Bulova 1931 -Non-Conforming

Submitted by onedumbquestion on April 24, 2021 - 3:15am
Manufacture Year
1931
Case Serial No.
-
Case shape
Round
Case color
Yellow
Case Manufacturer
Bulova
Gender
Mens
Watch Description

Waiting for it to come in the mail

Front
Reverse
onedumbquestion
Posted April 24, 2021 - 6:03pm

The year of manufacture is unknown but I assume it's around 1931 from the dial

Kathy L.
Posted April 25, 2021 - 9:32pm

Hello,  It looks like you might have a Non-conforming model here.  That means part of the watch is Bulova and part is not.  What makes me think that this is a possibility is that the dial says 17 jewels and the case does not appear to be a Bulova case.  We have seen "jeweler" watches like this where the jeweler buys a generic case and puts a Bulova dial/movement in it.  My guess would be the 40's or 50's but unless you can get a photo of the movement it is hard to say.  If you do open the watch a photo of the inside of the case will confirm if it is a Bulova case or not.  And lastly this might be an Italian model as the symbol above Bulova is seen on their Bulova watches.  It is a nice watch just the same and I hope you enjoy it when it comes.

Non-Conforming at the moment.

onedumbquestion
Posted April 27, 2021 - 4:39pm

In reply to by Kathy L.

I can't find any other examples of Bulova watches that say 17 Jewels on the dial so far

mybulova_admin
Posted April 26, 2021 - 2:43am

I agree with Kathy, the style is more from the 40s/50s.

The case will more than likely be an aftermarket case that houses a generic 10AE movement which was Bulova's workhorse in the mid 1930s. However these movements, because there was so many of them and had plenty of parts available back then, meant that many jewellers would cobble these together to make a complete watch, using various parts, both Bulova and aftermarket.

The logo is interesting and we have seen it before. Kathy, where did you see the Italian connection?

Kathy L.
Posted April 26, 2021 - 9:39am

In reply to by mybulova_admin

It is in a bunch of Italian ads I saw on eBay.  Looking at it, it is probably not the same symbol, it is under the Bulova not over it and looks a tad different.  ad

onedumbquestion
Posted April 26, 2021 - 2:58am

It's the dial you don't recognize as much as the case by your own account Says 17 Jewels on the dial has nothing to do with the case The "story" you offer about jewelers putting together abortions isn't applicable Sounds like you're both bullsh*tting me

mybulova_admin
Posted April 26, 2021 - 7:56am

In reply to by onedumbquestion

My comment about jewellers building watches similar to this was made because you stated the watch had a 10AE movement, which was a movement manufactured in the mid to late 1930s. The watch you have presented us in much later in style, thus my comment.

Our aim is certainly not to BS anyone. Our aim here is to help people identify their Bulova watch. With that said over the many years of doing this we have seen watches similar to this one that have indications that was probably not a production release....at least in the US market.

To our knowledge Bulova models released to the European market may certainly have had case and dial variations that we don't often see and your watch 'may' be one those.

Again, however the lack of 'Bulova' stamped on the case, the way the dial numbers seem to not fit correctly to the case seem to suggest that it is not original to the case.

For now let's wait until you have the watch in-hand so you can post photos of the movement and inside case back.

I'm sure others will share their thoughts.

onedumbquestion
Posted April 26, 2021 - 3:06am

Can I see those other watches with the same logo please

onedumbquestion
Posted April 26, 2021 - 3:33am

It seems the watch is made in 1951, not 1931, and uses the 10BM movement, not the 10AE sorry Here's a similar watch said to be from 1951Similar watch

Similar watch

 

onedumbquestion
Posted April 26, 2021 - 4:16am

In 1940 Bulova became the official timekeeper of American Airlines Maybe the logo is a mid-century modernist interpretation of the American Airlines logo