The second watch release for our 30th Anniversary year.
We have added another Railroad dial to the Model 222-RR series
Type 1 - Montgomery (Classic Marginal Minute Dial)
Model 222-RR (Railroad)
Inspired by America's Great Railroad Watches from the Past
The Model 222-RR is a modern wristwatch with a vintage heart, featuring a Hamilton 10-sized pocket watch movement. RGM was the first to use these wonderful classic movements in a wristwatch. Our vintage Hamilton movements are rebuilt using parts that are in optimum condition, including a new mainspring made for this movement. We flat polish the steel parts by hand on a tin block to better-than-original condition. The entire process of careful reassembly to precise adjustment of the movement is managed by one watchmaker. The grade 921 movement has 21 jewels and was made in large quantities; the grade 923 has 23 jewels and is rare, with less than 4,000 movements manufactured.
The Grand Feu Real Enamel dial is modeled after American railroad watches from the past. The blued-steel hands remain true to the classic form and the 1:30 crown position pays homage to early 20th century timepieces. It’s also very natural to read the time when worn on the left wrist.
New Dial Version - Type I - CLASSIC MONTGOMERY
Henry S. Montgomery was the General Watch & Clock Inspector of the AT&SF Railroad from 1896 to 1923. Mr. Montgomery patented his first marginal minute safety dial design Type I around 1906. This is the design that has inspired the new version of RGM’s Model 222-RR watch.
A Montgomery dial displays minutes 1-60 along the outer edge, with every fifth number in red. Some collectors say that a "true" Montgomery dial must have an hour number 6 visible inside the seconds’ register. Dials approved for use on the railroads needed to be functional and readable, even under adverse conditions. Most American watch companies used Montgomery dials on many of their railroad-grade watches.
Why is the crown at the 1:30 position?
During the Transitional Period from the early 1900s into the 1920s, some wristwatches appeared with the winding crown in this less common position on the wristwatch case. Some watch companies converted movements and dials that were originally designed for a pocket or pendant watch into a wristwatch by making the crown position on the wristwatch case at 1:30 or 2:00 O’clock.
Celebrating the unique look of those early wristwatches is the inspiration behind the RGM Model 222-RR. It also keeps the orientation of the sub-second in line with the 12 O’clock position thus preserving the original design of the railroad-style dial. And it’s just fun!