Are you excited for the Alliance of British Watch & Clock Makers British Watchmakers’ Day in March? We certainly are as we’ll be in attendance – come and say hello at our stand. Building up the hype even more is the fact that several watchmakers attending the event are producing event exclusive timepieces that will only be available at the show. Duckworth Prestex have now revealed their exclusive watches, the colourful No.1 series.
Only 10 of the watches are being produced, one in each colourway, making each one a piece unique. Each is titled No.1 followed by its specific colour, with the available spectrum consisting of black, white, dark blue, light blue, green, lilac, pink, orange, yellow, and burgundy. For the most part they lean towards pastel with a slightly desaturated look, with the exception of the rich blue and burgundy as well as the black and white.
Aside from the attractive colour palettes on display, the other characteristic element of the exclusive No.1 series is the numerals, or rather, the lack of numerals. What first might appear like Roman numerals are actually regular Latin letters arranged in a 24-hour style display that reads “British Watch & Clock Makers”, a tribute to the Alliance hosting the show. It’s a fitting coincidence that the name of the organisation features 24 letters, matching the number of hours in the day.
The 39mm steel case appears to be based on the Duckworth Prestex Bolton with the signature cushion case and vertically brushed flanks. The dial matches as well with the stepped appearance with raised hour ring and railway minute track. We recently featured the Bolton in our guide to Art Deco watches.
As unique pieces only available at the British Watchmakers’ Day, the No.1 series are exceptionally exclusively watches. They’re correspondingly priced at £950, an increase from the standard Bolton’s £625. They’ll likely only appeal to a niche group of collectors heavily interested in the British watch industry as well as Alliance members. But it’s also proof of concept that a colourful range of Boltons could be fun.
Price and Specs:
Model:
Duckworth
Prestex No.1
Case:
39mm
diameter x 11mm thickness, stainless steel
Dial:
Black,
white, dark blue, light blue, green, lilac, pink, orange, yellow or burgundy with ‘British Watch & Clock Makers’ hour markers
Water resistance:
200m
(20 bar)
Movement:
Miyota
calibre 9039, automatic, 24 jewels
Frequency:
28,800
vph (4 Hz)
Power reserve:
42h
Functions:
Hours,
minutes, seconds
Strap:
Italian
leather
Price:
£950
More details at Duckworth Prestex.
Oracle Time