The Colourful Chronograph. Christopher Ward C65 Chronograph Launch Review

Christopher Ward (CW) declared that 2020 would be the year of the chronograph. For obvious reasons this has was delayed but October saw the release of the very modern C60 Chronograph. Now Christopher Ward has launched their second chronograph of the year. Welcome to the Christopher Ward C65 Chronograph.

The C60 Chronograph is a modern design is unmistakably part of the C60 Trident range. The C65 range is CW’s retro diver range and this presents CW with a dilemma. They are a brand which released its first watch in 2005. That’s pretty recent and their history is much shorter than Brands like Oris (1904), Omega (1848) and brands like Yema (1948) or Doxa (1889) all of whom can reach into their back catalogues for retro designs whenever they feel the need. Christopher Ward can’t do this and so they have to look for design inspiration in the back catalogues of other brands. They are pretty good at this, just look at the C65 Super Compressor inspired by the EPSA Super Compressor. The retro chronograph market is pretty crowded so how does this one compare?

Specifications

Diameter                             41mm

Lug-tip to Lug-tip              47.1mm

Scottish Watches and TOCKR Watches

Height                                   15.0mm

Weight (inc. bracelet)    108g

Water resistance              600m/2000ft

Lug width                            22mm

Movement                         SW510 BHA (28,800 bph, 27 jewels, 48 hour power reserve)

Lume                                     Super Luminova X1 GL C1

Design

The C65 Chronograph is a busy watch. It uses the same SW510 BHa movement as the C60 chronograph and is a bicompax chronograph with a date window at 6:00 o’clock. The dial is a bright blue sunburst with subdials at 3 and 9 o’clock. The subdials are silver with a concentric ring design that will be familiar in concept to the subdials on a Speedmaster. The 30 minute counter at 3 o’clock has a dark blue sector which stretches from zero to 5 minutes and a red sector from 5 to 10 minutes. The blue sector doesn’t appear to match the colour of the dial which adds to the visual confusion.

The handset does it’s best to add more splashes of colour too. The timer second hand and the hand for the minute counter are bright orange and both hands contrast very well with the silver subdial and the blue dials. You wouldn’t think this combination would work but it does. The hour and minute hands are the conventional silver C65 hands and will be fighting the good fight to be noticed against the rest of the elements on the dial.

The indices are applied but not lume filled. There are pips of lume at the end of each index and in the minute track. Those in the minute track from 12 o’clock to 4 o’clock are red whilst the remainder are green. These lume pips look great in macro photography and the indices are well shaped. This continues the style first used on the C65 Super Compressor and is a classy but it does mean that the amount of lume is limited and they won’t glow for long in the dark. The outer rings of the dial are occupied by the tachymeter scale and the minute track. This combination along with the narrow blue bezel make the dial look small and busy.

Not everyone likes date windows. I’m a fan and the dial window here is neatly executed. The date wheel is white and the numbers are printed in red. These elements of colour go well with the black and silver double border to the date window.

Finally the C65 Chronograph features screw down pushers and a screw down crown. So this is a chronograph you can take into the water. Is anyone listening in Switzerland? Omega are only a couple of kilometers from the Christopher Ward atelier in Biel/Bienne, maybe they could pop in and see how it’s done? The C65 Chronograph is available on a brushed oyster style bracelet or on a choice of blue tropic, camel vintage oak leather or black vintage oak leather straps. It looks great on the bracelet but I wonder what it would look like on the orange or blue leather straps used for the Super Compressor?

 

Conclusions

The C65 range has normally featured clean, almost minimalist designs. The C65 GMT Worldtimer comprehensively broke that mold with its yellow 24 hour track, minute track and applied indices which cut deeply into the available space on the dial. The new C65 Chronograph follows that trend. It is a watch that is going to be noticed and commented on. The movement makes this a tall watch but one that will look and wear a lot smaller due to the design and the short lug tip to lug tip distance.

In the Scottish Watches podcast number 198 Mike France, CEO and co-founder of the Christopher Ward brand said that this is a watch that harks back to the use of colour in the 60s and 70s and this is a watch that should make you smile every time you put it on. I have to agree with that. Some will find it too busy but for those that do try one it is going to bring a smile to your face.

Price and availability

The Christopher Ward C65 Chronograph is priced at £1,800/$2,055 on the bracelet and £1,695/$1,935 on a blue tropic, Camel vintage oak leather or black vintage oak leather strap. It is available to purchase now from the Christopher Ward website (www.christopherward.com).

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