This rare illumined glass WWII Elgin Timer is marked ‘U.S. Bureau of Ordinance’. These stopwatch timers became a staple for U.S. and Allied military usage as the most common was issued to U.S. B-17 navigators. Most watches of the Elgin Timer series used by B-17 navigators have a clear dial and white face, this timer has an illuminated greenish-yellow glass suited for easier viewing in night raids.

One of the most important uses of the A-8 was mainly used for flight navigation, but it was also utilized by Military Engineers, Forward Observers, Submarine Crews and other military outfits.

The large numbers indicate seconds, and with each full rotation (10 seconds) the hand in the small dial moves one increment clockwise. The numbers in the small dial indicate minutes, so each full rotation of that hand is 5 minutes. The balance wheel is very small, and it sounds like a bee buzzing, which garnered its historical name the “Jitterburg”. The large sweep second-hand moves around once in ten seconds. The accumulator records up to 5 minutes.

While we will never know what plane and squadron this timer was used on or what operations it serves in…it truly is an amazing piece of World War II history.

*While the outside of this watch is in good condition the timer does not work. The illuminated glass is also loose and detaches when turned upside down. While we have not tampered and dismantled the watch we believe that a gear is dislodged and out of place, something that should be easily fixable... however this is just a guess based on past military watches of this are we have worked with.