A fellow reader i.e. Johar, had asked for my help to identify a Soviet watch that he had purchased at a whim.
"I knew that it's from Vostok, but I can't find any further info on this watch on the Internet", he explained. He further added that he was willing to send the watch to me for me to figure it out and check out its innards.
"Well, send some pictures over to me if you could", I replied.
Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep! The pictures came back almost instantaneously.
A quick look at the watch and it was no wonder that he could not find any information on the "Vostok" on the Net. It was in fact, a Poljot Sturmanskie 3133.
This was one of the many Soviet watch models produced in the 80s and 90s, and many sold at a bargain of a price on e-Bay and other sites today.
They were supposed to be built tough, as these were the Soviet's equivalent of today's Bell & Ross military watches; but I seemed to recall my Dad saying that many such pieces were sent to his shop for repair when he was still a watchsmith.
These watches were made in USSR, and given to Soviet military pilots as part of their tool set. Much like how Bell & Ross' partnership with United States and French airforce. Typically with a case measuring 38mm with 18mm lug width, they were powered by Poljot Caliber 3133 (23 jewels), which was based on ETA Valjoux 7734.
It's a quirky piece alright, and you won't have to worry about others sporting the same watch as you while wearing this in the wild. Wear it in good health, mate!
Rare to read about this old watch. Thank you, Andy.
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