Introducing the Oak & Oscar Sandford

Ah, the sophmore effort. Many a-time, a brand (be it music, watch, or anything else) has a much easier time with their first creation, as people are not quite sure what to expect. By the time their second outing rolls around, a line has been drawn in the sand, and it can be just as easy to fail as it is to succeed. Fortunately, it looks like my fellow Chicagoan Chase Fancher has followed the latter path, as his second creation, the Oak & Oscar Sandford, looks pretty solid.

Just to level set what my own expectations are – the Oak & Oscar Burnham is actually a watch that made my personal top 5 of 2015. Given the sheer number of watches I handle and look over in the course of a year, getting to that point is not a minor achievement. Yeah, I may not be as critical on the watches I choose to review as some others, but there’s still a winnowing process to rise to the top. As teaser information started to come out, I was extremely curious as to how Fancher would be able to follow the design language of the Burnham, yet still give us something different. Then, the Oak & Oscar Sandford was revealed, and it was all answered.

For starters, Fancher kept the color scheme that proved to be so popular (and versatile) the first time around. The sandwhich dial looks rather similar, and I am sure is still filled with the tiny touches that will delight owners (such as the seconds-hand balance that aligns with the logo on the dial). The major change is the inclusion of a GMT complication (for those who’ve not been around for awhile, that’s – bar none – my favorite addition on a watch). And, if a second time zone was not enough, you also have an internal bezel that can be rotated around (hence the second crown) to ostensibly give you a third time zone (though, I imagine it will simply be used for the second zone, which is a more common usage anyways).

Also like the Burnham, the Oak & Oscar Sandford comes with a quite-nice Horween strap, as well as a second, nylon strap (from the hallowed offices of Crown & Buckle). The final bit of icing on this particularly tasty cake is the travel wallet that the Oak & Oscar Sandford. I rather liked what Fancher developed for the Burnham, and this time around, the watch wallet has also been redesigned. As before, we have Horween leather lined with German wool, and suede pouches. What’s new this time around is the fact that the three pouches are detachable. So, you could opt to carry the whole shebang in your carryon, or simply slip one of the pouches in an inside pocket of your jacket, as you jet off to locations near and far.

Of the 300 serialized pieces that will be built of the Oak & Oscar Sandford, the 200 hundred will be in the stainless steel finish, while the other 100 will be in a charcoal PVD (something new this time around). There is a special presale discount of $100 on both models right now, so you can order the steel for $1,750, or opt for the PVD version at $1,850, with the expected ship date to be in the fall of 2016. Is this a bit spendier than we normally feature here? Yeah, it is, but if you’re on the hunt for an uncommon indie watch with some serious attention to detail, you can certainly do much (much) worse than the Oak & Oscar Sandford. oakandoscar.com

Watch Overview

Brand & Model: Oak & Oscar Sanford
Price: $1,750 – $1,850 (pre-order pricing)

Who we think it might be for: You missed out on the Oak & Oscar Burnham
Would I buy one for myself based on what I’ve seen?: Yes, yes indeed – the color scheme and complication make for a very versatile watch
If I could make one design suggestion, it would be: I’ll be curious to see if a bracelet is designed for an O&O watch at some point

What spoke to me the most about this watch: In general, everything; in specific, well, the GMT complication

Tech Specs from Oak & Oscar

Soprod C125 automatic 25 jewel mechanical Swiss movement with independent GMT hand

Dual crowns with internal rotating bezel
Stainless steel, 40mm case diameter and 12mm case height
20mm lug width

Double-domed sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating
Color-matched date wheel with window at 6 o’clock
Signed, screw-down crowns with internal gaskets

10 ATMs water resistance (100 meters)
Bespoke sandwich dial with Super-LumiNova BGW9
Tapered, Horween leather strap with signed buckle

Modular leather watch wallet to hold three watches in detachable suede pouches and strap tool. Made of Horween and Tasman leather.
Crown & Buckle olive green nylon strap with orange stitching and matching signed hardware
Two-year limited warranty