Looks good.Glad you went for manual wind.
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Prototype under construction.
Eddie
Whole chunks of my life come under the heading "it seemed like a good idea at the time".
Looks good.Glad you went for manual wind.
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That looks great! I’ll definitely have a black one (at least).
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I’m liking this a lot, definitely a black dial for me. 2020 is going to be an expensive year!
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That'll save me from buying the IWC Tribute. I like the look of this!
Eddie
Whole chunks of my life come under the heading "it seemed like a good idea at the time".
Fantastic. Hope the design doesn't change too much. The one thing I'd change would be for the minute hand to extend a bit further toward the edge of the dial before starting to taper to a point, but that's just personal preference.
Not sure about the handset, may look better if they were both syringe or both the other style...just looks a bit of a mismatch as is to me, maybe just me.
Excellent work Eddie.
Looking good!
The IWC Mk XI we’re all hoping to find - but in a usable modern execution that would be more practical for everyday wear.
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Agree, that minute hand don't look right.How do iwc do them?
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That's rather lovely, handwinding is great and still a decent WR as well.
Got a new watch, divers watch it is, had to drown the bastard to get it!
Wow. When you announced a Speedbird in 36mm I was hoping it was going to look like this. Well done! Only thing that I would like to be changed is the minute hand. If the luminous part would be slightly longer (that should just touch the hour index markers) before it tapers to a point, it would be perfect.
What will be the anti-magnetic rating?
Looks great, may have to treat myself to one of those !
Eddie
Whole chunks of my life come under the heading "it seemed like a good idea at the time".
^This^
As I already own the marvellous PRS-29A, this new watch is just too similar to warant a purchase but I'm also fairly sure that quite a few would like both. I would also prefer the Air Ministry watch over the cream dial version despite the latter having lume but kudos for going with heat blued hands rather than painted. I do appreciate the prototype is looking towards the IWC for inspiration but it's just not distinctive enough for me to take the plunge. However, if I didn't already own the 29A, I would be very tempted as it is a classy and smart design regardless of dial option.
Graeme
The minute hand issue has already been raised.
Eddie
Whole chunks of my life come under the heading "it seemed like a good idea at the time".
The original Speedbird handset always looks good to me; clear, easily read and somehow matched.
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Will it have the soft iron Faraday Cage for protection?
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What's everybody's preference dial colour wise? Fancy white for a change myself.
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I like it however...
One that I would really like to see is the fat cased 6b...
I can but dream!
(Photo from MWR and likely Rev-O)
Spot on! Black dial for me please.
Any votes for aged lume on this?
This looks pretty extraordinary--I love the dial, the case and the choice of movement.
But I think I was expecting more of a 36mm version of the PRS-22 package--i.e. with a metal bracelet (of course 18mm). Is that definitively not on the cards? That would help distinguish it from the PRS-29a. Like the IWC-inspired bracelet (Mk XV and after). Or even the Mk XII's beads of rice...
That said, this will look just fantastic on a mesh.
Eddie,
Ever since first getting into watches years ago, I've always held the original JLC/IWC Mark XI Navigator Grade Pilot's Watch as the ideal, and this one is aesthetically absolutely beautiful to my eyes with the previously-voiced-by-others caveat about the minute hand I have to respectfully agree is too fat and too short. For myself, I think a closer replication of the original IWC MkXI's minute hand as you've shown below would be a perfect fix.
Most of all though, the true reason I've always held the original MkXIs the ideal is the purpose-built case construction these watches utilized to aggressively and comprehensively confront and negate all the issues and factors inherent to post-WWII military aviation that might prove detrimental to the reliably accurate timing of a mechanical Navigator grade pilot's watch. Given that, I very respectfully hope that this one will be far beyond just another Mark XI look-a-like and fully incorporate both the original's flanged crystal design secured against any level of negative pressure with an internally threaded 90/10 cupro-nickel lock ring and also the movement shielding internal antimagnetic full coverage soft iron "Faraday Cage".
These were the things that made military and commercial pilots and aircrew of the Cold War era seek these genuinely iconic watches out, not just for their "look" or superficial aesthetics, and both of the above technical features still remain useful in aviation and aerospace (as well as hyperbaric medicine and research, medical imaging, and other professional endeavours) even now with the high level of protection from magnetic fields an especially great feature to have for many or most us in our high tech permeated everyday lives from work to home.
While the true original Jenny Caribbean front-loaded/screw-down flanged crystal monocoque case design is vastly superior for diving use, a true-to-the-original Mk XI's rear-loaded screw-down crystal equipped two-piece case design TF Mk XI "homage" or "recreation" (hopefully with good upgrades like a water resistance rating of 100m, or so, and also something like the simple but apparently quite effective Certina DS type shock buffering to better protect the mechanical movement) could theoretically even be something a classic military pilot's watch admiring professional saturation diver might want to wear waiting it out "in storage" inside the shipboard pressure chamber between dives.
Adj,
Though I'd personally much rather have the lume fill in the intentionally disparately tipped "sword point" of the minute hand like the original Mk XIs for a new "Mk XI" from TF, I think the TF Speedbird PRS-1 from the early years one of Eddie's very best aesthetically and I've always admired it that way.
Abraxas,
Whether concurrently or for a future variation, I think a true-to-the-original's case design TF Smiths 6B Deluxe would be great too as the original military issue Smiths 6B Deluxe Navigators from the 1960s apparently had the exact same internal case design as the earlier JLC/IWC Mk XIs.
I'm also not aware of anybody else having ever specifically "homaged" the original Smiths 6B Deluxe before
Last edited by Rollon; 5th December 2019 at 04:54.
I'd agree about the minute hand.
I'd prefer brushed to polished, but it wouldn't be a deal breaker.
And a deeper black dial than the Speedbird would be perfect!
I too think the hands need revising.
If viewed at night it would be very difficult to tell which hand is which. Both are too similar in length.
+1 on the minute hand. Lovely looking watch. I too wonder about the antimagnetic potential.
I'm at bit worried about the lug-to-lug distance. 48mm is a lot on a 36mm case. I have the Hamilton Khaki Field Mechanical where the lug-to-lug is 47mm on a 38mm case, and I find that way too much. It just seems a bit unbalanced, and it only looks good on nato straps, as the gap between the case and a padded leather strap is quite wide (and that's on a 20mm lug with). However, this is just my subjective opinion
(Photo stolen from the WWW)
Last edited by Stigison; 3rd December 2019 at 14:19.
Much prefer the Smiths booby logo.
"Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. The third time it's enemy action."
'Populism, the last refuge of a Tory scoundrel'.
I love everything about it, hands included, I’m definitely in.
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According to http://www.markeleven.com the lug-to-lug of the IWC MK11 is 45,9mm and of the JLC MK11 46,3mm. So I agree with you, 48mm is indeed too long for a faithful homage and will probably lead to ugly gaps between case and strap as well.
Personally I don’t like Speedbird on the dial. Some kind of mental association...
I would be in favour of the shorter lugs too.
Expect more to be branded Smiths, I'm building the brand up.
Eddie
Whole chunks of my life come under the heading "it seemed like a good idea at the time".
If the world can cope with Omega creating a Seamaster Railmaster, would it object to a Smiths Speedbird?
Love the idea of building the Smiths brand up and love the 'booby' Smiths logo too. The 29AM has become my grail watch but I really like the fat-cased Smiths De Luxe pictured below.
I also own the Hamilton Khaki model pictured and quite like the long lugs as I want to make my own straps given that I already make belts, sheaths, tool protectors, etc. The longer lugs allow for more leather to pass over the springbar creating a stronger strap and also means less leather skiving which is a chore for this mere hobbyist. However, my 29A outperforms the Hammy in every respect bar power reserve which is not an issue as I wind mine every morning before putting on. A comforting ritual that I enjoy. No doubt I'll sell the Hammy on soon.
One style I'd love to see would be a homage or derivative of the WWW watches with a small seconds dial. 36 or 38mm would be perfect although I suspect that most would prefer 36 which is more than fine by me. My one big watch is my PRS-3 which I'll never part with but I think I'll move on my 40mm Everest in favour of the 36er.
Hope you're resting and recouperating well, Eddie.
Last edited by Red Kite; 3rd December 2019 at 20:00. Reason: schpelling
Looks a cracker, a 39mm version would be perfect for me but I appreciate demand may not be high enough and at least I’ve got my Double Dome PRS-29b.
Last edited by Lammylee; 3rd December 2019 at 19:56.