Most watchmakers put the movement behind the dial. The C12 Loco inverts that logic: the going-train faces upward, placing the escapement on the dial side of the movement, visible in a floating architecture beneath a domed box sapphire crystal. At any other price point, this would be a novelty. At under $5,000, it becomes one of the more interesting value propositions in contemporary horology.
The hand-wound CW-003 calibre is only the second movement Christopher Ward has made entirely in-house. Twin stacked barrels deliver six days of power reserve. Each piece requires over five hours of hand-finishing, which partly explains why the Loco sold out within 36 hours of its April 2025 launch. It received a GPHG Petite Aiguille nomination the same year: a competition usually dominated by brands spending twenty times the retail price on marketing.
Four dial options: black, white, orange, blue. The case is 39mm across and 11.9mm thin, with a satin-brushed and polished finish that holds together well at the price. Christopher Ward makes these in Maidenhead, England, which is either a footnote or a selling point depending on how you feel about origin stories.
$4,595 — christopherward.com