Today I'm wearing my Mondaine Swiss Railway watch model 94122. The design is the same as the railway clocks found throughout Switzerland which were designed by Hans Hilfiker in the 1940s. The design is trademarked, and in 1986 Mondaine got (or bought, I suppose) the rights to use the design on wristwatches. It lends itself very well to a watch dial as it is extremely legible. I also find it very attractive, and it's interesting to note that while I've seen many clocks with a very similar design to this one, none but the Swiss railway clocks (or licensed versions) have this exact design. The watch is mid-sized at 33mm with a chrome-plated case made from recycled brass. The "recycle" logo is displayed on the crown. It uses a ETA quartz movement which would keep very good time if the battery wasn't dead. The strap is leather and very comfortable, with a nice design that is neither too dressy nor overly bulky. Overall a very nice watch that sees very little wrist time. Being quartz is part of the problem, the smallish size is another. Mondaine does make a newer automatic version of this watch in a 40mm size which I will have to keep an eye out for.
Is this the 'Stop to Go' one.
ReplyDeleteMy wife has one and it's great, the second hand 'pauses' at 12.00 whilst the minute hand 'snaps' to the next minute.
rob
Rob,
ReplyDeleteNo, it's not. This one acts just like a typical quartz watch. I hadn't heard of the "Stop To Go" watches before, but they sound pretty interesting. Based on a couple minutes of research it looks like they might not be in production anymore.
Thanks,
Jason
Hello Jason,
ReplyDeleteI have the "Stop to Go" model. The Mondaine has a great look. I am quite a railway fan. In the late 80's I have been in Switzerland and have traveled by train.
A friend of me helped me on this one. He found one in Groningen (other side of our country) and bought it for me.
He is a watch collecting dentist and has several Mondaines. He has a great looking model with luminating hands and dots on the dial. According to his experience, you can play with it in bed, writing figures on the ceiling if you can't sleep.
Kind regards,
Sjors
Nice watch! And cool pics too! I've been having wet dreams about the automatic model.. I would like these even more if more than one model had sapphire glass.
ReplyDelete