Latest Review
If you have been a reader of worn&wound for any length of time you know we have mentioned London-based brand Christopher Ward before. (Missed those posts? Check here, this one, over here and here for a few.) Clearly Christopher Ward gives us a lot to talk about as they have continually released new models at points throughout each year. The brand is ten years old this year and continues to grow in popularity and in design offerings. For the Spring of 2014 Christopher Ward has release three new models, each a variation within an existing line. While with the season one might be thinking sun, water and fun, Ward has gone the opposite direction for its new releases with more of a dressy-casual look.
First up is the C65 Trident Classic model, a variation of the C65 Trident Pro. The Trident Pro is Christopher Ward’s signature diver’s watch and the Trident Classic takes elements of that divers line and places them in more of a sporty-dress design. Some of the elements the watches have in common are the hands (both minute, hour and seconds) including the trident on the end of the seconds hand. Both have a wave patterned dial, although the Classic trades the round markers for stick markers. And both are date models with the placement different: the Classic uses the traditional 3 o’clock placement over the staggered 4:30ish placement of the Trident Pro. The bezel of the Trident Classic is an unmarked polished bezel which removes the sporty, diver bezel for a cleaner look, somewhat reminiscent of the Omega Aqua Terra line.
The case measures at a modern 42mm size and is 316L stainless steel and has a solid, trident marked case back with the serial number for each watch. Under the sapphire crystal, the markers and hands use SuperLuminova for the luminescence. Lastly, inside the watch is a Sellita SW200-1 Swiss made movement (an upgrade of the SW200), with 38 hours power reserve and beating at 28,800 bph. The watch is available with either a black or a white dial and with a matching stainless steel bracelet or one of many leather strap options. Shipping is scheduled for the end of June (2014) with prices from $685-$755 (USD) depending on the strap or bracelet configuration.
Next on the list is the C9 Harrison Big Day-Date automatic. Using a modified ETA 2836-2 movement the Harrison Big Day-Date has just that at 3 o’clock: an oversized day of the week and date. Looking at the dial one can clearly see the day and date are certainly larger than one would expect to see. And while big, they do not at all seem oversized or look out of place in the 43mm case. Christopher Ward states the ETA 2836-2 movement was modified by their master watchmaker Johannes Jahnke, but no details as to the specifics were given.
The dial uses stick markers and thin hands for a simple, clean look common in this dress style of watch. The dial itself is only available in white and uses no luminescence on the dial or hands. At 12.3mm thick it is a bit tall for a watch of this style but should be proportionate to the diameter. The back of the watch has a transparent case back and the serial number for each watch. The C9 Harrison Big Day-Date should be available for shipping soon around the time of this post (end of May 2014 or early June 2014) for $899 USD.
The last of the new pieces we are looking at today is the C5 Malvern Silmline. The Slimline is the evolution of the C5 Malvern Automatic MK II, a classically styled dress watch with date. If the Harrison seems tall at 12.3mm then the Simline is the watch to look at: it comes in at just 8.7mm thick with a diameter of 40mm. Compare that to the Malvern MK II which was 39mm and 10.8mm thick one can see why the Slimline carries that name. The Slimline upgrades the MK II not just in diameter but in lug width as well moving from 18mm to the far more common 20mm. The sun-ray dial of the Slimline is available in charcoal, blue or white and a variety of strap color options. Inside the Slimline is the ETA 2801-2 hand-wound movement, which is the non-date variation. The movement is visible behind a transparent, sapphire case back which also shows the unique serial number of the watch. The C5 Malvern Slimline will be available at the end of June, 2014 for $550 USD.
All three of these, along with all of Christopher Ward’s other models can be purchased directly from Christopher Ward and all these new models and their various purchasing options can be seen on their new arrivals page. Do any of these new releases from Ward strike a chord? Sound off in the comments and let us know your thoughts. Oh, and we got a little perk for you… should one of these watches strike your fancy, enter code FREESDWW at checkout for free WORLDWIDE delivery! Only valid through June 1st!
