Watch Description
The Springfield 399 is the 399th one-of-a-kind piece in Vortic's "Springfield" 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 Springfield 399 Unique: We’re lucky to have the opportunity to work on watches like this. Unique attributes and tons of character are what make our products so exciting. When we work with a watch that has as much visible wear and tear as this Springfield does, we know that the finished product is going to stand out as a true conversation piece. This watch was originally manufactured by the Illinois Watch Company in 1925 in Springfield, Illinois, and it’s easy to see its age in the dial. Watches like this are handed down from generation to generation, used for decades, and wound thousands of times over their lifespan. This piece’s story can only be told by the hands that have touched it. We gave it new life in a phenomenal, sandblasted titanium case and added gold-plated hardware to accentuate the fading, gold numerals. In contrast, the movement is clean and features a highly decorated design: a radial pattern machined across the bridge plate. 17 screw-set, raised jewels, brass hardware, and a brass balance wheel help this movement pop. In the same year the Springfield 399 was made, New York City’s rapid growth earned it the title of “Largest City in the World,” as it overtook London’s population with 11 million residents.
1925
4608297
Movement Manufacturer Information
The movement inside of this watch was made by Illinois Watch Company. We call this model "The Springfield" because the company was located in Springfield, Illinois.
Originally called the Springfield Watch Company, Illinois came to Springfield, Illinois in 1869 while the "modern" watch industry was fairly new but highly promising. City officials felt that the addition of industry to the city of Springfield would be excellent for the city's growth. However, after a series of failures and re-brandings, the company had a slow start until 1903 when they decided to manufacture high-quality watches only. Eventually making some of the most beautiful watches of their time, the company sold to Hamilton in 1927. Hamilton continued producing watches under the Illinois name for some time, but the original Springfield factory no longer stands.
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: Machined Titanium
- Crown/Hardware: Gold Plated
- Water Resistance: 1 ATM
- Crystals: Sapphire
- Case Back: Stainless Steel
- Strap: Leather
Movement
- Manufacturer: Illinois Watch Company
- Serial Number:
- Manufacture Year:
- Function: Manual Wind
- Jewels: 17 Jewels
- Hands: Original
- Size: 12s
- Power Reserve: ~36 Hours
The Springfield 399 is the 399th one-of-a-kind piece in Vortic's "Springfield" 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 Springfield 399 Unique: We’re lucky to have the opportunity to work on watches like this. Unique attributes and tons of character are what make our products so exciting. When we work with a watch that has as much visible wear and tear as this Springfield does, we know that the finished product is going to stand out as a true conversation piece. This watch was originally manufactured by the Illinois Watch Company in 1925 in Springfield, Illinois, and it’s easy to see its age in the dial. Watches like this are handed down from generation to generation, used for decades, and wound thousands of times over their lifespan. This piece’s story can only be told by the hands that have touched it. We gave it new life in a phenomenal, sandblasted titanium case and added gold-plated hardware to accentuate the fading, gold numerals. In contrast, the movement is clean and features a highly decorated design: a radial pattern machined across the bridge plate. 17 screw-set, raised jewels, brass hardware, and a brass balance wheel help this movement pop. In the same year the Springfield 399 was made, New York City’s rapid growth earned it the title of “Largest City in the World,” as it overtook London’s population with 11 million residents.
1925
4608297
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.
