Fashion / Men
Watch with designs on Bristol’s aviation past
A watchmaker has taken inspirational from Bristol’s historic light bomber aircraft for his latest design, linking 80 years of British design and manufacturing.
Built in Bristol, the Blenheim bomber was first flown by the Royal Air Force on March 10 1937 and was used extensively in the first two years of the Second World War.
It is famous for being one of the first British aeroplanes to feature an all-metal stressed-skin construction, retractable landing gear, flaps, a powered gun turret and variable-pitch propellers.
After a successful crowdfunding campaign, designer Dennis Chen has now created a watch which takes inspiration from the flight instruments found in the aircraft’s cockpit. Designed in Birmingham, the Chronomaster Pilot Watch has already received orders from as far afield as the USA, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Germany and Denmark.
The 28-year-old, who was was born and raised in China’s Hainan province before moving to the UK in August 2010, used 3D printing to create a prototype for his first watch and then launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds and he raised more than £15,000 to launch the project.
Read more: Ode to aviation