10 Years In The Making, WEMPE Unveils New Iron Walker Collection 

10 Years In The Making, WEMPE Unveils Its New Iron Walker Collection

New chronographs, divers, dress watches, and women’s watches – all with fully integrated steel bracelets - are designed for strength and comfort.

By Hyla Bauer
Contributor

It took WEMPE a full ten years from the patenting of the Iron Walker name to debut the collection. It's a clear sign of the retailer and brand's dedication to constructing watches right, with a modern design feel that's classic, with lasting wearability. The steady and robust nature of steel is imbued in this new, 16-piece collection, all featuring fully integrated link bracelets. The Iron Walker collection was designed and manufactured from the ground up at the company's manufacture in Glashütte – the German capital of watchmaking.
 

“Everything we know about steel watches has gone into the striking design of the Iron Walker line,” said Kim-Eva Wempe, CEO of WEMPE. Bernhard Stoll, CEO of WEMPE’s watch division, added, “we were inspired by a story about the steel construction workers in the USA who operated without safety equipment as they assemble the skeleton of a skyscraper, that’s how we came up with the idea to create a watch using a precision stainless-steel case featuring integrated lugs.” 

From sports watches to subtle style statements, The Iron Walker collection has a watch to fit every occasion. There’s a lot to see, so let’s dive right in.

The New Iron Walker Automatic Diver

This watch has everything a diver needs. First of all, it’s water-resistant to 30 bars of water pressure, the equivalent of 300 meters underwater. While 300 meters is far beyond the 40-meter depth that is standard for recreational divers, it's important to remember that water resistance is not only for deep dives. Higher pressure resistance can also be useful when jumping off a diving board as the watch can hit the water with a considerably higher force.
 

The watch’s unidirectional rotating dive-time bezel rests inside the protective sapphire crystal, adding additional shock protection.  Abundant, highly-visible Super-Luminova that glows blue-green in the dark is applied to the hour markers and hands, as well as the triangular zero marker on the dive-time ring. Two separate screw-down crowns flank the watch's bezel.

Many high-quality diving watches are fitted with bracelets or rubber straps, but few feature an expandable bracelet that can be adjusted to fit over a wetsuit. The Iron Walker's Automatic Diver's Watch's bracelet can expand up to 17mm (⅔ inch) in extra length. This added function speaks to the authenticity of this watch as a true diver. 
 

The Iron Walker Automatic Diver's Watch comes in two dial colors, matte black or blue with contrasting color accents. It is powered by an optimized WEMPE Glashütte I/SA self-winding movement based on a reliable Swiss caliber. With a power reserve of 50 hours, the watch also meets the strict criteria of DIN and ISO standards for diver's watches. The price is surprisingly just $3,450, and it's available at all WEMPE boutiques and WEMPE.com.

The Iron Walker Automatic Chronograph

The Iron Water Automatic Chronograph packs plenty of robust mechanical precision for men who prefer car racing and other above-water activities. A certified chronometer, the watch is accurate within two seconds a day. According to the brand, WEMPE set out to achieve "a powerful combination of functionality, chronometric precision, and chronograph equipment." Three subdials display the hour counter, minute counter, and seconds. The stop-second hand points to the tachymeter scale on the bezel, enabling the wearer to calculate speed. 
 

In terms of functional design, two rectangular pushers flank the crown of the 42mm case for a smoother look than traditional pushers. The dial is very readable, with a ‘reverse panda’ design that lends sharp contrast to its silver subdials. 
 

Like the other watches in the collection, the chronograph features a supple three-row link bracelet and is available with either a matte black or blue dial. This certified chronometer is an excellent value at $4,250.
 

A Choice of Automatic or Quartz Movements

Simply elegant, the time-only unisex Iron Walker watches round out the extensive collection options. They're great watches for work (and play) with a classic three-hand display, embodying understated versatility. Both the 36mm and 40mm sizes are available with either automatic or quartz movements.
 

The automatic watches offer a mechanical option for watch purists, who may shy away from quartz timepieces. For those favoring convenience, the quartz versions, understandably, have certain advantages over their mechanical siblings. Quartz watches are very low-maintenance and will keep ticking beyond the 50 hours of their automatic siblings.
 

To be specific, the quartz Iron Walker will keep running reliably for over three years (41 months, to be exact). It gives the wearer what they want in the look and comfort department without needing regular attention. In a 40mm case, the men's version has three dial color options: blue, black, and white. The mechanical version is priced at $2,750, and the quartz watch is $2,050.
 

Women’s Wear

The 36 mm Iron Walker is ideal for the modern working woman, with either the convenience of a quartz movement or an automatic winding calibre. The three-handed watch (showing hours, minutes, and seconds) also features a date, which is helpful at a glance. The bracelet, with its supple three-row individually articulated links, has a smooth, sophisticated look.
 

The elegance of the watch whispers and women will appreciate its steely beauty and comfort. Three dial colors options of white, black, or blue are available with automatic or quartz movements. The automatic Iron Walker has 50 hours of power reserve and is priced at about $2,650. The quartz variant is just under $2,000, undisputedly a great value. 
 

(Images provided by WEMPE)

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