My HMT Watch and others

The closure of HMT Watch Factory [click] recently has saddened thousands of HMT watch patrons.  HMT wrist watches became a status symbol in the 60s and 70s.  It sounds silly now but a watch was high on the list as a 'dowry item' in marriages!  Like the 'wedding ring', there are 'wedding watches', which my friend Suresh wears even now, 28 years on! The prized present from the father to his son or daughter on passing school or college used to be a watch.  Buying a watch from the first pay check was a special dream achieved by many!  Even now, watches are presented as a fitting gift on retirement from service.

 My 'first bought watch' was from one of my earliest salary savings, in 1983.  Deciding on an HMT 'Jubilee' ahead of  'black dial Pilot' and 'Sona' was only for my fondness for Roman numerals at that time, though all were sleek and the other two, a tad bit dearer. Every rupee counted at that stage, more than ever.

Picture courtesy with permission from: Prashant Pandey blog. [linked later]

[Click all images to enlarge]

Jubilee had cost me Rs.200 which was close to 1/4th of salary, a very substantial proportion for a watch!  Having an 'own watch' boosted the status, so we felt!  We pulled up the cuff when we wore a full-sleeve shirt to show it off on the wrist, making a conscious and deliberate 'fashion statement' and looking at the watch as if looking at the time, in such a way others noticed the act!  This, my maternal uncle Annaiah was curiously observing and teasing me!  Together, we observed others do that as well!

During school days we inquired time ["ಟೈಮ್ ಎಷ್ಟ್ರೀ"] from passing elderly people who proudly looked at the watch and answered.  Now a watch was on my own wrist!

The latest HMT watches catalogue was put in to my hands in 1985 by my college classmate Sudarshan [who was also in the campus, working]. He had got it from his friend in Bangalore.  Now, all of a sudden, my Jubilee started to look unattractive!  Instantly I got smitten by 'Pilot' and envied the wrists that adorned 'Pilot'.  My colleague Mukunda was interested in a new watch.  So my Jubilee, lock, stock and barrel, went to his wrist and he dealt with it in four installments for Rs.175.

In that catalogue, 'Chinar' appeared more impressive than Jubilee.  There was no stock in Mysore.  'Pilot' was fighting the race, but 'Chinar' won because of its new horizontal lines.  After much dilly dallying, I left out Pilot and Sona also.  Crazy as I was for watches, having learnt to take apart, also do the reverse I used my spare time as a hobby mechanic!

Sudarshan was very kind to bring me the 'Chinar' from the Bangalore outlet.  I handed over a cheque for Rs.214/-.

Cash Memo from the Unity Building outlet, famous then!  Total Rs.213 Paise 30. 

I was not 'watchless' between Jubilee and Chinar.  My grandfather's 1950s Skymaster 'Continental Calendar' stood by.

The Jubilee was the first HMT in the house because my grandfather already had left his '1914 Favre-Leuba Zenith', my uncle used a 1960s 'Enicar' and my father had his 'Lamania' [later used all three above] which was lost to his friend-repairer in the next street.  My great grandfather's pocket watch was sick.

HMT named 'Janata' as 'Chinar' because it was made in the new [1985] Srinagar factory, which I learnt now browsing for this post!  See date on the back. 

Twins!

A full white dial Janata was the favourite of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi who wore it regularly. Film actor Sunny Deol also wears an HMT.

My friend and team mate Ravindra had given me his 'Pilot' for overhauling  He was nicknamed 'Pilot' which name even now continues to overwhelm his actual name among friends!  I do not know if Pilot Watch was the reason.  After overhauling it and to check its working I wore it joyfully for two days!  I was also 'scratching that itch'!  [The itch persists]  Its craftsmanship was so magnificent that it was a pleasurable experience to take it apart and then put the parts back after cleaning, easily. This is one watch I enjoyed overhauling.  The dial was famous for its luminous indices and hands that glowed in the dark [for about 20-30 minutes], hence it carried a slightly extra price.

HMT Pilot and its lume [web grab images]

In 1974, HMT came up with the first ever Automatic Day-Date, which was my elderly professor friend Achyutha's first watch, bought for its new features.  He mentioned how a watch mechanic raised his eyebrows in Israel during his study-stay: "Does India manufacture watches?"  After using more than 35 years, his wrist got a new quartz HMT, also with day-date.  He gave the 1974 self-winding watch to me, to 'do whatever I liked'. It needed slight repair but could not be carried out as it was beyond my range of 'expertise'. My veteran friend Khabade also did not find the worn out part.  Yet, it worked with some oiling for 3-4 years and then it started to show perfect time exactly once in twelve hours.  Got the point?

Achyutha's watch

Easy availability of spares and profusion of watch mechanics also added to HMT's popularity in its half a century of life.  With the advent of quartz technology, spring wound mechanical watches have been steadily going downhill and watch mechanics, dwindling. Quartz 'movements' have taken over.  Also, the watch machine is called the 'movement'.

This is not a showroom diaplay, but an accumulation at home.  Most watches wanted themselves to be photographed together.  It was a good gathering of the old generation mechanicals mingling with newer quartzos.  Almost three dozen watches. Come to think of the day when even one watch per home was a grand luxury!!  Online shopping...'add to cart'........  fashion, different straps, dials, chains, belts.... to suit the dress.....

My lovely Chinar, and my favourite stainless steel chain.

This is how hobby mechanics learn!  

You just saw the remains of my first watch, of some Swiss brand. It was a scapegoat, a 'lesson watch'!  It was gifted by my uncle to me when I passed 10th [in first attempt!]. It belonged to my cousin, who passed away young.  Later, I fit its dial and case with a quartz movement and gave it off to FiL who urgently needed a watch!

I have always loved watches.  Enough has been bragged by me, nay, blogged, about in my 3-part series about watches and clocks. First one is here: [click].

More appealing will be Prashant Pandey's blog exclusively on HMT watches, loaded with stories behind each watch in his collection! I bumped into it in my quest for HMT 'Pilot'. He also has a facebook group of HMT watch collectors.  Prashant is a collector of HMTs with a prized wealth of 500+ models - an HMT watches museum in the making.  [Click here and enjoy]

And another: [Click here]

On a lighter side: 

Everyone knew what 'HMT' was.  But there were two other light references for HMT.  If we put a towel on our shoulder, we become HMT, like the village man.  He always has HMT.  "ಹೆಗಲಿನ ಮೇಲೆ ಟೊವೆಲ್ಲು" [towel on the shoulder].  The towel is an integral part of the village man's costume.  We may forget to wear a watch when we go out, but he, not his towel!   Another reference is to parents having daughters only - "ಹೆಣ್ಣು ಮಕ್ಕಳ ತಂದೆ or ತಾಯಿ".

We can imitate the ticking of the watch by clicking fingernails of the thumb and middle finger near the ear!!

On the factual side:
HMT showed that India can mass produce fine quality, dependable, robust, trouble-free, long lasting, affordable watches in India itself so much so that it was on millions of wrists, male and female, producing more than 110 million watches in plethora of models in its lifetime from 1961 to 2014. Some models are evergreen classics!  Not for nothing there are watch collectors 'specializing' only in HMT watches!

Some impressive catch phrases HMT used in its watch advertisements.
"Come, discover HMT watches. It will change the way you look at time."  It certainly did!
"Keep time with HMT – The time keepers to the nation." We did and they indeed were!

Clocks and Watches: Part - 3

We continue from Part 2

This is the third and final part of this series.

Read also how some wrist watches survived my fiddling!

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Wrist Watches

Possessing a watch was something special esp. in the first half of the 20th century, why, even until about 1980 or thereabouts.  A watch was for many years the second important item, next to the ring, gifted by the bride's family to the bridegroom at weddings!  Or should I say a watch was demanded by the bridegroom's side!  It was gossip subject for inquisitive people during the wedding!  

In the early part of the 20th century, people walked barefoot and only those well-placed in society wore sandals or shoes. Boys went to school barefoot and there are many instances of them getting their first footwear when they finished school and not a watch!  Now we see even kids boasting of a dozen watches in myriad designs! 

Come to think of it, we also have 'use and throw watches' that are also sold by weight!  It is no longer a 'luxury item' or a special gift at weddings.

My first watch came in 1975 of which I brief as I go on.  There were a few watches at home that belonged to my elders.

  

This Favre Leuba Zenith tops them all.  My grandfather's most cherished watch.  It was his wedding watch - 1914. He wore it with great pride and I have seen him enthusiastically show it to people that asked about it and always mentioned '1914'.

The lovely snow-white dial

Front door can be opened - probably to aid the blind to feel the hands and know time.

Silver case number, inside

The machine is beautiful to look and the sight of the balance wheel's oscillation is one to behold!

This Favre Leuba Zenith stands out whitest on his wrist as he gets a trophy for golf from His Highness.  Once the case's strap hook had snapped.  He got it soldered from a known jeweler in the same street not trusting any other jeweler near his office, where there were many. That's how close to his heart it was.

After the departure of him and also my father, I began to use it often. When I was wearing it during a picnic, my hand clapping made the machine to jump out and break a few parts. I felt extremely bad and I thought that was the end of this.  Years later, I discovered a colleague who knew my father and also a 'trustworthy' hobby clock smith.  "Please put it back in motion at any cost" I requested him when I handed it over.  After many reminders and 2-3 years, he said he had fabricated a tiny part as it was unavailable anywhere and that it was working and he had kept it for testing, much to my relief.  After some time, he finally handed it over to me.  I was absolutely delighted to see it ticking again. Mr.Khabade collected his nominal fee for this extraordinary work. Lesson learnt, I am now choosy about when to wear it and careful while doing so.

May be in the early 40s, another watch came to my grandfather in the form of this "Skymaster". 

It was a gift from one Mahadevappa who had toured Europe with the Royal Party that included the Yuvaraja of Mysore. This was another machine I meddled with and repaired it during my 'learning process'!  This is still my favourite, because of that square design in the centre and the magnifier for the date.  

I was with him when this picture was taken in a studio in 1972 or so. He was taking me to his office that evening.  Hope you noticed the Skymaster.

This Enicar was my late uncle's.  In 'irrepairable' condition because its 'escape wheel' is damaged and is unavailable.

My father used the Enicar or any of the two above when his favourite "Lamania" fell into the hands of a known  hobby-clock smith in the next street.  This man never returned it, despite me asking him at the behest of my father to return even if it is unrepaired years later. He never showed it to me in whatever condition it was.  So one can understand its fate. As a replacement and after much pestering, he gave a very cheap watch which did not work for long. I think my father had bought that Lamania during his stay in Bombay in the early 50s from his very modest earnings while working for the Films Division at a sound recordist. That was the end of Lamania. I only got to observe it in a few of his older pictures:

Seen here during his wedding

 Lamania is seen here.  I don't know if the cuff was pulled up intentionally!  I sometimes used to do that with my first watch and while wearing a full slack so that others could notice my wearing it!

Wearing a watch to school was really something!  Hardly anyone wore because even adults at home bought their watches after they joined jobs.  Those who had an extra watch at home would wear it and show off with classmates in school!

Though these watches were at home, I felt shy to wear them - don't talk of meddling their machines! It was only after a watch came to me that I got over that feeling.  It was my first watch - a gift by an uncle on the occasion the cousin's wedding. It was some lesser known Swiss brand and belonged to her brother who had died prematurely, some years before the wedding.  Gifting this to me for that occasion saved them a few rupees!  A watch was a big thing even in the 70s.

Long later, I replaced its machine with a 'quartz movement' and gave it off to my FiL who was in urgent need of a watch at that time.  I used to see him use it for some more years. It was a victim of the learning process.  

My 'achievements' in meddling these time machines

I used that watch for some years and when it developed a snag, I got curious.  I saw a clock smith in me.  I opened it with some crude tools - one was a tweezer I had bought for zoology specimen dissection at college!  I accidentally bent a spring and its condition still worsened.  Handling the tiny machine requires very steady hands.  Skill comes from persistent practice. Drunkards cannot become clock smiths.  I had already 'laid my hands' on the two alarm clocks which 'in the end', met their premature end!

During my market errands, I got clues while inquiring for spares for the watches that suffered under my hands. I also observed how the professional smiths handle the tiny parts.  I bought the basic tools like the eye piece, screw drivers, little trays and boxes at a watch spares shop.  I wanted to try and see for myself what could be done to make it work again.

I learnt that the balance wheel is like the human heart.  If it stops, the machine goes lifeless. But the "machine's heart" is replaceable. Handling the balance wheel with its 'hair spring' is a highly skillful job which I could never master, despite being a teetotaler!  It was a tough learning process nevertheless.  I could remove and replace all the parts after cleaning them with 'aviation petrol' and putting oil to the 'jeweled parts'.  This was also the beginning of my hobby as a clock smith, which helped me maintain the watches and clocks at home and even helped a few of my friends that knew of my ability at this.  For things that were beyond my basic skill, I had to engage professional help.

I have spent hours searching the floor and desk, for those nano screws that slipped from the tweezer grip!  I had even used magnets to 'find' them because I thought then that the broom and brush might still worsen the situation! I used to wonder how they even manufactured such tiny parts with precision.

That Favre Leuba is one watch I never wanted to open even though the temptation was there.  But for once, wisdom prevailed.

After my entry to a job I bought my first watch for Rupees 225.  I sold it off after a few months for 175 to a colleague and bought another similar watch in 1984 only because I liked the design on this one!  It is the traditional spring wound watch from Hindustan Machine Tools. This one, still fine:

In the late 80s, quartz watches became popular.  I found out over time that they are reliable and durable.  My next watch was a quartz watch brought for me from Singapore by a friend for Rupees 200.  It worked nicely for almost 20 years when its life ended in 2007.

Like many organizations that presented employers with watches when they completed many years of service, there came a day when I got one too from mine.

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Another dial design I made on the back side of the original dial of this clock which did not suit my taste. I have designed the hands here.

The new generation is never satisfied with one or two. 

Some Swiss Watches through the 'window':

 Showcases at night

 Cuckoo clocks are famous in Switzerland

 "Expensive cheaper watches"!!

 Huge shop full of watches

 Not unexpectedly... expensive.

 More watches and mementos

TIME AND TIDE WAITS FOR NO MAN.

Watches and clocks: Part 1

Preface

I gathered material for this blog and in the end, found it to be too lengthy for a single sitting. So I broke it up into three parts in separate posts.  Click on the pictures if you like to see the enlarged version.  There are some links in changed colour of words.  Click on them to visit the link.

In this, the first part you will find something about
Wall clocks. Read on, "if you find time"!

My late old friend Mr.Brown was fond of telling this: "Time will not find you, you have to find time."

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Wall Clocks

The clock has always been a curious object wherever it is.  I grew up admiring a few of them at home as they ticked and showed time, effortlessly. I also used to wonder how they worked and what made them tick.  When I was old enough I discovered it when I laid my hands on them.

The vintage Ansonia Gothic Clock, manufactured by Ansonia Clock Company, New York had adorned  the wall in the hall majestically.  It was the main clock for the house and visible from the kitchen also, but not from the street as in many houses. It was patented in 1882 and I guess this is one of the earliest possessions of my great grandfather. No one knows when and where he bought it, but in all likelihood it should be before 1900.

This is an eight-day/30-hour clock, meaning it runs for a week on one full winding of the spring.  In my time, my father did this without fail, every Sunday.  It had a bell inside to strike the hours and half hours.  I do not know if some clock smith had removed the original gong which could have been a spring gong because I had seen such a one in a relative's similar and older Ansonia.  I was wondering why ours was fitted with a 'cycle bell'!  I dreamed of finding a spring gong for our Ansonia. This dream got to fruition 20 years later when I found one with a clock smith cum dealer of old clocks.  Without second thought I bought for Rs.175/- and replaced it myself.  Picture below.  By then, I had learnt to meddle with clock mechanisms also.

Watch a video clip of its working and striking.

This Ansonia also had a alarm feature. But it was never used.  I have removed this separate unit as it came in the way of  the new spring gong.  This little dial in the centre could be adjusted.  Here, the alarm is set to 10 O'Clock.

As far as I knew it never asked for repair. Oiling this lovely machine is such a pleasure as its design is so beautiful too.  In 1998 when I moved to the old ancestral house, an old relative visited us reminiscing his younger days in the same house.  He showed me the place where this Ansonia was kept originally.  So, I placed it at the same spot.  (See picture below).

It continues to be a few feet away from the place even now after some changes that took place. In all likelihood, the clock was on that wall ever since the house was built and occupied in 1911-12.

The swaying pendulum and the striking of the gong have always impressed me.  It was/is my habit to observe these wherever I see this.  There was one in my friend Gopi's house - a 'Scientific' (brand) clock. It was beautiful.  There was another in my grand uncle's house in Bangalore.  I was delighted to watch these almost no end.  Almost hypnotic!

Just a trifle away from the subject - Ansonia had other products too, like this nail clipper with 'button lock' (lock not seen here - it is on the other side).

There was another large round clock which was mostly idle.  This was showing time correctly 'only once every twelve hours' if you see what I mean.  One fine day, my grandfather gave it to a clock smith sometime in 1974-75.  We had no clue whatsoever about who that smith was because my granfather also suddenly departed in 1976 and my father had no further information on it.  It machines are problematic, they tend to keep it for months and years as is their wont!

That clock looked very similar to the picture below, borrowed from the net. It had a pendulum inside as well.

Below is the picture of my grandfather in about 1930 with his trophies.  Observe the medals there. This rosewood 'medal display stand' was no longer serving its purpose by 1970.  It was lying here and there with its hooks as the medals had been transferred to the rosewood showcase he got made in the 1940s. 

In 1991, I thought of converting it as a clock.  By then quartz machines were available.  A machine was procured with the help of a friend from Delhi for as cheap as Rs.45/-.   I used my carpentry skills to fit the little machine at the back.  I marked the dial accurately and stuck plastic numbers I found in 'trash' at the workplace.  It is almost 20 years now and this is still working nicely competing with Ansonia for accuracy.  After a nice polish to this lovely rosewood plank, it has added some more beauty to the wall!  The tiny hour and minute markings in yellow are stickers I cut up from a sticker strip.

In olden days, not all houses in the street had clocks or watches. So those who had, used to put it on the wall in such a position to make it visible from the street for passers by who wished to know the time. Doors also used to be kept open in those days as the houses were seldom locked.  Someone or other used to be present at any given time.  One example of this in our street was at late G.Sachidananda's house. 

I must now tell about the 'Big Ben of Mysore', the Jubilee Clock Tower.  It was built in 1927 to commemorate 25 years of the golden reign of Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar.  The clock tower was built in a prominent place to enable people to see the time because that was the main market area at that time.  The original dials had lovely Roman Numerals (my favourite) till 'forces' replaced it with Kanarese Numerals around Y2K. It is a landmark monument of the city and I cannot forget the melodious vibrations that filled the air when its huge bell struck the hours or half hour. It was heard for miles when it was silent before dawn or late in the night.  In recent years, engineers noticed some cracks on top of the tower and decided to stop the striking of the bell sensing that vibrations from it would further damage the tower. It is a very heavy bell.

 Below is the picture showing Kanarese numerals on the dial (2010). The bell is also seen.

My grandmother made a model of this tower using paddy around 1950. She had made one before 1931. It is a unique and eye-catching craft that won her many prizes in various exhibitions. My uncle had tried to put a real clock in this model (picture below), but this proved to be unfeasible and cumbersome.

Bronze Medal (Certificate) awarded in 1931.

This prize was for the first model she made for Dasara Exhibition in 1931.

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The famous vintage French Clock at Jagan Mohan Palace Museum is another impressive object esp. when it strikes12.  Visiting people flocked around it to watch the spectacle.  This clock has a mechanism that makes the miniature doll soldiers to parade at 12 O'Clock, a drum beating soldier marks the seconds and another with a bugle marks the minute, all having movements in little dolls.  I only hope it is still there and functional!  I had seen this many years ago.  Also at Salar Jung Museum in Hyderabad there is a similar clock but not as grand as this one in Mysore.  I saw this in the mid 90s.

There are some impressive clocks at other places.  Switzerland is a renown clock producer. See a few unique designs from a few different places:

 This is a most impressive dial in gold, black and red!

Kloster, Engelberg, Switzerland

I was visiting the National Physical Laboratory in New Delhi a couple of years ago.  A friend who worked there took me to the 'Atomic Clock' which is one of the most accurate clocks in the world and they are the time-keepers of the nation.  Here is a picture I took with their permission:

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We had other clocks also at home.
 Go to Part 2 of this series and have a dekko.