Elgin De Luxe with Hooded Lugs Circa 1946

Picked up a really nice Elgin De Luxe with hooded lugs.  The bezel and lugs are in great shape with no visible brassing.  The back case has pitting, but still shines.

The dial looks great with just a bit speckled dirt that I can’t see until I take off my glasses and hold it a few inches from my eyes.  I put on a new GS crystal and flat real alligator band (so as to fit under the lugs) from Kelaran.

The case is 10k gold filled and it runs a 17 jewel 555.  The movement database puts its production date at 1946 and the lack of a case number would confirm that date.  I’ve seen this watch with the case # 5710, which would mean it was in production in the early 50s when Elgin began naming their watches.