A restored family watch - Hamilton Khaki Field 9797
This my first post. I got into the watch hobby last summer and have to learn a lot, so I refrained from posting for a while.
Recently I picked up from the drawer an old sentimental watch in need of care. It's not fancy, it is diminutive in size, it lacks in specs... but it allows me to recover a lot of memories - and that is priceless.
This little one (33mm) is a Hamilton Khaki Field Quartz 9797 bought by my father in 1992, when he was about my age.
My father was not an enthusiast. To my knowledge, this is the only watch he chose by himself, probably because of the military design and brand - in the 1950s he served two years in the Italian Army Officers Academy, something he always spoke about fondly.
When he passed away some years ago, the Hammy arrived to me in bad shape, the glass had some deep scratches - too deep for Poly watch.
I gave it to an Hamilton AD, expecting it to return with a mineral glass or sapphire crystal, as plexiglass is not used in current Hamilton watches. Luckily, the service center found another plexi.
Cost of repairs: 30 euros - I will always praise Hamilton, no matter what :)
At thirty years, this watch is still keeping good time.
There is a bit of patina, the lollipop has an orange-yellow tint.
Lume still reacts to light... it starts fierce and lasts 5 glorious minutes before fading :)
Welcome to my WatchCrunch profile.
Beautiful watch!
Welcome to the Crunch family~
I actually prefer those older small ones. They are truer to the original idea of field watches built to a military spec. (And size is just a matter of the fashion trend at a point in time. 😉)
Lovely restoration. Thanks for sharing and welcome to the Crunch! 🤝
#welcome
Good job.
33mm is the perfect size for that iconic design.
Hey, welcome to WC! Sweet Hamilton! 👌🏼
Amazing. Great heirloom. Welcome aboard!
Great watch and a perfect size 👍
33mm? Are you supposed to strap that to your thumb? 😂 Shows us, guys were skinnier back in the day. On our current obese, fat a$$ generation (me included) this watch wouldn't even register on the wrist!
33mm? Are you supposed to strap that to your thumb? 😂 Shows us, guys were skinnier back in the day. On our current obese, fat a$$ generation (me included) this watch wouldn't even register on the wrist!
Sincerely I would have preferred a 36, but after putting it on the wrist I adjusted quickly. The lugs are long enough to give it presence and the plexiglass dome makes the dial appear a bit larger. What's really shocking is the lightness, it's lighter than the Casio A158. Anyway, this size was used by combat forces for decades.
Very cool watch. Very cool story. I think the size fits your wrist pretty well actually 👌
That's really cool. i really like the font that 'Khaki' is written in.
Very nice! Bringing back any old soldier into service is a lovely thing. When that old soldier served a father, grandfather, uncle etc. it is all the more special. Cheers!
Beautiful! I love the type face on that dial.
That's a great story and a great watch. Great price, too! I got my dad's JLC when he passed, and JLC want about $1.5k just to take a look at it in Europe. :-O
That's a great story and a great watch. Great price, too! I got my dad's JLC when he passed, and JLC want about $1.5k just to take a look at it in Europe. :-O
I guess that JLC lives in another league... wow, they ask a lot.