My new Christopher Ward C11

[spm17]

Warning: I am definitely a fanboy of CW watches….seriously gushing review below…you’ve been warned.

For the 2nd year in a row I got a Christopher Ward watch for Christmas and once again I’m completely blown away by how much watch you get for the money from them. Below are the specs in case you’re interested.

Features:
Swiss made
316L Stainless steel
25 / 26 Jewel Swiss automatic movement
Black date calendar
Screw-in back plate
Anti-reflective museum grade sapphire
Adjustable Italian leather strap
Hand polished case with unique engraved serial number
Luminous hands and Indexes
Water resistant to 10atm

Technical:
Diameter: 42mm
Height: 10.7mm
Weight: 108g
Calibre: ETA 2824-2 / Sellita SW200-1
Strap: Leather Strap - width 22mm
Vibrations: 28800 per hour



Like my other 3 watches from CW this one has great fit and finish. It feels solid and has a good weight on my wrist…not too heavy but definitely not a light weight either. I realize this is a bit of an homage to a B&R watch but I like the little things that make it it’s own watch. The knurled crown is easy to grip and has no play whatsoever…and like all of my other watches has CW engraved on it as well. (just realized I forgot to take a pic of that). I love the simplicity of the dial with just the numbers at 3, 6, 9 and 12 and how easy to read it is. The watch is supposed to echo a cockpits altimeter and though I’m no pilot I definitely feel like it does a great job. Very legible and easy to see the time with no effort at all. The movement of the second hand is silky smooth and I love how only the tip of the secondhand is white….very nice touch that allows it to look like it’s floating there on it’s own at times. Same goes for the hour and minute hands…love the half black and white look. The white parts all have C3 Superluminova on them…it’s not the brightest lume in the world but it does last most of the night if given a blast of flashlight prior.




I wasn’t sure what to expect with the “anti reflective museum grade sapphire” but I have to say now that I’ve seen it I LOVE it. It works extremely well…I’ve never had a watch that was so easy to take pics of without worrying about what was in the background…plus at times it gives the face a blue tinge which is also very cool.(you can kind of see it in the pic below).


The back is engraved with the words Pervenio Pro Astrum Altus which means "Reach for the Stars"…another very cool touch along with the production number as well.


The strap that comes with it is very comfortable and has a really well made buckle with the Christopher Ward, London name on it….the screws and fit an finish on it really make it feel custom.



One other thing I really like is that the band comes with their trick pin removal system.(my Bradystraps strap has this as well so I know it’s not proprietary but I definitely think it’s a cool feature). See pic below.


I specifically bought my C11 with the brown strap so that I could swap it out with my black one on my CW C8. I can literally swap both straps in under a minute… so now it feels like I got TWO new watches now…ha ha.
Before:

After:



And finally… a family pic with all 4 I own.


I really can’t say enough about Christopher Ward watches…the value/cost ratio is ridiculously high and I feel that when I pass these on to my son someday they will last him a lifetime as well. Thanks for looking and have a great day.

Shawn

[sportsguy]

OK, that is a seriously nice watch! Congrats - love the details like the white tip second hand and that easy-removal strap pin system. Love the custom touches on the buckle, too.

[spm17]

OK, that is a seriously nice watch! Congrats - love the details like the white tip second hand and that easy-removal strap pin system. Love the custom touches on the buckle, too.

Thanks man...I'm definitely loving this one.

-Shawn

[Reacher]

Do you get any sort of paperwork that specified exactly which movement you have? It seems like you would be getting one of two that they put in that watch. I would want to know which one.

[CometHunter]

Very nice My decision on which CW to get just got harder.

Those quick-removal spring bars are the best thing since sliced bread. The bars are easy to find, but IMO there are not enough straps offered for use with them.

[Clifford Moore]

Really nice watch! I love the simplicity of it's design... simple, but by no means boring, and I really like the subtly blue dial
A classy & sporty look, without being stuffy.

The little red mark at 3:00 is puzzling though, I can't quite understand why it's there.

[Wombat]

Nice looking watch. I agree that those quick change spring bars make life a lot easier. And those 2 watches look great with the straps swapped over, a good way to get more out of the watches you have!

[CometHunter]

...The little red mark at 3:00 is puzzling though, I can't quite understand why it's there.

Maybe it's significant in the field of aeronautics?

[ulackfocus]

There's no shame in being a fanboy of CW. They make a great watch for the money, one of the best values out there.

[Clifford Moore]

That little red mark was bugging me, so I looked it up... it turns out it's supposed to represent a "bug"!
Apparently, on an altimeter, there are often movable indicators to mark critical points (to either not exceed, or fall below), these markers are called "bugs".

Now I can sit back and fully enjoy the design, without wanting to rub off that little red mark.

...what can I say, these little things amuse me!