How about a racing chronograph? – Tool Watch Co. Rally

In the watch world, there is always a bit of a debate, are tool analogue watches needed? Or even going a bit further, do watches still have a place with us in terms of functionality? There is no secret that we as humans are consuming more and more every day, and time is no different, we check and calculate at least 5 times per hour, maybe it has become a habit, a tick but one thing is certain, watches are everywhere. Unfortunately, from my end, I am not talking about analogue watches on a stand or on the wrist, I am talking about digital watches, we are surrounded.

That said, there is a group of enthusiasts (me included) that are not going to let go without a fight, we are the traditional, sometimes called lame people as we  are still teaching our kids to read 2 hands on a circle object instead of swiping a screen,  explain what a diving bezel does and highlight to others quality on construction, we are watch lovers.

One of the first brands I came across when I learnt that watches matter was Tool Watch Co with their Artic Field watch, as soon as I spoke to them, I understand that we were both after the same thing, nostalgia. Today I am lucky to have hands on with their new Rally watch, a piece that is inspired by the sport’s golden era, more specifically with Group B cars of the period. The first impressions are good and once you starting to get into the nuances, it just becomes something else. Join me to discover.

The Specifications

Just to do a bit of housekeeping, the Group B in rally, is a set of rules that defined the boundaries for cars into the segment, and of course, it had a big impact on how they look and performed. You might be thinking that it must be hard to get inspiration from a rally category and translate it into a watch but, if you think of iconic designs of the 80’s soon you’ll be confronted by the mighty Audi Sport Quattro S1E2. Yes, that boxy angular thing that won everything and although the traction system takes all the accolades, is the design that remains on our heads.

Back to the watch, the Rally is angular, compact, and distinct at 38mm in diameter with a lug to lug of 46.4mm. The brushed case is very well made with brushed and satin finishing, the black PVD coated stainless-steel bezel dominates the head shot and, in our version, creates a good visual contrast between the black subdials and brushed silver dial, great attention to detail from the brand. The sword hour hand differs from the arrow minute one. Also, the lume plots are set on top of the rail track giving and old school vibe to the Rally, it is a complex dial, but it works very well. I quite enjoy the red chronograph hand which has a racing flag motif, cannot be faulted.

The mushroom style pushers control the VK64 Seiko Mecaquartz movement which keep the mechanical feel of the era, but also has the added benefit to keep the Rally affordable, enjoyable to use. The watch also has 30 meters of water resistance and a screw down crown, again pushing the tool watch angle from every direction.

On the wrist

The watch wears nicely on my 6.25-inch wrist because of the dimensions, the 12.3mm in height really help to keep things tidy, also aided by the short lug to lug. It is a watch easy to pull in any situation, it looks vintage with modernity, it doesn’t come from the minimalism era or art deco design, it is a brutal but functional object just like that lovely Audi Quattro.

I wore the Rally in several occasions, from exercising to business travel and it never looked out of place, I believe is  due to its size, it is a versatile watch. The Rally comes on a lovely Saffiano strap with a holes on the side, giving that rally glove kind of look, feels perfect for the watch but I’ve been using it quite a bit on a grey nato (yes I know) because it just fits, nothing to take away from the high quality strap that comes with, but I really enjoy this look.

The watch legibility is also a strong point, I cannot speak from the other versions but from the hands with black surroundings, white numerals inside the subdials and great superluminova plots, it ticks the right boxes and more.

The rally watch will be aim for those who are looking at a nostalgic piece, something that reminds them of those posters over the wall, but if you look more and more into it, this is a watch that can work for a great variety of enthusiast, men, or women alike, again without sounding like a broken record, the size on this piece is refreshing.

Conclusions

One of the things I haven’t mentioned is that the Rally is available in 3 variations: an all silver with blue accents, a black reverse panda with a yellow chronograph hand and of course, our lovely panda dial. Another strong point of this line is the price, the Rally retail price is 400 USD, that is a lot of value from an original design, also the built quality is up there with watches 2x the price, I am very impressed.

Now, the real conclusion. After reading and rambling about how much I like this watch, have I’ve answered my own question? Are tool watches still needed? And the answer is no, we do not need a tool watch and let alone an analogue one but, that is the beauty of this hobby, it not about needing them is about wanting them. You’ll see, when something becomes a necessity it loses its desirability, I mean you will still want it, but it will be a means to an end and not the final part of the journey. A watch, and in this case a wrist one, is the goal.

We are looking forward to reviewing more watches from this very cool brand, I quite enjoy their design language, their attention to detail and the injection of passion they add to the hobby. I am not a rally driver, but I can relate a lot with this watch.

More information at https://toolwatchco.com/Rally-Red-on-Silver-Reduced

Technical Specifications

·         CASE Brushed Stainless Steel

·         DIMENSIONS 38 x 46.4mm

·         HEIGHT 12.3mm

·         LUG WIDTH 20mm

·         MOVEMENT VK64 Meca-Quartz

·         BATTERY LIFE 3 years

·         DIAL Brushed Steel

·         LUME BGW9

·         LENS K1 Double-Domed AR coated

·         BEZEL Fixed Tachymeter PVD coated

·         CROWN 7mm screw-down

·         WATER RESISTANCE 3 ATM

·         STRAP 20mm Rally-style Saffiano leather