Now Stocking Alsta Watches
We made another appearance in Watchpro at the beginning of this week as one of only three retailers to take on the new Alsta brand Nautoscaph II. The Alsta brand has launched its first timepiece and has plans for another two models spread out over the next two years. They are manufactured by the new Alsta Watch Co. which was created to bring romance back to wristwatches,
whilst never following fashions and trends, Alsta has a passion for design and craftsmanship. They pride themselves on being all about style and aspiration.
Since 1946
Throughout the post-war years until the early 1970s, Alsta was known for making beautifully engineered high-quality timepieces for stylish men and women of intellectual and creative substance. They aimed their target audience at the types of people who required precision and robustness inf everyday life; scientists, engineers and industrialists for example. They then chose the Alsta Nautoscaph II to be the first watch manufactured by the new Alsta Watch Co. which has been their first big move since going quiet all those years ago and were excited to see what they have to offer.
Original styling…
Alsta have a high and professional attention to detail which has allowed them to recreate the Alsta Nautoscaph as the Alsta Nautoscaph II without compromising and have even mananged to remake the incredible specially-manufactured super-domed crystal from the original. The original Nautoscaph had a lot of intricate parts and included a whole host of different bezels and dial details, such as stick indices, coffin-shaped indices, numbers at 3, 6, 9, 12 and various other combinations which were almost designed to make them hard to ever remake however this did not stop Alsta with their new drive and passion they put their professional experience together and expended every option on the design table to come up with this clean and contemporary configuration for the Nautoscaph II.
…using modern technology
The Alsta brand has combined this traditional design with a number of modern design improvements to improve the watches safety and performance whilst deviating as little as possible from the original design. Your beautifully-styled Alsta Nautoscaph II timepiece encompasses the same romance and charm as the original model and the only difference is the modern-day materials and technology used in the watches design and manufacturer. Like the original, it is powered by a high quality automatic movement. Alsta are proud to announce that very single component of the Alsta Nautoscaph II is manufactured in Switzerland or Germany, except its NH35A automatic movement which is manufactured by Seiko of Japan. Quality engineering, manufacture and design will always be a hallmark of Alsta watches.
The Alsta Nautoscaph was immortalised in the 1975 classic movie Jaws when it was the timepiece of choice of oceanographer Matt Hooper played by Richard Dreyfuss.
Hooper was a wealthy man however he was also a man of science. He always demanded the absolute truth and relied upon the quality of information and methodology in all his findings as opposed to hearsay or taking things at face value. It is no surprise that this man, who could have afforded any brand, chose quality as opposed to brand recognition in all of his diving and research equipment. This included a discerning choice of timepiece.
It was also the obvious choice for Alsta to bring the watch out of the archives and back onto the wrist.
Alsta timepieces are made to be robust and withstand the pressures of the ocean floor, the knocks of climbing the highest peaks, the vibrations and shocks of racing on the water or on the track. It is a watch for all conditions that can stand the test of time.
In addition to being manufactured and tested to withstand the toughest conditions, Alsta timepieces are made to be diverse as they can be worn at a evening dinner function or at the daily 9-5 workplace.
The Alsta Nautoscaph II is a dive watch that is styled to be worn on any occasion and has a number of features that allow it to do so. It has a unidirectional bezel which removes the risk of it being accidentally turned while underwater which could have dire consequences. It is manufactured and tested to withstand the pressure of depths of 999ft which is 300m or 29atm. The original Nautoscaph had 999ft on its dial which is a touch that Asta and their customers loved and therefore they kept this on the new model too. When reading on their website about this they stated “We told you that we don’t just follow the herd!” The Nautoscaph II is also manufactured and tested to be anti-magnetic to a field strength of 4,800 A/m (ISO 764 compliant) and shock-resistant to ISO 1413 standard.
Case
The Nautoscaph II watch case is cast from 316L grade Stainless Steel and has a matte finish. The Grade 316L is the standard molybdenum bearing grade which in understandable terms means that it has a high corrosion resistance due to the molybdenum properties and particularly high resistance to pitting and crevice corrosion in chloride environments. Plus as a side note it is also anti-magnetic.
Alsta however recommend that if you submerge your watch in salt water regularly or for long periods of time that you give it a quick rinse under fresh water after submersion just to remove any salt on the watch that could increase the risk of any damage.
Crown
The Alsta Nautoscaph II crown forms part of the watches secure triple-lock mechanism which ensures the water resistance of the watch is upheld at all times. The crown itself has distinctive crosshatch engraving which increases grip on the watch above and under the watcher, it is also a design style that can be found on the crowns of super-compressor divers’ watches of the 1960s and 1970s.
“This is our nod to the style and panache of watchmaking in that golden period.” – Alsta Watches
Glass
The Alsta Nautoscaph II domed glass is a hardened mineral crystal which may scratch easier than sapphire crystal, however, they chose mineral crystal on purpose because it is generally more resilient and less brittle than sapphire and therefore is less likely to shatter and let water in. If you happen to get any light scratches do not worry they are relatively easy to remove by polishing and if the scratches are deeper don’t panic because you can return the timepiece to Alsta to have a replacement fitted. The crystals are tested for toughness and contain an anti-reflective coating on the inside to aid clear vision even under water and in bright conditions.
If you have any questions about this watch then please call us on 01926 298 499 or alternatively email info@firstclasswatches.co.uk
