The Best New Watches on the Market Are From… Kickstarter?

Watches on the crowdfunding site feature new takes on classic styles.

November 13, 2018 5:00 am

This piece is part of an ongoing editorial partnership with RealClearLife, a news and lifestyle site that connects successful men to everything they need to know. Be sure to head over to their website for the latest. 

Sure, a Rolex makes a great statement.

But to truly stand out, you may want to consider Kickstarter for your next watch purchase.

As far as timepieces go, the crowdfunding site inspires unbridled creativity … mixed, conversely, with a reverence toward vintage tickers (usually in the sweet spot of the 1950s and ‘60s).

And above all, they’re just kind of fun.

So, herein: the 7 best watches currently funding on Kickstarter.

All under four figures. All extremely creative. And all extremely limited editions with a tight deadline to buy.

For race fans: Goodspeed PETROL

Godspeed PETROL

If you’re a watch fan and racing movies from the ‘60s and ‘70s are your bag — and you can’t shell out, say, $17 million or so for Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona — go with the debut timepiece from Goodspeed. Inspired by vintage racing watches but made with modern components, these sleek chronographs feature a high-contrast red second hand that measures seconds lapsed when the chrono is started, a left subdial that registers minutes lapsed and a right subdial that displays your current 24-hour time. ($169, ends Nov. 21)

For globalists: Xeric Atlasphere

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Xeric Watches (@xericwatches) on Nov 7, 2018 at 10:11am PST

As in, actual inspiration from 18th-century globemakers. The Atlasphere features minutes displayed via an orbiting moon and luminous hands and north/south “poles” that display the date and secondary time zone, all over a bas-relief with latitude and longitude lines. Bonus: Straps crafted from Horween leather. ($199, ends Nov. 30)

For making cars: Huet Brothers

Huet Brothers

Dutch brothers Paul and Tino Huet love fast cars and classic watches. To build their dream sports car — an HB Coupe — the pair needs help. How you can: Pre-ordering their HB Benefactor Chronograph 2018, a Swiss made timepiece with “concepts from already-made HB cars.” Available in two sizes (40 and 42.5mm) and two straps (get the Sport model’s black strap with red accents), with a steering wheel engraved on the back. ($340, ends Nov. 15)

For vintage dive pieces: Meraud

Meraud

Founded by a vintage watch enthusiast from Belgium, these Swiss movement timepieces evoke dive watches of the ‘50s and ‘60s. With 200 meters of water resistance but a thickness of only 12.5mm, this is a sporty and elegant timepiece. ($725, ends Nov. 17)

For winos: Décantheure

Décantheure

An automatic watch for … wine lovers? Let’s explain: With a twist of the crown, you can track the amount of time it takes to decant 30 different varieties of wine. Fun fact: The back is made from a transparent green Champagne bottle. Hey, they reach four million euros in funding, and your watch serves as a lottery ticket to one of their first production cars. ($184, ends Nov. 19)

For none more black: Chronoteca

Chronoteca

“The blackest watch ever made,” they say. The coating on this Swiss automatic self-winding watch is apparently crafted from the darkest man-made substance ever, absorbing 99.9% of light. Plus, it’s scratch-resistant. ($457, Nov. 30)

For DIY enthusiasts: Innovitime

Innovitime

Here, you can customize the watch (and packaging) with any art or design you want, via an online visual configurator. ($79, Nov. 14)

If you enjoyed this article from InsideHook, they also have an excellent daily email with similar articles that spans the wide world of men’s lifestyle. You can sign up here.

The InsideHook Newsletter.

News, advice and insights for the most interesting person in the room.