I am intrigued by single hand watches. I have looked at a few of them, but have yet to pull the trigger on buying one. I also like watches with a strong automotive link, but have yet to buy one of those either. The new Ferro Watch on Kickstarter may let me tick both those boxes off my watch wish list.
The campaign is currently raising funds to create a single hand watch designed after a sports car’s tachometer. To my eye, they really hit the mark on the overall look. There are two versions, a quartz and an automatic, and there are two color choices with each movement, a black dial with a red hand and a cream dial with a black hand.
The quartz watch is driven by a Swiss Ronda 505 movement, while the mechanical version utilizes the Miyota 8215 automatic. Both are 12 hour single handers, with a very thin hour hand to mark the time. This will make it a bit easier to get close to the exact time, as the hand extends almost out to the index ring, which is marked in 5 minute increments.
The 44mm case comes in brushed stainless with a rounded bezel and is water resistent to 100 meters. A sapphire crystal is provided up front, and a 22mm leather strap is secured with wire lugs. The one small misstep for me is the inclusion of a date window and a small cyclops. The window will be moved to 4:00 for the production version, from what is shown in these images.
The watch has already passed the funding threshold, so a pledge is a commitment to buy at this point. As with all crowd funded projects, there is a risk, but the pricing and features do not seem out of line from what other projects are delivering. Pledges (project page) from the quartz version are currently $139 CAD (~$120 USD), and $229 CAD ($190 USD) for the automatic. ferrowatches.com
Watch Overview
- Brand & Model: Ferro Watches
- Price: 139 CAD ($120 USD) for the quartz, $229CAD ($190 USD) for the automatic
- Who we think it might be for: Sports car fans who want a one-hander.
- Would I buy or recommend it just on the photos?: I like this one a lot, especially the automatic.
- If I could make one design suggestion, it would be: I don’t like the date or the cyclops.
- What spoke to me the most about this watch: Cars and watches go together, especially for a single hander.
