mystery insignia on Soviet watch

[ivanlo]

hey all. i'm a photographer that has been on assignment in Kabul, Afghanistan a few times and when i was there last July, i dropped by a local bazaar where i bought an old Soviet watch (a Vostok).

not being an expert, i asked around on a few watch forums and, while everyone seemed to agree that it was a geniune Soviet-era Vostok, nobody recognized the insignia on the face.

i realize that this is not a watch forum but i figure someone on this board might be able to shed some light on this mystery

cheers,
ivan

[Lapa]

Ivanlo,

It's a Specialist 1st Class badge. These (and the other classes) have been shown in various threads on this forum.

Marc

[ericlida]

Originally Posted by ivanlo

hey all. i'm a photographer that has been on assignment in Kabul, Afghanistan a few times and when i was there last July, i dropped by a local bazaar where i bought an old Soviet watch (a Vostok).

not being an expert, i asked around on a few watch forums and, while everyone seemed to agree that it was a geniune Soviet-era Vostok, nobody recognized the insignia on the face.

i realize that this is not a watch forum but i figure someone on this board might be able to shed some light on this mystery

cheers,
ivan

Ivan
Many years ago in Soviet Union there were made one "special" kind of watches - Komandirskie. They where very popular in Europe. Many immigrants from former Soviet Union on their way to USA were selling these watches for "good" money. These watches had differen military insignias on their faces, like Tanks, Badges, etc
I agree with Marc, this is a Specialist 1st Class badge
Eric

[EricFG]

Specialist First class of rocket troops?
Nice watch BTW. I've been wanting to get another Soviet watch.
Sadly I'm addicted to IDs now.

[ivanlo]

thanks for all your help! i've been trying to get to the bottom of this for a while now.

Soviet militaria is really beginning to fascinate me but i think i may have to hold off on serious collecting until i win the lottery

Originally Posted by EricFG

Specialist First class of rocket troops?

would the rocket troops you mentioned be the Strategic Rocket Forces or am i totally off? keep in mind that i know next to nothing about any of this at the moment.

[Lapa]

Originally Posted by ivanlo

...would the rocket troops you mentioned be the Strategic Rocket Forces or am i totally off?...

Ivanlo,

I believe that they are one and the same thing.

Marc

[ivanlo]

alright, now the big question is: what the hell was this watch doing in Afghanistan? :P

i assume there was some watch trading going on amongst Soviet servicemen (i found a Vostok submarine watch there as well) but does anyone here familiar with the Soviet-Afghan War have another theory that explains how this Strategic Rocket Forces watch ended up in Kabul?

[Tretov]

Are you sure it is strictly rocket forces and not possibly artillery, as they shared the collar insignias? Artillery in Afghanistan would be no problem to explain.