Hamilton QED (Gold-Filled, One Button)

The "Kojak" watch

Description:

The Hamilton QED was one of the first digital watches available to the public and was the very first made by Hamilton. The QED was a top-of-the-line watch when introduced in 1973 and the gold version was prominantly worn by Telly Savalis in the TV series "Kojak".

Telly Savalas as Theo Kojak with his Hamilton QED

The QED has a very distinctive deco styling featuring prominant parallel horizontal lines which became a recurring design theme among Hamilton's later digital models, though you could argue that none were executed as elegantly as the first. Despite its trim and elegant design, the QED is a surprsingly large and heavy watch - much heavier than any Pulsar and even heavier than the Omega TC-1. This is a watch that will be noticed.

1974 Hamilton QED Catalog Advertisement

The QED uses the exact same module as the Pulsar P2 (one button) and Pulsar P3 (two button) models and features the same coveted dot type LED display made by Litronix. The only difference is that the Hamilton modules have a sticker identifying them as Hamilton model #955. The Hamilton QED also shares the same module with Omegas top end TC-1 and TC-2 digital watches and even has the exact same links in the bracelet except that Omega links do not have the additional horizontal line down the middle of each link.

There is some confusion over the name of this watch because some were sold as "QED" Quartz Electronic Digital and some earlier models were sold as QTC Quartz Time Computer although they are exactly the same watch.

Hamilton QED Instruction Manual (Click to view)

Condition:

Case: Very good.
This gold filled QED is in very good condition. There are a few tiny nicks on case side opposite the button. The case back has its original circular machining and almost no visible scratches. The case edges are nice and sharp, the front polished bezel is smooth with sharp edges and the original mirror polished surface.

Face / Hands: N.A.

Crystal: Good.
This crystal is in almost mint condition with no scratches or nicks and would be perfect except that the logo has almost completely worn off. The very earliest Hamilton LED watches had crystals where the logo was applied with a gold leaf process, which very quickly wore away. They soon changed to a process where the logo was applied by baking on glass powder, which formed a very durable glass to glass bond with the crystal. However, this is one of he very early models with the gold leaf logo, which is why it has almost completely disappeared. On the plus side, it looks better to have an almost perfect logoless crystal than one with a partial logo.

Band / Bracelet: Excellent.
The distinctive original bracelet is in exellent condition with almost no scratches or gold loss. Normally, the edges of the links will often show some spots where the gold fill has worn through, but this one is intact and the edges of the links are still nice and sharp. It is complete with all of its original links and fits an 8" wrist.

Function / Accuracy: Excellent.
All functions work perfectly. This watch contains a replacement module made by: http://www.strikesandspares.com