Ernest Borel / Synchron Cocktail Watch

With mesmerizing kaleidoscopic dial

Description:

This wonderous, kaleidoscopic Borel Cocktail watch was introduced in 1952 and was made until about 1980. The main attraction to this watch is the animated kaleidoscopic dial. The center of the dial is occupied by two disks with patterns printed on them, an bottom disk with a reflective back and an top transparent disk. When the top disk spins, a mesmerizing kaleidoscopic effect occurs from the interaction between the patterns on the two disks. This type of watch is also known as a "mystery dial" because the body of the hands are hidden from view.

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The Borel Cocktail watches were made with five different kaleidoscopic patterns:

• flower
• sun
• arrows
• star
• wheel

This example has a flower pattern. This men's watch is a medium size (32mm) and due to the transparent plastic front and back case, it is quite light in weight and easy to wear. This is a good watch to wear on sunny days when the gold gleams and you can watch the kaleidoscopic dial spin and sparkle.

This Borel Cocktail watch also has "Synchron" branding, which means that it was manufactured in the late 1970s after the Ernest Borel company company was purchased by the Synchron group in 1975. The only visible difference between the pre and post Synchron watches is the name engraved on the movement and the logo on the crown. For a comparsion, see a pre-Synchron Borel at this link.

Condition:

Case: Excellent.
The case is in excellent condition with no visible dings or scratches. There is a minute scratch on the back side of the upper right lug but since it is on the back, it doesn't show. The case is clean with just a few tiny dust specks floating around inside.

Face / Hands: Excellent.
The dial, and hands are almost in like new condition. The paint on the hands is nice as smooth with no chips or wrinkles as you sometimes see in these watches.

Crystal: Excellent.
The crystal has no visible scuffs or scratches.

Band / Bracelet: Excellent.
The band is an excellent high quality Di-Modell deployment band with almost no wear.

Function / Accuracy: Excellent.
This watch winds smoothly, sets easily, and runs perfectly.