The ' other ' Enicar

kazrich

Member
Sherpa
The post 1988 'Enicar' organisation is rarely mentioned in hallowed Enicar circles :alien:
but sometimes credit should be given where credit's due.
The slick new company apparently offers over 300 styles much to Chinese taste, although
I do see the attraction of the Sherpa Sport. It looks a nicely detailed chrono.
A synopsis of Enicar history shows us strangely out of focus images and fascinating 'facts'.
Did you know know that the late 1930's - 50's produced the Enicar Dive, Divette and Mini Dive ?
More info from the educational Enicar supreme fountain of knowledge here.


I'm not 100 % convinced of the evolution or direction of the new Enicar brand, but they certainly knew
how to market and present a watch for sale back in the 90's.
Take this presentation box. The new Enicar logo was 'Signature of Time' and I picked up this beauty
4 years ago for £ 38.00.
Carpenter friends tell me it's possibly made of veneered or solid coromandel or macassar ( now protected ).
The interior is finished in grey velveteen with a compartment for a spare watch head and strap. It's very heavy.
A stark contrast to the kids origami lesson on 'how to make a box out of wallpaper' that my 66 Graph was sold with.

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Joe_A

Moderator
Staff member
Enicaristi
Sherpa
I have not looked into "the other Enicar" much though I presume that some of what we see on Ebay comes from the later incarnation.

Speaking of Ebay, I search every day under "Enicar" and then watch parts and accessories, but for some odd reason not all Enicar boxes turn up.

After seeing your post, Richard, I searched for "Enicar watch boxes" and three wood boxes turned up, one in Hong Kong very similar to yours though the interior is lighter in coloUr and has some staining - so not nearly as nice.

There are two listed from Malaysia which are along the same lines, but not as versatile, with a space for one watch, an extra band and perhaps an instruction booklet, guaranty, etc.

I was tempted and then I asked myself a question:

"Joe, what will you do with the box when it arrives?"

After a brief pause . . .

"I'll look it over carefully and admire it and then I'll put it away in some inaccessible place alongside my other watch boxes."

There was silence from me after that. :)

Joking aside, if I saw a "Sherpa Graph" box I would buy it and if the wood one was as nice as yours, I would have at least continued the dialogue with myself for a while, perhaps succumbing in the end. ;)
 

petkr

New member
Sherpa
Maybe we should not be to hard on the ”new” Enicar. Maybe they actually perpetuated the spirit of Enicar in a proper way. My feeling is that Enicar made high quality tool watches and very honest every day time pieces. I think overpriced luxury watches was never their cup of tea, but that is what all other survivors had to transform themselves into. It appears the Chineese market was very important then, and the Hongkong company understood how to develop the brand for that market.
An interessting parallel is Technos, that had a strong South American market, that ended up under Brazilian ownership, and is now manufactured in Manaus in the heart of the Amazon, with a 35% market share in Brazil, with their top-of the line selling at about 300€.. I had to pick up a Miyota powered one just out of curiosity. I think it is good value for the money, and certainly a good conversation piece.
That said, I would not mind lying my hands on the Sherpa Sport II CH328 just out of curiosity.
 
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petkr

New member
Sherpa
I was just looking at the history line at http://www.enicar.com/history/...
It is quit amazing, They don’t seem to get it quit right.....It shows a WWI Fokker under ”1951” together with development of Sherpa Jet...
”1958” mentioning Stirling Moss there is a picture of a rallye Audi Quattro from the eighties...
They mention Korolyev but there is a picture of Von Braun......

But maybe we should not be to hard.... To a chinese all westerners look the same so the mix up of Korolyev and von Braun is understandable, and no one ever heard about Stirling Moss in China...
 
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kazrich

Member
Sherpa
I have not looked into "the other Enicar" much though I presume that some of what we see on Ebay comes from the later incarnation.

Speaking of Ebay, I search every day under "Enicar" and then watch parts and accessories, but for some odd reason not all Enicar boxes turn up.

After seeing your post, Richard, I searched for "Enicar watch boxes" and three wood boxes turned up, one in Hong Kong very similar to yours though the interior is lighter in coloUr and has some staining - so not nearly as nice.

There are two listed from Malaysia which are along the same lines, but not as versatile, with a space for one watch, an extra band and perhaps an instruction booklet, guaranty, etc.

I was tempted and then I asked myself a question:

"Joe, what will you do with the box when it arrives?"

After a brief pause . . .

"I'll look it over carefully and admire it and then I'll put it away in some inaccessible place alongside my other watch boxes."

There was silence from me after that. :)

Joking aside, if I saw a "Sherpa Graph" box I would buy it and if the wood one was as nice as yours, I would have at least continued the dialogue with myself for a while, perhaps succumbing in the end. ;)

Hi Joe ;
I only buy Enicar boxes as impulse buys, but for sure they make twice the price paid when you sell an Enicar
watch in a period correct box.. Obviously, as long as you don't pretend that the box is original to the watch.
Also, my wooden box has been very helpful when photographing watches. The central movable padded watch holder
can be adjusted precisely to the angle required when macro shots of the crystal or crown are required.
 

SteveHarris

Administrator
Staff member
Enicaristi
Sherpa
I bought my fiance one of the newer Enicar ones. Can't say the quality was great but it was fine. One of the screw in pins for the bracelet came loose after a month or so though and was lost. Luckily no damage to the watch and I managed to find a spare in my parts box that fitted nicely.

Removed all the pins after that and applied some loctite (y)
 
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