The Model 3
1888 to 1898
The Model 3 was the successor to the earlier Model 1 with an identical plate layout, though with improvements to the winding pinion, setting mechanism, and mainspring click. The gear train was upgraded to a quick rate of 18,000 BPH instead of 16,200, and the plates were available in nickel, which allowed for plenty of dazzling radial patterns. Since the Model 3 was lever-set some would be considered railroad grade, including the Railway Queen, with jewel counts ranging from 7 all the way up to 21 for its highest grade of all - the rare Henry Molineux.
Grade Assignment
All known Model 3 grades have been determined from existing catalogs and period ads. The Grades 96/101 and 196/201 may appear redundant, since the higher grades were created by simply swapping the basic single-sunk dial for a double-sunk one. Since it's not possible to know if a dial is original to a given movement, the lower grades have been used in the SN Table and in the search return. As always, the catalogs show a clear distinction between gilt and nickel plate finishes, with two-tone and flashed-gilt categorized as nickel.
* The 11-jewel nickel Grade 155 has been assigned.
The Jeweling
The factory seldom jeweled the center wheel on the pillar plate, resulting in a 16-jewel watch that appears to be fully jeweled. The company also produced 17-jewel variants, but without pulling the dial there is no way to visually tell the difference. None of the known advertisements list a 16-jewel Model 3, so it's not clear if there are any grades yet to be found or if it was intentionally misleading advertising. For ease of research the 16- and 17-jewel grades have been combined.
The Confusion
The Grade 170 was defined in every publication as a 15-jewel lever-set nickel Model 3, but if the word 'Adjusted' is milled onto its plates that very same watch becomes a Grade 196. Add a center jewel and those become Grades 190 and 179, making a total of four grade possibilities.
Adding to the confusion, the two standard 15-jewel adjusted grades - the gilt 101 and the nickel 196 - both had secondary grades. This simply meant a single-sunk or double-sunk dial, creating the Grade 96 or 201.
The Word 'Adjusted'
Runs didn't always conveniently end on a number ending in zero and start with a one on the next watch, making it difficult to determine exact totals. The factory often added (or subtracted) the word Adjusted seemingly at random in the middle of a run, as shown in this photo of SN 14002 and 14003. One is marked Adjusted under the balance wheel and the other is not, making them a Grade 70 and 101, respectively. Other than that one engraved word they are the same watch.
The Grade 506
The 16 and 17-jewel nickel Grade 506 is Adjusted to Temperature and Position, according to both the plate engravings and the period ads, while the Henry Molineux is simply Adjusted, technically making the 506 a higher grade at the same jewel count.
The Grade 406 is the gilt version of the 506 and was listed in several trade catalogs, but so far a single example has yet to be reported.
The Dials
Dials sometimes determined the grade in the Model 3, and a single-sunk dial versus a double-sunk meant the difference in several grades.
Telling Them Apart
7-jewel
Gilt Variant - Grade 33
Nickel Variant - Grade 133
There are no jewels in the gear train pivots at all, the regulator is a simple one, and the movement is not marked Adjusted.
11-jewel
Gilt Variant - Grade 55
Nickel Variant - Grade 155*
The escape wheel and pallet have press-fit jewels (red arrows), the regulator has a gooseneck adjustment spring, and the movement is not marked Adjusted.
15-jewel
Gilt Variant - Grade 70
Nickel Variant - Grade 170
The third and fourth wheels have screw-set jewels (red arrows), the regulator has a gooseneck adjustment spring, and the movement is not marked Adjusted.
15-jewel Adjusted
Gilt Variants - Grades 96 and 101
Nickel Variants - Grades 196 and 201
The lower gear train is jeweled, it has a gooseneck spring, and the movement is marked Adjusted on the lower plate (red arrow). The dial determines the grade.
16/17-jewel
Gilt Variant - Grade 90
Nickel Variant - Grade 190
The center wheel is jeweled (red arrow), the regulator has a gooseneck spring, and the movement is not marked Adjusted. The dial should be double-sunk.
16/17-jewel Adjusted
Gilt Variant - Grade 79
Nickel Variant - Grade 179
The same jeweling as a Grade 90/190 but the movement is marked Adjusted on the lower plate under the balance wheel. The dial should be double-sunk.
17-jewel Temp & Position
Gilt Variant - Grade 406
Nickel/TT Variant - Grade 506
The same as the Grade 79 but with markings of Adjusted to Temperature and Positions. Not a single 406 has been reported; scroll up to see the nickel Grade 506 explanation.
17-jewel Henry Molineux
Nickel Only
The lower gear train is jeweled, the pallet is cap-jeweled (red arrow), and the center wheel has bushings. The movement is marked Adjusted on the lower plate underneath the balance wheel.
21-jewel Henry Molineux
Nickel Only
The same as the 17-jewel version, but the center wheel is jeweled and the escape wheel is capped (red arrows). The movement is marked Adjusted on the lower plate underneath the balance wheel.
The Model 3 Contract Grades
Bismark
Like its Model 2 counterpart, the Model 3 Bismark was also an 11-jewel design on nickel plates in at least two distinct pattern variants, reported so far between SN 87601 and 87900.
Submitted by Nigel H, Australia
Railway Queen
Seth Thomas was one of the companies that complied with Webster Ball's new accuracy standards, making M3 movements under the Ball label using the name Railway Queen.
Henry Molineux
The Henry Molineux was the firm’s second-highest grade, named for a man born in New Hampshire in 1832 who was a personal friend of Seth E Thomas, Jr, the founder’s grandson.
Private Labels
Some sixty private labels within the Model 3 have been logged, evenly spilt between gilt and nickel plate finishes in jewel counts from seven to seventeen.
The Damask Patterns
15-jewel gilt adjusted Grade 101
15-jewel nickel Grade 170
15-jewel nickel Grade 170
15-jewel nickel adjusted Grade 196
15-jewel nickel adjusted Grade 196
15-jewel nickel adjusted Grade 196
16/17-jewel gilt adjusted Grade 79
16/17-jewel nickel adjusted Grade 179
16/17-jewel nickel adjusted Grade 179
16/17-jewel nickel adjusted Grade 179
16/17-jewel nickel adjusted to temperature and position Grade 506
16/17-jewel nickel adjusted to temperature and position Grade 506
The Railway Queen
Webb C Ball
Webster Clay Ball was given authority as the Chief Time Inspector in 1891 after the deadly Kipton, Ohio crash, tasked with enforcing strict requirements for railroad timepieces and overseeing thousands of miles of track. Seth Thomas was one of the American companies that complied with Webb Ball's new accuracy standards, making watches under the Ball label using the name Railway Queen, and the movement the company chose to use was the Model 3.
The Known Examples
There are three known Model 3 Railway Queens, although there are differences in dials, finishes and patterns. Both of the higher numbers have marked Ball/Cleveland dials and the patented Higginbotham hairspring stud also found on the Henry Molineux grade. No surrounding examples have been reported, so there may be more:
- 77831 - 17 jewels, Adjusted Temp and Position, nickel plates, Railway Queen dial
- 95509 - 17 jewels, Adjusted Temp and Position, two-tone plates, Ball/Cleveland dial
- 95515 - 17 jewels, Adjusted Temp and Position, two-tone plates, Ball/Cleveland dial
For The Plagiarists
Anyone wanting to regurgitate this information on the NAWCC message boards by passing it off as their own erudition should do their own research before "borrowing" someone else's work.
Higginbotham's Patent
Charles Higginbotham, Seth Thomas's master watchmaker, invented a unique hairspring stud for the Henry Molineux grade, found on both Models 2 and 3.
Every other 18-size Seth Thomas model utilized a cylindrical hairspring stud, seated in a round hole and held in place by a set screw. This means the stud can be raised or lowered slightly, altering both the beat rate and the beat error.
Higginbotham's new patent addressed this problem by trapping the hairspring stud in place with a bracket (Fig. 3 & 4), which has an edge (I) milled into it to mate with a corresponding notch (J) in the stud (Fig. 5 & 6), preventing it from moving either vertically or rotationally.
For further information visit the Records page.
Period Ad Cuts
1889
Lapp and Flershem ad
1890
Factory catalog
1896
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