Hi, I previously posted this in the Royal Artillery forum but thought I would post it here too. This 1942 Longines is engraved with three initials on the back and a seven digit personal number. It also has some sort of decoration in the middle which I recognise but I can't put my finger on where I've seen it. After some searching on the seven digit service number I found a chap named John Robert Crawford who was in the Royal Artillery. So if he's the original owner with the initials JRC then who or what is VWG The watch was originally sold somewhere in the UK. Thank you!
Although I can't help with the V.W.G. bit, I did find this piece about the watch itself which you may or may not have read: https://www.blackbough.co.uk/product/longines-ref-21709-steel-vintage-wristwatch-circa-1942-wwlscd/ RRTB
Have you thought about contacting Longines,as they will probably still have records of where and when it was first sold, if not later repairs, servicing etc. To whom and where it was sold may give clues as to what later happened to its owner(s) They may even recognise identification marks, such as jewellers, repairers etc. The VWG and number look to be Longines own markings.
Why ask the same question twice - you waste peoples time by not at least sticking with the original thread.
Sorry about that, I didn't know that it wasn't allowed to ask the same question in two different subforums. I thought maybe posting in the general section would allow for more people to share their knowledge, it wasn't for sure that the service number belonged to someone in the Royal Artillery. I won't be wasting anyones time again.
Don't be put off. You've asked a genuine question and although I can't help on this occasion, perhaps someone will be able to ... the threads will be merged and hopefully you'll get a decent answer
Please do not give up, I've been following this thread with interest. I would also like to know who the watch belonged to. I'm sure someone on the forum can help or point you in the right direction David
It is both a strength and a weakness that this forum has so many very specific sub-forums. It's not always easy to know where to post in order to draw the attention of those with the most information or interest. I consider that a second thread was justified as the original enquiry had led to other lines of thought, but it would probably have been a good idea to include a link to the first thread in the new one, in order to avoid starting off from zero again. As David mentioned above, please don't give up. I'm certainly more than pleased to read about 1940s writst watches.
I don't think there is any need for that. Give some new-comers here some slack. This isn't the Great War Forum.