Rolex
Introducing The Oak & Oscar Atwood Chronograph (Live Pics)
At 39mm and under 13mm thick, a new and wearable chronograph from Chicago.
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What We Know
Chicago-based Oak & Oscar is adding a regular production chronograph to its collection. This is the Atwood, a continuation of Oak & Oscar's cohesive design that dates back nearly a decade, just a little more complicated.
The new Atwood offered in navy blue, charcoal grey, and white.
The specs quickly illustrate why the watch is so appealing: The Atwood measures 39mm x 12.9mm (46mm lug-to-lug), and the brushed 316L stainless steel case provides 50 meters of water resistance. It has a domed sapphire crystal, as well as a sapphire caseback so you can see the manual-wind chronograph caliber inside. Oak & Oscar is offering the Atwood with three dial colors: white, charcoal grey, and navy blue, all with contrasting subdials. The dial maintains the brand's signature sandwich dial construction that provides additional depth to the design. There are also orange accents on the dial, another common feature of the brand's watches. On the rehaut, there's a tachymeter scale.
On my 6.25-in wrist. Header image above on a 7-in wrist.
The pump pushers engage the manually wound Sellita AMT5100M, a column-wheel, flyback chronograph caliber with a 58-hour power reserve beating at 4 Hz. This isn't exactly a stock Sellita, but a product of its Manufacture AMT SA, a subsidiary that makes higher-end and sometimes more experimental movements. For under $3,000, it's a high-performing and even impressive-looking movement. The blued column wheel is a nice touch, and Oak & Oscar told me they were careful to upsize the crown to give it a tactile winding feel. These movements come from Sellita's AMT division aren't used a ton (or even advertised), but it's the same caliber we see in Furlan Marri's latest mechanical chronograph that costs about $3,000.
The Atwood is offered on Oak & Oscar's stainless steel bracelet or a Horween leather strap (Horween is also based in Chicago). The bracelet has solid end links and tapers from 20mm lugs to 16mm at the fold-over clasp. MSRP is $2,650 on the steel bracelet, $2,450 on the Horween leather strap. Oak & Oscar says delivery will begin in "late summer."
What We Think
The Atwood is an illustration of everything Oak & Oscar does well. The size hits a sweet spot, the design is clean and balanced, and the specs are a solid proposition at its price. The panda-like white dial was my favorite of the trio, but I'm also a Chicagoan who owns a white-dial Olmsted, so grain of salt. The orange accents on the subdials give it a bit of an old-school exotic chronograph feel, but what I've always enjoyed about Oak & Oscar's designs is that they somehow feel rooted in history without making any direct reference to another brand's heritage.
I visited Oak & Oscar in its Ravenswood, Chicago HQ a week or so before this release, excited to see the final prototypes of the Atwood. It's extremely wearable on my small wrists, but also looked good on the larger wrists around HQ. I wouldn't mind seeing some contrasting finishes on the case, but it's a compromise I'm willing to make to keep the price this accessible.
For some reason, most larger brands still aren't making relatively slim chronographs, and it's hard to think of another chronograph around this price that I found this comfortable. Except for that Furlan Marri I mentioned, there's not a ton of competition. A few months back, I reviewed the Tissor PR 516, a decent chronograph for under $2,000 but decidedly less wearable than the Atwood. The specs and price alone make for a compelling watch, and that's before you even get to the brand's story.
In-Depth: A Visit To Oak & Oscar in Chicago
A couple of years ago, we paid a visit to Oak & Oscar and took a deeper look at the brand. That article does a nice job articulating how Oak & Oscar continues to stand apart in a crowded field of small brands, and the new Atwood is no exception.
Oak & Oscar has now been around since 2015, making it one of the older of the modern crop of "boutique brands." With every release in its nearly 10-year history, founder Chase Fancher and company have managed to keep the brand's designs consistent and cohesive, while also steadily evolving them with different sizes, complications, and cases.
When I visited Oak & Oscar HQ, the most exciting thing wasn't the Atwood. Sure, it's a solid addition to Oak & Oscar's regular production, but like any good company, Fancher and team are thinking years into the future. Head of Watchmaking Nathan Bobinchak is constantly experimenting and tinkering, often with vintage lathes and other machinery squeezed into his clean room. By the way, that Oak & Oscar even has an in-house watchmaking is a testament to its investment in its future, and, honestly, the future of watchmaker in the States. With its 10-year anniversary just around the corner, I'm excited to see what the brand has in story for the next decade.
The Basics
Brand: Oak & Oscar
Model: Atwood
Diameter: 39mm
Thickness: 12.9mm (including domed crystal)
Case Material: Stainless steel (316L)
Dial Color: Blue, white, or grey
Lume: SuperLumiNova (sandwich dial construction)
Water Resistance: 50 meters
Strap/Bracelet: Stainless steel bracelet (20mm lug width, tapers to 16mm at clasp) or handmade Horween leather strap
The Movement
Caliber: Sellita AMT5100M
Functions: Chronograph (flyback, column wheel)
Diameter: 30mm
Thickness: 7mm
Power Reserve: 58 hours
Winding: Manual
Frequency: 4 Hz
Jewels: 23
Additional Details: Blued column wheel, all visible through sapphire caseback
Pricing & Availability
Price: $2,650 (bracelet); $2,450 (leather strap)
Availability: Available for purchase, delivery will begin in "late summer to early fall 2024"
Limited Edition: No
For more, visit Oak and Oscar.
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