Synchronar? Sunwatch?

[TheFordGuy]

Forgive my ignorance, but what's the difference between the Synchronar and the Sunwatch? To my untrained eye, they appear to be more or less identical.

Only thing I saw in one ad for them was the Sunwatch was only available in stainless steel or gold plate, not the fancy rhodium or matte black versions.

Since I'm a "details" kind of guy, I'd love to know more about what makes each one special and unique.

(Eventually, I'll decide which major organ I can live without, and trade it for a Synchronar. Anyone need a kidney?)
[Site admiiin interjects - paging Howard Riehl. Howard, you out there?]

[digibloke]

I'm sure that someone can answer in more detail but I seem to remember reading that the sunwatch came about after a shipment of cases arrived with the center bar across the solar panels missing. They made use of them by replacing the bar with a red plastic rod and called it a sunwatch. I have a feeling that the sunwatch was/is considered a poor brother to the synchronar.

The main problem I have with sunwatches is that they always seem to have the black back (which is glued in place with the same stuff they use to put the wings on jumbo jets ).

[retroleds]

Oh piss, I'll answer since Howard ain't picking up the phone on this.
The Sunwatch has a solar panel cover without a notch in it for the center bar "digi" mentioned, and it obviously doesn't have a bar down the middle of the the metal case. Any Synchronar module could theoretically go into a Sunwatch case, but a Sunwatch module can't go in a regular Synchronar case because the bar would be in the way. A Sunwatch is in no way an inferior model, but it is(Howard correct me on this, I haven't memorized the history like you) about in the middle of the chronological order of Synchronar development. Somewhere around a Mark III in it's feature set. I personally adore the clean "barless" look of the Sunwatch. And some of them came in this really neat display bnox which is like an upright cylinder with a rotating outer portion that reveals the watch.
I'm pooped...I think I went on waaaaaay too long.

I think "digi" is right, the idea came up when some of the metal cases had a inferior bar down the middle, and it was decided that changing the module top was the lesser evil - I could be way off on that part.

[Synchroserious]

In early 1977 two things happened.There were a growing number of LEDS at lower and lower prices while RTC had a fair amount of SS cases where the center bar was either bent or not thick enough so RWR/RTC improvised and used these cases to fill the $129.95 market with the SUNWATCH name.It also came with a cheaper band.So the SW,s from 1977-79 contained a rounded corner SS case(center bar cut out) and economy band along with a lexan rod placed in the center groove.However in 1980 the SW line had the square corner cases available in black(not ceramic).chrome or gold colored.These are nickel Zinc underneath and were discontinued around 1984 due to salt water breaking down the case at the band pin hole that holds it together.Usually these Zinc cases from post 1980 also had a flat top module(no center groove or rod). The post 1980 SW cases in these 3 colors can be seen at an ebay auction i noticed my brother was having.

Ed and Digibloke are pretty much right about what they said,I am just adding to it.


As for the internals there is no difference between SW and SYN.And since the black bottoms of MK III,s have the Synchronar name,it can get confusing .As for ebay, everyone that has a SUNWATCH model will surely call it a SYNCHRONAR in the title.Back in the day Sunwatch sounded more like a Solar watch than Synchronar but obviously now the original Synchronar model is more sought after and searched for than SW.

[Synchroserious]

Ah what the heck,since this subject is up. The other difference is that the center bar on a Synchronar helps protect the solar cell from breaking from a sharp blow or being run over with a car .Also the center groove creates two split angled windows that aid in capturing light from different directions slightly better than a plain flat surface on the post 1980 SUNWATCHES.