The Elgin watch company was founded during the mid 1800s in America. This coincided with the latter stages of the civil war. Originally the company focused on railroad watches but at the start of the 1900s began to produce wristwatches on a large scale. This put them ahead of the vast majority of American watch makers who were comparatively slow to catch onto the wristwatch market. Today, many people collect Elgin watches as the original company no longer manufacture since the rights to the brand were sold in 1964.
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Lord Elgin 14KT Yellow Gold Mens Dress WatchUS $690.00 |
Vintage Rose Gold plated Elgin Chronograph Valjoux 7734 MovementUS $695.00 |
Early Rare vintage 14k Gold Enamel Elgin model E 3 Estate watchUS $895.00 |
History or Elgin Watches
When the company was first founded it was known as the “National watch company”. This lasted around 10 years before being changed to the “Elgin National watch company”. Elgin watches used this name until they stopped manufacturing watches in the 1960s.
The main reason why Elgin became such a popular watch company was because it realised there was a gap in the market for middle-range watches. The company never aimed to make the most expansive and high quality watches in the world but instead aimed for people who wanted a reliable watch without having to pay a huge amount of money.
They also realised that along with mass production of wristwatches consumers wanted mass produced Elgin replacement parts so that they could fix their timepieces should something go wrong. This is another reason why collecting vintage Elgin watches is so popular today – there are still a number of parts available. In fact, some people still use vintage Elgin wristwatches on a daily basis.
Evaluating Elgin Watch Prices
Working out how much a particular Elgin watch is worth isn’t always easy. There are many Elgin watches for sale on websites such as eBay and these can be a fantastic place to find a bargain. eBay is also useful for buying replacement Elgin watch parts. If you already own an Elgin watch then the serial number will be able to provide you with a large amount of information. There are some lookup services on the internet which allow you to search for Elgin serial numbers in order to work out which type of movement and casing is included with the watch. Most of the time, however, it can be very difficult to find out detailed information about a particular watch due to the fact that Elgin no longer manufacture them.
When searching for a vintage Elgin watch for sale there are some things you need to keep in mind. Firstly, make sure you know the case material as some Elgin watches are made from gold or stainless steel. When gold is used for part of a watch then the carat rating is important – 24k gold is pure gold while anything less than this contains other metals. The thickness of the case is also important – a thin gold case will generally be weak.
The dial material and style is another factor that affects the valuation and appeal of a watch. Other factors include whether the watch is water proof, which movement it uses and whether it’s a chronograph.