Guess what's unusual...

[digibloke]

The postie delivered this yesterday. It's an early Optel module stem set lcd watch in much the same style as funckyguyfromlondons Lucien Piccard and Azimuths Kuatron. Apart from the stem being missing it's in N.O.S condition and it's a splendid bit of kit. There's something unusual about it though which makes it a bit trickier than usual to plop a new battery in. I've never seen one like it but can anyone guess what it is?

Clue: It's from back in the days where no-one would dream of trying to change the batteries in their very expensive new "computerized" watch themselves.

[bucko170]

I haven't got a clue really, but as a wild guess do the batteries fit in to the opposite side of the module?
Therefore to change the batteries the whole module has to be removed from the case to access the battery compartment at the rear to replace the batteries.

Or alternatively is there a really small but venomous snake inside the case, poised and ready to strike when the watch is opened - and the missing stem is really an air hole

[digibloke]

Close but no cigar. (with the opposite side of the module that is and not the snakes ).

The module is just the usual Optel round lcd module. The unusual thing with this watch (which I've never seen on any other digital watch) is how you get to it.

[ywlsdg]

My guess would be that the front crystal has to be removed to get to the module, just like the Swatch watches.

[digibloke]

Spot on

It's a front loader and you need a crystal lift to get the glass off. I'll post some more pics in the morning but the good news is that it's running, keeping good time and I've got a couple of spare stems on my LCD grave yard.

Just out of curiosity, has anyone ever seen this on another digital?

[digibloke]

Here we go. I guess the original owner couldn't be bothered to take it to a watchmaker when the battery went flat. Lucky it didn't leak in there. And even luckier that no-ones tried to pry the back off with a chisel and hammer as I so often see on front loading analogue watches...