Little hand on
the hours, big hand on the minutes. Everyone knows that. Now, what if you only
had a single hand on that watch? One-hand watches rely on an hour hand
alone to indicate the time. Once you wrap your head around the concept and relax
your notions of split-second (or even split-minute) time keeping, it starts to
make sense. A long hour hand read against a detailed index will provide
more than sufficient accuracy. How do you answer the question, “what time is it?” If you are likely to say “precisely 10:13 and an half” then maybe you should stick to a conventional watch. If you would say, “about a quarter
after” then a one-hand watch might be for
you.
If you are
ready to give one-handing a try, I have five suggestions.
Luch watches are made in Minsk, Belarus. They offer a very
inexpensive one-hand model using a 15 jewel hand wound movement. The watch is
36mm wide with a 20mm strap. This is a no-frills piece: chrome played case,
printed dial, no lume, and of course, only one hand. The 12-hour dial with its
two digit numerals and single, needle-like hand give it the appearance of a
mechanical instrument gauge. The chapter index is delineated in 5-minute
increments. There are various case and color combinations available, but I
would choose a silver case and white dial with the attractive Cyrillic logo. Luch does not sell watches directly from thier site, but new ones are easily found on eBay. Prices range from $47-$60, depending on style.
Hong Kong
boutique SquareStreet offers the Minuteman One Hand. The Miyota quartz
movement is shielded inside a stainless steel pressure case, which is itself
nestled in a 40mm, molded Mazzuchelli acetate (fancy plastic) case, giving
the watch 30m water resistance and an attractive shiny shell. The dial has
diminutive two digit numerals in a radial layout, presenting a wide expanse of
negative space inside the dial that is broken only by the single hand and a
date window at 4 o’clock. I like the off white dial in the lurid orange case
with black NATO strap and black crown for $175. It just looks cool, probably because it was designed by David Ericsson of Void Watches and Alexis Holm of Gram Shoes.
Slow Watches
produces just a single model, the Slow Jo 24-hour one hand. This Swiss made
watch uses a Ronda Caliber 505.24H GMT movement, stripped of 3 of its four
hands. The 24-hour index is marked in 15-minute increments and positions the
numerals at the outermost edge of the dial. The chunky stainless steel case is
38mm square with chamfered edges and cut corners, creating a roughly octagonal
shape. It is a solid looking piece, backed up by 100m water resistance. It is
available in brushed, black, or gold cases with black, silver, or cream dials,
and a number of strap and bracelet combinations. Try the $260 black on black
on vintage brown
German
watchmaker, Botta Design, has a full line of single hand watches. The UNO 24
Neo models are lovely little units, just 40mm wide and a scant 6.8mm thick with
small lugs on slim calfskin straps. The index is angled down towards the dial,
creating a slightly dished effect. The dial exhibits typical one-handed
minimalism, but with splashes of color at the center and one-quarter positions
on the face. The hand is a slender needle with a broad tail. Most intriguingly,
the dial is shaded differently from top to bottom, to indicate day and night. A
date window appears at the 6 o’clock position, which is actually 0 or midnight
on this dial. The Time Bum’s choice? The black/green Special Edition going for $450 at Twisted Time.
Ickler
designed Defaktos like the Inkognito Afterglow One Hand Automatic12-hour one hander for a certain kind of watch nerd, but not for
all of them. In the words of its designer, “my target was not the
conservative watch enthusiast who gets pissed if the clock is late by one
second every day.” Perhaps ironically, it is powered by the
highly accurate ETA 2824-2 automatic movement. The luminous white dial is bold
and graphic with thick stick markers in 15-minute increments and no branding.
Unlike the others, the hand is a broad, skeletonized pencil shape. It is 42mm
wide with 50m water resistance, sapphire glass, and a display case back.
Because there is nothing on the watch to indicate top or bottom, it can be worn
on either wrist simply by reversing the position of the strap. You can buy direct for 460€, or US buyers can find them at Watchismo for $699.99.
