Matching Your Old Benrus Watch Dial

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NOS Vintage Benrus Watch Dials Home Page

Due to the large number of uniquely different dials listed on the site, it may take a few minutes to find the exact match for your watch. In order to make the process as smooth & "painless" as possible, you'll find we've organized the site in to several different categories - each divided in to sub-categories.

The first thing you need to determine is which type of watch do you have.

	Is it a mechanical watch that you need to wind manually?
	Is it an automatic watch that is self-winding? OR
	Is it an electronic watch that uses a battery?

Once you've determined what type of watch it is, you need to look at the shape of the dial. Both the manual dials category & the automatic dials category are divided as follows:

Automatic Dials	Manual Dials
Round / Oval Dials	Round / Oval Dials
Rectangular / Square Dials*	Rectangular / Square Dials*
Day / Date Dials	Dials with Date
*Please note that the rectangular / You'll also notice that both of these categories has a sub-division for dials with day / date or dials with date.

The shape categories may be further divided by color. We've tried to keep this as simple as possible too. We've kept it to a minimum - silver or black. Black dials will only have black dials listed. However, you'll find several stray white dials & maybe even a gold dial or two tossed in among the silver.

As we grow & add more dials may may find need to add more sub-division. Some day those strays may have their own page but for now, there are too few of them to warrant creating more pages & more confusion.

Likewise, because we have very few electronic watch dials (currently less than 10 styles listed) there is no need to sub-divide that category (not yet, anyway).

Of course, if you have an unusual watch dial you're really in luck. We've separated those in to their own category. So, if your dial has, for example, a picture of a rifle or a Masonic emblem you'll find it here. This category also includes "odd" colors such as purple, bright orange & blue.

For All Dials

Dial Measurements

OK, you've determined what type of watch you have and you know the shape & even the color. What's next?

First you need to remove the dial from your watch. If you are not familiar with this procedure my suggestion is to take it to someone who is. Its' actually very simple but if you've never done it before you do not want to make a mistake on a watch you plan on using. Any local jeweler or watch repairman will be able to help you. Another option might be a local antique shop owner or perhaps someone at your local flea market or swap meet who buys or sells watches regularly.

Once the dial is off, you'll need to measure your watch dial. Because watches tend to be small (relatively speaking) this needs to be done with a ruler that will give you a reading in millimeters (mm). If you don't have one & can't easily beg, borrow or steal one, they are both cheap & easy to obtain at your local craft store.

For round dials you'll only need to measure the diameter (measure straight across the dial). For all others, you'll need both height & width. Measure both just to be sure on square dials. It may LOOK square but when you measure it may just be 2 mm longer in one direction or the other - making it rectangular. Better safe than sorry.

All About "Posts"

Last, but definitely not least, you'll also need to note the position of the dial feet [posts]. OK! OK! If this is all new to you, you're probably ready to close this window & start looking in to dial refinishing. Right?

Now, just hang in there a few more minutes. This is easy! I promise. If my wife can "get it" - you can too! Besides, I've got pictures to help.

Dial posts are nothing more than the little studs or "feet" on the back of the dial that mount it onto the watch movement. You just need to measure the distance

In this picture, I am measuring from the left edge of one post to the left edge of the other post. It measures 19.5mm.

DO NOT measure between the posts! By measuring that way you will eliminate the thickness of the actual posts. You can see in the photo that the posts are each about 3/4 of a mm wide. By eliminating them you will have messed up the measurement by about 1.5mm.

You also need to note the position of the dial posts on the dial. I have listed post positions by using the position of the hour hand on a watch to determine the position. These positions are determined with the dial facing up. If your post is at the top centered, it is at 12:00. If the post is halfway between the 3 and 4 hour markers, then the position is 3:30. Trying to read this makes it seem complicated at first, but look at the picture. It's really simple!

Now, that's' all you need to know! That wasn't so bad - was it?

Once you start looking around the web site, you'll realize that many of the dials will interchange with each other. In other words, most likely, there will be more than one style that fits your watch.

Your best bet may be to find your exact match for the dial you already have. But if you are willing to spend the time, you may find a replacement dial in a different color (black instead of gold), with a different finish (maybe linen) or something completely different from what you have now.

Here are a few examples:

This beat-up old dial was in a watch that had a cracked crystal. Years of exposure completely ruined it. Within minutes I found at least 2 dials that are perfect replacements for it. Neither is a cosmetically exact match. NOPE - not even the white one! Look close! There are no "cross-hairs" on the sub seconds dial of the original. But, both are the same size, have the same post measurements & position & both have the same sub-seconds dial.

This dial is scratches, faded & stained. I'd like to say it couldn't get much worse but the truth is I've seen much worse. Again, neither is an exact cosmetic match but both have the same measurements, the same post positions & the same second hand placement.

A Few Things To Remember

	Gold dial markers will be listed as "yellow".
	Silver dial markers will be listed as "white".
	"Luminous" on dials (glow in the dark dots or numbers) will be "dead" from age.
	Luminous may also be yellowed from age.
	Some dials that say "Shock-Absorber" may be interchangeable with some that don't.*
	Some dials that show a "jewel count" (such as 17J) may be interchangeable with some that don't.
	If the measurement, post positions & locations & placement of second hands match yours it should be a replacement.
	If in doubt ask.
	If you need help ask.
	If all else fails or if you are now totally confused you can always send us the dial. *You will notice that many Benrus dials are marked Shock absorber. This was their version of Incabloc. They added the shock absorber feature to their movements and slightly changed the model number. You can replace some of the shock absorber dials with unmarked dials.