Watch Description
The Chicago 420 is the 420th 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 420 Unique: Another sleek DLC case as part of our featured watches of the week, this classic Elgin is everything we strive for with DLC watches. Nice contrast of the black case and white dial paired with this very subtle stone band and nickel coated crown. The simplicity and clean look of this watch can’t be overstated enough, giving it a very modern look with a vintage feel. This movement was manufactured in 1921 in Elgin, Illinois with 17 screw-set ruby jewels and a Breguet Hairspring. Not far away in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania the very first baseball game to be broadcasted nationally over the radio plays out between the Pirates and the Phillies. It’s amazing to think how far we have come in technology, and yet we can still appreciate this antique movement in all its beauty over 100 years later.
1921
23781154
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: 2021
- Warranty: Full 1-Year Warranty
- Case Dimensions:
- Diameter: 47mm
- Thickness: 12mm
- Lug to Lug: 55mm
- Lug Width: 22mm
- Case Material: DLC Titanium
- Crown/Hardware: Nickel 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 420 is the 420th 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 420 Unique: Another sleek DLC case as part of our featured watches of the week, this classic Elgin is everything we strive for with DLC watches. Nice contrast of the black case and white dial paired with this very subtle stone band and nickel coated crown. The simplicity and clean look of this watch can’t be overstated enough, giving it a very modern look with a vintage feel. This movement was manufactured in 1921 in Elgin, Illinois with 17 screw-set ruby jewels and a Breguet Hairspring. Not far away in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania the very first baseball game to be broadcasted nationally over the radio plays out between the Pirates and the Phillies. It’s amazing to think how far we have come in technology, and yet we can still appreciate this antique movement in all its beauty over 100 years later.
1921
23781154
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.
