Nordon
1948–1952 · 10k Yellow Gold Filled · Manual Wind
About the Nordon
Made from 1948 through 1952, the Nordon is a round, Gold Filled dress watch powered by Hamilton's caliber 748, an 18-jewel manual-wind movement. The case is 10K yellow Gold Filled, and at 11.0mm thick it has the presence of a proper postwar dress watch without feeling heavy on the wrist. The Nordon was part of Hamilton's CLD line, a family of watches that used a system of gaskets to keep moisture and dust out of the case, marketed at the time as weatherproof. Two dial options were offered from the start: the luminous dial with painted lume numerals and a sweep seconds hand, and an alternative version with applied gold numeral-marker construction.
Finding a Nordon in good shape means paying close attention to the Gold Filled case, since five decades or more of wear can thin the plating at the lugs and caseback edges. The luminous dial version is the one Hamilton highlighted in period advertising, and the painted lume numerals often show some age-related patina, which is expected and adds character rather than subtracting from the watch.
From the Catalog
Hamilton advertised the Nordon in 1948 at $71.50 for the 10K gold-filled model, with the luminous dial shown as the standard offering and the applied gold numeral-marker dial listed as an alternative. A 14K solid gold version was also available at $160.00.
Hamilton Catalog Images
1948
1949
1950
1951
1952
What to Look For
| Dial | Check the painted lume numerals carefully under good light. Hairline cracks or flaking around the numeral edges are common on watches of this age. Some patina to the lume itself is normal, but heavy loss or smearing suggests the dial has been stored in poor conditions. If the watch shows the applied gold marker dial variant, look for any markers that have separated or shifted from their original position. |
| Crystal | The crystal on a watch this age is almost certainly a replacement. Check that it fits flush and is not sitting loose in the bezel, which can allow dust and moisture to reach the dial. |
| Movement | The caliber 748 is a challenging movement to service, and dried oil is a real concern on any watch that has sat unworn for years. If there is enough friction buildup, the watch will simply stop. Ask whether the movement has been recently serviced and, if possible, observe it running before committing. A watch that starts strong but fades after a few hours is a clear sign it needs attention. |
| Case | Inspect the lug tops and caseback edge for wear-through, where the gold-filled layer has thinned down to the base metal beneath. Light wear on the high points is typical for a watch this age, but heavy brass showing through affects long-term durability. The CLD caseback can be tricky to open and is prone to tool slips, so look for damage around the back edge that might indicate a previous struggle. |
| Crown | The crown should wind smoothly and set without slipping. Any grinding sensation during winding points to worn mainspring or cannon pinion issues. Because the Nordon was originally rated as weatherproof, some buyers assume it can still handle moisture. It cannot. The original gasket system is almost certainly compromised by now, and the movement should be treated as water-sensitive. |
The Movement
The caliber 748 is an 18-jewel manual-wind movement that Hamilton used in several of its postwar dress pieces. Winding is done through the crown, and the sweep seconds hand runs off a central seconds mechanism rather than a small subseconds dial. The 748 has a well-deserved reputation for being difficult to service correctly, requiring four wheels to align precisely during reassembly, and the escape wheel pivot is easy to damage if any force is applied at the wrong moment.