Alright, folks – it’s time to take another look at a Kobold watch.  Why?  Because I really dig the looks of the watch, and as we saw in the earlier post I wrote, they offer a lot of watch.  Today, we’re going to take a closer look at their Richard E Byrd Chronograph.  Now, if you remember your history classes, you’ll recall that Byrd was the first explorer to fly to the South Pole on November 29th, 1929.  And this informs some of the design cues for the watch.  They’ve made it in an aviator-style, and they label the dial color as Arctic Blue.

It’s that blue dial that first drew me in, especially in contrast to the brown leather of the strap (yeah, it’s crocodile pattern, but I’ll let that slide for now).  Another thing I like about the dial is how the subdials (at 12 o’clock and 6 o’clock) aren’t readily noticeable.  Sure, that will detract from the readabilty of those subdials, but it allows for a cleaner look.

Along with the good looks of the piece, you get the following:

• K .722 caliber manual-wind mechanical movement (Swiss-made)
• 40mm stainless steel (316L) case with 20mm lugs
• 100m water resistance
• Anti-magnetic / shockproof / pressure proof (10 atm)
• Domed, AR-coated sapphire crystal
• Assembled in PA

Of course, all of that doesn’t come cheaply – Kobold is currently asking $2,750 for the watch.  Not a cheap watch by any means – but for an American-made (or at least, designed and assembled) watch with an in-house movement, the pricing seems to be not totally unreasonable.  If I were to change anything, it would be that strap – a simple, or more “rustic” style, I think would be more in keeping with the aesthetic they’re going for here.

When I found the paracord strap from yesterday’s post, I was intrigued by the Kobold watch I saw in the promo picture.  So, I did some digging, and lo and behold, it turns out to be the Kobold Arctic Diver Swiss (the blue second hand tipped me to that model).  It looks like Kobold is itself an American company, with design and some assembly occurring in Pittsburgh – although, this particular model is billed as Swiss-made.

The Kobold company (named for it’s founder Michael Kobold) has been around for over 13 years, and limits production (of all models) to a total of no more than 2,500 pieces.  This should help to ensure quality, as well as maintain some exclusivity.

Now, back to this Arctic Swiss diver.  As you can see from the image, it’s captured the essence of a diver in readable simplicity.  Underneath that simple exterior, though, you do have a Swiss ETA movement beating away, so it’s definitely got some solid innards.  But, enough prose!  On to the specs:

• Case: 46 mm stainless steel (surgical grade); sandblasted (matte) surface finish
• 24 mm lug width
• Crystal:  sapphire; domed, anti-reflective (inside only)
• Extra-thick crown screw-locked
• Uni-directional rotating bezel
• WR: 500 m (crown locked) / 30m (crown unlocked)
• Antimagnetic (80,000 a/m)
• Shock-resistant
• Movement: ETA 2824-A2; Swiss-made; winding automatic mechanism jewels 21
• Strap:  natural rubber
• MSRP: $3,850
• Options:  with / without date

Of course, if you don’t like this exact model, there are two other variants Kobold would be able to offer you – the “regular” Artic Diver for $5,650 with an in-house movement, or the “Heritage” model (again, with the in-house movement) for $6,250.  I have to admit, there is something intriguing about the in-house designed movements.  The could be interesting to experience, and it is nice to see some competition and variation in the industry.  For my money, though, the blue-handed Swiss model is my favorite of the three.

Kobold hasn’t been amazing me lately with their designs but I’m down to post this close-up look at one of their latest models, a $3K three-hander.

via KeepTheTime

Man. I don’t know if I’m supposed to look at this watch or have sex with it. The man’s hands fondling this PVD encased beauty is a bit off-putting but the music sounds like what my roommate used to play to mask the sounds of his seductions.

That said, I wouldn’t kick a Kobold out of bed for eating crackers.