Aluminium – it is known for its versatility and its usefulness. Chances are, that if you have a drinks can nearby it is made from aluminium, tonight your dinner will be cooked in, around or on aluminium foil and even if you prefer your beer from a bottle, then that bottle top is made from – aluminium. If you are eco-friendly then aluminium is almost 100% recyclable, and a vehicle made from aluminium will move along using less energy than one made from steel – ask any student of physics and they will back this up with Newton’s Second Law of Motion. Aluminium is also highly resistant to corrosion, ever seen bubble of rust on a Boeing 747? No, me neither. But aluminium watches?
Versatile and Vibrant – Aluminium Edition Wristwatches
Perhaps you think that this sounds a bit too “Swatch”, and you would be right, they have been using aluminium to create watches for ages. Wrist-clumsy watch wearers relax, the aluminium which is used to make watches is treated to be durable so dents should not be an issue. Aluminium watches will wear easy on the wrist because they are so light and, best of all aluminium receives colour better than steel ever could. If you are in the market for a brightly cased-up ultra-light wristwatch then there are plenty of aluminium watches out there. Here we focus on two new collections presented this year by brands who are owned by…You guessed it, the Swatch Group Ltd.
The Tissot T-Race Touch Aluminium
By using aluminium in its construction, Tissot bring some bright new aesthetics to their T-Race Touch collection. This Quartz-powered model is highly useful packing in 11 functions which can be activated with just a gentle finger touch onto the sapphire. In addition to hours and minutes, there is a chronograph (split, cumulative and sequential times), perpetual calendar, log, countdown, two time zones, two alarms, tide calendar, compass and backlighting. The dial which is highly legible, features a black background and luminescent hands.
Tissot T-Race T-Touch Aluminium
A new aluminium case adds to the usability of this superb sporting timepiece and gives it a new vivid face-lift. This year the collection has been extended to include orange, blue, green or black aluminium case editions presented on synthetic fabric straps each offering water resistance of 100m.
Hamilton Khaki Pilot Pioneer Aluminium
For the first time Hamilton have introduced a solid aluminium watch case to their portfolio producing four variations of the Khaki Pilot Pioneer Aluminium watch. Although the design department at Hamilton could have integrated animated colours into these new models, the shades which they have chosen, in particular a superbly muted “sand” edition are in-keeping with the brand’s historical aviation watches. In all, four editions were unveiled this year in khaki green, sand, black and navy.
For each piece the dial, case and strap are colour co-ordinated, adding to the utilitarian nature of the collection. The aluminium cases measure 41mm across with subtle sculpting on the right serving as a guard for the twin crowns. Winding and setting is operable via the crown at the 4 o’clock position while the crown at 2 o’clock turns the internal flange which features a 60-minute countdown scale. The dials which fall away deeply from their bezels, have military-style plainness with a diminutive 24-hour ring on the outer edge, basic numerals and a perfect little arrow tip on the seconds hand. Inside each model is the automatic Calibre H-10 which provides a power reserve of 80 hours. All four editions come presented on matching nylon NATO straps.
