Sea Fighter
The custom ordering page is up and running! Delivery begins in February of 2008. The 2824s that we need for this model are in stock and the 2836 movements, including the current delay from ETA, are due in at the end of October. Given the current backlog, the introduction of the Vantage and the holiday season it seemd prudent to start shipping custom Sea Fighters in February rather than try to pack the schedule with another watch before the end of the year. The Swiss Made versions however will begin shipping before the end of the year. The date version based on the Bundesmarine diver should be ready by the end of the year. The day/date watches will largely depend upon how close to November that the movements actually arrive. The Swiss Made Sea Fighters will be available in three versions, not counting the different insert styles. The pre-ordering page for these watches will go live as soon as I can produce some mock-ups of what the watches will look like.
The pricing, as you will notice, is different from the past. The day/date version of the Sea Fighter is $50 more expensive than the date only version. This is because the 2836 is the first hightly decorated movement that we will be using. The rotor features cote de Geneve and the bridges on the movement are all decorated. The 2824 will be upgraded in 2009 to feature the same decoration but for the next year or so the 2824 has a standard decoration. Ignoring the cosmetic differences both movements are Elabore grade, plated in Rhodium, and feature upgraded Incabloc shock protection as usual. To try to keep things “simple” the surcharge for the 2836 is actually grouped together with the day/date dials. Since the crown is at 4 o’clock on the Sea Fighter the date and day/date wheels had to be custom printed at some expense. For the time being there is only one option for the date and day/date watches.
Pre-order customers will get a $95 discount on their orders. The pre-order discount is higher than in the past because the Sea Fighter, like the Vantage, is being lauched at the new price levels. The pre-order discount offer will end either November 1st (when the new pricing goes into effect) or after we receive 45 pre-orders, whichever comes first.
This project has been in the making for the better part of a year now. I hope that you enjoy my take on this vintage design.
Status
I will be replying to e-mails later today. In an effort to catch up on watch orders I haven’t been as responsive to e-mails as I normally am.
Stingray orders…I should be almost back on schedule by the end of the week. The one exception will be for customers that have ordered an acrylic insert. There is a small bottleneck because of the number of customers that added this option after the orders were scheduled.
Sea Fighter: The ordering pages are undergoing final testing and tweaking but I want to get back on schedule with shipments before putting up the new page. I should have the new page up during the weekend.
Vantage: The mass production of the dials will be near completion in the next two weeks or so. The first look at this model with its actual handset should be available sometime next week.
Mk II Vantage
The pre-order pages are now up and running! The pre-order is going to work a little differently this time because of the current backlog. The Swiss Made Vantage will be shipping first, approximately in the October/November 2007 timeframe. In the past the custom versions have shipped first but that isn’t possible given the number of product launches planned for this year. The custom Vantage will begin shipping roughly in January of 2008, which is where our current lead times place new custom watch orders at the moment. As a result the pre-order discount for the custom Vantage is higher than for the Swiss Made version. The custom versions will be scheduled together with other custom watches so the lead times might change quickly (especially when the Sea Fighter ordering opens later this month.)
The length of the pre-order period will depend upon overall demand and the beginning of a new phase for Mk II. Demand is a factor because of the industry wide shortage of mechanical movements for the foreseeable future.
Starting this winter we will begin a new phase in the continuing development of the Mk II brand; print advertising and an increased focus on marketing. Look for our first ad in WatchTime’s Nov/Dec issue!
Status
I fallen a little behind at the moment on e-mails and shipments of watches. The movements didn’t arrive early enough for me to finish any watches last week since I had to review them to make sure there weren’t any hidden problems. Watch shipments will resume by the middle of this week.
The Vantage pages will go up sometime tomorrow. I also spent quite a bit of time over the last week finalizing details for the ordering pages, taking photos, and reviewing the bracelet samples. The pictures of the Vantage that will be posted tomorrow are what the mass production will look like with one important exception. The preview of the new hands that were commissioned for this project won’t be ready until the 3 week of this month so I substituted some Stick and Ball hands and the sweep seconds hand off the Sea Fighter. Its close enough for now but I didn’t want anyone to think I have lost my attention to detail 
The one spot of bad news is that the SKX007 sapphires are going to be out of stock for at least another two months. The Monster sapphires are still in stock.
The Sea Fighter pages I hope to have up in the next week or so…
Movements are here!
Big sigh of relief! ETA delivered my 2824-2 movements earlier this week. I will finally be able to send components again to Switzerland for assembly of Blackwaters and begin offering pre-built Stingrays in about two month’s time. Much of the industry is currently “on vacation” for another two weeks or so. There are a few companies, like ETA, that don’t formally observe the summer break but the vast majority of firms are practically shut down for 2-4 weeks each summer.
The pre-order of the Sea Fighter and the Vantage will open in a few days to a week from now. I am working on the ordering pages at the moment and now that the movements are here a huge varible in the production schedule for the next couple of months has finally been removed. The Vantage should begin shipping around the end of October. The photos that will be posted in a few days of the 1016 homage will actually be temporarily using the older Stick and Ball handset and not the new hands as they aren’t ready at this time. The Sea Fighter, initially shipping as a pre-built homage to the Blancpain BUND diver using a 2824, should begin delivery before the end of the year. A 2836-2 version of the Sea Fighter should be available around January of 2008.