Hands-OnTwo Fears Brunswick Models That Thread The Needle Of Vintage Inspiration

Yuen-Rapati is a very kind, knowledgeable, and creative designer who you might know from his OneHourWatch Instagram designs. Creative, sometimes practical, sometimes whimsical, and at least on one occasion possibly later ripped off by a brand, he is full of good ideas. 

That's why brands like Habring2 and J.N. Shapiro have hired him for numeral design, and others hire him for illustration. But today we're going to focus on how he (and the team at large) at Fears has interpreted the balance of vintage inspiration thoughtfully with these two Brunswick models, the Brunswick 38 'Charcoal Rose' and Brunswick 40.5 Jump Hour 'Barleycorn Plum'.

Arguably, one of the hardest things to do in watch design is to dip your toes into vintage inspiration. Some brands go full-throttle, making vintage recreation with even vintage movements or more modernized specs. Some have a historic nod that's hard to see. The hardest might be the "Goldilocks" approach. 

Too much vintage flair and you end up with something in the uncanny valley, too on the nose to be either modern or vintage. But if you do it just right, you get something special, which comes down to knowing what makes the vintage piece good in the first place. Take, for instance, the watch below.

This 1924 cushion-cased sterling silver watch from Fears' collection is an interesting case study on where Fears could have messed up. Numerous enticing elements could trip up watch designers. Is it the Breguet-style numerals that work here? The case material? Maybe it's the white dial or fine hands. The wire lugs make an interesting step off the cushion case as well.

Instead, the Brunswick keys in on that bold cushion shape and round dial, punching it up with a more modern bezel around the dial and a bolder handset. Then there's the lugs, which hint at those wire lugs while retaining a normal spring bar system and a more modern look. It also creates another layer of depth to the case and dial that works well.

The Brunswick 38 with 'Charcoal Rose' dial is a bold watch that doesn't necessarily hit the "salmon" trend on the nose, but instead plays off contrasts and warmth, with subdial, outer minute track, and hands contrasting nicely with the super textured charcoal center dial. 

The case measures 38mm by 11.69mm with the open caseback shown here and a domed crystal, with 100m water resistance. There's also an option for an 11.84mm closed caseback (along with an option for a bracelet as well). The side of the case has a nice sloping edge from top to bottom, but also has a nice faceted area around the sides, with a nice, large "onion" crown to drive home a bit more heritage inspiration.

The movement in the Brunswick 38 is the La Joux Perret D100, a manually-winding movement with 50 hours of power reserve. This is a higher grade LJPD100, with Côtes de Genève and blued screws. It's not the most finely finished movement you'll see, but this is a watch at a more affordable price point. If I were buying, I might have opted for a closed caseback, as it would fit well with the overall vintage aesthetic, but I don't see this as a major detraction.

What is worth a bit of an extra note is what goes into that dial work. I mentioned that it's attractive, but it's also a lot of bang for your buck. The other area features a concentric guilloché finish in 18k rose gold. The milled brass numerals are diamond-polished, frosted, coated in silver, and finished in rose gold before being hand-applied. The dial's charcoal texture gives a depth and quality that I really appreciate when I see it at a sub-$4,000 price point. The Brunswick 38 "Charcoal Rose" comes in at $3,650 before tax.

For something even more modernized, the 40.5mm Brunswick Jump Hour "Barleycorn Plum" presents another attractive option. Cased in stainless steel, the watch measures 12.8mm thick, but with that, you get an in-house jump hour developed by Christopher Ward (originally used for the Fears x Christopher Ward Alliance 01 and now exclusive to Fears). 

I love a good barleycorn pattern, and this is no exception. This is not a hand-done guilloché, but it still gives a great three-dimensional texture to the dial. The center of the dial features a silver circular-brushed inner circle that is punctuated with the jump-hour aperture showing the hour, while the minute track is printed on that silver surface. 

The singular faceted hand points to the minutes, rotating around that plum-colored grained inner dial. It's a great pop of color that could have been a bit overpowering if used for the whole dial. Here, it creates a visual contrast that helps draw your eyes and increases legibility.

The base of the watch, on top of which sits the in-house module, is an automatic Sellita SW200 movement that has been regulated to chronometer specs. Fears doesn't list a power reserve, but an SW200 should get around 38 hours. The blued rotor is a bold look as well. The Brunswick Jump Hour "Barleycorn Plum" retails for $4,400.

I'll let you be the judge of which model is best for you, not just on aesthetics, but sizing, based on my wrist shots below. With a 7.25" wrist, I'm able to pull off a wide variety of watches. I liked the 40.5mm Jump Hour quite well, but looking at the pictures, I could see how it might be a bit large for some. You can also compare the thickness below.

The 38mm Brunswick might be the winner in terms of size for me, but I do find the visuals of the 40.5 Jump Hour to be the more fun of the two dials. Despite being able to get the Goldilocks of design from Fears, you can't always get everything in one package. But the options are great, well-priced, and yet again, worth a little more attention than the love they already get.

For more on Fears, including all their Brunswick models, visit the brand's website.