Reply With QuoteI can only get a bi-derectional bezel with 60 clicks, not a problem to do 120 clicks with a uniderectional.Originally Posted by Dave E
Eddie
I like the look of that, and I like the size. The only suggestion I'd make is for it not to be a 60 click bezel if possible. There are 30-minute offset timezones out there, and you can't do those with 60 clicks. (Fully accept that this might not be economically feasible, though.)
Dave E
Skating away on the thin ice of a new day
I can only get a bi-derectional bezel with 60 clicks, not a problem to do 120 clicks with a uniderectional.
Eddie
Whole chunks of my life come under the heading "it seemed like a good idea at the time".
Crickey that's splendid, 38 mm and remove "commander" from the dial and I'll sign up today.
"Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. The third time it's enemy action."
'Populism, the last refuge of a Tory scoundrel'.
Not noticed https://forum.tz-uk.com/showthread.p...n-playing-with?
I reckon bi-directional is more useful than the 120 clicks, on balance.
Dave E
Skating away on the thin ice of a new day
Agreed. I would definitely buy at least one….if I could checkout in under a minute
Knowledge of that slight problem does rather limit the level of enthusiasm for entering into debates about design details etc.
Did you know that the name of this model is TRAVELLER ?
"The whole purpose of mechanical watches is to be impertinent." ~ Lionel a Marca, CEO of Breguet
How long till some wag calls it the Pikey?
WOW!! Definitely will buy this. And yes, I would compromise on automatic, but I honestly don't see a reason why this can't be a manual wound, just so that the "manual wind, no date, 12 hour bidirectional bezel" trophy can have 1 competitor and 1 winner: Smiths (or timefactors, whatever).
Eddie
I have to say that one of the big reasons why I love my PRS-29 so much is because I love winding it. It makes it feel more alive, like if I am going out on an excursion, I prepare my kit, and wind it up each day and I'm good to go. Since I don't interact with the automatic in the same way, an automatic loses that symbiotic charm. It's a cinch to find a traveller watch that is automatic (eg. I already have a BB GMT), but there's nowhere to buy one that's manual wind. I like the idea of Smiths capturing that old-world charm and being primarily focused on hand-wound watches (like Subaru focuses on AWD), and carve out a niche like that.
Eddie: I really hope you make this, and I hope I can actually get one (difficult with the current system), ESPECIALLY if it's hand-wound, because it would become that "one watch" that you never want or need to take off.
Last edited by grizzlymambo; 18th May 2022 at 19:44.
Agreed. 120 clicks would only be needed for the few cities in the world (that I don't care about) that have 30m timezones, and if I ever were in that situation, I would just easily change the time (easy because there's no pesky date to worry about). Bidirectional all the way, especially one that clicks. It would be annoying not to have 120 clicks for anyone who lives in those cities, but I don't think that is the target market for these watches anyway.
Plus I don't have sympathy for places that have 30m timezones: really stupid and unnecessary.
https://www.timeanddate.com/time/tim...teresting.html
You could make a 30m TZ work (albeit imperfectly) with a 60 click bezel. 45m TZs on the other hand aren't even featured on quartz world time watches - people who live in those places deserve to be inconvenienced.
Last edited by grizzlymambo; 18th May 2022 at 19:51.
<chortle>
Easy to do if you really want manual: Just remove the rotor.
There, you have a manual wind-only watch. :-)
That thought crossed my mind too :)
That’s a very good point, and an important one to this thread. It’s prompted me to start another thread - what is it you want in a watch - which might be interesting to TF’s later designs and picks up on GrizzlyMambo’s idea for an initial specification of requirements.
No, I don't think it's a fair point. First, snowman made the comment BEFORE Eddie posted his prototype, secondly: clearly the prototype looks amazing, thirdly: this watch (in manual-wind form, no-date and with antimagnetic shielding) DOES NOT exist - so one cannot empirically conclude about the sales numbers of the watch. Clearly there is interest in the watch as soon as Eddie showed the prototype. If you make it, they will come.
What we can compare with are traveller watches from the past that are popular. The question is not why should it have antimagnetic shielding, because clearly it is preferable to have it. And the question is also not whether it should have no-date because clearly watches with no date are also popular (Tudor Black Bay, Rolex Explorer etc.). Finally on this forum at least, clearly we love manual-wind watches, and in my opinion they are superior to automatic for many field type applications, and I also just plain enjoy winding it every day. So why can't a watch have ALL of these features? I don't see why not.
I feel that every feature that you have suggested for this watch makes perfect sense, except the manual wind aspect. That one seems more of a preference than a synergistic feature to this "ideal" traveler watch.
Whenever I think of the general usage of a 12 hour bezel in real world circumstances, part of the experience is wearing a watch with said bezel often enough to warrant knowing two time zones for decent period of time (like a week-long vacation, for example). An automatic would fill that role more adequately than a manual wind watch.
Since you described using this ideal watch as a casual weekender, it makes more sense for it to be manual wind (The winding process almost becomes the beginning of the adventure), but that also pulls it apart from the majority of those who would use a 12 hour bezel watch. My point is that this would explain why such a watch has yet to be created; it fulfills a niche purpose, albeit one that should be more widely considered.
This new Traveler seems like a perfect weekend adventure watch and grizzlymambo's personal experiences and comments have made me aware of something I didn't realize I wanted
it's a fair argument, but beyond a weekend watch, the kind of watch I am describing is a "one watch" type application, including if you go travelling and happen to end up on a mountain bike. I don't like the idea of the rotor jiggling around and continually over-winding the watch while jogging or biking when there is a perfectly acceptable solution: remove the rotor and wind manually. The "one watch" concept to me is all about having the right piece of equipment, and I love the idea that I have to wind it up and get it ready for the day. This is a romantic notion that probably doesn't appeal to everybody.I feel that every feature that you have suggested for this watch makes perfect sense, except the manual wind aspect. That one seems more of a preference than a synergistic feature to this "ideal" traveler watch.
Whenever I think of the general usage of a 12 hour bezel in real world circumstances, part of the experience is wearing a watch with said bezel often enough to warrant knowing two time zones for decent period of time (like a week-long vacation, for example). An automatic would fill that role more adequately than a manual wind watch.
Since you described using this ideal watch as a casual weekender, it makes more sense for it to be manual wind (The winding process almost becomes the beginning of the adventure), but that also pulls it apart from the majority of those who would use a 12 hour bezel watch. My point is that this would explain why such a watch has yet to be created; it fulfills a niche purpose, albeit one that should be more widely considered.
This new Traveler seems like a perfect weekend adventure watch and grizzlymambo's personal experiences and comments have made me aware of something I didn't realize I wanted
An automatic travellers watch can already be bought already, eg. Longines Zulu Time, Tudor BB GMT. To me, the special appeal of my Smiths PRS-29 is because it is hand-wind. I would take it travelling except for the fact that it doesn't have a turning bezel. It's like carrying a pocket knife everywhere (which I do) without scissors: if you had 2 pocket knifes that you love, one with scissors and one that was just a knife, you would reach for the one with scissors no matter how much you love the one that was just a knife just because you use the scissors so much. I use the timing bezel enough that I feel that if I went travelling with ONLY 1 watch, I would not take the PRS-29 because it doesn't have a turning bezel.
I don't like the idea of the rotor jiggling around and continually over-winding the watch while jogging or biking
It won't.
I thought we'd already covered that point.
I really can’t see the issue with automatic
It will not over wind the watch during activity, the shock protection is the same for a manual wind and a manual wind watch will always have extra wear on the stem / crown gasket as it’s used everyday. This may cause issues with water resistance.
There is a reason manual wind watches are harder to find these days, it’s because automatics are superior for every day use for most people.
I guess that the 'Traveller' would be a completely different watch with a 24Hr bezel but the new Seiko 5 GMT's got me thinking. The movement in the new Seiko GMT is a new caliber called 4R34. It's based on the other 4r calibers, which all have Seiko Instruments NH equivalents. It has to be only a matter of time before a new affordable NH34 GMT caliber becomes available to microbrand companies. Just thinking out loud.
I came across this photo on the World Wide Web. Does anyone know what it is? And can we try to persuade Eddie to make homage Smiths version?
Sent from my iPhone using TZ-UK mobile app
IImage1656144745.022937.jpg
Sent from my iPhone using TZ-UK mobile app
36-38mm of course
Sent from my iPhone using TZ-UK mobile app
That looks like a Longines Greenlander with centre seconds. Also known as Big Indian.
Personally I would rather see a De Luxe GS at 38mm.
"The whole purpose of mechanical watches is to be impertinent." ~ Lionel a Marca, CEO of Breguet
Have a look at the Longines heritage Avigation GMT. The have a made a homage of this already.
They can still be hand new at decent prices as it’s a discontinued model.
overwinding was the wrong word. i meant keeping the watch fully wound and the clutch slipping continuously - this is totally unwanted. having the watch movement at max mainspring tension is not ideal. on a manual wind, the watch will become less stressed over the day as the mainspring eases. why does anyone need a watch fully wound constantly? nobody does. it's easy just to wind it in the morning, a single time.
like i said: if you wanted an automatic, they already exist. if you wanted a manual wind version of the watch i am describing, it doesn't exist. i argue that a watch like this would be desirable because clearly a manual wind no-date is desirable.
beautiful watch, but no turning bezel. the turning bezel is my most used feature on a watch.Have a look at the Longines heritage Avigation GMT. The have a made a homage of this already.
They can still be hand new at decent prices as it’s a discontinued model.
My answer is in response to Crowsfoot asking what the original was and if Eddie would make a version.
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