went) that he sent me when he was in Viet Nam; his father's Waltham pocket watch and his mother's Lady Hamilton in 14K white gold. As you can see from the photos, the Airman needs a little work. I would like to be able to get it serviced and get the chapter ring (?) replaced. I have no idea what he did with the bracelet. Any suggestions?
> 
> View attachment 2178434
> 
> View attachment 2178442


Just wanted to link the thread in vintage forum for a good read. This above watch has been restored thanks to the commitment of efauser and has been re-united with his father.A journey from 1968 to 2015. It became a watch that doesn't tell just time, it tells a story:

https://www.watchuseek.com/f11/gift-my-father-2049602.html


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## MediumRB

Update on the 24 hour hand misalignment. Took it to a local watchmaker (Basch's in North Olmsted, Ohio) and for a price too low to mention, "Norm" fixed the 24-hour hand. Wonderful guy, had a box full of vintage Rolex bubble-backs and other nice pieces at reasonable prices. Just giving them a shout out for great, valued service. I am a much happier SST-12 owner now.


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## Emre

Thank you for the update MediumRB. 

I wish that manufacture party SST didn't have those issues with the ETA 2893, but good to know and that you confirm it's an easy fix to align the GMT hand by competent service centers.Hats off to the gentleman in Ohio.


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## Vich

Just thought I would post a pic of my "pumpkin" Airman SST. Thanks to Emre for all his help in gaining some facts.

I have had it since I was teenager, it was manufactured in Jan 1968 and the movement is by A.Schild (1902/03 25 Jewels) - happy to be "a member of the club"








Cheers,

Vic


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## Crabtree

My buddies SST among friends today at Legends of the Autobahn in Monterey, CA.....baseball glove strap.....









Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Robotaz

Crabtree said:


> My buddies SST among friends today at Legends of the Autobahn in Monterey, CA.....baseball glove strap.....
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Whoa! Excellent group. Must be nice to have WIS friends. I only have what I've created amongst my friends, and that's pretty weak in all honesty.

I'm jealous.


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## Emre

Some fun videos from the '60s in the week of 'Back to the Future'.

The SST back then was a BIG thing eh:






The computer knows more about you than you do...
Very little walking in the Supersonic age....

As true as in Metropolis






All that age and momentum in one watch: The Glycine Airman SST :-!


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## Robotaz

That first video is insane! Wow!

The best part was the guy casually scratching his butt at :25. lol


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## Emre

hahah such a catch Robotaz.

I like how that guy flies to lock the door of the plane with an old style key, they could have find something like those seat-belts.


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## Uwe W.

Obviously Braniff didn't know "what their future would be like" since they actually went out of business in less than 20 years time...


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## Robotaz

I also love how everyone is fit, yet, "there's no waiting in this supersonic age; and very little walking". 

If only they knew. We wait forever, walk miles in airports, and most (in USA) are still fat. lol

If we had lounge seats that load into the airplane, the seats would need to be able to hold 500 lb.


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## greyfox422

Aquavit said:


> Great thread Emre and most incredible video - my how times have changed!
> 
> It seems we have moved backward in civil aviation, glorified buses travelling at one third of SST speed with none of the glamour and excitement of earlier days of flying. The whole experience has become depressing, so much so for me that I choose no longer to fly anywhere.
> 
> Anyway here's my SST, sadly not a pumpkin or vintage model but the current interpretation SST12:


Easily my favorite SST, great watch!


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## greyfox422

Emre said:


> If the SST was for one mach passenger jet,here we have 3 mach.
> 
> My SST came back from SPA,meanwhile got another one in a trade,so with the SST 06 they became 72 hours of orange therapy
> 
> Two vintage Airman SST and a modern SST 06, 'Pumpkin' power:
> 
> View attachment 2883402


Holy Pumpkins Batman!


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## Sixracer

Been looking at Airman SST for months, finally picked this one up!








I have original bracelet but swapped on a nylon strap.

--
Sent from mobile, please excuse typos


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## Emre

That's a nice SST. That crown for inner rotating bezel at 4 o'clock doesn't look like slotted, so it would be from the earlier examples of SSTs.


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## Sixracer

Yeah, both crowns are cross hatched. I was trying to nail down if that would help me date it.

few questions:

Watch is running very accurately but has been stopping after I put it on the winder for a day. Are these 1903s bi-directional? 
There is also a hint of a rattle from the rotor. I am not sure if that is typical or it is loose?

Given unknown service history I am tempted to have it worked over, especially given above. Is Nevada Watch Repair the best option?

Thanks!



Emre said:


> That's a nice SST. That crown for inner rotating bezel at 4 o'clock doesn't look like slotted, so it would be from the earlier examples of SSTs.


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## Emre

How is its time keeping in 24 hours? And yes generally if you don't know the service history it would be beneficial to have it serviced. Jim, from Nevada watch repair is experienced in vintage Airman , I would recommend him.

As for learning your watches' manufacture date you can send an email to : [email protected] with photos and the serial number I will be happy to share relevant information with you.The serial number should be just below the SST engraving on the case-back. Might be faded but still visible under correct light angle.It should be 6 digits and start with 9 high probably...

Winding direction? Good question; don't have information except that A. Schild made several experiments in '60s and proofed that uni-direction is more efficient in real life than bi-directional. I've read that somewhere may be will find and quote later. If I recall correct JLC confirmed that thesis also, had a lot of technical explanations.

Jim may know more about the caliber and its rotor winding direction.The voice from rotor certainly isn't normal, better to have it checked.

Edit: Does the hacking mechanism work?


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## ccwatchmaker

Yes, A. Schild 1902/03 winds bidirectionally.

James Sadilek - ccwatchmaker


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## wtma

Love the blue degrade dial ...


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## Sixracer

Emre said:


> How is its time keeping in 24 hours? And yes generally if you don't know the service history it would be beneficial to have it serviced. Jim, from Nevada watch repair is experienced in vintage Airman , I would recommend him.
> 
> As for learning your watches' manufacture date you can send an email to : [email protected] with photos and the serial number I will be happy to share relevant information with you.The serial number should be just below the SST engraving on the case-back. Might be faded but still visible under correct light angle.It should be 6 digits and start with 9 high probably...
> 
> Winding direction? Good question; don't have information except that A. Schild made several experiments in '60s and proofed that uni-direction is more efficient in real life than bi-directional. I've read that somewhere may be will find and quote later. If I recall correct JLC confirmed that thesis also, had a lot of technical explanations.
> 
> Jim may know more about the caliber and its rotor winding direction.The voice from rotor certainly isn't normal, better to have it checked.
> 
> Edit: Does the hacking mechanism work?


Hack works like a charm! I was amazed how fine that wire is, can't even see it.

The 24 hr is great. I found myself looking at the GMT hand on other GMTs for a quick gauge where the day was so easy adjustment. The compressor style orange second timezone ring is awesome too.


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## Emre

Thanks Jim, good to know that AS 1902/03 is bi-directional. I guess so is AS 1700/01?


I don't know how much sense it makes but I found that text I mentioned in my previous post ( I can be obsessed in finding things ):


quote: 

A.Schild reportedly performed some testing in the 60s or thereabouts to determine whether uni-directional or bi-directional winding systems were more efficient in real world use and their results were a little surprising. 

They used identical models but simply eliminated one of the switching gears, so the only difference between the test watches was uni-directional vs. bi-directional, with identical gearing ratios, etc. Interestingly, they found that, while the bi-directional winders proved more efficient on many simulators, the uni-directional winders wer more efficient in real world use. 

The reason this is true has to do with a couple of different factors, the first being dead angle and energy lost to the switching action, and the second being dynamic free-running (I think that's what AS called it anyway). Basically, bi-directional winders lose a little bit of potential winding energy whenever the rotor switches directions (the larger the "dead angle" the more energy is lost) and the rotor motion is always damped by the winding action. 

Where a very small motion might propel the rotor significantly in a uni-directional winder (in the free spinning direction) and impart up to a half turn of actual winding energy as it comes to rest thanks to gravity, the rotor in a bi-directional winder given the same impulse might only turn an 1/8 of a turn or so and not get any winding energy as it comes back to rest because of the dead angle in the switching action. 

According to the snippet in Watchtime, JLC's recent research basically confirmed the AS findings. Of course I can imagine that the specific design of the bi-directional and/or uni-directional winding system would factor heavily into the test results and it makes it especially challenging to consider the Pellaton or Seiko Magic Lever systems in such a manner, since these systems are bi-directional by their very nature and have no uni-directional analogs. 

In my experience though, this dynamic free-running that makes uni-directional winders so efficient can result in significantly more wear on the automatic click gearing (depending on how it's designed) and also on the rotor bearing itself (especially if it's a traditional steel ball bearing race). Basically the rotor is doing a lot more spinning and the click (in the automatic, not the ratchet wheel click) is doing a lot more clicking and the result is more wear. I guess JLC thought this was OK by them with their new ceramic ball-bearings (let's hope they're right!). 

All automatic designs are tradeoffs of course and you're right that once they are "efficient enough", all kinds of other considerations (like wear (longevity), reliability, practicality of manufacture, serviceability, etc.) come into play.

/ unquote


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## ccwatchmaker

Emre said:


> Thanks Jim, good to know that AS 1902/03 is bi-directional. I guess so is AS 1700/01?
> 
> All automatic designs are tradeoffs of course and you're right that once they are "efficient enough", all kinds of other considerations (like wear (longevity), reliability, practicality of manufacture, serviceability, etc.) come into play.
> 
> / unquote


Emre,

Yes, the AS 1700/01 is bi-directional, and while we are on the subject, so is the Felsa 692. Your last sentence is key. "Efficient enough" is ideal. Having serviced many 1500 series Rolex models over the years, it is my opinion that the winding mechanism in those calibers is too efficient. A very common wear point on these watches is the mainspring barrel, the barrel arbor and the holes in the plates in which the arbor turns, because the watches are constantly winding more than necessary. Of course, the outer end of the mainspring begins to slip once the mainspring is at full wind, but this does not stop the barrel arbor from continuing to turn with the auto-winding mechanism.

I am aware of the discussions of uni-directional winding compared to bi-directional winding, and as you write, there are many factors involved besides direction. For example, Rolex could have reduced the wear on the mainspring barrel by changing the gear ratio between the oscillating weight and the barrel arbor. Of course, these sorts of design flaws may not show up for years after a design is in production, then it is too late to make changes. Besides, it gave Rolex an opportunity to sell many complete barrels as well as bushings for the main plate and barrel bridge.

As the Rolex 1500 series parts wear, the mainspring barrel begins to tilt between the plates. Over time the outer edge of the barrel rubs the upper plate. At some point the rubbing becomes so severe that the watch stops. Then there is a substantial repair bill. Proper maintenance can mitigate the wear, but it will not eliminate it.

Perhaps it is not generally known, but the reason the watch industry adopted the self-winding watch is no because people are too lazy to wind their watch, although some may be, but because a self-winding watch is capable of better timekeeping because while it is being worn, the mainspring is almost always at full wind. This means balance wheel amplitude is maintained at a high and steady rate which is important for accuracy.

James Sadilek - ccwatchmaker


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## Bill110

Hi everyone, I am new to vintage watch collecting ( I suppose the fever only gets worse) but I have decided that I have to have an original SST. Can anyone tell me if there is any way to really tell if a watch I find online, or in person, is an original? I saw one online last week that was beautiful, hack worked and had two-tone face, but movement said "Glycine watch Co. 17 jewel." Acording to the Stikkers book, they all had 25 jewel movements. Now I see another one with only black face and no hack. How much variation is there along the first run of this model?

Another question I have is, how does one find a "good" local watchmaker? What do you look for in a shop? How did you find yours?

Thanks.


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## Sixracer

Got my SST back from James (ccwatchmaker)after a long overdue service! Can't thank him enough for the great work, and fascinating information about the watch along the way!


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## Sixracer

Bill110 said:


> Hi everyone, I am new to vintage watch collecting ( I suppose the fever only gets worse) but I have decided that I have to have an original SST. Can anyone tell me if there is any way to really tell if a watch I find online, or in person, is an original? I saw one online last week that was beautiful, hack worked and had two-tone face, but movement said "Glycine watch Co. 17 jewel." Acording to the Stikkers book, they all had 25 jewel movements. Now I see another one with only black face and no hack. How much variation is there along the first run of this model?
> 
> Another question I have is, how does one find a "good" local watchmaker? What do you look for in a shop? How did you find yours?
> 
> Thanks.


I am no expert having just bought my first SST a few months ago but...

It all comes down to research I think. First you should make sure you can differentiate a vintage SST from the recent reissues. The 2011 SSTs have 21 Jewel ETA movements in them.

Next you would have to look at a dozen or so current or recent SST sales to get a sense for conditions and prices.

Looking at a dozen listings, Google image searches, etc should make it easy to spot odd hands or replacement crowns. That is the only astetic swap I would think you would see. As for movement it comes down to trusting seller a lot more. If a listing mentions the unique hack pin that pretty much means it has the right movement.

The bottom line is who is the seller? Research them on forums, look for reviews on Google. Call them and chat. Are they friendly and knowledgeable? Do they indicate they will stand behind the sale with a return policy? I chose to go with a dealer over eBay for this reason. Probably paid more but they gave me a no-questions-asked 48 hr return guarantee and had a good reputation I could read about.

Edit:

I'll add that this is a fairly obscure vintage watch so probably less prone to scams. If I was buying a vintage Submariner I would be very concerned!


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## Emre

Sixracer, nice pumpkin there. Looks great on your wrist. May it serve you well.


As for the post for recommendation where and how to find SST, web is your best source. In case you find one post here the pictures and information related before buying. We are a helpful community will be happy to share our knowledge.


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## fordy964

Some snaps of my SST12


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## giokkk67

Great pictures fordy, I really love the first one!!


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## Emre

Nice SST 12, I really like this dark color dial executions. May it serve you well.


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## Robotaz

Nice SST!

I really miss my SST chrono. I did sell it to a pilot who was thrilled though, so there is an upside to it.


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## Robotaz

wtma said:


> Love the blue degrade dial ...


Glycine calls it, "twilight sentinel". I like saying it.


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## pley3r

I finally found one!! and it arrived today 
The box is a falling apart a bit from age but the watch itself is spotless. Looks like it was almost never worn.
This SST fixes all the little things I dislike about my 1953 'vintage' mainly steel outlined no contrast hands, scratch-able bezel with flaking paint that always needs fixing and lack of lume reference points.


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## pley3r

Out and about in rush hour with the new pumpkin


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## pley3r

An interesting little video about the SST program and why it stopped that popped up on my feed.


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## Robotaz

pley3r said:


> An interesting little video about the SST program and why it stopped that popped up on my feed.


Very interesting! Thanks!


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## Chamuko

Hello

Love this one.

Is this a 24 hr or a 12hr watch?

Thanks for your time.

Sincerely.



Aquavit said:


> Great thread Emre and most incredible video - my how times have changed!
> 
> It seems we have moved backward in civil aviation, glorified buses travelling at one third of SST speed with none of the glamour and excitement of earlier days of flying. The whole experience has become depressing, so much so for me that I choose no longer to fly anywhere.
> 
> Anyway here's my SST, sadly not a pumpkin or vintage model but the current interpretation SST12:


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## jkingrph

That looks like the 24 hour, sometimes referred to as a Purist model, as I do not see a GMT hand, On a GMT watch the standard hands go around once every 12 hours, even though a dial may look like a 24 hour dial, and the GMT hand goes around once every 24 hours. The outer bezel can move, and the GMT hand can be set independently of the regular hands giving the capability to tell times in 3 different time ones at once. The 24 hour watch shown can only show time in two time zones.


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## Chamuko

jkingrph said:


> That looks like the 24 hour, sometimes referred to as a Purist model, as I do not see a GMT hand, On a GMT watch the standard hands go around once every 12 hours, even though a dial may look like a 24 hour dial, and the GMT hand goes around once every 24 hours. The outer bezel can move, and the GMT hand can be set independently of the regular hands giving the capability to tell times in 3 different time ones at once. The 24 hour watch shown can only show time in two time zones.


Thanks a lot, you have answered all my questions !!! I am new to Glycine, somehow I find this watches very attractive, with a vintage look, I just bought a Airman Vintage 1953 Purist "Noon" model 2 weeks ago and loved it, paid for it less than 1/3 what I paid for my Longines 24hr, and it has much better quality than a AirNautic that I own.

Now I want to get one of this SST12 love the retro look, I am more into the 24 hour Purist but may end up getting also the Orange GMT with the 3 time zones.

This ones might not be Rolex, IWC or Omegas but boy the look nice, they look like 1500 dollars watches and I paid 625 for my "Noon" Purist.

Maybe Santa will be good with me next Christmas.

Thanks a lot, I really appreciate the help.

Regards.

Rodolfo


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## jkingrph

You are certainly welcome. I went through a lot of this earlier this year when I purchased a SST12, GMT, and really got confused on how to set it and tell time. Now after several months it's second nature.


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## r-gordon-7

Here's my SST on its 3rd party aftermarket mesh bracelet...


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## jimmytamp




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## Robotaz

Selling my sentinel blue SST chrono was one of the dumber things I’ve done. I miss it.


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## Chamuko

jimmytamp said:


> View attachment 13574401


I have a purist blue one ordered, was hard to decide between blue and black / orange.

Would you say the orange ring disappear when you wear it? You know kind of making it look like a smaller watch.

Thanks

Sent from my ALP-L09 using Tapatalk


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## jimmytamp

Chamuko said:


> Would you say the orange ring disappear when you wear it? You know kind of making it look like a smaller watch.
> 
> Thanks


To be honest, I've never realised that the orange might look disappear...


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## Chamuko

jimmytamp said:


> To be honest, I've never realised that the orange might look disappear...


I read about it in another chat.

Anyway, just got a 10% discount om ebay and bought it..

Thanks for your time

Sent from my ALP-L09 using Tapatalk


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## Pro Diver




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## stoyan79

Just picked up a pumpkin purist on eBay for $479. Don't need another SST, but for this price ...


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## Jesus Jones

Does the hour hand on the modern SST read on the 12 hour scale or the 24 hour scale?

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk


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## Jesus Jones

***** Jones said:


> Does the hour hand on the modern SST read on the 12 hour scale or the 24 hour scale?
> 
> Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk


NM, I figured it out. I'm new to Glycine so the whole GMT with a 24 hour dial is pretty confusing. It seems that with the brand is either GMT or Purist no matter the model.

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk


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## jkingrph

***** Jones said:


> Does the hour hand on the modern SST read on the 12 hour scale or the 24 hour scale?
> 
> Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk


There are two models of the SST, a GMT and a Purist. Both have a 24 hour dial. The purist reads directly ie #4 is 4am, on a GMT the hands read as if on a 12 hours dial so if pointing to #4 it would actually be 2am or 2pm. The little red hand actually points to the same hour if both are set for same time zone. A little confusing, but you get used to it.


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## Jesus Jones

Right, I think I've settled on the blue Purist, now to wait for one to come available. 

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk


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## rickt1152

This is actually my favorite version, Blue Dial SST. Very nice.


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## Flyback707

Hey everbody, a SST 06 is on its way with an old leather watch band an I want to order a mesh or rice corn bracelet for it. I know the lug width is 22 mm on the SST 12, but I am not sure, what it was on the SST 06. Has it changed or was it 22 mm on the 6es as well? 
Kind regards


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