Project 300: Dial design (thread reboot)

[enkidu]

At Bill's suggestion, I've taken what I find to be the more relevant images from the Project 300: Dial and case design thread.

ASPSPR
sterile

no date white hands | no date silver hands

black date wheel | white date wheel

Alternate scripts



enkidu
reduced mkii and circle-y



stew77
new vs old seamaster 300





ASRSPR
Byron font



m.and
Posted by Thieuster, SM300 style dial and hands by MKII



kywong
Comparison shot between ASRSPR: original has narrower bezel; thicker silver ring between bezel and dial, 3, 6, 9 markers are wider and shorter; original's hour indexes are larger and squarer;



kywong
Microgamma font, hour markers edited, bezel width reduced



OmegaCosmicMan
Lombritz font + date at 4:30



Yao
A-D comparisons




es355
Original Seamaster 300 with rounded date window

Watchco Seamaster 300 with squared date window


kywong
Simple Serif font example with 9 and 6 still using open fonts.


I apologize for copying the url's of the images from the other thread, but really couldn't see how to restart the thread without the images. I also apologize for any mistakes in summarizing the objective behind the images; wholesale copying of all the text would also have been impractical. I'm sorry if my editorial scissors left your post and or image on the floor; feel free to reply with a copy of your content if you deem it relevant.

[marchone]

I am reposting this from the original thread here in response to the many comments made about the original SM300's fonts.

Details of the SM300 changed substantially from 1957 to 1969. Fonts, indices, markers, hands, bezel, all changed during its production.

A History of the Omega Seamaster 3oo

[OmegaCosmicMan]

Hey, Thanks for doing this.

[OmegaCosmicMan]

As Yao Said...

Okay the picture came out okay. So the differences are:

A & B: I just removed the Circle-Y
C & D: D has the Circle-Y removed. Both C & D are missing the word "Automatic" under the logo.

To be honest I am not a fan of the open 9s and 6s. I think its just too close to the original.

Basically I'd like to see where people come out on the layout and the text. Ultimately the 3, 6, 9 and the proportions may have to change based on the way the bezel looks and once the case design is done.

I've been thinking carefully about this and agree with Bill...that the 'open 9s and 6s' are not necessary for this watch. As Bill said, he thinks it is just too close to the original. When you study the actual Omega font used on the open 6s and 9s, you can see how, on many subtle details, that they were much more complicated (rather than simple). So not only is it 'too close', from the homage watchmaker's point of view, these open and stylized fonts might be one more difficult aspect of the steps necessary to turn out finished dials that pass muster in terms of detail and quality in order to make it to the finished product. Simpler is easier to do, from a pass/fail point-of-view in terms of part rejection because of defects in quality or finishing.

After considering all of the alternatives, and even though I would absolutely like to see the name of the watch on the dial face, as Bill said, because of the perfection of the 'Seamaster' name and the perfectly flowing font developed to show it, it will be very difficult to come up with a way to show 'Project 300' in a way that meets that standard of, well (for lack of a better term) elegance. So I can go along with 'simpler is better'- Why not go for something that is simpler, cleaner or leaner, and functional? We all know it is an Automatic movement-no need to designate that on the dial, and the depth rating is a functional designation that fits. So I am in favor of keeping the dial simple and clean. The Vantage dial is a good example (even though it has 'Automatic' on it).



So keep it simple: MKII above; one line of text with the depth rating below. Option D for me!

[Semuta]

I would bow out of this if it had closed 9's and 6's. I just think it deviates too much from the original and strays too much into the realm of a copy. That's actually one of the indicators of a badly faked dial before they started getting good...

[marchone]

Click on the link for the SM300 history I posted above. It was introduced with closed letters.

[Thieuster]

Apart from the 'open vs. closed' lettering, I personally think that OPEN lettering is a quality sign! Being able to print the lettering on the dial very precisely with an even spacing is difficult. i think that Bill raised the bar with the Kingston dial and (imho off course) the open lettering is the next step in MKII's quality design!



Menno

[ljb187]

Does anybody know the name of the font MKII uses in its "MKII" logo?

[David Woo]

I kinda miss the stubbies.

[chris7013]

Just out of curiosity.. How much relief can we expect from the lume? The originals are very pronounced because of the thick application. I realize we can get brighter longer lasting lume these days with less, but I would like to see the indices much thicker than the numbers. Is this planned / possible?
Chris