Guangzhou 广州 SG3A



Model : SG3A (17 Jewels)
Manufacturer : Guangzou Watch Factory (广州手表厂)
Year of Production: 
Case Diameter : 
Weight w/o strap: g 
Movement Model : (17 jewels) 
Type : Hand Wind


This is my third piece of Cantonese (see the links below for the earlier two) but it is the oldest among them. 'SG3A' stands for Shoubiao (手表 , watch), Guangzhou (广州, Canton) and the 'A' should represent movement with no calendar. SG3 is a movement of lower quality but the piece survives till todate. To cite the relevant part of the wiki: 
The following year [1963], development commenced on the Guangzhou brand SG-3 watch, based on duplicate tooling to that used for the Beijing BS-2. It took a further 2 years to reach production. The contrast in quality between the BS-2 and SG-3 was stark. Certain vintage Chinese watches are sought after, not for their fine quality, but rather because they are of such poor quality that scarecely any survive. The SG-3 was one such watch. Poor mangement, poor tooling, economic and political turmoil, and vibrations from a nearby army test range dogged the Guangzhou Factory. In 1969, the factroy finally relocated.
[Added on  21 Aug 2011]
The inscriptions on the caseback is long, longer than usual. It says "GUANGZHOU, SHIQIZUAN, FANGZHEN, QUANGANG" or "CANTON, 17JEWELS, ANTI-SHOCK, ALL STAINLESS STEEL".


The other Cantonese are:
  1. Guangzhou 广州 Mingzhu 明珠 (Pearl)
  2. Guangzhou 广州 17J
More shots see here:
1. The watch;
2. The movement and the caseback;
3. The movement 1;
4. The movement 2;
5. The movement 3;
6. The movement 4;
7. The caseback;
8. The dial.