The Set Back in Time team is very familiar with the Cyma brand. Back in the 1950s and 60s, Cymas was producing high-quality watches with in-house movements that rivalled some of the bigger Swiss brands. Cyma watches of the aforementioned period are highly collectable. In a recent gathering, one of our group showed this example of a Cyma Navystar, which had us all interested. The photographs inspired us to do some research about the Cyma Navystar range. Here is what we uncovered.
A brief history of Cyma
Brothers Joseph and Theodore Schwob established Cyma SA in 1862, setting up an établissage workshop, initially named Schwob Frères, in Le Locle, Switzerland. In 1892, the brothers partnered with watchmaker Henri-Frédéric Sandoz, the creator of the Tavannes watch company. Sandoz manufactured his own precise watch movements using specialised, modern machinery. The Schwob brothers officially registered the brand name Cyma in 1903. The name comes from the French word “cime,” meaning “summit.” By 1909, the Cyma-Tavannes partnership employed 950 people and produced 750,000 watches annually.
Cyma focused on precision by standardising parts manufacturing and creating high-accuracy components by the 1920s. During the 1940s, the company heavily advertised the waterproof nature of its cases, which protected watches for daily use. In the late 1930s, Cyma introduced its proprietary in-house shock protection system, Cymaflex.
During the Second World War, the company supplied watches to the British Ministry of Defence (MOD) as part of the famous “Dirty Dozen“. In the 1950s, Cyma debuted the waterproof Navystar in an elegant slim-line case, alongside the innovative Triplex watch case. The Cyma and Tavannes brands began to decline in the 1960s, and production stopped in 1966. That year, ASUAG’s Chronos Holding acquired both companies. Stelux International, Ltd., a Hong Kong-based holdings firm investing in fine jewellery and watches, currently owns Cyma.
Cyma Navystar
Cyma introduced the Navystar range in the 1950’s as an ultra-thin watch which combines watertightness with exceptional elegance. The Navystar was the successor of the Cyma Watersport and a robust sports watch. They used slim stainless steel cases, featuring dials with baton markers and sword hands. Dial colours included white, silvered, champagne and black. The cases were sometimes gold-plated. The Navystar range mainly used manually-wound movements (R459, R488). However, there was an automatic version, promoted as the “Autorotor” (R480). All movements featured the in-house shock protection system, Cymaflex.
1950s promotional material promoted the following features:
“This particular Cyma is NEW! It is the NAVYSTAR watertight… yet slim and so elegant”.
“CYMA NAVYSTAR -a masterpiece of Swiss craftsmanship. Its ultra-slim stainless steel case is so designed that faultless watertight sealing is achieved without the bulk usually associated with watertight watches. 17 jewel precision lever movement. Anti-magnetic, Anti-shock.”
The advertisement goes on to claim:
“A unique spring system, designed to counteract wear, permanently seals the winder.
The main sealing material, a new metal alloy, retains its elasticity.
Cymaflex – the world famous anti-shock device fully protects the balance staff.”
Cyma R486.2 calibre
The watch has a signed 18 jewel Cyma R486.2 Swiss hand-winding movement, which is working nicely. According to the Ranfft DB, the Cyma R486.2 has a power reserve of 48 hours, a frequency of 18,000 vph and Cymaflex-I shock protection. The Cyma R486 watch movement was in production from 1953 to 1960. Interestingly, it features an intermediate wheel between the minute pinion and the rest of the train, which allows for a large balance without affecting the slim profile. This layout allows the option to place the seconds wheel as either a centre or sub-second, without further modifications.
Case and dial
The watch measures 34mm in diameter, excluding the signed Cyma winding crown and the lugs. The case is stainless steel, and overall, the condition is good, just general light marking and a 1cm scratch to the back. The screw-on case back is signed “CYMA NAVYSTAR, PATENTED, CYMAFLEX, Non MAGNETIC”. Sadly, much of the signage is faded due to over-polishing. The lens has a light scratch near the six marker, but it’s difficult to see without magnification.
The signed dial is in its original finish with original hands and centre seconds hand. There is very fine age-related flecking across the dial. This would be considered patina. There is a tiny piece of damage in the centre of the C logo, but barely noticeable to the naked eye.
Summary
The Navystar range was introduced in the 1950’s as a rugged waterproof watch in a slim case. The Cymaflex logo on the dial refers to the in-house patented anti-shock system used on the balance staff. The range was largely released with hand-wound movements, although there were some automatics. Cyma is a very well-respected brand and the Navystar model is probably their best-known, apart from their Dirty Dozen contribution.
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