2011 Laco Special Edition Project - CASE BACK and FINISH

[lukeaar]

Something interesting I just found:

The watches were given an FL. number which stands for flight and the first two digits, 22, for flight control: 23 stands for navigation and 25 for radio surveillance, followed by the three digits serial number given by the institute.

another:

Re "Fl 23883":

For all practical purposes, it is what would today be a military specification, describing function and general design, but not specific to one manufacturer. Hence all 5 B-Uhren types have the sam Fl no.

In the German adminsitrative jargon, it is an "Anforderzeichen" in the Air Ministry's (Reichsluftfahrtministerium) "Gruppenübersicht der Flugzeugausrüstungsgeräte und Anforderzeichen".

[Uwe W.]

I think the caseback depends on which dial/watch we will have as an example.

As I mentioned, the case back on the original is pretty much a blank canvas. Here are two examples:

[Uwe W.]

Just a sample case back I was fooling around with:

[lukeaar]

My idea done very quickly:

[lukeaar]

My ideas for the design designation or "Bauart":
WUS-LE
WUS-SE
WUS-LA (limitierte auflage)
WUS-SA/WUS-S (Sonderausgabe)

I figure that whatever we choose to put on the caseback will also be used on the dial, so we should have this discussion in this thread.

[Janne]

Some forumers might think the WUS-SA is too close to history.
I feel that the dial should be marked.

[Manolete]

I realize this is off topic, as we have yet to get into the details of the dial, but while I am typically partial to sterile dials for this sort of watch, it does make some sense, given the heritage, to have something on the dial. Maybe a WUS-LE and nothing more? That would take the watch away from its heritage without being intrusive.

Some forumers might think the WUS-SA is too close to history.
I feel that the dial should be marked.

[Janne]

My ideas for the design designation or "Bauart":
WUS-LE
WUS-SE
WUS-LA (limitierte auflage)
WUS-SA/WUS-S (Sonderausgabe)

I figure that whatever we choose to put on the caseback will also be used on the dial, so we should have this discussion in this thread.

Agree.

I like all, except the WUS- SA.
I like particullary WUS-SE and WUS-S

WUS-SE = WUS Spezial Edition (German spelling OK? No?)

We already did a WUS Limited Edition. In 2008.

[Uwe W.]

I realize this is off topic, as we have yet to get into the details of the dial, but while I am typically partial to sterile dials for this sort of watch, it does make some sense, given the heritage, to have something on the dial. Maybe a WUS-LE and nothing more? That would take the watch away from its heritage without being intrusive.

There will be a thread dedicated to the dial and I'm sure it will promote a healthy discussion. I'd suggest that we stay on the subject of the case back and the finish of the watch so that we can continue to move forward.

[Uwe W.]

WUS-SE= WUS Spezial Edition (German spelling OK? No?) We already did a WUS LimitedEdition. In 2008.

Bauart: - This category was reserved for the movement manufacturer. So I'd be particularly opposed to putting any WUS reference in there, which is why I used ETA in my example.There may also be a connection between the name used in this field and the name that appeared on the approved RLM specifications drawing. However, every B-Uhr example I've seen used the movement's manufacturer: Wempe, IWC, Thommen,Durowe, Lange, and Stowa for example.

GerätNr. - Typically forB-Uhrs this field either contained 127-560A or 127-560B. I've read that some M-B B-Uhrs did have 127-560A engraved in them, so that would be acceptable to me. However, this field could also be used for the limited edition number.

WerkNr.- This is the movement number. In original B-Uhrs and M-B B-Uhr this was a unique number that was engraved in three locations: on the movement, on the case back and on the id chart on the inside of the case back. As I see it, wecould either place the ETA movement number here or the limited edition number,as it does double as a serial number for the watch.

Anforderz. - The ordinance number of the watch. We've already established that the LW FL23883 number was used on some of the M-B watches, so there's no reason why we couldn't use ithere as well.

Hersteller: - The presenter or assembler of the watch (some original B-Uhrs - like Laco - used movements that were made by another manufacturer, but were cased (assembled) by the"Hersteller"). The original Laco B-Uhrs were engraved with Lacher&Co. I would love to use that as well, but I'm not sure about the current legal status of the Lacher name. Looking at the impressum at the LacoShop, the company is officially known as Laco Uhrenmanufaktur GmbH, sothe only thing that we could really have engraved here is Laco GMBH or just Laco. My vote would be for the former although Laco did use LACO on my 55 mm limited B-Uhr.

With respect to the finish, the original M-B B-Uhrs were brass painted flat gray or silver. The silver models were produced in small numbers and I'd hate to own a polished B-Uhr. I think the current Laco bead-blasted case looks great and effectively represents the flat gray of the originals. Although it would be tempting to do something different with the case finish it would only increase the cost and prolong the production time, so I'd be in favour of leaving it alone.

The other question is whether or not to include the FL engraving on the side of the case.I've seem more photos of original M-B B-Uhrs without the engraving than I have with it. It probably doesn't matter either way, BUT... if we omit the engraving on the case of our limited edition watch, it WILL be different than the current Laco 45 mm series watches. Something to consider.