Clive
1956 · 10k Rolled Gold Plate / Stainless Steel · Manual Wind
About the Clive
Made only in 1956, the Clive is a rectangular manual wind dress watch built on Hamilton's caliber 673. The case is 10K yellow rolled gold with a stainless steel back, and the silver butler-finished dial carries embossed gold numerals at 3, 9, and 12 with gold dot indices filling the remaining positions. Hamilton offered the Clive on either a strap or a bracelet, with pricing at $42.50 and $47.50 respectively. The Clive is closely related to the Model C, sharing the same rectangular form language that Hamilton leaned on heavily for its dress watch lineup in the mid-1950s.
The butler finish on the silver dial is the detail that makes finding a clean Clive feel rewarding. That softly burnished texture is difficult to replicate if the dial has been touched up or refinished, and many examples have lost some of that surface character over the decades. The embossed gold numerals hold up better than printed dials in general, but check closely for any flaking or separation at the edges, as embossed elements can detach from the dial surface with age.
From the Catalog
Hamilton described the Clive simply in its 1956 catalog as a 10K yellow rolled gold case with stainless steel back and an embossed dial, available on a strap for $42.50 or with a bracelet for $47.50. The embossed dial was Hamilton's own shorthand for the butler-finished surface with its raised gold numerals, a detail that reads understated in catalog language but is quite distinctive in person.
Hamilton Catalog Images
1956
What to Look For
| Dial | The butler-finished silver dial is the heart of this watch. Look for even, undisturbed texture across the surface. Any blotchiness, fading, or loss of sheen around the center or edges is a sign the dial has been cleaned too aggressively or partially refinished. Inspect the embossed gold numerals and dot indices under good light for separation, flaking, or uneven edges. |
| Crystal | The Clive would have originally worn a flat acrylic crystal. Check for deep scratches, chips at the edge, or any fogging from old adhesive or moisture intrusion. A worn crystal is replaceable, but confirm the replacement fits the rectangular bezel properly without gaps or overhang. |
| Movement | Ask about service history. In a caliber 673 that has been sitting for years, dried oil creates enough friction to stop the movement entirely, and the set lever spring is known to be fragile. A watch that winds and sets smoothly and keeps reasonable time has likely been serviced at some point, but confirmation matters. |
| Case | The 10K yellow rolled gold case will show wear through to the base metal on high-contact areas, particularly the lugs and caseback edges. Some wear is expected and honest on a watch this age. Avoid examples where the gold layer has worn through extensively on the top surfaces, as that affects appearance more significantly. The stainless steel back can be tricky to open, so look for evidence of tool marks or a damaged case back lip from improper opening attempts. |
| Crown | Check that the crown winds the mainspring with consistent resistance and snaps cleanly into the setting position. A crown that slips, feels gritty, or pulls out too easily may indicate a worn or damaged stem, which is a straightforward fix but worth factoring in. |
The Movement
The caliber 673 is a 17-jewel manual wind movement from Hamilton's American production era. It winds from the crown, runs at a steady pace when properly serviced, and is compact enough to fit the rectangular case format the Clive uses. It is not a complicated movement, but like any watch of this age, it benefits from fresh oil and a thorough cleaning to run as it should.