Hi Paul - Yes - the stem has a square opening. I am at work right now, so I can not post a picture, but maybe one of the other experts can get a pic for you. Once you see one - you will know what to look for when selecting a new case for it.
Marc Micale
Posts: 143 | Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin in the USA | Registered: September 16, 2009
Paul what is the serial number of the movement...? I do not believe it is a convertible because of the location of the lever set arm and there is obviously no seconds chapter....but the s/n would help....
Regards,
Jerry
Posts: 2828 | Location: California in the USA | Registered: June 23, 2008
Paul, I don't know how much the auction is for this movement, but, unless you want something to mess around with, I would stay away from it....
The case will not be an easy find, a nice dial, assuming Steven is correct is another easter egg hunt plus the seconds hand will need to be refitted....Just too much going against it....
That's just my opinion....
Regards,
Jerry
Posts: 2828 | Location: California in the USA | Registered: June 23, 2008
Jerry:the movement is only $25.00, but if it's going to be that hard to find a case i'll keep looking for something else. I have a question. I hope this doesn't sound stupid but what is "convertible" and can an open face be put into a hunter case and vise versa? Thanks...Paul
Posts: 122 | Location: Baltimore, Maryland in the USA | Registered: February 25, 2011
Hey Guys, Something just ain't right here. Wouldn't the set lever on a hunter movement be by the 5. This one is by the 2,where open face movements are. Also what difference does it make if it has a second hand or not when fitting it to a case? Only thing I can figure is,the dial is switched,and the second hand pinion was removed because they couldn't find the proper dial to make the conversion.
Paul, A convertible movement is one that can be switched from hunting case to open face case and back depending I guess on which the owner wants.
Posts: 475 | Location: Gainesville, Florida in the USA | Registered: January 22, 2009
All 6s elgin movements were made hunter style. In order to put them in an open face case,and have the 12 at the stem and the set lever at 2, faces were made with no seconds chapter. On a hunter face, the stem is at three, so in an open face case you would get a "sidewinder". As for cases, most were gold, so they are going fast.
Hope this helps
Steve
Posts: 692 | Location: Washington in the USA | Registered: May 23, 2010
Paul, this is the movement from my 16s Elgin convertible.
Like Cecil said, the movement has a secondary winding arbor at the 3:00 position, making it possible for this watch to fit either case style and still have the dial alligned corrctly.
The black arrow is the winding arbor for open-face and the red arrow is for hunter configuration. The blue arrow shows the 4th wheel, the pinion of which holds the seconds hand.
Posts: 2962 | Location: Western New York in the USA | Registered: March 24, 2008
Ok, so if i understand this correctly an open face movement can be mounted in a hunter case but the winding arbor will not be in the right place but it will fit into the case. The same with a hunter movement, it can be mounted in an open face case and it will fit with the arbor in the wrong place. Am I right??? I hope so...Paul
Posts: 122 | Location: Baltimore, Maryland in the USA | Registered: February 25, 2011
Well, I see where I went wrong. I hadn't noticed it was a 6 size movement. My mind is stuck in the 16-18 size. It is pretty common for those small movements to not have a second hand,and by simply changing the dial it can be either hunter or open cased.
Paul,the hunting movements are different from the open face movement in the placing of the wheels in the gear train. In hunting movements the set lever is at 5 o'clock,and in open face movements the set lever is at 2 o'clock. Except in the case of the one you are looking at,which has had the dial changed. If you think about it,hunting movements are meant to be viewed with the crown at 3 0'clock,and open face are meant to be viewed with the crown at 12 o'clock
Posts: 475 | Location: Gainesville, Florida in the USA | Registered: January 22, 2009
Two things, first the Elgin Convertible is the only movement that was actually designed so that it could be changed or "converted" to be either a Hunter or Open-Face configuration. Whether it is configured as a Hunter or Open-Face the setting lever is at 27.5 minutes. The position of the winding mechanism can be moved making them of great interest to collectors, in fact recently I have become very interested in them. In addition to what Eric provided above, here is a more detailed technical explanation...
Jerry King and I recently determined that some of the last Elgin Convertibles manufactured in the 1890s could be fitted to positive-stem cases, unlike earlier examples which required the difficult-to-find negative-stem cases and looked a lot like the topic movement.
Secondly, as Stephen previously determined, the 6-size movement in question was originally a Hunter that was factory modified from Hunter to Open-Face by removing the 4th wheel pinion. That eliminated the seconds hand, they then installed a dial made without a seconds register and the feet in different positions so that 12 rather than 3 was at the pendant position.
This was a common marketing tactic that allowed the watch companies to sell off leftover inventory. It was done with leftover movements after the particular Hunter movements were no longer in fashion, there are numerous examples. Whenever you see the absence of a seconds register that is a clue that what I described above has been done to the movement.
Lindell
Posts: 10553 | Location: Northeastern Ohio in the USA | Registered: November 19, 2002
In addition to what Eric provided above, here is a more detailed technical explanation... 
