Raketa World Time and Raketa UFO

I read this post from Worn & Wound about Russian watch brand Raketa. And did exactly what it said: Ran to eBay and searched for Raketa. I have no particular desire for russian watches but it was an interesting eye opener.

The brand "Raketa" - or "Pakema" as it reads on the dials in cyrillic - was first introduced in 1961 and has quite an interesting history. They have supplied watches to the Red Army, North Pole expeditions, Gorbachev and the Olympics. The brand is named Raketa in honour of Gagarin's flight in outer space.

It seems some of the Raketa models match the criteria for this blog: From the 60-70s, at least 42 mm and preferably affordable. Actually "cheap" is more the right word - for a large part of these watches the postage will be higher than the price ;-)

The quality is probably questionable but according to Wiki their movements are "considered one of the most durable and reliable in the world". If it's on Wikipedia, it must be true.

Raketa World Time
Width: 43 mm without crown (one listing says 42 mm)
Seems to have been produced from the late 70s to mid 80s. The oldest models can probably be recognized on the italic 'hand written' logo.

Yes, I like wristshots. They give a better impression of the how the watch will present itself in real life. (Apologies for all the $%&# arm hair).

Raketa Nomodelname Day-Date "UFO"
Width: Probably 42 mm without crown. Some indicates 43 mm.
This model is sometimes referred to as "UFO" for obvious reasons. Available in a lot of difference colors and with different bezel designs. However most of the models are probably from the 80s.
Many more wristshots and variations here.

Some of these UFOs are branded Cornavin - a swiss brand founded in the 1920s. Don't let this fool you. In the 70s Cornavin outsourced a lot of their production and even had the Petrodvorets Watch Factory (makers of Raketa) produce complete UFOs for them:

These watches are fun, they are affordable, they are available and they can probably be made looking more contemporary with a wider strap. Only one problem: I really don't like them. Just a round case - no interesting shape - no lugs.