Watch Description
The Cleveland Railraod 004 is the 4th one-of-a-kind piece in Vortic's "Cleveland Railroad" 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 Cleveland Railraod 004 Unique: Our 2nd pocket watch is here! Thank you all for the great feedback on the first one. For the 2nd one we decided to use the most famous pocket watch brand ever made... Ball. This original antique movement and dial is what's called a Ball-Hamilton. It was manufactured in 1948 by the Hamilton Watch Company under contract for Ball. If you didn't know, Webb C. Ball was one of the best marketing minds the watch industry ever saw. After a major train crash in Cleveland Ohio in the late 1800s, Webb started the Ball Watch Company. His goal was to be the best in the world and make watches that kept better time than any other. His success is shown in the fame of the brand even today. This is a great example of "The Official Railroad Standard" pocket watch. It'll definitely keep you "on the Ball..."
1948
1b11273
https://player.vimeo.com/video/441158683
Movement Manufacturer Information
The movement inside of this watch was made by Ball Watch Company. We call this model "The Cleveland" because the company was located within the Cleveland city limits.
Founded by Webb C. Ball in 1891, Ball Watch Company's watches focused on the railroad industry and had a reputation for quality that was second to none. Mr. Ball famously invented and implemented a standard set of watch inspections and requirements to qualify a watch for use on the railroad at a time when timekeeping was paramount to safety. This was known as a "Standard" or "Railroad Grade" watch. The core of the manufacturing for these watches was performed by Hamilton and Waltham Watch Companies, but the adjustment, finishing, and testing performed by Ball set them ahead of the pack. One of the few companies still in existence, Ball now makes watches in Switzerland and is owned by Hong Kong group Asia Commercial Holdings Ltd.
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 Diameter: 51mm
- Case Material: Machined Titanium
- Crown/Hardware: Stainless Steel
- Water Resistance: 1 ATM
- Crystals: Sapphire
- Case Back: Stainless Steel
- Strap: Leather
Movement
- Manufacturer: Ball Watch Company
- Serial Number:
- Manufacture Year:
- Function: Manual Wind, Lever-Set
- Jewels: 21 Jewels
- Hands: Original
- Size: 12s
- Power Reserve: ~36 Hours
The Cleveland Railraod 004 is the 4th one-of-a-kind piece in Vortic's "Cleveland Railroad" 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 Cleveland Railraod 004 Unique: Our 2nd pocket watch is here! Thank you all for the great feedback on the first one. For the 2nd one we decided to use the most famous pocket watch brand ever made... Ball. This original antique movement and dial is what's called a Ball-Hamilton. It was manufactured in 1948 by the Hamilton Watch Company under contract for Ball. If you didn't know, Webb C. Ball was one of the best marketing minds the watch industry ever saw. After a major train crash in Cleveland Ohio in the late 1800s, Webb started the Ball Watch Company. His goal was to be the best in the world and make watches that kept better time than any other. His success is shown in the fame of the brand even today. This is a great example of "The Official Railroad Standard" pocket watch. It'll definitely keep you "on the Ball..."
1948
1b11273
https://player.vimeo.com/video/441158683
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.
