West Flip-Top Game Watch

It's been a loosely connected few days of watch blog recently. Fist was a flip-top compass watch, then a compass watch, and now a flip-top watch with no compass.

This watch has a very similar case design to the flip-top compass watch. The top of the watch has a standard 3 hand dial design with roman numerals for the hours. Flipping up the lid shows that the whole head of the watch can spin around a horizontal axis, allowing you to still see the time with the lid open. Under the lid, on the base of the watch is a glass enclosed section where the compass lay last time, but this time it is home to 3 small dice. This is for some sort of dice game, with the bottom glass being split into sections, with the names dig and small written on them (which are too common words for me to search online to find the game).

The watch is made for West who are best known for their sponsorship of the Maclaren F1 team (and is part of a Japanese trend I've seen for tobacco products sponsored watches).

I'm not sure when this watch is from, but my guess would be sometime in the 2000s.

Stellar Hayabusa Aegis BMD Watch

Today's watch is a confusing one to research, as it seems that the watch wasn't promoting an anime like I'd originally thought.

The watch itself is a basic 3 hand dial design with a quartz movement. The movement is a PC21J and from the back plate, it seems the watch is made by Sweda in China.

The interesting part is the text on the front which says:
Raytheon
Stellar Hayabusa
Aegis BMD
JETM-2
Lockheed Martin
Along with a logo of a bird of prey breaking a missile.
Researching this text has lead me to believe that the watch is commemorative or promotional for a missile defence system.
The Aegis BMD stands for Aegis Ballistic Missile Defence system which is a US department of defence program to defend against intermediate range ballistic missiles. The system currently uses the Lockheed Martin Aegis missile system with the Raytheon RIM-161 SM3 missile explaining those bits of text too. As this is a missile defence system, that fits with the logo of the bird breaking the missile as well, but I haven't found out exactly what Stellar Hayabusa is (although I think it may be a boat know the Japanese navy with this system).

Most of the links I've found about the missile system were from the mid 2000s (around 06), so I guess the watch is from then too.

So, the watch is pretty normal, but this is the first watch I've found promoting a weapons system!

Coca-Cola 2012 Olympics Snap Watch

For my Friday watch, I decided on a commemorative promotional watch with a little bit of patriotism (as I'm British).

This watch was produced for the 2012 Olympic Games in London for Coca-Cola. The watch features a design made for the Olympics which has concentric rings (rather than the normal linked rings Olympics logo) in the normal ring colours. There is also a circular Union Jack flag in the logo to represent Britain, and as this is a Coke watch, there is also a Coca-Cola bottle in the design too. Coca-Cola are the world's largest soft drinks brand, and are the longest continuous Olympic sponsor. They first sponsored the Olympics back in 1928, and are currently under contract to sponsor through to 2020.

Time is shown in a round window on the left side of the watch with an LCD display. The LCD panel only has a 4 digit display with the hours on the top line and minutes below. The LCD module is capable of dare and seconds too, but there are no buttons on the outside of the watch to change the display.

The watch module is encased in a one piece silicone rubber case wich has a snap style strap (where you stretch it out straight, and when you slap it against your wrist, it wraps around). The strap also has the Coca-Cola name logo moulded in the silicone, and is printed with Coca-Cola in a red, white, and blue roundel, as well as the British Queen's crown logo. To get to the battery or set the time, the module can be squeezed out of the front of the watch.

Mariah Carey watch from Besançon

Today's watch is a promotional special edition watch for a famous American singer - Mariah Carey. She's been in the news recently as tomorrow is the start of her residency in the Colosseum in Las Vegas, so I thought it was about time to blog this watch.

Mariah Carey is a singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress who broke into the public consciousness in 1990 with the release of her debut album. This watch is from 1995 and so coincides with the release of her album Daydream and a single One Sweet Day (with Boys II Men) which holds the record for the longest run at number one on the Billboard Top 100 in America (16 weeks).

The watch is a stylized 3 hand dial design in a round case. The hands are in different styles, with the hour hand being a zigzag shape, the minute hand is curved, and the second hand is straight but gold. The face is white and features a raised off-white monogram MC across the dial. The hour markers are made up from the letters in the name Mariah Carey, and as there are only 11, there is a black dot for the 12 o'clock marker.

The back reveals that this watch was made in Besançon, which is known as the watch capital of France. The location has been mentioned a few times on the blog already, as that is where the Azeka watches were made, and was the birthplace of the Lip brand. No manufacturer is mentioned on the watch, so I can't tell whether this is by one of those manufacturers, or another based in the same city.

The back also reveals the normal information around materials (base metal with a stainless steel back), and 3atm water resistance. The design is completed with a brown leather strap, but as this isn't marked, I can't guarantee it is not a replacement.

Lotte Zero 1997

Today's watch is an unusual shaped promotional model with a bit of a sci-fi feel.

The front of the watch only has the word Zero on it, but the back reveals it was made for (or maybe even by) Lotte. The Lotte Corporation are well known in Japan and Korea as a confectionary manufacturer, but not so much for their watches. The company was originally founded in 1948 as a maker of chewing gum, but has expanded over the years to be a lifestyle company (including cinemas, shopping, electronics, hotels, chemicals, and amusement parks).

The watch is an LCD model with an inverse LCD display in a metal case. The case is an oval shape (widest to the sides) with a raised round centre. The case also sticks out at the top and bottom for the strap connections and the lower of these has the Zero name pressed into it. The LCD is in the middle of the watch and is rotated by 45 degrees. The LCD module is a simple one, just covering the basic time, date, and seconds, but it does have an electroluminescent backlight. The back of the watch has the Zero name, 'Lotte Original' the date 1997 and the serial number. The serial number is only 4 digits long which suggests that there is no more that 9999 of these watches.

Zero is actually a product by Lotte and is a sugar free chocolate. It is quoted as being released in 1996, so the 1997 date on the watch is either for the first birthday, or maybe the true release date (with 1996 being the date it was announced). The Zero chocolate logo is a circle with a thick diagonal line in the centre (i.e. a zero), and looks the same as the centre of the watch (the raised round section for the circle and the LCD display being the diagonal line).

Kaworu 04 - Evangelion watch

Today's watch is another of my anime merchandise watches, and for an anime I've got a few watches from.

The watch features a black & white picture of an anime character and the text Kaworu 04. There is also a quote in small red text around the bottom saying 'God's in his heaven. All's right with the world'.

Fans of the series will have recognised that this watch is from the anime story Evangelion. Kaworu refers to Kaworu Nagisa, and the picture is of the character. The character is hard to explain in a few simple sentences for those who aren't familiar with the basis for the series, as saying that Kaworu is the 17th Angel, one of the Fifth Children, and a Seed of Life won't be helpful to many. If you are interested in finding out more, check out the anime or one of the many Evangelion wiki sites online.

Kaworu only appeared in one episode of the TV series, but had such an impact on fans that the character appeared in many of the later movies and alternative continuities (in the rebuild, he is first and thirteenth Angel). I've also seen on one of the Eva wikis that the Kaworu merchandise is very popular, and his items are often the top of the best sellers list.

I don't know where the 04 comes from, but in the PSP story for Neon Genesis Evangelion, Kaworu is linked with the Eva-04 unit, so there could be a link there.

The quote "God's in his heaven..." is one that is part of the NERV logo in the series. NERV is a paramilitary agency under the control of the United Nations who are using the Eva robots to protect the earth from the Angels. The quote originally comes from a verse drama by Robert Browning called Pippa Passes. The verse was originally published in 1841, but became more well know after an 1848 reissue, and the line used on the watch is the most quoted line in the poem.

The watch itself is a simple 3 hand dial design with a quartz movement. It has a large metallic case, which is very light, and features fake screws to make it have a more industrial look. The case has 4 fake buttons, and has hidden the crown so it looks more complex than it really is.

Based on the light weight, and cheap feeling build, this was a low cost promotional item, possible an arcade prize, but I don't know when it is from.

Ronald McDonald rotating arm watch

It is another promotional watch for me again today, but this time it's for burgers.

The watch features an image of Ronald McDonald, who is widely recognised as the mascot of McDonald's fast food chain. Ronald McDonald was first seen on TV spots in 1963 as the Hamburger-Happy Clown. Since then, his adventures have been seen in the adverts (including the battles with the Hamburgler which I remember from my youth).

This watch is a 3 hand dial design, where two of the hands are Ronald McDonald's arms with his body painted on the face. The back has a model number of A99-9698 which is not a known number to me, but may suggest a model/module A99. It says this has a Japanese quartz movement, but must have been for a different market as he is called Donald McDonald in Japan.

There is no information regarding the date on the watch, but the look of the watch is very 80s.

Jasmine Commemorative Watch

Today's watch is a commemorative model, but for something a little different.

This watch is from 2013 and was issued to mark the first production from a new gas field in the UK called Jasmine. The Jasmine field was discovered in 2006 and was given approval for development in 2010 by the UK government. Jasmine has about 100 million barrels of oil equivalent and was the largest field to start production in the UK since the Buzzard field in 2007. First production from the field was on the 20th November 2013.

The watch itself is a 3 hand dial design watch in a divers watch style. It has a chunky metal case with a rotating bezel, and the project logo is printed on the face. Inside is a quartz movement, but there are no markings on the watch indicating a manufacturer or model.

It was produced by Polyconcept, who are the world's largest supplier of promotional products. The company began in the 1970s and now operates in over 100 countries worldwide.

Seiko V531 Peko-chan

After yesterday's Halloween watch, I decided to go for something cuter today.

Today's watch features the mascot from the Fujiya Food Service Co., Ltd on the face. The mascot is a smiling girl licking her lips who is called Peko-chan. The Fujiya Co are a Japanese chain of confectionery shops and restaurants, and the Peko-chan character is often seen with life-size statues outside. Their most known product is the Milky Candy which also features Peko-chan on the packet. The watch face also has two other characters, a little boy, and a dog who also has its tongue out.

The watch itself has been made by Seiko and uses the V531 module. It is a 3 hand (or 2 hand and a rotating disc) design with the dog character on the rotating seconds disc.

The full model number of the watch is V531-7A20. Based on the serial number, the watch was made in 1986 or 96, or possibly 2006. The character has been around for a long time, so the date could be any one of the 3, but my guess is it on the older end of the scale.

Tomica Hero Rescue Fire - Fire 4

Today, I chose a kids watch from another Japanese TV series.

The watch is a promotional item for the series Tomica Hero: Rescue Fire, which is a sequel to the series Rescue Force, and ran from 2009 to early 2010. The series is a Japanese Tokusatsu series, which is the style better known for the Power Rangers or Ultraman. The Rescue Fire series is based on the Tomica die-cast toy car line which has been produced by Takara Tomy since the 1950s. The easiest follows a branch of the United Fire Defence Agency (UDFA) who are saving people from Super-Fire which has been created by demons.

This particular model is for Fire 4, who is a black clad member of the UDFA called Tsubasa Aoi. He has studied in America before joining the team and has a strong rivalry with one of the other team members (spoiler: who he also has feelings for). The watch has the team logo on the front cover, and lifting the lid reveals the face which features a picture of Fire 4 as well as the digital display. The strap has the name of the series and Fire 4 printed on it, as well as some red flames.

The watch is the typical 4 digit LCD, with just the time, date, and seconds modes. The back shows it has copyright to TR2/TVA - D, and the watch is made in China. The back also mentions T-Arts which may be the watch maker.

Burrn! 10 year anniversary

About 2 years ago, I posted a curious watch where the head was connected to the strap with a spring system. Today, I'm wearing another one, but this time I can work out exactly when it's from!

The previous post was of a watch called the BA-727 by a Tokyo based brand called Belami. Belami were a trademark of the Empire Trading Kabushiki Kaisha company, and appear to have been active between 1984 and 2003.

The watch has a 3 hand dial design with large circles on the ends of the hour and minutes hands, and a crown at the 12 o'clock position. The strap is connected to the sides of the case with spring sections and screw mounted arms so it can flex and twist to fit your arm. The strap is also decorated with springs to give it a rough mechanical feel.

This watch is identical to the Belami BA-727 and although it has no makers marks, I assume that it is the same model. This version has a difference in the face design though, and has been made for the Burrn! 10th anniversary. The face has the Burrn! name across the bottom and the word anniversary across the top, with the 10 hour marker showing which anniversary it is (as it is the only numbered hour marker.

Burrn! is a Japanese magazine which has been published monthly since 1984 and currently costs ¥670. It is for Heavy Metal fans and often has an English language cover even though the content is in Japanese, and they describe themselves as the "world's heaviest heavy metal magazine". It is quite interesting I chose to blog this now, as it seems the latest issue is the 30th anniversary edition and I'm blogging the 10th anniversary watch which I therefore assume was issued as a limited edition cover item almost exactly 20 years ago (1984).

Maxell cyclist watch by Smash!

Today's watch is a promotional model for a brand I'd not seen for years.

The watch is made for the Maxell company, or Hitachi Maxell Ltd to give them their full name. I knew about Maxell as they were a popular brand for cassette tapes and VHS tapes when I was young, but I'd not seen their name so much since the CD and DVD era started.  Their main product is actually batteries and the Maxell name comes from "MAXimum capacity dry cELL". Maxell was formed in 1960 as a manufacturer of batteries but expanded operations and was listed on the Tokyo stock exchange earlier this year. They hit the height of pop culture popular in the 80s with their iconic adverts showing a guy being blow  away by the power of his speakers (of course helped by Maxell tapes).

This watch is a 3 hand dial, or more correctly 2 hands and a disc. It has the Maxell name on the face, and has a design  which features a city skyline on the face and a cyclist on a clear disc for the seconds. It has a rubbery plastic strap and a very lightweight aluminium case.

The watch seems to be made by a brand called SMASH!, and their name is on the back and strap of the watch. The Smash! brand seems to have been asked about a lot online, but there is no concrete information about the brand (but it is not the same as the modern smash-watch brand who are missing the !).

As Maxell were at their most popular in the 80s, but this doesn't feature their popular advertising designs, I'd guess that this is a little later and is maybe a 90s model.

Head Porter Plus military watch

It seems that a lot of the Japanese fashion brands at some point regale released a watch as a magazine cover item. Today's watch is another of those.

Like the A Bathing Ape watch I blogged earlier this month, this watch was also issued as a limited release on the front of Smart magazine. Smart magazine is a Japanese fashion magazine which caters for youth fashion and seems to be a monthly release. This watch came out on a 2013 issue (sometime earlier than September) and is not for sale on its own.
The watch is a military style watch by the clothing line Head Porter Plus. Head Porter is a Japanese fashion brand which was established in July 1998. It is manufactured by Yoshida Kaban which is a Tokyo based manufacturing company started in 1935 and recognised for its high quality bags and accessories, and best known for its Porter brand. The Head Porter brand is a private brand designed by Hiroshi Fujusawa, which uses Yoshida Kaban as a manufacturing partner. It only has 3 shops - the flagship store in Harajuku, Tokyo, and shops in Osaka and Kyoto.

The watch is a 3 hand dial design with clear to read white hands and time markers. It has a plain black case and camo green fabric strap helping to give the military style. The dial shows the Head Porter Plus name and has a red + sign below the 12 o'clock marker. The back is completely blank, so there is no other information on the watch.

A Bathing Ape Black Camo watch

Today's watch was a magazine freebie, but seems to be rare enough that is it quite popular on the online auctions!

The watch is by A Bathing Ape, also known as Bape. This is a Japanese clothing brand which was founded in 1993 and makes lifestyle and street wear. They are mainly based in Japan, but have a number of stores worldwide, and is popular among celebrities. Bape has a distinctive two-tone gorilla logo (looking like something from Planet of the Apes), but they also collaborate with other brands, also featuring their characters (such as Nintendo, Marvel Comics, and Hello Kitty).

This particular watch was a giveaway with the Japanese Smart magazine which is a monthly(?) fashion magazine aimed at the youth market. It came with the July 2013 magazine, and is reported to be a limited edition (although this may be because it was only available with the magazine and therefore only sold for 1 month).

The watch is a round 3 hand dial design with a quartz movement. The face is covered with a black and grey camouflage pattern which is made up of a series of shapes, including deformed (squashed and twisted) versions of the Bape gorilla logo. The face also includes the proper logo, the 'A Bathing Ape' name, and an R in a circle instead of the 6 on the dial. I have two of these, and the both have a different pattern of camouflage on the dial, so it is a possibility that everyone of the watches is unique. The strap is a long black fabric design which loops behind the case.

They are seen on the online auctions, where one was recently sold for $42 which is significantly more than the magazine sold for!

Pokémon Keldeo Watch

I've been with my family today so wore another of my children's watches.

This watch is one of my many Pokémon watches, but a more modern one this time.

Today's model is from 2012 and was released to commemorate the unveiling and release of the Pokemon Keldeo. Keldeo was leaked in February 2012 before being fully revealed in that June. The Pokemon Keldeo is a legendary Pokemon and is number 647 in the national Pokedex. It is called the Colt Pokemon and is a combined water and fighting Pokemon and has two forms depending on the situation in the game.

The watch has a picture of Keldeo on the face, and has a blue and white strap with Keldeo's name on. It has a 3 1/2 digit LCD display as with the other novelty watches, with the standard time, date, and seconds displays. It is more unusual in that the button to change the mode looks like a normal crown design.

The watch copyright is to Nintendo and Pokemon as well as something written in Japanese (as this is a Japanese model watch). The back doesn't give much more away and just has a sticker saying 'made in China'.

Independent Truck Company - Built To Grind

As many regular readers will know, I collect the Independent range of watches. Today's watch is also an Independent, but nothing to do with my normal collection.

This watch is an Independent as in the Independent Truck Company, who manufacturer skateboard trucks (the axle, it's hanger, and the baseplate which attaches it to the board). The company was established in 1978 and is based in California. They are well known in the skateboarding world and sponsor many riders, including Tony Hawk. It is recognised by their Alisee cross logo, and this logo is on the watch face behind the Independent name.

The watch also has the statement 'Built to Grind' on the face. There was a book published in 2004 also called Built to Grind which was based on the Independent Truck Company archives of skateboard material, so my guess would be that this watch may be a similar age.

The watch itself is a pretty plain 3 hand dial design, in silver colour, with a rotating bezel. Inside is a Japanese Morioka Tokei (Seiko?) module which takes the standard AG4 battery.