Introducing the Fears Brunswick Blue

The Fears Watch Company has been around for a long time, but if you’re an American watch lover that hasn’t zeroed in on the history of British watchmaking, you’d be forgiven for not recognizing the name right off the bat. Fears was founded in 1846 in Bristol, and produced watches continuously until the 1960s, when it was gradually wound down by third generation owner Amos Reginald Fear. Like a lot of brands that were dormant for much of the second half of the 20th century, the firm was re-established fairly recently as interest in watches has surged. Unlike a lot of those brands, however, Fears has been re-established by a member of the family that started the company all those years ago. Now in its third year of operating under sixth-generation Managing Director Nicholas Bowman-Scargill, Fears has introduced the latest addition to their Brunswick collection, with a dynamic blue dial featuring multiple finishing techniques.

Fears Brunswick Blue

• Case Material: Stainless steel 
• Dial: Blue 
• Dimensions: 38 x 38 x 11.8mm 
• Crystal: Sapphire  
• Water Resistance: 50 meters 
• Crown: Push/pull  
• Movement: ETA 7001
• Strap/bracelet: Leather strap
• Price: $3,590
• Reference Number: BS23800A
• Expected Release: November 14, 2019

The Brunswick made its debut in 2017, and was the first new mechanical watch under the latest Fears banner. The original white dialed version gained some traction upon its initial release among enthusiasts and Anglophiles who might be looking for something a bit different, and with good reason. It’s a well designed and fairly unique timepiece with a distinct character. The square-ish cushion case gives it a retro vibe, and it’s slender but still sturdy in appearance. The inspiration for the Brunswick case comes from watches of the 1920s and 30s, before round watches were completely ubiquitous.

The new version, simply called the “Brunswick Blue,” is really a celebration of the color, as you’re meant to see it in a number of different ways on this dial, depending on how the light hits it. Multiple finishing techniques are used: the outer ring and the center of the dial have been given a matte finish, and have been lowered for a unique depth effect, while the surfaces around the applied numerals and hour markers are grained by hand. In different lighting situations, the dial will take on different effects, sometimes giving the appearance of a true multi-toned dial, and sometimes simply looking like the deep blue that it is.

Other dial elements have been given similarly detailed treatments. Numerals and cabochon hour indicators are hand applied and highly polished prior to being rhodium plated to match the finishing of the handset perfectly. The hands, known as “Fears hands,” are long, thin, and skeletonized, and based on early designs used by the brand before it went dormant.

Powering the watch is the top-grade ETA 7001, a manually-wound caliber with a 40-hour power reserve. Credit to Fears here for sticking with a hand-wound movement. This keeps the watch relatively thin, and lends a charm to it that you want in a watch inspired by designs from the early part of the 20th century. Fears makes the Brunswick in small batches of 20, and they are all hand built in the UK.

The Fears Brunswick Blue launches on November today, and can be ordered directly from Fears on their website. Fears