3rd Clebar

[Sea Wolf]

Purchased my 3rd Clebar watch yesterday.  Sent it directly to BWG as the watch does not work.

Will be interested to see if the band is a Zodiac. 

I feel all alone in this forum, does no one else have a Clebar?

Before BWG photo:

[Butch]

I was never a fan of them.

[Ultra-Vintage]

I actually wore the Clebar chronograph today that I had restored recently.  I will try to get a pic of it. 

[jon p]

    sea wolf, looks like UV is the only other mamber that owns one!! i guess you bought all of them! the first one you got is my favorite by far, but this one looks good too. i had never heard of the brand til we started discussing them here. as the little german guy on laugh in said"very interesting".

[orangecorallimorph]

Jon, I thought laugh-in was some of the watch listing "buy it now" prices over on the 'bay! LOL!

[Oliver]

I've bought a Clebar (Carrera Style) a while ago, it is currently for a service at my watchmaker. For the time being, I have only this picture of it ......

[Ultra-Vintage]

Here is my Clebar chronograph.  A pretty standard dive chronograph, most Swiss companies made a watch that looked very similar to this one during that time.  The only thing that changed from company to company was the dial color and the depth ratings really.  This one claims to be 20atm, with a screw in back, waterproof pushers, and an oversized non-screwdown crown.  I would not have wanted to try more than a couple of hundered feet with it when it was brand new though    It is not as flashy as some of my other chronographs, and that is why I like it.  It is on vintage aged genuine crocodile band with light gray contrasting stitching.

[Oliver]

Hey, that's a nice diver's watch! I like the hour markers. Exactly that model is currently for sale on ebay (Buy-now) (see ID 150667708809). (I am not the seller and have no connections to him.)

[Woodlands1]

I just saw the posts on Clebar watches and thought I would add my two cents. :)

I recently obtained a Titus Clebar 17J automatic DD model. I have no idea if "Clebar" is the Clebar referenced this discussion, but it could be. The watch is marked Solvil ET Titus Geneve on the rear screw-in cover. The watch has a faceted crystal and a two tone dial depending on which angle the dial is viewed from.

[Shoe123]

 but this one looks good too.     

[Medina]

This one claims to be 20atm, with a screw in back, waterproof pushers, and an oversized non-screwdown crown.

[Grossisten]

I sold my only Clebar a few years ago when I could not tie it to Zodiac in any way. It was rather nice.

[Ultra-Vintage]

I sold my only Clebar a few years ago when I could not tie it to Zodiac in any way. It was rather nice.

Honestly, I think the major tie in with Zodiac boils down to them using some of the same suppliers (for cases, dials, etc) and having the same US Import Agent.

[Grossisten]

It is very unclear at least. However there are Clebar watch boxes out there apparently saying something like "manufactured by Zodiac". Also, the Clebar brand name was registered to Zodiac at one (late, in terms of Clebars timeline) point - but to Trauner as well. I am not sure what to make of these fragmented facts - since its Zodiacs history that has my interest I have not dug deeply into it. What I seem to have found though is that Clebar was Trauners "private label" brand from quite early on (possibly pre WW2). The watches may have been produced by various manufacturers for Trauner, possibly Zodiac played an increasing role in this after perhaps 1960. This would explain why Heuer was affected by Trauners bankruptcy in the mid 70ies as reported by Jack Heuer in his autobiography - Trauner was NOT Heuers agent in the US. They may in stead have manufactured some of the many chronographs that seemed to be part of the Clebar collection as catalogues on this site indicate. Trauner became Zodiacs agent in the US some time after WW2, this might explain how Zodiac became one of the Clebar manufacturers. If that was at all the case. Unclear, in other words. But nice watches, some apparently almost identical to Zodiacs. And to Heuers (so-called Poor Mans Heuer models)

[Butch]

FWIW, I have seend several Zodiacs and Clebars with the other's movements in it. I specificly remember buying a Zodiac 3DMP from a dealer in Philly and was disappointed when I got hone and opened it to found it had a Clebar movement in it. I have always said that when Zodiac ran out of parts they kept assembling with what they had on hand.

[Grossisten]

Butch, there certainly was a period like that (to some extent with independent watchmakers there still is) - when original parts are not available, you would use what was at hand. If the movements and parts are identical, there should be no problem in replacing with parts labelled with another brand. What we dont know for sure is if this is what happened - if it was even perhaps taking place at Trauner, who imported both brands, when servicing older watches - and WHEN this happened. I dont think Zodiac in Denmark (that I am very familiar with as you know) would have frowned to long upon what was essentially an accepted practice by watchmakers for generations, especially after Zodiac was sold in 1979 and ceased production at the Zodiac factory. I do not think however that Zodiac used Clebar parts in their production as this would undermine the brand completely with watchmakers, a relation Zodiac valued highly and to a large extend relied on. The answers to my questions would explain many "Frankenwatch" examples. But does it enlighten us as to who produced what for whom? The intercompatability of parts and the examples of Zodiac/Clebar-Frankens is at least an indication that particularly converges on the US where Clebars were marketed and thus on Trauner, the US distributor of both brands. The question is often raised when discussing "Poor Mans Heuer" watches, that some believe were Heuers labelled Zodiac (or Clebar). As you have before stated we have no proof that this was what happened, instead sharing suppliers and trying to imitate the succes of competitors may have lead to some of these models being created. The strongest tie Clebar/Zodiac would be that of the text on Clebar boxes directly stating that the watch was manufactured by Zodiac. I dont think Zodiac - knowing the brand and its owners the way I think I do - would have approved of that, had it not been correct. Clebars were even in Trauners Zodiac catalogues. My conclusion is that it is fair to assume that at least SOME Clebars were Zodiac-manufactured.