Smiths W10 RAF issue (1967)

This is a rare Smiths W10 watch supplied to the RAF in 1967. The watch was part of a contract that Smiths won to supply the armed forces with a General Service watch, they supplied the watches for the years from 1967 - 1970. The vast majority of these watches were supplied to the Army with a small number supplied to the Navy and the RAF (as with this watch).

All of the RAF watches were issued in 1967 - the case back has the stores information for the watch: 6B is RAF stores code for flying equipment; 9614045 is the reference number for this type of general service watch. 637 is the unique identifying number for this watch and / 67 relates to the 1967 year of order.

The watch has an all stainless steel case with a screw on case back for good water resistance. The movement inside is protected from magnetic fields by an iron dial and an iron dust cover which sits inside the case back. 

The movement of the watch is Smiths 27.CS, which was modified to include a hack mechanism - that is a device to stop the mechanism when the winding crown is pulled out. This allows the movement to be accurately set to a reference time source and was part of the original military specification. 

The dial conforms to the same military specification - that is having a dark base colour and large, legible numerals in white, along with a minute / seconds track. The watch dial and hands had a luminous compound to allow them to be read in the dark, although this is almost completely exhausted now. The dial bears the pheon which is used to identify all British military property. 

The time keeping on these military watches is far better than the majority of Smith’s production, showing that they could certainly match the best of the Swiss industry. It makes it all the sadder that the firm wound up the watch and clock making divisions only a few years later. 

The stainless steel case is a good everyday size at 35mm and is in good condition. It has a few minor scratches from use, but nothing too bad. The case back is in good condition, with only a few marks where someone has used the incorrect tool to open the case (something that ones sees almost invariably with these watches). 

The movement has been fully serviced and the timekeeping is excellent. The case has been ultrasonically cleaned, but as with all out vintage watches we have left it unpolished. The crystal has been polished and the watch has been fitted with a new, hand-made leather strap. The watch comes with our standard 12 month guarantee. 

Specifications:
Case diameter: 35mm
Case material: stainless steel
Strap width: 17mm
Time keeping: grade A