1970s Benrus Automatic Day Date Blue Dial ETA 2780
Ref: N/A

Specification

Points of Mention

This watch is sold as "Watch Only" and therefore comes with no original BENRUS box or BENRUS paperwork. The watch comes paired with its original BENRUS bracelet. The watch is from Circa. 1970s and is in a used but overall in fair condition as you can see from the photographs. The watch comes with our 12-Months NON-Waterproof Warranty.

The Watch

BENRUS was founded in 1921 by Benjamin Lazrus and his two brothers in New York. The brand name is made up of the first syllable of his name and the last syllable of the family name. With $5,000 in savings, they started importing Swiss watch cases and movements. Their headquarters can be still found in the Hippodrome building which sits in the heart of the Jewellery quarter of the city. During the 1940s their Sky Chief which is a combination of a pilot watch and their first chronograph became popular with the growing number of airlines and airline pilots around the world. The DTU-2A (MIL-W-3818) field watch was a common sight during the Vietnam war in both steel and later plastic. The use of plastic meant they could just throw away the watch when broken rather than get it repaired something that is very much frowned upon today. The development of their 666ft compressor dive watches began in the 1960s. In 1968 the late Steve McQueen wore a Belrus watch in his film “Bullitt”. Today their military field and dive watches can be seen worn by members of the Navy Seals and special operations. At the height of the "quartz crisis" in 1977, BENRUS declared bankruptcy. Their intellectual property was bought and sold many times over the years until the company rights were bought in late 2017 by their former principal’s solicitor Michael Sweeney who heads an investment group that has begun reviving some of their classic watches as part of the Heritage range. In 2021 they celebrated their 100 years Anniversary.

Here we have a 1970s Benrus Automatic with a 37.5mm rectangular Chrome case with defined bevelled polished corners giving it its distinctive shape. A comfortable curve to the case with a lug-to-lug length of 46mm and a case thickness of 12mm gives the watch an impressive wrist presence. On the right side is a signed crown. The vertical brushed top of the case holds a domed crystal above a deep blue dial with a striking white chapter ring. Thin lines mark the minutes with thicker lines marking the hours. At 3 o’clock a framed day/date window. Thick baton hands with luminance tips are complemented by a tapered sweeping second hand. At 12 o’clock an applied BENRUS motif completes this unapologetically 1970s wristwatch design. On the reverse, a screw-down case back. Inside an Automatic ETA 2780, 25 jewels, 28,800 beats per hour. The watch comes fitted on its original  BENRUS bracelet with a signed folding clasp.

Personal Note

It's incredible to think that Benrus declared bankruptcy in 1977, I suspect this watch was made not too long before that happened, so this could have been one of their final productions. Regardless, the watch is unapologetically 1970s in design and features such a beautifully detailed dial, one of the nicest I've seen in a watch of this era, it's incredible to think they put that much effort into the dial and then placed it in a chrome case and bracelet and still put a higher grade ETA inside? This is why I feel it's one of their final watches, almost a mish-mash of bits, truly incredible nonetheless!