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About me and the watch
I'm Jan, a Maths teacher living in North Wales. I've been interested in horology since my early teens - collecting, researching and eventually restoring and building watches for my own collection. And, being a Maths teacher to teenagers, I have spent an awful long time looking at my watch, so I thought it might be interesting to look into making them.
A few months ago, I was inspired to design a watch of my own to celebrate the birth of my daughter. Whereas I have previously restored and modified watches, this was a completely new endeavour- and one I didn't think I'd love as much as I did.
I wanted the watch to be a modern interpretation of a design most popular in the 18th and 19th centuries - where pocket watches bore minimalist, enamel dials which were carefully hand made by true craftsmen. I thought that using a similar, hand caligraphed design on a dial made out of natural gemstone could produce something distinctive, special and most importantly, unique.
For me, a mechanical watch is about the tactility and quality, as well as looks. I have therefore wanted a hand wound movement which will not only provide a properly tactile experience when winding and setting, but also tick louder than most contemporary mechanical watches - while maintaining modern standards of accuracy. The St3621 movement has its origins in pocket watches and provides an experience cohesive with the design of the watch.
Nowadays, watches are seen as disposable items- I wanted to ensure that this watch will last a lifetime. Every aspect of it is designed to stand the tests of time (naturally, with some TLC and an occasional service- done by me!) and it should become an item that can be passed on to future generations.
This watch will be a great personal introduction to luxury watchmaking, but I also hope that it will make a valuable addition to existing collections. Due to being a long time collector and restorer myself, it was very important to me that the watch does not pretend to be anything that it isn't. This has guided my design and material choices throughout the development process. I hope that every consumer will enjoy the watch as much as I do.
Details about the watch
The Dial
The Dial
The Dial
The dial was inspired by pocket watch designs of the 18th and 19 centuries, with thinner numerals and a large seconds subdial reminiscent of early chronometers. As a lot of the dials in those days were laid out without the use of advanced technology, all numerals were hand calligraphed.
The malachite symbolises not only the Welsh national colours, but also the outstandingly green scenery of Wales.
I have carried out many tests with stone dials and found pure stone to be prone to cracking. This was not acceptable, as even though this is not a sports watch, it has to be able to survive shocks and impacts resulting from everyday life. Another disadvantage would be adding thickness to the watch, as the stone has to be cut many times thicker than metal in order to maintain structural rigidity.
With the help of a stone cutter, I have decided to address this. The malachite will be cut much thinner than in most gemstone watches. It will then be sandwiched with a thin layer of metal underneath. The metal layer has a diameter which is slightly larger than the stone, as it is designed to press against the case and absorb small impacts resulting from dropping. Even though less stone is used, this method of dial production is significantly more expensive due to the amount of skill and labour required. It is however the only way I could ensure durability and strength required for a watch worn in any conditions.
The case
The Dial
The Dial
The case was designed to be as slim and elegant as possible while being able to house a pocket watch sized movement. The design is meant to invoke a style used most widely in the 1930s and 1940s, with a size modified to suit modern styles. It is machined out of 316L surgical stainless steel and features sapphire glass with an anti reflective coating at the front. The traditional, polished finish most typically used in cases of this style has been broken up with high quality brushing on the side of the case. The rear of the case features a display back, allowing the user to view the movement as it is running.
Measurements
Diameter: 41mm
Thickness: 11mm
Lug to lug: 49mm
Lug width: 20mm
The Straps
The Movement
The Movement
I have always felt that the strap is something often overlooked when designing watches; Sub-par leather quality, untidy keepers and poor quality buckles have often resulted in straps from watches I have recently purchased going back in their original box whilst I searched for a better quality alternative.
For the Druid's strap, I decided to use 5 premium leathers, all in their own colour. Each leather has a different feel and aging properties.
Every strap is padded with genuine leather (as opposed to the much cheaper and more common fiber padding), stitched using the highest quality Gutermann threads and finished with waterproof Zermatt leather from the underside.
The straps are designed to feature no keepers, as the buckle allows the excess strap to tuck in from the underside, giving it a much cleaner and elegant look.
Every extra strap I sell will be fitted with the same stainless steel deployant buckle as the stock strap.
As all straps feature quick release spring bars, changing between the straps is seamless and requires no tools.
The Movement
The Movement
The Movement
The TY3620-2 movement used in this watch is an evolution of a movement that has it's origins in late pocket watches of the 1950s.
Pocket watch movements were traditionally larger than wristwatch movements. This not only adds to the reliability and accuracy of the movement, but also creates a certain feel, sound and tactility that is absent in many mechanical watches of today. From a larger balance wheel allowing for a slightly louder tick (and improved accuracy), to significantly sized winding wheels allowing for a much greater tactile feel when winding the watch, it is a perfect compliment to the pocket watch inspired dial design. The function of the movement can also be clearly seen by the user, with the exhibition case back designed to expose as much of the movement as possible.
The movement is decorated using Côtes de Genève on the bridges and perlage on both sides of the movement main plate.
Like in almost all pocket watches, the movement requires no batteries and needs to be manually wound. The watch's spring is designed to last for ~53 hours, after which the watch will need to be wound again.
Specification
Movement diameter: 37mm
Movement thickness: 4.5mm
17 Jewels
Power reserve: ~53 Hours
21,600 A/h beat rate