Spaced Out ::

I have a habit of destroying watches and, over the years, have always ended up coming back to my old trusty Casio Flight Planner. Its a solid digital watch that just keeps going, but the glass has got badly scratched over the years. So my search for a new watch begun with a long list of possible constraints. However key to this was a sapphire glass, not too big and waterproof. In addition a chronograph and alarm would be useful. After trawling around the main watch manufacturers I came across Christopher Ward Watches, a UK firm that designs functional, high quality, watches using Swiss components (and, indeed, are now Swiss made). They started out with 2 or 3 basic designs but have expanded this year to 8 or 10 models. And they are a company that stand by their products; you get a 60:60 guarantee (60 days return, 60 months warranty) and can email the owner directly.

So what did I buy? Well a C5 Aviator. Its the smallest watch CW do, incorporates a sapphire glass and is self-winding (similar to the Seiko Kinetic). The Aviator moniker refers to the aviation style variation on the design. Its a great watch and seems to serve my needs. It does only come with a leather strap and, given I like to wear a watch when I swim, I prefer a rubber/nylon strap which has been ordered from elsewhere.