The world is used to watchmaking firms with somewhat mellifluous names. Think of Audemars Piguet and Jaeger-LeCoultre, for example. These also have hundreds of years of experience, typically and even new ones such as Roger Dubuis and Romain Jerome sound like they might have been roaming around the Swiss Jura in the 18th century! On the other hand, we have REC Watches, a Danish watchmaking outfit that started up in 2011.
Now, we enjoy covering companies like this one because they were started up by people in the watch collecting community. This is our community after all, wherever in the world it might be found. Founded by Christian Mygh and Jonathan Kamstrup in Copenhagen, REC Watches is all about the founders’ passions. While these are easy enough to understand – watches, iconic cars and whisky – and perhaps all-too-expected, the resulting interpretation is pleasantly surprising.
Take the P-51 Automatic collection, for example. These cushion-shaped numbers take their cues from the design of the 1960s Ford Mustang but REC Watches isn’t content with the mere aping of design lines or the inclusion of fuel gauge inspired displays, although these are present too. The company worked with metal parts from salvaged cars, building them into the watches themselves.
The four-part 44mm case here is in regular 316L steel so you won’t require a tetanus shot before handling these. The reclaimed bits are incorporated into the dials. These dials are unique in that each one is engraved with the vehicle identification number of the car it was made from. There is also a bit of a newfangled element, a QR code that comes with each watch. Scanning this leads one to a short documentary on the Ford Mustangs of the 1960s.
Aside from the steel and the reclaimed metal, the other common element at work here is the Miyota 9130 automatic calibre powering them. These are all three-hand watches, with date and power reserve indications.
By the way, that name, REC Watches, the REC bit references the words recover, recycle and reclaim. This is also a working philosophy of watchmaking here it seems.
Movement Automatic Miyota 9130 with date and power reserve indications;
Power Reserve 48-hour
Case 44mm 316L Steel
Water Resistance Up to 30 meters
Strap Calf leather
Price $1,980
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