![]() Click on the photo below for a larger version. I pulled it apart so you could see what's inside. The first part of the booklet contains details about the watch, such as the date completed, owner, materials used, and technical details. It's held together by two screws so pages can easily be added with the service details when the watch is sent in for maintenance. The watch came with an ownership and service history booklet, with a hard cover made of soft cream leather. Basically it is a useful and I hope an attractive piece of furniture that can sit on the owners dressing table or entrance table and be used and appreciated." The compartment where the watch travel wallet is stored can be use for pens and the small compartment to the left can be used to store rings and cufflinks. What I wanted to create was a box that was useable not only for the watches storage but for the owners day to day use.hence the wallet etc. Roger: "In the past I have seen and spoken to collectors who were completely disinterested in their watches presentation, which usually ended up being hidden in a cupboard never to be seen again. Roger decided to take a different approach. Often, brands make huge boxes with elaborate woods and details, and when you open them up there's a little pillow sitting in the middle of the vast open space. Overall it's very well done, and has the advantage of being "usable". I already covered the packaging in the previous installment (click here to launch that thread). This process of creative development and variation unfolding in the quiet and solitude of the Isle of Man under the hands of a group of dedicated craftsmen, exemplifies the revival of English watchmaking in the British Isles, uniquely bound to the conception of a truly exclusive product. These, in addition to the limited edition versions with unique and entirely new patterns are now in preparation and will be available during the latter course of 2007. Each group of Series 2 watches will be visually distinguished by variations in dial details such as the guillochÈ patterns of dial and sub-dials, engraving and bluing with combinations of precious metals. Creating exclusive sets in this fashion allows the artisans of the workshop the freedom to utilize different materials and implement new styles of decoration, design and visual finishing inspired by various historical and newly developed in house techniques. ![]() Set 1 in 18-carat yellow gold, set 2 in 18-carat red gold and set 3 in 18-carat white gold. The initial Series 2 wristwatch release will comprise three different sets of thirty timepieces each, the preliminary studies of which can be seen below. This passion for creating handmade watches closely following the traditions of the past means that the Series 2, although an ongoing production, will always remain extremely exclusive, since they will be created by hand in small numbers with different variations. Despite the immense numbers of commercial watches created yearly, the ability of a watchmaker to construct escapements remains a rarity, and can certainly be seen as a distinguishing aspect of the independent spirit of the Roger W. The various delicate parts that comprise this heart of the watch's functioning and timekeeping ability require the highest tolerances from the watchmaker in their manufacture, assembly and regulation. Like all the watches created by the workshop, the escapements for the Series 2 watches are also created in house, using the famed Daniels co-axial escapement which is considered one of the most exceptional existing today. ![]() The movement, with its frosted and gilded plates in the English style, jewels set in gold chatons, the handmade gold hands with their scalloped tips, engine turned and hand engraved and frosted dials, screws blued by hand in small batches in short everything about these watches is a physical manifestation of the philosophy behind the revival of English watchmaking. The Series 2 wristwatch embodies all the characteristics and concepts of the Roger Smith Workshop and as such forms a central pillar of its production. Here is the introduction to the Series 2 from Roger's web site: The rest of the commentary was neither blessed nor previewed by Roger and his team, they are entirely my thoughts and opinions as an owner, and I've tried to be as objective as possible. I have asked Roger to provide some commentary along the way as he knows better than anyone else why things happened the way they happened. Smith workshop, the man behind the watch, and how the Series 2 was designed. ![]() This is the continuation of my previous post and I hope it gives you a better idea of the R.W.
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