Comments:
With regard to "new" IWC spitfire simple 3 hander...
I guess a new "in-house" movement with 72 hour PR is good, 39mm case is nice... 6 bar WR should be 10 bar imho too...
But again, is the Kern factor still lingering? Why is there not a no-date version? (and yes, without a dead or ghost crown position... a true dateless movement)
And I'm not a fan of the mixed index lumes, but maybe this is better in the flesh.
Better but still needs work. I guess there are no "purists" on the IWC design team or in its boardroom...
It's a step in the right direction but still off
The Spitfire collection is supposed to be the "British" collection in that they should have design codes from British watches, namely the Mark 11.
As you can see these new Spitfire watches still have hands derived from the German B-Uhr watches and the triangle at 12 o'clock still has a dot on each side of it. This is yet another German (Luftwaffe) design. The Mark 11, 12, and XV all had only a simple triangle at 12 (the Mark 12 and XV being IWC's own homage of the issued Mark 11).
It's like IWC took a Spitfire fighter and replaced the wings with those from a Bf-109 and took the RAF roundel on the side of the fuselage and painted a Luftwaffe cross over it.
That is true...
That is very much true. The design is very German and the numerals are very much unlike the historical Spitfire watches IWC made in the 1940s for the British Royal Air Force which generally had INDICES rather than numerals! Good point!
The dial of the new Spitfire 3-hander with date
is actually very close to the IWC Mark 11 except for that d@mn Luftwaffe triangle. You have to recall that the Mark 11 spec did not come out from the British MoD until after the war in 1948. So historically, IWC did not create these watches Mark 11s for Spitfire pilots at all.
And the Mark 11 spec was fulfilled by both IWC and JLC. IWC kept making the Mark 11 from 1948 until 1981! JLC stopped making their Mark 11 in 1953 after completing a final order from the RAAF.
Another thing to note is that the IWC Mark 11 was made for the RAF, RAAF, BOAC, and civilians while the JLC Mark 11 was only made for the RAF and RAAF and not available to civilians at the time and much more rare than the IWC version.
Totally agree! 👍🏻
I like the new Chronograph, but the rest - well, we need to wait another year... 🤷🏼♂️😂
Something is just off for me regarding the new spitfire mark series
It actually made me desire the normal mark black dial even more, rather than less
I don't think there's been a decent iteration of the Mark series since the Mark XV
It's been all downhill since IMO. IWC seems very confused about what they want the Mark series to be. The size has bounced around between 38mm and 40mm over the last several iterations, they just don't seem to be able to get the date design or placement right - even with the new in-house movement - the design cues are a mix of those from the MoD and B-Uhr specs, etc. Even the Mark XVIII 'Tribute to Mark XI' didn't get things quite right.
I'd love to see a 38mm remake of the Mark XI with no design flourishes, no date window, just the original design in a slightly larger case. But I dare say I'll never see it. Perhaps it's simply too hard-core for the average IWC buyer who isn't aware of the watch's history and for whom the lack of a date would be a showstopper. For now, I'll be happy with my Mark XV. Maybe I'll just save a few thousand dollars and buy a handwound, no-date Stowa Flieger and be done with it.
Hi Logan, there have been a few special editions of the ref 3253 that may suit your wishes, this one in 1000 pcs :
picture credit C24
there was also one for the Asian market without the Spitfire text but that is very rare with 88 pcs.
Some good points!
Agreed, 10 bar water resistance is better than 6. But remember, it's a pilots watch, not a watch that is intended to see a lot of water.
No date version? That would be nice wouldn't it? And yes, it'd be a disaster if the non-date version had a ghost crown position for the date!
The mixed index lumes looks nice. I rather liked it!
I rather liked the IWC products this year. This is a very strong showing for IWC this year! As an owner and fan of an IWC pilots watch, I'm very pleased with this year's collection!
I think there is a no date limited edition for The Rake or Revolution. [nt]
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