Linde Werdelin is a young a watch brand. They began in 2002, making it a mere 12 years old. They have made a name for itself with their distinctive looking high-grade Swiss-made mechanical wristwatches. They have been making waves and bringing a breath of fresh air to the luxury watch market since their launch in 2006. You only need to run a search in Google and you see Linde Werdelin featured everywhere from GQ, Monocle, Luxist, to Askmen. Worldtempus, Watchanish, Hodinkee, … Linde Werdelin is quite hot these days, they have amassed a cult following thanks to the huge internet marketing. The cool thing is, they are hailed by those “in the knowâ€. It’s name comes from the 2 founders, Jorn Werdelin (Managing Director) and Morten Linde (Creative Director).
Linde Werdelin produces two types of products– mechanical wristwatches and digital instruments to accompany them. The idea here is that for day-to-day time telling, nothing beats an analog, mechanical watch; but, for diving, skiing, and other sports, there is more accurate and advanced technology available today.
There is The Reef for diving and The Rock for mountaineering and skiiing. Both instruments attach to the case of your Linde Werdelin watch and can be easily removed when you're safely back on the boat or in the lodge. Since we are more interested in the mechanical watches I won’t talk more about the instruments.
In the early days of Morten Linde and Jorn Werdelin's adventure to realize their dream and create the optimal combination of time-keeping mechanic watch and digital instrument with specialized functionality, prototypes were build, variations tested etc. Until the final form for the first version was decided upon. Next step towards mass production is usually the production of the first small series of the final product, the so called 0-series which is the ultimate test of whether the theoretical calculations are right, the tolerances are sufficient, the manufacturing steps are coherent and -last but not least - the final product is what the designer and engineers envisioned.
To finance the first production run and put the final product to the ultimate test under real life conditions, family members as well a friends of the house were given the opportunity to become a "founder" and buy a unit of the first manufacturing run which consequently was named the "Founders watch" collection. A total number of ? Watches were produced in different variations of which the precise volumes are unknown to me. Obviously the Founders watches with the special dial have become collector pieces and are very rare. After the Founders Watch there was a limited run of the Biformeter, basically the same design but without being one of the first, it wasn’t a “Founders†piece. The Biformeter came in a GMT version as well.
When the first production run of the Biformeter was sold out, a second run was initiated with an updated & refreshed design. This might be compared to a "facelift" in the car industry and was based on feedback from customers and partners. While the changes to the Elemental were purely cosmetic and the updated version was called "The One", the 2-Timer was equipped with a rotating 24hr- bezel which allowed the display of a third time zone, making it the "3-Timer".
With the success of the initial series, the volume of this next run was increased as well. After “The One†and the “3-timer†LW released the Oktopus I series and Spidolit I in 2009, the Oktopus Moonphase I in 2010 and the Spidospeed in 2011. As of today Linde Werdelin focusses on 2 lines of mechanical pieces, the Okto and Spido series.
First words about a possible rep…
2 years ago, on the 3rd of January, RepGeek member Astrograph1 asked Angus if there was any possibility a rep of “The One†could be produced. Angus seemed to be very interested in a LW rep as well since he is a fan of the watch too. Hereby I would like to specially thank Astrograph1 and Angus for this project.
Last year at Basel I decided to buy a Linde Werdelin Oktopus Moonphase I, a great piece that I loved design wise. After owning it for a couple of months and experienced a terrible customer service/quality check from LW, I decided to sell it and never buy an LW again although I do love their designs.
Fast forward to 2014, here we have the rep!!! I assume this is the first micro-brand replica made. I was amazingly happy this piece was effectively produced as I sold my gen LW.
After missing out on the pre-order, which I blame myself for, I had the luck of buying this piece of a great fellow member and friend. Thanks!!!
So, all this text to come to my review of the LW “The One†2.2 rep…
The One
The One is the classic watch of the LW collection featuring all the basic characteristics found across the models. The One features a redesigned "toned down" dial compared to the Biformeter, this keeping its design as minimalist as possible making it easier to read, while the bezel is brushed giving a softened feel to it.
The One is designed to carry both the Rock - and the Reef instrument - maximizing the user's sporting moments.
This piece is available in white and black. Specifically the 2.2 (white) and 2.6 (black). Both are limited to a series of 88 pieces each.
For repping this piece the factory used a white dialed version, the 2.2.
Some features of the watch:
Functions: Hours, Minutes, Seconds and Date
Case: Stainless Steel
CaseBack: Stainless Steel
Bracelet: Black Rubber Strap
Crown: Screw in crown with LW logo
Dial: White (silverish) or Black (matte)
Subdial: None
Hand Indicators: Rhodium plated with applied Super LumiNova in minty green
Hour Markers: 12 rhodium plated applied indexes with Super LumiNova in minty green
Crystal: 2.2mm anti-reflective sapphire crystal (single coated from my experience)
Movement: Asian ETA 2892- A2 mechanical automatic
Date Calendar: At 4 o'clock
Case Width: 46mm
Case Length: 49mm
Case Thickness: 12mm
Bracelet Clasp Type: Stainless Steel Buckle
Water Resistant: 300 M (gen)
Limited production: Gen – 88 pieces / Rep – 300 pieces? (correct me if I’m wrong)
The Case, Bezel and Dial
The SS case of the The One has the the following dimensions, 44mm wide, 46mm from lug to lug and 12mm in height. Please note that this watch does wear smaller than the specifications might implicate. I found it comparable to the Audemars Piguet ROO Diver but the LW is not as high as the AP Diver. I feel this piece requires a wrist of minimum 6.8â€.
The case is nicely finished. A cool thing about the whole case design is the fact that each piece of the whole case has an angle except for the middle part on the back of the case. A cool design feature I noticed. The brushing on the case looks nice and close to gen imo. The polishing could have been slightly better. On some parts it’s slightly polished over the edge, hard to see to be honest and on the wrist it’s not even noticeable. The edges I’m talking about that are not superb are the edges on the underside of the case at both sides. The top of the case is nicely polished but could have been slightly better, it should have been longer polished in my opinion. But still looks amazingly well finished overall.
The 4 holes on the sides of the case, left and right are nice and exactly as per gen. There is a cnc engraving that we noticed in some gen pics as well, although I have a feeling they are slightly deeper on the rep vs the gen. But amazingly accurate.
The crown looks great as well, I have no comments on this. My crown logo sits nicely even once completely screwed in, I love that! The crown is a screw-down type, to secure the watch against dust and water. I’m pretty sure you can swim with this piece after checking with a waterproof tester.
The case back of this watch is SS as well, while I’m not sure if the gen is aluminum or SS. It has 5 holes that are meant for opening the screw-in case back. The caseback displays the logo of LW and has the following engraved: The One 2.2 XX/88 Swiss Made.
This is where I found the first flaw. A few months back Angus posted a picture of the caseback. I immediately contacted him to state that the black dial is the 2.6 version and should have 2.6 engraved. Unfortunately the casebacks were already finished. This might be for a V2 version
. The inside of the caseback has a nice perlage (circular graining) finish. It has a laser-engraving stating 043-1003 59. No idea what it stands for.
I feel the caseback could be a bit better finished.
The bezel of the case is uni-directional and clicks in 2 steps per ‘second’ and has a clear and loud click when doing so. There is a little bit of play in the bezel, exactly as in the gen. The bezel has a luminous triangle at 12 o’clock which aluminates perfectly in the dark. Numerals have been engraved in the bezel as well which looks very cool. Especially since it’s a font created by LW. On the bezel the markers at 5, 15, 25, 35, 45 and 55 are lumed as well. Pretty cool when it’s charged in the dark. The application looks like on the gen as well when I compare with the pics.
The dial is amazingly nice! It has all the details of the gen, the colour is silvery white. Must be awesome during wintertime. Hard to capture the true colours via photo imo. Luminous markers and numerals on the outer ring below the sapphire crystal makes this watch come alive, they are minty green. The lume on the dial is slightly different from the lume on the tachyring, which is noticeable in the pics. I have seen this on the gen as well. The dial is very readable. During the day, you will notice the round patterns and the different levels in the dial. The datewheel has the same color as the dial.
On the dial at 12 o’clock, the LW logo is printed as well as the Linde Werdelin wording below it. On 6 o’clock, the wearer can read that it has an automatic movement and that the watch is water resistant to 300 meters / 1000ft.
The crystal on the gen “The One†has an AR coating. I have no idea whether it’s double AR or single but what I can tell from my observations is that the rep has a single AR coating on the inside. The colour tone is purplish-blueish as per gen. I prefer the single AR.
The Movement
Here comes the part that a number of people in the gen world seem to dislike about Linde Werdelin, the use of rather common ETA movements. Something they have changed from creations such as the Oktopus Moonphase I, and SpidoSpeed I. Their current releases of the Okto and Spido series also do not use generic movements.
Although there is nothing wrong with the movement Linde Werdelin used, it seems that some of the watch collectors have trouble paying a certain amount for a watch that has an ETA movement. The ETA2892-A2 movement that LW uses for this watch has been here since the early 1980s, and has definitely proven itself ever since. Good thing to get repped
. The One I tried for 3 days keeps perfect time. That’s what it is all about!
Once the caseback is taken of the rep it reveals an Asian 2892-A2 movement (my guess is it’s Asian! Correct me if wrong). The movement is nicely finished, I’m amazingly happy about the engraving on the rotor as well as the perlage finish (circular grain) on the movement.
My LW has got a rubber gasket and the caseback screws in very smoothly. Beware, when you get this piece, make sure the caseback is not loose as mine was very easy to unscrew.
The crown is wobbly, which is a negative point.
The Strap
The One was being sold on a rubber strap, gen was sold on rubber, Kevlar or ostrich afaik. The strap is attached with two screws and have a piece of metal inside near the lugs of the watch, to prevent the strap from ‘breaking’ or ‘cracking’. I love the way LW designed the strap attaching mechanism. No ugly holes on the side of the case but nicely finishe hex screws on top of the case, to admire with our own eyes. These screws are also the problem point on the reps. They are not finished that great and a gen LW strap tool should not be used. What you need is a 2mm hex tool. Also tape off the screw to prevent damaging the screws. When tightening the screws to attach the strap, don’t overdo it to prevent damage on the screw. Let’s wait for a new source of screws, I’m sure someone will come up with it!
The corners on the hex screws are not as sharp as on a gen LW strap hex screw. This might be considered as a flaw too.
The rubber strap itself is very stiff. In my opinion a bit too stiff to be super comfy. When I had my gen Oktopus I loved that rubber strap (the new rubber LW strap). When searching on google I found that the gen LW rubber strap is very stiff as well. So it might not be a flaw at all.
On the gen the screws in the strap can be unscrewed as well, this to match the case of the watch or the strap. For example if you have a titanium case you can change the strap screws to titanium ones. If you have a DLC case you can change them for DLC screws. Great thought of LW! I have not tried to unscrew these on the rep.
Summary
To summarize, The is a joy to wear! It is a versatile watch.
I feel this piece will be liked by people who like the AP RO/ROO, HBB, IWC Ingy, ... The case has a high level of finish, the rep seems to have a good movement. Case and buckle have a high level of quality being a rep.
With a limited run of 88 pieces for this The One you can be certain not getting called out when you have it strapped around your wrist. Heck, who even knows Linde Werdelin?!
This piece is a base model of the LW and it’s one of the main pieces with their own DNA. I think this piece is a super rep. I have not compared this to the gen but I feel it’s amazing! Especially for the price.
I do suggest the strap maker to use a softer rubber material. The screw maker should update the LW screws. The crown being wobbly should be addressed. This piece needs a V2.
I can’t wait to see another LW rep!
I hope you guys enjoyed my review…
PRO:
- Great build quality (case)
- Nicely finished movement
- White dial is very close to gen!
- Great design
- Super rep
- You won’t get called out!!!
CONS:
- Strap is very stiff
- Crown is wobbly (on mine)
- Datewheel is slightly misaligned but barely visible imo
- Case screws to attach the strap could be better finished, strap screws as well
- Caseback finish could be slightly better
