Let's have a thin off

[luddite]

In the old days when men were gentlemen and women were grateful, the quality of a watch was gauged by how thin it was.
Here's my thinnest, it measures 3.5mm including the crystal.


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[Mitch]

Well you should really distinguish between quartz and mechanical. It is far easier to get a thin quartz.

My thinnest mechanical is this vintage dress one at 5.5 mm. Mind you 2.0 mm of that is the domed crystal.






























Mitch

[steptoe]

Just over 4mm.

[Sharky]

Used to own this one

Concord Delirium

dsc_4767 by mcridland, on Flickr

dsc_4769 by mcridland, on Flickr



dsc_4756 by mcridland, on Flickr


Measurements are as follows: 24.65mm (including Crown) x 34.4mm lug to lug and approx 2mm thick!!


dsc_4770 by mcridland, on Flickr


Mark

[walkerwek1958]

Anyone who's got used to wearing the modern chunky slabs of metal that pass for watches thesedays should try a slim vintage watch, they're far nicer to wear. Makes you realise how silly some of the modern stuff looks, but people are conditioned to seeing that 'chunk of metal' look thesedays.

Hand-wound watches were usually slimmer than automatics, and depending on the design a sub-seconds movement could be made slimmer than a centre seconds. Consequently a slimmer caseback could be used.

In the 1950s/60s the development of slimmer movements was a priority. Compare an Omega 550/560 to the precious 500 models and it becomes obvious. Likewise the Omega 1010 from ca 1971 and the ETA 2892.

Where did it all go wrong?

Paul

[sweets]

I have nothing extra to add here in terms of thin-ness, but it did amuse me to see that the OP's watch on top of the wrist looks thinner than the deployant and bracelet stacked up underneath.

[bobbee]

The 1979 Bulova Phantom at 1.86mm.

[M4tt]

I bet this is the thinnest with a hesalite crystal!

[luddite]

Used to own this one

Concord Delirium

dsc_4767 by mcridland, on Flickr

dsc_4769 by mcridland, on Flickr



dsc_4756 by mcridland, on Flickr


Measurements are as follows: 24.65mm (including Crown) x 34.4mm lug to lug and approx 2mm thick!!


dsc_4770 by mcridland, on Flickr


Mark

'kin' ell, I doff my hat to you sir.

[luddite]

This is my thinnest mechanical, 4mm, 5mm including the crystal.

This is from the days when Bulova was a quality Swiss watch. Way before the digital revolution.

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[bobbee]

This is my thinnest mechanical, 4mm, 5mm including the crystal.

This is from the days when Bulova was a quality Swiss watch. Way before the digital revolution.

Sent using my finger and the TZ-UK app

Very nice President! Mid 1950's? Here is my thinnest mech at just under 8mm. 1960's.

[luddite]

I bought it new in 1966.

Sent using my finger and the TZ-UK app

[Tiny]

Where did it all go wrong?

Paul

Must be "big fat watch equals macho". Be a real man. Real men wear clocks. Strapped to their arms with chains. Everyone knows women are attracted to men who wear clocks. Especially military clocks and diving clocks. If you put arm and leg holes in a grandfather clock you can wear that as well!

[petethegeek]

Even leaving the impressive statistics aside, that's rather nice. Do you have a model/reference number for it?

Unfortunately 5.5 mm is the best I can manage.

[luddite]

Not at home at the mo, but it's called a Stiletto. I bought it new on a whim as it was half rrp.

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[Nugget]

VC 6115 with Calibre 1003 1.64 mm in width. Very thin and very sturdy.

[Tiny]

Thats pretty impressive!

[Tinker]

VC 6115 with Calibre 1003 1.64 mm in width. Very thin and very sturdy.

... "... in width" ... . No, height.

But very sturdy, you're certainly right.

(If/when you want to sell the VC, please tell me.)

[cirotti]

VC 6115 with Calibre 1003 1.64 mm in width. Very thin and very sturdy.

Gorgeous timepiece sir!!...The VC 1003 is a work of art!!

[murkeywaters]

6mm is pretty thin for an Omega Seamaster -

[walkerwek1958]

Must be "big fat watch equals macho". Be a real man. Real men wear clocks. Strapped to their arms with chains. Everyone knows women are attracted to men who wear clocks. Especially military clocks and diving clocks. If you put arm and leg holes in a grandfather clock you can wear that as well!

........ this is your best post to date by a significant margin!

Laugh........almost shat myself!

Paul

[Chris_in_the_UK]

Lovely watches!

Thin and sturdy are not compatible IMHO....

[draftsmann]

I get the feat of miniature engineering but most of these just look too anorexic and flimsy. Small diameter doesn’t bother me and I’ll happily wear anything between 34mm vintage Rolexes and 45mm dive watches. But they need to have a bit of front-to-back heft for me.

[coldwarkid]

Wouldn't a very thin mechanical watch be much more delicate than , say, an 8mm one?

I know there are probably exceptions and people will say " I've had this since 1963 and it runs to COSC standards," but generally speaking?

I watched a video on YouTube recently, of an interview with Roger Smith were he states he doesn't like thin movements as he feels that they should show a three dimensional depth that can only be achieved with a chunkier movement. He could have been conditioned in his thinking though by George Daniels, who I'm sure I read somewhere felt the same way.I realise these people are looking at it differently from us though and may be indulging their selves a little.

Personally, I like dress watches to be sub 11mm, anything else I'm happy as it comes, as long as it's not wafer thin or a massive chunk.

[alpharulez]

VC 6115 with Calibre 1003 1.64 mm in width. Very thin and very sturdy.

What a beauty!!!



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[luddite]

I get the feat of miniature engineering but most of these just look too anorexic and flimsy. Small diameter doesn’t bother me and I’ll happily wear anything between 34mm vintage Rolexes and 45mm dive watches. But they need to have a bit of front-to-back heft for me.

Colin Chapman one explained his obsession with lightweight engineering by comparing the quality of a China teacup with a pint pot.

I would hazard a guess that you wouldn't be called sylph like Adrian.

[Steelgecko]

That VC is unbelievable. Beautiful watch although I do wonder if it's so thin as to look out of proportion on the wrist. I'm with the other poster who, as long as it's under a certain height, is happy to wear as a dress watch. Plus, there are to my mind many criteria to a dress watch, not just height.

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[luddite]

This is a pic of the bank of the Stiletto for peterthegeek who requested the model number.

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[Scepticalist]

Must be "big fat watch equals macho". Be a real man. Real men wear clocks. Strapped to their arms with chains. Everyone knows women are attracted to men who wear clocks. Especially military clocks and diving clocks. If you put arm and leg holes in a grandfather clock you can wear that as well!

I think there were a lot of contributory factors initially. Popularity of chronographs and date complications, the quartz crisis drivign cost savings, popularity of dive watches which at the time had to be bigger to get the required depth ratings etc.

Nowadays of course with the margins involved there's no excuse. It's just fashion - plus if you are selling a luxury item you want it to be recognised to drive sales, not fly under the radar so there's no driver from the manufacturers to go thinner/smaller.

This is one of the biggest factors putting me off Omega automatics right now. Most of the watches housing their new coaxial movements are quite frankly ridiculously thick/high on the wrist even when they decide to make one under 44mm

My thinnest watch is probably my grandfather's Longines from the early 60s.

[walkerwek1958]

I think the ultra-thin watches were merely an exercise in demonstrating what could be achieved, I too would have concerns about the strength of the cases etc. However, the typical watches from the 60s that were around 9mm thick (including typically domed acrylic crystal) are plenty strong enough and very elegant on the wrist.

Just measured my pre-Bond Seamaster pro and it's only 8.95mm thick, the thin bbezel and flat glass help keep the size down and that was still a priority in the 80s when this was designed.

I agree with the previous comment regarding current Omega models, I had a 38.5mm aqua Terra and it always looked too tall for my liking. Maybe they think people expect a chunk of metal to justify the high cost? To me, a thick chunky watch on a slim wrist isn`t a good look, it makes a slim wrist look even thinner. There almost seems to be an urge to wear the biggest watch you can, hence the comments about being able to 'pull it off' when folks try on a watch that (to me) looks to big/thick. Some of the pictures people post on here make me cringe, the watches just look wrong on a small wrist but the owner's decided otherwise.

Maybe there's a psychological parallel with the fashion for chunky SUV vehicles, everyone's trying to look bigger/taller?......who knows!

Paul

[RobDad]

I’d be really curious to find out which of the ‘forum favourites’ in certain sectors are the slimmest. I’m thinking your ‘beaters’ and ‘divers’ - I have larger wrists so not that bothered by the fashion for larger watches but their depth makes a larger difference to comfort imho. Lots of g shocks and modern sports watches seem to be as tall as they are wide for no obvious reason. Look at the original Tag Heuer F1 - very slim, 200m wr with a non screw down crown!


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[petethegeek]

This is a pic of the bank of the Stiletto for peterthegeek who requested the model number.

Thanks, that's very much appreciated. I'll go and have a ferret around to see what I can find.

[Carlton-Browne]

At the top of this pile is a Universal Geneve Golden Shadow - the thinnest automatic watch between 1965 and 1978 - a Genta design. At the bottom is a White Shadow Quartz which was the thinnest quartz watch when it was launched but I doubt if it held the title for as long as the Golden Shadow.




In my view the VC always wins these threads, hands down.

[Neil.C]

Some lovely stuff here and a great idea for a thread.

VC will always win, a stupendous watch.

This is my thinnest auto, obviously a micro rotor, the Hamilton Intra-Matic.

4mm deep.

[Tinker]

Vacheron Constantin and Audemars Piguet shared their ultra-thin movement. VC's was identified as '1003', AP's as '2003'.

I had the AP. It was wonderful and a joy to own. It was also expensive to have serviced.

Not only that, short of sending it to AP, it was difficult to find someone to service it.

Eventually, I found an FBHI who would do the job. When he returned it, he said, "It had been somewhere it shouldn't have been. Someone had been in there who shouldn't have."

The other downside is that ultra-thins don't make a lot of money.

Perhaps there's a connection.

[Time Cat]

VC 6115 with Calibre 1003 1.64 mm in width. Very thin and very sturdy.

Waw! That is unbelievable. I v never seen such a thin watch. Fantastic.

Looks very delicate tough...

[Tinker]

All thin watches are delicate compared to fat ones, I suppose, but the VC 1003 movement has a reputation for sturdiness, reliability and accuracy.

This is the present version:

[Tinker]

Here's an earlier version:

[Tiny]

Must be "big fat watch equals macho". Be a real man. Real men wear clocks. Strapped to their arms with chains. Everyone knows women are attracted to men who wear clocks. Especially military clocks and diving clocks. If you put arm and leg holes in a grandfather clock you can wear that as well!

I would just like to add that wearing a grandfather clock can make you really stand out, especially when skiing or driving open topped cars. Women go nuts over these guys. Why not try it? Go down to your AD today and get measured up. Says Michael Pendulum-Smith of Face-Off Grandfather Clocks, "We've had a pre-Christmas rush the last couple of weeks. Guys with our Coat One conversion are getting mobbed by crowds of women in shopping centres. Most of our customers are accountants looking for a little excitement in life." The bigger the clock the better. "Look at me!. See how big my pallet stones are!"

[draftsmann]

I’d be really curious to find out which of the ‘forum favourites’ in certain sectors are the slimmest. I’m thinking your ‘beaters’ and ‘divers’ - I have larger wrists so not that bothered by the fashion for larger watches but their depth makes a larger difference to comfort imho. Lots of g shocks and modern sports watches seem to be as tall as they are wide for no obvious reason. Look at the original Tag Heuer F1 - very slim, 200m wr with a non screw down crown!


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Pre-ceramic Subs are pretty svelte. The “midsize” (38mm) Heuer 1000 series more so.

[luddite]

Pre-ceramic Subs are pretty svelte. The “midsize” (38mm) Heuer 1000 series more so.

I hate ceramic watches, no soul, they all look very samey...

Give me an old fashioned bezel with plenty of wabi

[jalebi]

Not quite the level of the VC, but my Zenith Elite Port Royal is quite thin for an automatic.

[Tinker]

A handsome Zenith, but I've seen thinner house bricks.

[DeepThought]

6mm is pretty thin for an Omega Seamaster -

Thats very yummy, Whats he model ?

[alpharulez]

The JLC Master Ultra Thin Perpetual...

Not quite as thin as the VC but thin for a perpetual sporting a moonphase, complete calendar and 4 digit year display.

Surprised no one here brought up a Piaget, considering their hallmark are thin movements and cases.

[luddite]

A handsome Zenith, but I've seen thinner house bricks.

Ooooh! You little tinker.

[Tinker]

Surprised no one here brought up a Piaget, considering their hallmark is thin movements and cases.

The world's thinnest automatic wristwatch: 5.25mm.

[alpharulez]

fine watch.

I found additional information:

https://www.watchtime.com/blog/7-rec...-thin-watches/

https://monochrome-watches.com/six-u...st-tourbillon/

[EJL25]

The JLC Master Ultra Thin Perpetual...

Not quite as thin as the VC but thin for a perpetual sporting a moonphase, complete calendar and 4 digit year display.

Surprised no one here brought up a Piaget, considering their hallmark are thin movements and cases.

Don’t forget that the JLC is also automatic.

[Tinker]

Don’t forget that the JLC is also automatic.

So's the Piaget above.