Sicura's automatic and manual-winding jump hour watches are iconic of the 1970's chic - like the full-serviced 1970s Sicura jump hour mechanical here - and feature a rather unique second hand represented by a red and white "propeller” in the center of the watch. 
 
The jump hour, a century-old movement design, was made famous by Cartier in the 1930’s, with the design seldom seen in the modern eral; Sicura's jump hour mechanical - featuring either manual-wind or automatic movements - is easily the best known horizontal integration time piece from the 1970’s time period.
 
While many an unscrupulous seller is quick to state Sicura during this time period were manufactured by Breitling, the truth is that although the two watch companies were owned by the same man, Ernest Schieder (of Sicura), they were operated separately.  That said, Sicura - through its purchase of the defunct Breitling brand - did succeed in saving Breitling from bankruptcy during this era.
 
As a consequence of the the same era's Quartz Crisis, Breitling suspended operations in 1978, laid off all its workers and sold Breitling assets to the highest bidders - Sinn bought completed and partially completed watches, and Ollech & Wajs bought the machinery and unassembled parts.  A year later, in early 1979, Schneider signed an agreement with Willy Breitling to buy the right to the brands "Breitling" and "Navitimer."

Likely owing to his time served in the air force as a fighter pilot, Schneider was a master in adapting to turbulent times and the Quartz Crisis was certainly this.  He had a knack for delivering what consumers wanted, which was affordable fashion watches and large colorful divers with lots of functions - be they mechanical or quartz.  When he saw the opportunity to buy one of the old, well esteemed watch brands, he swiftly took advantage.
 
Per Fratello, "Schneider was ahead of his time and definitely was not conservative or timid.  He compensated for the cuts he made on casing material and movement quality with the generosity of the case diameters, bezel creativity, and dial playfulness.  Schneider was quite creative and paid special attention to details that others didn‘t."
 
"Don’t be surprised if you open a Chronosport catalog from the late 1960s and you see not one, but a bunch of Sicura watches shot in between a careful selection of the best sports watches at the time.  No kidding, Sicura watches proudly sit on one spreadsheet with other watch collectors’ proteges such as the Rolex GMT Master, the Heuer Camaro, or the Enicar Sherpa Graph."  Heck, Sicura even made a watch worthy of James Bond's Q himself, with its...knife watch.
 
Schneider introduced new models and breathed new life into Breitling, meeting with such success he phased out the Sicura brand name and replaced it wholesale to Breitling.  Schneider would go on to live a remarkably full life as President of Breitling until his death in 2015 at the age of 94, and - like all things Swiss - his son Theodore Schneider took over as the leader of Breitling.
 
Again, per Fratello, "The movement is nothing special, as Sicura fitted their watches with standard movements from Baumgartner or Ronda. But the movement is not the reason you buy Sicura. Just think about how many watch brands fell down to their knees during the quartz crisis, never to recover. Ernest Schneider made it through. He made it through gloriously and ultimately contributed to making Breitling what it is today."  
 
This Sicura comes on a vintage stainless-steel bracelet, and with nylon strap, spring bar tool, and rugged travel case.