Watch Description
What makes the Lancaster 194 unique: We couldn't be more excited about this watch, originally produced by the Hamilton Watch Company and given new life as a modern watch, this is our very own Lancaster 194.
This watch is part of our limited release series of lume-coated dials and hands. Our skilled watchmakers have carefully gone through and added lume to the watch in order to give it glow in the dark qualities for better viewing at night.
This dial is an especially remarkable part of our collection because our watchmaker Kent Parks applied a special Lume by hand, enabling some small details to glow in the dark. Kent says; “The dial has 4 precisely hand-applied coatings of B-17F NoctiLumina to the indexes in the chapter ring behind each number on the dial. It is finished with 2 light coats of Binder 3 to give the lume a "pearl" finish.
“The work is done by hand, and luming 6 coats on such tiny areas demanded the best of my 20 years of experience in this field. We took great pains to select an appropriate dial to lume and made sure we were merely enhancing what was already there. All printing is as seen on the original dial. In fact, with a real close view, the original is enhanced in bright daylight by the tiny white pearls around the chapter ring and the red hands. And at night you can read your watch in a dark room, with less than a minute’s exposure to the light”
This watch is an absolute head turner that will demand attention from across the room. The reflective quality of the silver dial in combination with our sandblasted titanium case will catch your eye immediately and brighten up any room. Gold-colored numerals along with our nickel-plated crown and hardware add even more flair and excitement to this beautiful watch. The inside of this watch shows off just as much if not more than the front, with our signature open case back to peer inside. You will see gold-inlayed text, that pairs perfectly with the gold-plated gears and brass balance wheel. The large 3/4 build plate has been carefully machined throughout to display these wonderful lines, pulling your gaze all around to explore all of the fine details.
Movement Manufacturer Information
The movement inside of this watch was made by Hamilton Watch Company. We call this model "The Lancaster" because the company was located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Hamilton is named after famous Pennsylvanian Alexander Hamilton and is the result of multiple re-organizations of attempted watch companies in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1892, Hamilton had a reputation for superior quality and maintained half of the railroad watch market share during some of the most prolific years of American railroad history. During World War II, Hamilton was integral to the production of accurate timepieces for the Military. Deemed "the watch that won the war," the company established an employee-run newsletter so that employees turned soldiers could keep up with life at the factory. While the original factory still stands as luxury apartments, the company stopped producing watches in the US in 1969. Hamilton now produces watches in Switzerland and is owned by the Swatch Group.
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
- Warranty: Full 1-Year Warranty
- Case Dimensions:
- Diameter: 47mm
- Thickness: 12mm
- Lug to Lug: 55mm
- Lug Width: 22mm
- Case Material: Sandblasted Titanium
- Crown/Hardware: Nickel Plated
- Water Resistance: 1 ATM
- Crystals: Sapphire
- Case Back: Stainless Steel
- Strap: Leather
Movement
- Manufacturer: Hamilton Watch Company
- Serial Number: 3130761
- Manufacture Year: 1928
- Function: Manual Wind
- Jewels: 17 Jewels
- Hands: Original
- Size: 12s
- Power Reserve: ~36 Hours
What makes the Lancaster 194 unique: We couldn't be more excited about this watch, originally produced by the Hamilton Watch Company and given new life as a modern watch, this is our very own Lancaster 194.
This watch is part of our limited release series of lume-coated dials and hands. Our skilled watchmakers have carefully gone through and added lume to the watch in order to give it glow in the dark qualities for better viewing at night.
This dial is an especially remarkable part of our collection because our watchmaker Kent Parks applied a special Lume by hand, enabling some small details to glow in the dark. Kent says; “The dial has 4 precisely hand-applied coatings of B-17F NoctiLumina to the indexes in the chapter ring behind each number on the dial. It is finished with 2 light coats of Binder 3 to give the lume a "pearl" finish.
“The work is done by hand, and luming 6 coats on such tiny areas demanded the best of my 20 years of experience in this field. We took great pains to select an appropriate dial to lume and made sure we were merely enhancing what was already there. All printing is as seen on the original dial. In fact, with a real close view, the original is enhanced in bright daylight by the tiny white pearls around the chapter ring and the red hands. And at night you can read your watch in a dark room, with less than a minute’s exposure to the light”
This watch is an absolute head turner that will demand attention from across the room. The reflective quality of the silver dial in combination with our sandblasted titanium case will catch your eye immediately and brighten up any room. Gold-colored numerals along with our nickel-plated crown and hardware add even more flair and excitement to this beautiful watch. The inside of this watch shows off just as much if not more than the front, with our signature open case back to peer inside. You will see gold-inlayed text, that pairs perfectly with the gold-plated gears and brass balance wheel. The large 3/4 build plate has been carefully machined throughout to display these wonderful lines, pulling your gaze all around to explore all of the fine details.
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.
