What's so special about the watch?
When it comes to alarm watches, you're probably looking at Jaeger-LaCoultre with its Memovox, or to Vulcain with its titular Cricket series. While collectors flock after the Memovox for its current relevance and also its larger case size, Vulcain's Cricket is of no less pedigree.
Mechanical alarm watches don't get a lot of love, but for a collector of many they present a lower entry barrier to really excellent vintage pieces. This Vulcain Cricket for example, is one good example of a high quality watch at a reasonable price point.
The watch listed is off the beaten track when it comes to the iconic "Diamond 12" Cricket watches where a large lume diamond sits at 12'O, but it's beautiful nonetheless with its two-tone sector with the Arabic numerals sitting neatly in the sector band.
A lot of noise comes out of the smaill case of this cricket, and its overall condition screams out for a collector looking to own a classic dress piece from the 50s.
What are the functions of the watch?
Time only, with mechanical alarm.
Let me tell you about the case...
The yellow gold plated case is in impeccable condition, the plating still solid with no signs of falling off. Coming off at 32mm, the case is a little hard to swallow for the modern collector, the curved lugs adding to a total of 40mm lug-to-lug.
The dainty size of the case accentuates the light-touch design elements - smooth curves from the lugs onto a polished bezel with the iconic crown and alarm pusher of the Cricket at 3 and 2'O.
And now the dial...
I love a good two-tone dial, and this one comes close to being my most memorable one so far, the champagne and gold tones complement the yellow gold case really well.
The complex information like the alarm markings and railroad tracks for the minutes have been reserved for the outer ring, a smart decision to not clutter the inside of an otherwise small dial. I can also imagine a more ambitious design would increase the size of the applied Arabic numerals in the next sector to "give it a little more character", but kudos on the restraint shown by Vulcain here.
Finally, the lake of calm that is the centre of the dial sees only the applied curved Vulcain logo with the Cricket moniker. Classy.
Let's not forget the hands...
Keeping it simple like the dial, sharp dagger hands are flat polished and without lume. The alarm hand is long and slender, an accented black arrow at its end to match the printed black markings used for the alarm setting. A red sweeping seconds is a good option for the designers, as gold will really be too much of an overkill at this point.
"Sector" - 1950s Vulcain Cricket Mechanical Alarm
Specifications
- Hour, minutes and sweep seconds hands
- Two-tone sector dial with applied markers
- 32mm stainless steel case
- 40mm lug-to-lug
- 18mm lug width
- Vulcain manual wind alarm movement @ 18,000vph
- Acrylic crystal
- Premium olive leather strap
Disclosure: Part of the red sweeping seconds hand has flaked off. Please refer to photos.
This watch will be shipped via FedEx International Door-to-Door.
This is a vintage timepiece. Please expect signs of ageing and wear. Watch is checked to be in working condition when shipped. Buyers are advised to ask all questions before purchase. Accuracy of watch cannot be guaranteed and there might be unexpected issues due to its age; servicing is recommended for practical everyday use.Price in US Dollars ($)
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If watches received are not as described, they are entitled to a 7-day defect warranty from the date of receipt of the watch.