We’ve joined forces with our friends at 10:25 Vintage, a New York-based operation with a shared enthusiasm for interesting vintage timepieces, to bring you a robust handpicked collection that is both exceptional and affordable. Perfect for the discerning collector on a budget, these pieces provide an excellent entry point to the joys of vintage watches.

Before quartz watches were the norm, adding new features to a watch was a feat of engineering - a marvel in its own right. Over the years, watch manufacturers of all sizes competed on designing and developing all types of so-called complications as part of their watches. Calendars, chronographs, and GMT complications are all well and good, but there’s something fun and unique (and let’s face it, pretty practical) about a mechanical alarm on your wrist.

In addition to displaying the time, the mechanical movement features a secondary manually-wound spring which, when wound and released operates an audible buzzer, alerting the wearer at a pre-set time. This buzzer not only makes noise, but physically vibrates the watch, noticeable both on the wrist or when placed on a hard surface - making the watch usable as an alarm clock as well!

While most collectors think of brands like Vulcain and Jager-LeCoultre when thinking of alarm watches, Bulova was also a major player, producing a number of wrist alarm variants starting in the late 1950’s. This particular example dates to 1968 and features Bulova’s in house alarm movement, the Cal. 11 AERC. With a handsome 34mm case, beautifully aged dauphine hands, and a distinctive alarm hand, this Bulova brings the charm and engineering of a proper mechanical alarm to your wrist without breaking the bank.

Function primer

Given the relatively complicated (pun intended) nature of this watch, a short primer is in order. This model has two crowns, but they share a common barrel. To wind the watch and the alarm, wind the upper crown at 2:00. Note that winding is not possible with the alarm enabled. To set the time, pull the upper crown and set the time as usual. To set the alarm, wind the bottom crown at 4:00- please note that it can only be set in reverse. To enable the alarm, pull the bottom crown out. To disable it, leave it pushed in.