Richard M
169
Can’t get over the hands
The original short baton hour-hand on the Mark XI was the very essence of British design—unmistakeable and part of the MOD specs for the companies that produced it. IWC’s inexplicable subsequent decision to switch to Luftwaffe-style angular leaf hands on more recent models, for me at least, betrayed the rich military history behind this watch, ironically switching the design of the victor into the design of the defeated. The IWC Mark XV was the last watch in this series that honored the original, and as a result I have little interest in the more recent successors.
From Cockpit to Café: Has the IWC Mark Series Lost Its Tool Watch Soul?
In 1948, the Mark XI was born not as a luxury item but as a precision tool — a watch built for the RAF navigators with strict Britain's Ministry of Defense specifications. It had a soft iron inner cage to shield the movement from magnetism and a design st...
The first photo really captures the soul of the watch and the era. Awesome.
It is alway easy to imitate but very hard to duplicate. But I think IWC is doing a great job bringing the Mark XX to a bigger and newer audience.
Can’t get over the hands
The original short baton hour-hand on the Mark XI was the very essence of British design—unmistakeable and part of the MOD specs for the companies that produced it. IWC’s inexplicable subsequent decision to switch to Luftwaffe-style angular leaf hands on ...
IWC (and most Swiss brands)
had no problem supplying both sides during the war... IWC ignited my passion for horology when I discovered the Portuguese line on 1993, but my interest in IWC stopped at the 1995 vintage
I think the soul left after the Mark XV
I don't care for newer hands, and to me the position of the date window on later versions detracts. I could go on but, really, the newer watches are perfeclty OK. They just don't seem as true to their roots. The newer 32111 movement seem like a plus.
Agree exactly
I owned and really enjoyed a Mark XVI, but that's the first of the post-soul Marks. The XII and XV are much better.
Great post
As a fan of the IWC Mark series, and also having owned different pieces, to me it is not a question of one or the other. I can equally enjoy my newer ones, and look back in admiration on the original with respect. They’ve made some great lim. ed. a long t...
