Watch Description
The Chicago 394 is the 394th one-of-a-kind piece in Vortic's "Chicago" line of the American Artisan Series. This watch contains the original movement (timepiece), dial (face), and hands from a vintage (1880’s – 1950’s) pocket watch. The American Artisan Series is a line of fully American Made wristwatches powered by restored, U.S. made pocket watch movements.
What makes the Chicago 394 Unique: This dial caught our eye with its exceptional shine! Maybe it's the gold numerals or the distinguished gold hands, we couldn't help but put this dial in a machined titanium case with a gold knurled crown. Our rye strap with gold buckle and tang rounds out this exceptional watch. With the unique numeral style, this dial offers a subtle international essence - perfect for The Traveler in your life. On this 17jewel movement produced by the Elgin National Watch Company in 1926, you can see the inscription on the back under the "U.S.A." insignia with the word "Artistic". Though not deeply engraved, you can see subtle design all around the movement that is absolutely artistic! Speaking of artists, 1926 was the year escape artist and famous entertainer Harry Houdini died at the age of 52.
1926
28784576
https://player.vimeo.com/video/467875320
Movement Manufacturer Information
The movement inside of this watch was made by Elgin Watch Company. We call this model "The Chicago" because of the company's proximity to the city.
Also known as Elgin National Watch Company, Elgin wasn't only the largest watch manufacturer in the United States, but the largest watch manufacturer in the world for almost 100 years, operating from 1864-1964. The company often used a depiction of father time on advertisements. At one point, the company was making 7,500 watch movements per week and had 2,300 employees. The factory was demolished in 1966 and replaced with a shopping center.
Legal Disclaimer: All product and company names, logos, brands, and other trademarks featured or referred to within Vortic's products and services are the property of their respective intellectual property rights holders, if any. Those intellectual property rights holders, other than Vortic, LLC, are not affiliated with Vortic, LLC, our products, or our website. They do not sponsor or endorse our materials.
Watch Specifications
- Manufacturer: Vortic Watch Company
- Model Year: 2020
- Warranty: Full 1-Year Warranty
- Case Dimensions:
- Diameter: 47mm
- Thickness: 12mm
- Lug to Lug: 55mm
- Lug Width: 22mm
- Case Material: Machined Titanium
- Crown/Hardware: Gold Plated
- Water Resistance: 1 ATM
- Crystals: Sapphire
- Case Back: Stainless Steel
- Strap: Leather
Movement
- Manufacturer: Elgin Watch Company
- Serial Number:
- Manufacture Year:
- Function: Manual Wind
- Jewels: 17 Jewels
- Hands: Original
- Size: 12s
- Power Reserve: ~36 Hours
The Chicago 394 is the 394th one-of-a-kind piece in Vortic's "Chicago" line of the American Artisan Series. This watch contains the original movement (timepiece), dial (face), and hands from a vintage (1880’s – 1950’s) pocket watch. The American Artisan Series is a line of fully American Made wristwatches powered by restored, U.S. made pocket watch movements.
What makes the Chicago 394 Unique: This dial caught our eye with its exceptional shine! Maybe it's the gold numerals or the distinguished gold hands, we couldn't help but put this dial in a machined titanium case with a gold knurled crown. Our rye strap with gold buckle and tang rounds out this exceptional watch. With the unique numeral style, this dial offers a subtle international essence - perfect for The Traveler in your life. On this 17jewel movement produced by the Elgin National Watch Company in 1926, you can see the inscription on the back under the "U.S.A." insignia with the word "Artistic". Though not deeply engraved, you can see subtle design all around the movement that is absolutely artistic! Speaking of artists, 1926 was the year escape artist and famous entertainer Harry Houdini died at the age of 52.
1926
28784576
https://player.vimeo.com/video/467875320
Let customers speak for us
The Movement
The engine that powers this watch is an antique American pocket watch movement. All the gears and springs that make it tell time are roughly 100 years old on average. We call these watches the American Artisan Series because we're celebrating the history and legacy of the artisan watchmakers who built this engineering marvel a century ago in the United States.
The Story
Today most pocket watches are scrapped for the gold or silver of the case (the outside of the antique timepiece), leaving the inside (what we call the "movement") as trash.
We take pride in upcycling these pieces of American history by salvaging as many as we can, then preserving them inside our wristwatches.
Our expert team of watchmakers restores the antique movement and then we manufacture a custom wristwatch case here in Fort Collins, Colorado.
The Strap
We partnered with Worn & Wound to produce a custom set of straps for our American Artisan Series watches. We now have 15 different colors to choose from including our two Horween Shell Cordovan options. These straps are made in the USA and are based on the Windup Model 2 Premium strap that Worn and Wound offers.
