My first O&W watch was a Caribbean 1000 and I liked it so much that right after that I decided to get the Computer, which was on sale at the same web site as NOS. They also had an NOS Early Bird which I regret not buying.
The O&W Computer is a true 24 hour watch with a bezel for a second time zone and a simplified version of an aviation E6-B style slide rule. The slide rule is operated by the crown at 4 o'clock (or in the Computer's 24 hour dial, at 1900 hours). The crown at 2 o'clock (or 1600 hours) sets and winds the watch. The watch is all stainless steel and the bezel looks like it is base metal.
Here is a montage of the O&W Computer and my HP-41CV. Nice combo!
The movement is a Fontainemelon FHF caliber 72, also used by Mr Wajs on the famous Early Bird. It is a 17 jewel unadjusted manual wind quality movement. I haven't really done a thorough timing of the watch but it runs pretty consistent within a few seconds a day. The winding crown is exceptionally smooth. On the balance bridge it has the initials "LBA" which I think is for Ollech & Wajs.
Here is a picture of the movement:
The dial is a true 24 hour dial with a 24 hour bezel with an E6-B style slide rule. The crystal is standard plastic. As expected from any dial with a slide-rule, it is fairly busy, but not too bad. The dial has the 12:00 hour (noon) at the top. It also has the upper half white and the lower half black to indicate day and night time. I much prefer the 12:00 noon at the top as in the Computer's dial rather than the 00:00 (midnight) hour at the top (like in the Early Bird). It mimics the path of the sun around the Earth. To read more about that and cast your vote for which dial arrangement you prefer check the 24 hour info website at http://homepage.mac.com/pete.boardman/24hourclock/design.html.
The bezel is bi-directional and you can use to set a second time zone. It is red on the day side (0600 to 1800 hours) and blue for the night time (1800 to 0600 hours).
The slide rule is operated by the crown at 4 o'clock (1900 hour on the O&W Computer dial) and it's bi-directional. It is not the easiest way to operate a watch slide rule. A few weeks after I first got the watch the slide rule stopped working. It felt like the gears got disengaged. I took to my watchmaker and had him do a full oil and clean up (it was a NOS watch so I thought it was a good idea anyway) and he also fixed the slide rule problem. Haven't had a problem since then. But if I had to use an aviation slide rule often, I would get two normal size E6-B slide rules and have the O&W Computer as the backup of the backup. Still, it's nice to have it so you can calculate tips, travel time or your car speed in knots :-)
Note also that this is not the most legible dial. The Computer is not a watch you want to wear on a military mission that depends on quick time checking. Because of the slide rule, the actual sub-dial where the hours and minutes are displayed is a bit small. This is actually my only complaint: the large hour hand covers the hour markers, which makes it hard to tell the time sometimes. I believe Mr. Wajs used the same hands from the Early Bird, but the EB dial is larger and more legible then the actual hour and minutes Computer dial. Since reading the time at a glance is not a critical feature for me, I don't have a problem with it at all. I much prefer looking at the complex dial and playing with the slide rule.
Overall I find the dial very attractive. I really like the 24 hour dial and specially the 1200 hour (noon) at the top as well as the indication of the night and day. The slide rule is a nice addition and I find it very attractive. The second time zone is a great feature and the bezel looks really nice.
Here is a picture of the dial:
Here is a montage of the Computer with an E6-B slide rule. Slide rules unite! :-)
The case is all stainless steel. Its diameter is about 39 mm and measures 49 mm from lug to lug. It is very comfortable on my wrist and feels and looks like it was well built like you would expect from an Ollech & Wajs watch. The back was a nice surprise because it has a globe etched with meridian lines which adds a nice touch to the watch.
Here is a picture of the back of the case:
In conclusion, this is a great looking watch. I always enjoy wearing it.
I always check the web for O&W Computer watches but rarely find any references about it neither find it for sale. I have yet to see one in the popular auction site we all know so well. I see Early Birds often, but not Computers so it looks like it is fairly rare.
Thanks for reading.
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Elias