This very rare Sinclair Calculator Watch kit represents one of the most desirable and quirky of all Sinclair collectibles.
While the owners of many of these kits at least had a go at constructing the watch, this owner in Texas never even bothered to open the outside packaging let alone fiddle with the components. Indeed it has only been opened to take photos.
While the first calculator watch had been pioneered by the high end ‘Pulsar’ in 1975 and was quickly taken up by several other leading companies in the years that followed, Sinclair’s example was the first to come in kit form. In doing so it was able to be offered at a fraction the price of the rest. This was a great idea in principle, but in reality once the customers got their hands on these kits they very quickly earned a reputation for being nearly impossible to build and very prone to breaking. Since the physical margin of error on the components was so tight many people found certain parts in their kits simply did not fit, even when replacements were issued.
Two thirds of the kits manufactured were sent to the US (20,000 units), although most were later sent back. This watch is one of those US exported examples.
