This US-market Longines sits right on an interesting fault line in automatic watch movement history. On the wrist it reads like a classic early-1950s dress watch—gold-fill, sharp lugs, and an interesting 2-tone dial with roman numeral indices. However, the real reason I’m attached to it is the movement. The Longines 19AS is one of those interesting, transitional full-rotor automatics that still feels distinctly like it was “engineered,” with a unique winding system that doesn’t simply follow the later, cookie-cutter ETA-style playbook. It’s from a period when Longines was at the top of its engineering game and actively iterating on how best to translate rotor motion into consistent winding—right as the industry was leaving bumpers behind and converging on modern layouts. The resulting design, while not as efficient as later systems, was clearly built to be a lifelong companion, not a disposable fashion piece.

As we continue our exporation of weird and wonderful automatic movements, let’s take a look at the 1950s-era Longines 19AS. The 19AS sits in a wonderfully in-between moment in automatic watchmaking—when the industry was leaving bumper automatics behind, but hadn’t yet settled on the now-familiar reversing wheel architecture that would dominate later full-rotor designs. In this article, we’ll walk through assembly of the 19AS automatic mechanism step by step, using the process not just as a repair guide but as a tour of the movement’s thinking: how Longines packaged a modern, 360° oscillating weight into a layout that still carries transitional DNA. Along the way we’ll highlight the design choices that make the 19AS such an interesting—and frankly underappreciated—milestone: a practical, serviceable full-rotor automatic that hints at the future while still wearing the fingerprints of the bumper age.

This is a beautifully restored vintage Zodiac Rotographic automatic, freshly serviced and regulated and running well, with a warm gold presence and classic mid-century proportions. The Rotographic line captures Zodiac at its most elegant: slim, clean, and intentionally understated, with just enough dial detail to feel special without tipping into busy. With the heavy lifting already done mechanically, this is the kind of vintage automatic you can actually wear and enjoy.

I added this Universal Genève to my collection because it checks the boxes I’m always hunting for: a great looking vintage watch that’s genuinely elegant and mechanically significant. The dial is what hooks me—clean, balanced, and just a little sharper than the average 1950s dress watch thanks to those applied arrowhead markers with integrated lume, as opposed to the more typical “lume dots as an afterthought” setup.

The movement is the real reason it stays in my collection. Universal’s cal. 138SS is one of the brand’s important early automatics—a classic bumper design introduced around 1948, right at the moment when automatic winding was still evolving fast. This is a watch from the “in-between” years—when automatics still had personality you can feel every time the bumper twitches on the wrist.

I had been looking to add a Constellation to my collection for some time before I finally scored this example in an auction. The pie pan dial is gorgeous, and the proportions are exactly what I love in a mid-century Omega: a clean 34mm case that wears bigger thanks to those crisp, faceted “dog-leg” lugs, and a dial that’s quietly dramatic once you notice what you’re looking at. The pie-pan facets catch the light in a way photos never fully capture, and the little applied star above six feels like Omega couldn’t resist a victory lap. 

I had been looking for the right vintage Cortébert to add to my collection for a while, and I was thrilled to find this early bumper automatic example. The black and charcoal dial with, crisp minute track, and restored stainless steel hands give it real presence, and the whole thing pops even more against the bright, polished stainless case. It’s one of those watches that looks like it was built to be read instantly, in bad light, in the real world—not just to be admired in a box.

Continuing my series on weird and wonderful automatics, this article explores the A. Schild 1173 — a very early, mass-produced automatic first introduced in the mid-1930s. Its bumper-style architecture traces a direct lineage back to the original John Harwood automatic concept. We take a close look as this design as it comes back together on my restoration bench following a cleaning.

I originally planned to list this Wittnauer for sale, but it completely won me over once I had it in hand, so I’m keeping it (sorry, everyone). It’s the kind of watch that looks almost too simple—until you realize how hard it is to get “simple” this right. The big, clean dial and thin bezel give it a surprisingly modern presence for a vintage dress watch, and the applied markers add just enough texture to keep the whole thing from feeling sterile.

This is a beautifully preserved 1961 Bulova Selfwinding dress watch powered by Bulova's Caliber 11AFAC automatic movement, freshly serviced and regulated for reliable everyday wear. The star of the show is the dial: a clean silver sunburst finish in excellent condition that catches the light beautifully, paired with warm gilt markers and classic mid-century typography. At 31mm, this is a particularly good fit for smaller wrists or anyone who prefers a more traditional vintage profile.

This vintage Bulova is highlighted by a full stainless steel case - a relative rarity for the brand - with a matching dial and gold numerals. Inside, the 23 jewel Bulova 10BZAC automatic movement is in fantastic condition.

This tiny powerhouse Tissot from the 1950s has classic looks coupled with great timekeeping. The Tissot 717 21-jewel movement is unquestionably the smallest fully automatic movement that I have worked on, but it doesn’t skimp on functionality, sporting a sophisticated automatic mechanism with jeweled reversing wheels.

Highlighted by a lovely fluted bezel, this vintage Tissot is a great looking and functional ladies timepiece. The Tissot 2341 automatic movement packs a lot of watch functionality into a very small space, including day and date functions with quickset via a 3-position crown, a ball bearing automatic rotor, and a high 28,800 bph rate for excellent timekeeping.

Even in the heart of the quartz crisis Bulova was still making really nice, handsome mechanical watches like this 2930 calendar automatic. This example has been serviced and given a new crystal, but is otherwise in original condition. The Bulova 11ANACD 17 jewel movement (Bulova movement codes were getting slightly rediculous at this point) has a 21,600 BPH rate for excellent accuracy and an automatic mechanism that is fully integrated into the main plate providing a thin 9mm profile.

Combining Waltham’s signature red pointer sweep second hand with a very cool “sun ray” dial pattern this is a really sharp looking 1960s Waltham. The 21 jewel UTC 233 movement was designed and manufactured by Seiko, and has innovative design elements that exist in Seiko movements to this day, including the highly efficient Seiko Magic Lever automatic winding mechanism

Looking super sharp in gold and black, this early 1960s Gruen Precision is driven by their innovative N710 SS automatic movement, making this watch a great combination of style and substance. With a 35mm bezel, it also looks great on the wrist.

Replete with signature red pointer sweep second hand, and with a very clean dial, this is an excellent example of a late 1960s Waltham. The UTC 33 movement was designed and manufactured by Seiko, and has innovative design elements that exist in Seiko movements to this day, including the highly efficient Seiko Magic Lever automatic winding mechanism.

This handsome Girard-Perregaux from 1960 has just the right amount of patina on its cream colored dial. Together with a elegant hand design and a full stainless steel case, this is a really sharp looking watch. It has a reliable and accurate in-house GP 21.19 automatic movement, making it a vintage watch you can wear and enjoy for years to come.

The A. Schild 1706 is an interesting movement with a somewhat unusual automatic winding mechanism. As we shall see in this article, this design has some benefits, but one major potential pitfall.

Kicking off a new blog series, we take a look at the Gruen N 710 SS. This 1960s automatic movement was manufactured for Gruen by… someone. It’s a bit of a mystery, as, beyond a stamp indicating Swiss manufacture, the movement only has Gruen markings.