Crossroads - Agave
Celebrate the moments that define you with the Crossroads watch by Trafford Watch Co. This casual square watch dresses up or down with ease, making it the perfect daily watch.
For what came before, and what lies ahead.
Ever since watches became accessible, people have been using them as a way to celebrate important moments in life. A milestone at work. A major award. The birth of a child. Even after the advent of smart watches, traditional mechanical watches are still a symbol of success, be it personal or professional. While we don't think you necessarily need a special occasion to buy yourself a watch, the symbolism of using a time piece to celebrate profound moments is not lost on us. The Crossroads is a watch that was born out of this idea.
Local roots
Each of the Crossroads watch colorways are inspired by different items that are local to our home town of Austin, Texas. The Agave colorway pulls its color from the blueish-green of the agave plant that is prevalent all over Texas. One interesting fact about the agave plant is that it only flowers once in its lifespan, usually just before it dies. The flower it produces is a bright orange/yellow color, which is where this version of the Crossroads gets it’s second hand color from.
The case
The case shape of the Crossroads is exceptionally unique. Looking at the side profile, you will notice a curve along the top of the case. This was originally inspired by the idea that the important moments in life—the crossroads of life, if you will—also present new opportunities and horizons to explore. You’ll find this curved horizon line throughout the watch design, in the sides of the watch, in the rotor, and in the buckle as well.
The case is 36mm wide by 38mm tall, with a lug to lug distance of just under 46mm and a height of under 11mm. This is roughly the equivalent of wearing a 40mm round watch. It has a good presence on the wrist, while the short lug to lug distance make it comfortable for smaller wrists. Here's a review that shows it on a 6.5" wrist. Additionally, the height of the Crossroads is only 11mm at it's tallest point in the center of the curve. At the top and bottom edges of the watch, the height is only 9mm tall. This makes the watch slip under any cuff with ease.
The case houses a stunning curved sapphire crystal that is a playground of distortion for the dial below. The anti-reflective coating applied below the surface keeps things legible while also adding a flick of color when it catches the light just right.
The crown, signed with the TWC monogram, is a robust 7.5mm in diameter, but only a 3mm width. This gives the crown a striking visual presence that is exceptionally easy to grip without being so big as to dig into the wrist.
The case of the watch has a hardening coating treatment that significantly reduces the amount of scratches and also fingerprints that may appear on the watch.
The dial
If the case is the frame, then the dial is the artwork. The subtly brushed surface of the dial catches the light, playfully exposing a range of colors and values. The agave color can appear as a bright teal in some light or a deep green in other light. This contrasts well with the stark white and luminous numerals and hour markers. The unique skeletonized syringe hands match these markings by being fully lumed with BGW9 Swiss Super LumiNova, making them extremely legible both day and night.
The movements
There are two movement options available for the Crossroads watch: an automatic mechanical Miyota 9039 and a quartz Seiko VH31. For non-watch nerds, the main difference between the two types of movements is how they are powered. The automatic Miyota movement uses gears and springs and is powered by the movement of your wrist. If you don’t wear it for a few days, it will run out of power and will need to be manually wound by either rotating the crown or wearing it for a short time to let the rotor wind. The quartz Seiko movement is powered by a battery. While quartz watches are generally found to be less prestigious than mechanical, they excel by only having to change the battery every two years, and are much more accurate than mechanical.
The mechanical Miyota version of the watch includes a sapphire exhibition caseback that allows you to see the movement inside. The quartz Seiko version has a closed caseback with a Crossroads design.
The watches are currently in production and we are aiming to ship them in the late spring of 2023.
Read the review by Watch Clicker.
Specifications
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The Crossroads case is made with 316L stainless steel. The front crystal is a curved sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating. The exhibition caseback also uses sapphire crystal. Both the hands and the hour markers on the dial (the numerals and the dashes) use Swiss Super LumiNova. The straps are made with Italian leather.
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The mechanical version of the Crossroads watch uses the Miyota 9039 automatic movement, featuring a custom red rotor. The movement has a 48 hour power reserve and is regulated in house to +/- 5 seconds per day.
The meca-quartz version of the watch uses the Seiko VH31 movement. As a meca-quartz type of movement, the second hand on the VH31 has a rather smooth sweeping motion, moving 4 times per second. The battery lasts approximately 2 years and has an accuracy of +/- 15 seconds per month. -
The numerical size of square watches is always a little hard to define because they naturally wear a little differently than round watches. The Crossroads case is 36x38mm, with a lug to lug length of 46mm. This is fairly comparable to wearing a 40mm round watch. The height is 11mm at its tallest point.
The Crossroads has a water resistance of 5 ATM. -
Every Trafford watch includes a 2-year limited warranty. This will cover any manufacturing defects like issues with the movement, or the hands fall off, etc. It doesn’t cover cosmetic wear or internal damage caused by droppage or other accidents. We’re pretty relaxed about this stuff though, so don’t hesitate to reach out.
