A Very Collectible Record Dirty Dozen Military Issued Soldier's Watch with a Non-Radium MoD Dial, c.1945. 

Known as the “Dirty Dozen” these famous watches were the first purpose-built military watches ever made. Delivered between 1944 & 1945, the “Dozen” comprised of 12 manufacturers who produced around 150,000 watches for the war effort. Also known as WWW watches which stands simply for “Watch Wrist Waterproof”, these watches were built for action and to stand the vigour of war and the “Dozen” certainly did the job. The 12 companies comprised of Buren, Cyma, Eterna, Grana, JLC, Lemania, Longines, IWC, Omega, Record, Timor and Vertex with rumours there were in fact 13 and the 13^th company being Enicar but due to apparently Enicar was also supplying the enemy, they were briskly dropped from the contract. No examples have yet appeared from Enicar.

Of the circa 150,000 pieces made, around 25,000 were made by Record which makes them joint top with Omega for the largest quantity made. Featuring sword hands, a 36.5mm chrome-topped case and 022K calibre beating inside, the Record represents a classic military appearance which has been copied ever since. The sub seconds dial ensures maximum legibility when on the battlefield and the iconic broad arrow marks the property of the crown. These watches were meant to have been returned at the end of service but like many pieces of equipment used during the war, many soldiers chose to take some pieces home as a memento of a historic event that they were a part of. 

What’s On Offer 

We have here a very nice example of the Record Dirty Dozen which features an MoD dial, meaning its original radium dial was replaced by a tritium dial, so if the presence of radium in military watches is a concern for you, then this is a superb option as it is still very much an original piece with historical military significance. 

The dial has been well preserved and remains rich matt black with bold white Arabic numerals, a sub-seconds counter at 6 o'clock and a minute track to the outer edge of the dial. The hands and hour plots still boast their lume and it has aged evenly to a beautiful vanilla hue. The case back bears the military markings one expects to see which read: WWW L1707S 53492G, the military pheon (arrow) is also present as it is on the dial, denoting the watch as property of the MoD.