Christie’s has a Ref. 3646 / Type D “Kampfschwimmer” in their Important Watches auction 1401 (LOT 433) on may 12th, 2014. The inner caseback engravings, in combination with the Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1 movement, are matching our database criteria.

Features of the watch:
Reference: 3646 / Type D
Dial: “Kampfschwimmer” (sandwich, anonymous)
Case number: 2604XX
Movement: Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1

Used in Ref. 3646 watches from Type A to Type G, the Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1 movement comes without Incabloc shock protection. Typical for this non-incabloc version is the serif font for the letters A-R (french) and F-S (english) engraved on the regulation device.

The watch comes with an engraved caseback, done in the typical tatooing machine style, which can be found occasionally on similar 3646 watches used by german frogmen. The surrounding text Nahkampflehrer von L.K. 700 (hand-to-hand-fight instructor of Training Commando 700), the first owners’ initials (GF) in the center and the year of service (1945) are giving this watch the grade of being a real tool watch in the 2nd world war.

A historic photo of frogmen during hand-to-hand-fight training can be found in our book “History2” (page 460). The personal stories of several frogmen of the Lehrkommando 700 (engraved L.K. 700) are described in “History1” as well as in “History2” in several chapters.

We hope the watch will find a good new home and that it remain surfaced in the Vintage Panerai collectors world. [Ralf Ehlers & Volker Wiegmann]

[Photos with kindly permission / courtesy of www.christies.com]

New entry in our database, surfaced in the United States. Just recently we were contacted from the owner of a Ref. 3646 / Type D “Kampfschwimmer” which we added into our steady growing database of today’s existing Vintage Panerai watches.

Features of the watch:
Reference: 3646 / Type D
Dial: “Kampfschwimmer” (sandwich, anonymous)
Case number: 2604XX
Movement: Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1

Even the engraved caseback with the initials of the first owner (“SB”) makes it a very nice and interesting addition in the number group of Type D. Great to see another yet unknown Vintage Panerai watch is matching our database criteria in all its details. Similar watches are featured in our both books “History1” and “History2”.

[Photos with kindly permission / courtesy of Daniel Bassler]

Another visit at auctioneer Dr. Crott brought us another new database entry for the Reference 3646 / Type D. The yet unknown watch with the case number 260753 will be up for auction in may, bearing the typical features of the number group 260408 – 260838, representing the Reference 3646 / Type D.

Until today we have recorded sixty existing specimen of this type of 3646 watches in our database, which is one of the larger groups inbetween known watches of Type A to Type G. Only a few number of watches comes with a flat brass dial, easy to identify by the closed “6” and “9” which are not cut thru the upper disk (like the sandwich dial construction is done) but embossed from top onto the brass dial, painted black and filled up with luminous material. Both, blued steel hands and brass dial have still the complete luminous material today (see earlier posting on this watch).

The Rolex SA stamp on the inner caseback is one feature aside the Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1 movement with 17 Jewels and no Incabloc shock protection. Typical for this type of movement is the “ROLEX 17 RUBIS” engraving on the center bridge. As usual on movement used in watches of the Reference 3646, the balance cock bears the S-F / A-R regulation device.

The watch comes with the flat version of the bezel, typical on watches with brass dials or the “California Dial” versions. The bezel carries the original Plexiglas, which is today still in good condition. The “neck” of the cushion shaped stainless steel 47 mm case is still existing, on which an onion shaped “Brevet +” crown (Type 11) is screwed down.

The case has not been polished over the last decades and appears today – after 70 years – with a nice patina on case, bezel and caseback.

Especially the individual engraving on the caseback makes it a remarkable watch to us. Done in the typical tatooing machine style, which can be found occasionally on similar 3646 watches used by german frogmen, the surrounding text Marine Kampfschwimmer (navy frogmen), the first owners’ initials (HV) and the year of service (1944) are giving this watch the grade of being a real tool watch in the 2nd world war.

Also the watch comes with the old leather strap, hand stitched and sewn onto the lugs of the case with the rare cromed brass buckle, which has been bent down for comfortable wear, which we have seen on some other Ref. 3646 watches before. The strap has two fixed (sewn on) keepers.

A similar watch is featured in our book “History1”.

We hope the watch will find a good new home and that it remain surfaced in the Vintage Panerai collectors world.
[Ralf Ehlers & Volker Wiegmann]

The Vintage Panerai watches keep on surfacing. Just in these days, another Ref. 3646 / Type D “Kampfschwimmer” with rare brass dial and engraved caseback bearing the initials of the first owner and the year of his service as frogmen (1944), came to our attention. We received an invitation for a “first look” from auctioneer Dr. Crott, who received this watch for their upcoming 89th auction on may, 10th 2014, from the family of the former german frogmen veteran.

Great to see another yet unknown Vintage Panerai watch is matching our database criteria in all its details.

Features of the watch:
Reference: 3646 / Type D
Dial: “Kampfschwimmer”  (painted brass, anonymous)
Case number: 260753
Movement: Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1

A detailled report on the details of the watch, such as movement, engraved caseback and historic strap and buckle will be follow up here soon. Stay tuned!
[Ralf Ehlers & Volker Wiegmann]

The german watch magazine “Chronos” featured the Vintage Panerai Ref. 6152/1 – “The Arillo Luminor”– with an overview (page 64-69) about the details of the watch and the history behind its first owner, italian commander of the submarine “Ambra”, Mario Arillo (M.O.V.M.). The february-april issue “Chronos Spezial” is entirely about Panerai’s roots and history with a review from the past until today, including tests, movements and milestone models.

“The Arillo Luminor” is fully described in our book “History1″ in Chapter IV on 165 pages with 106 photos and 7 technical illustrations. The book “History1″ is in stock. It can be ordered directly in our bookstore.

Get your copy of the “Chronos Spezial” 1/2014 now at the newspaper stores across europe. Find more info at www.watchtime.net [Ralf Ehlers & Volker Wiegmann]

Close view on the movement of a Ref. 3646 / Type D. Used in Ref. 3646 watches from Type A to Type G, the Rolex Cal. 618 movement comes without Incabloc shock protection. Typical for the non-incabloc version is the serif font for the letters A-R (French) and F-S (English) engraved on the regulation device (later versions show “+/-” symbols – see also a comparing between Type 1 and Type 4 movements).

You can find more information about Rolex movements used in Vintage Panerai watches in our books “History1” and “History2”.

Opened Ref. 6152/1 with solid caseback and dust lid – the Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 4 movement bears the typical markings for this type of Vintage Panerai watches. You can see an overview of the three different inner caseback markings of the “615ers” here.

This Vintage Panerai watch is featured in our book “History1″. You can read more about its first owner Mario Arillo in chapter IV, page 227-391.

Close view on an onion shaped “Brevet +” crown (Type 11) of a Ref. 3646 Vintage Panerai. The crown has a diameter of 7 mm and can be screwed down onto the tube which is surrounded by the typical “neck”shaped side of the 47 mm cushion shaped case of the Reference 3646.

More information about the different crown types used on Ref. 3646 watches can be found in our new book “History2″, in which two watches are featured using the Type 11 crown (“Brevet +”) aside two watches of which one is using a Type 12 replacement crown (“Rolex Oyster”) and one is using the well known tubular shaped Type 13 crown (“Oyster Patent +”). All three type of Rolex crowns have the same thread, matching the tube.

Almost nine months after we introduced here in our blog the Ref. 3646 / Type D watch when it surfaced in former Yugoslavia by the family of the 2nd owner, the new owner who auctioned the watch in may 2013 at Dr. Crott, contacted us to give us an update about its actual conditions.

The conditions of the watch before the auction and Information provided by the previous owner have been published earlier and can be compared here. Especially the untypical replacement dial from a VDO cockpit clock caught our attention earlier this year.

The fact that the watch changed ownership in former Yugoslavia confirmed our knowledge about italian and german frogmen units which were captured at the end of the 2nd world war in northern Italy. Just as some of the Panerai watches changed ownership with west allied forces (where they keep surfacing rarely in these days as well, see our introduction of another 3646 / Type D watch here) it has happened in eastern Europe too. In chapter VI of our book “History2” (page 630) a surviving veteran confirmed by his very own story, where the route of his long march into captivity ended: in a POW camp in Yugoslavia.

It is great to see that the new owners’ trusted watchmaker has been able to bring back shine and functionality to the movement, which is now again working with a power reserve of around 36 hours. The new owner named his watch “The Red Star” to reflect its long term use by a Senior Officer in the Yugoslavian Army after the 2nd world war.

The result of the watchmaker’s restoration work shows that it is possible to inhail life in a nearly 70 year old watch which surely did not caught all neccessary services in the past decades. Also it is nice that the patina on the case still exist and the case appears not polished by demand of the new owner to keep the age of the watch visible. The restoration work included the replacing of the VDO dial with a flat dial reconstruction (with closed “6” and “9” digits) matching with the flat bezel, the cleaning of the hands and installing of a new seal and crown tube.

Thanks to the new owner for the update on his Ref. 3646 / Type D aka “The Red Star”
[Ralf Ehlers & Volker Wiegmann]

Additional photos reached us “just in time” before the auction at Bonhams Auction House in London is about to start (December 4th). They have a Ref. 3646 / Type D “Kampfschwimmer” in their Fine Watches & Wristwatches auction (LOT273). We published information on this watch earlier here.

Interesting to be able to see the inner caseback. The surface of the inner caseback is completely decorated. More Information about the different finishings on inner casebacks of 3646 watches can befound in our book “History1” (page 166-167) and in our book “History2” (page 546-547). The Rolex engravings, in combination with the Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1 movement (see photo below), are matching our database criteria for a Ref. 3646 / Type D.

Features of the watch:
Reference: 3646 / Type D
Dial: “Kampfschwimmer” (sandwich, anonymous)
Case number: 260505
Movement: Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1

We hope the watch will find a good new home and that it remain surfaced in the Vintage Panerai collectors world. [Ralf Ehlers & Volker Wiegmann]

[Photos with kindly permission / courtesy of www.bonhams.com]