Marcus Hanke
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Baselworld 2013: Hamilton
Hamilton at Baselworld 2013
presented by Marcus Hanke
presented by Marcus Hanke
Among the watch brands in Swatch Group’s portfolio, Hamilton is taking a unique position: While being produced in Switzerland, the watches are promoted as American timepieces, connected with American tradition. Like a few other brands with similar roots, Ball and Concord, they are therefore not really well known in the “old European” watch areas, most notably the German-speaking parts. What is widely known is that Hamilton belongs to the Swatch Group and offers mechanical watches in an interesting price range between 600 and 2,000 Euros. This is important, given the soaring price increases for the products of the well-known manufacturers during the recent years. Consequently, watch enthusiasts are always eager to find ways to satisfy their urge for a new and well-made watch, without having to burden their house with another mortgage. However, it is not easy to find dealers carrying Hamilton watches, in Austria there is even none at all.
When browsing the current Hamilton catalogue, one is confronted with an overwhelming multiplicity of lines with vastly differing styles. I cannot help but feel that Hamilton tries to be “everybody’s darling” and offer simply a little of everything. Maybe it would be a good thing to sharpen the brand identity a bit by concentrating on a peculiar style field.
Besides that, it is Swatch Group’s new platform strategy that adds horological uniqueness to Hamilton: The movement manufacturer ETA delivers certain modifications of its standard movements exclusively to Hamilton, as it does to Tissot, Certina, Longines and Omega with other variants. In Hamilton’s case, this is a highly useful upgrade of the famous 7750/53 chronograph movements giving it an increased power reserve of more than 60 hours, and an asymmetric regulator variant of the 2824, as well as an interestingly skeletonized 2824.
I was not shown all new watches or variants that are added to Hamilton’s lineup this year, but the most important - and interesting - pieces. I will start my report with the Jazzmaster Viewmatic Skeleton. As the name suggests, this is a watch featuring a skeletonized movement and is offered in a men’s and a ladies’ variant, with two entirely different dial designs.
Jazzmaster Viewmatic Skeleton Lady
Of course this skeleton is not that traditionally hand-skeletonized masterpiece, but the result of a clever CNC coding. Yet the watches are highly attractive and offer interesting glimpses into their inner composition.
Jazzmaster Viewmatic Skeleton Gent
Since this skeleton movement is a series-produced derivate of the well-known 2824, it receives a new designation as cal. H-20-S. The lady variant has a diameter of 36mm, the gentleman version is 40mm wide.
Staying with the Jazzmaster line, the next watch is the Jazzmaster Regulator, a uniquely designed regulator with asymmetric dial layout. This is the Hamilton-exclusive variant of the movement kit system that is also based on the 2824, and permits Tissot to offer watches with eccentric indications. The Hamilton version, powered by the cal. H-12 movement, is the more uncommon one, with the hour subdial being located at 10 and the small second at 4.
The steel watches are 42mm wide.
Not entirely new, but subject of a facelift is the elegant Spirit of Liberty from the American Classic series. This 42mm watch is powered by the cal. H-21 chronograph movement, an upgrade of the well-known ETA 7750 with substantially improved power reserve of approx. 60 hours, which is exclusively reserved for use by Hamilton.
The Spirit of Liberty is dedicated to Andrew Hamilton, an 18th century attorney-at-law, who became famous for establishing that truth is a valid defence against an accusation of libel. His son James later became the eponym of the Hamilton watch company, that was founded on land formerly in the possession of James Hamilton.
The 2013 version of the Spirit of Liberty replaces the modern, teardrop-shaped pushers and the massive crown with a more nostalgic design of pushers and crown, more reminiscent of old hand-winding chronographs. The message “without liberty life is a misery”, quotation from Hamilton’s defense of the freedom of press, moved from the dial onto the leather strap, engraved therein by laser. The Spirit of Liberty is a perfect and tasteful present for law-school graduates.
Let us move into the direction of sportive timepieces now. The Khaki Pilot Pioneer chronograph is an automatic bi-compax chronograph in the design of a classic military pilot watch. It is powered by the 7753-derived cal. H-31 with extended 60 hours power reserve.
It has a case diameter of 41mm and is available with black or ivory-coloured dials. Aside its unluckily placed date window, due to its white background especially disturbing on the black dial version, I consider this pilot chronograph the better offer, compared with the equally new Longines Military chronograph. The Hamilton has the more interesting movement, since the Longines only offers a plain 7753, without extended power reserve.
One of my personal favourites is the impressive and massive Khaki Navy Sub chronograph. This 43mm diving chronograph is rated watertight to 300 meters and is also equipped with the aforementioned H-31 movement.
Uniquely executed is the unidirectionally rotating diving bezel, which has rubber markers raised above the metal surface of the bezel ring.
Altogether, this watch leaves the impression of excellent finish and quality and is in my opinion among the sports chronographs with the best value on the market. The only thing that could be improved is the date window. A black date ring would enhance the overall appearance of the watch substantially. I especially like the more gaudy version with the orange colour spots.
With timepieces like the triangular-shaped Ventura, Hamilton has proved that is always good in creating conversation starters and movie requisites. This year, the strange Jazzmaster Face 2 Face will take over this part. It is composed from two independent automatic movements, but the dials are not on the same side. Instead, the wearer always can see one dial and one movement’s rear.
On the right side of the oval shaped case sits a chronograph, powered by the compact ETA 2094 modular chronograph movement, which had been originally designed for ladies’ watches and is based on the ETA 2000 movement. Unique feature of the chronograph is its transparent sapphire dial, permitting a view on the mechanics underside.
The space on the left is taken by the three-hands ETA 2671, also a movement made for small ladies’ timepieces. Changing between the two sides, or two faces of the watch is accomplished by a flipping the inner case in its solid frame. The chronograph pushers remain in place, since their movement is transported to the movement via stems.
Of course this configuration makes the watch huge, with a width of 53mm, and compared with the typical Hamilton price range, the limited edition (888 pieces) watch is also very expensive. But it really is a conversation starter, and, who knows, chances might be good we notice it prominently featured in a future blockbuster movie ...
This message has been edited by AnthonyTsai on 2013-06-26 09:12:04