Hey Dan, do you recall the Elgin wristwatch that you gave me many months ago?

I took it to my friend Derek to have it cleaned and serviced recently. He cleaned it, swapped the stainless steel strap for an American gold-plated strap ("Speidel, USA" on each link), cleaned the dial and hands, and put in a new crystal as the old one was pretty scratched. It looks a treat.

The fascinating thing is that, althought the dial is signed "Elgin", the movement inside is a Savoie P72 - sometimes known as a Lorsa P62 movement. Savoie - sometimes known as Savoy - was based in the Haute Savoie region of France, right on the French/Swiss border. But they were originally a New York-based firm who shipped in Swiss movements for use in American watches - a bit like Wittnauer and Gruen. I asked Derek whether the case and dial could have been fitted with a new movement - and he said no, they were originally together when cased.

So, even before Elgin was sold in the late 1960s, they were using non-American parts and movements for their later watches. Apparently, the P62 is a fine movement.

Great little piece of American/Swiss watch history - and the watch looks great!