HAMILTON FIELD GUIDE

Hamilton primarily limited their color palette of their dials to a standard white, silver (with a couple of different finishes), black, gilt (yellow/gold), coral (rose gold), or any combination of these. Gray dials, wood dials, and a unique and very interesting rainbow-like pattern do exist, however, only ten models used one of those three for a dial.

 

Only the 1969 “Color Classic” series models used colors we may consider standard today: blue, red, green, or brown. I mention this because if you visit eBay or other auction sites, you are likely to come across a vintage Hamilton with a bright-colored dial. In almost all cases, those are repainted, not originals. It is important to be aware of this because it could be problematic with identification. Sometimes these sellers will also sell dials that have been painted black. This may create further confusion among collectors. No lime green or purple-colored dials were produced in the Hamilton factory.

 

Hamilton wasn’t always clear about what was white or silver in their documentation and there was more than one silver finish for dials too. When photographed, some silver dials also look white due to the finishing and the way light reflects off them. Reinforcing René’s message that things aren’t always straightforward in the Hamilton collecting world, it was not uncommon for silver, stainless steel, and white gold to all be referred to as white in official documentation.