Christopher Ward has flattened The Twelve and it is the best version yet
Russell SheldrakeI wish I was exaggerating when I say, the new Christopher Ward The Twelve 660 is the best watch in the brand’s catalogue, but I’m not. At least in my opinion. The half British half Swiss brand has been on a tear of late, but this watch tops them all, whether it be the headline-grabbing C12 Loco, or the creative collaborations they have produced this year, I think this slim sports watch beats them all as it brings together so many elements into a seamless package that feels as though it was hewn from one solid block, as all integrated bracelet watches should.
So why am I dumping praise on this watch as though it is the next best thing since sliced bread? I’ve been lucky enough to spend an extended period of time with this watch before its launch and it is not often that I put on a watch and feel an instant connection with it. But the second this watch slipped onto my wrist I could tell it was going to be extremely hard to give it back. Despite Ward having already updated The Twelve line this year by making it mid-sized, the fact that they have gone a step further and reduced its thickness by a third is remarkable to me. As soon as I put it on I felt an instant comparison to early, mid-sized, neo-vintage sports watches like the ref. 3800 Nautilus, as I can think of very few watches that hug the wrist as well as the 660 does.
Thinness in the watch world is not a new thing, and we’ve seen countless world records be broken over the last ten years in this pursuit for the sveltest timepiece in every category. And having a thin watch has always been seen as a flex by every brand, being able to fit all it takes to make a watch tick accurately in a small a space as possible, while also designing the most elegant watch they possibly can. And while I have been a fan of Christopher Ward for a long time now, it has always been apparent that a lot of their designs have lacked elegance. Not only has Ward turned up the elegance, but they have done so through the consideration of a lot of small details, all of which we will get to below. Anyway, enough about how great I think thin watches are, and more about the new Christopher Ward The Twelve 660.
The case
It would be mad of me to start with anything but the case here, Christopher Ward has managed to take its 38mm The Twelve case and bring its thickness down from 9.95mm to just 6.6mm, a mere 1.5mm thicker than the Bulgari Octo Finissimo Auto, a once world record breaking automatic watch. However, the way this case has been constructed, I think it feels even thinner than that. Thanks to the bezel and caseback being slightly smaller in diameter than the case middle, the perceived thickness of this watch is greatly reduced, especially when on the wrist.
The design of this case is pretty much unchanged from the rest of the The Twelve line, you have the twelve sided bezel with a brushed top surface and polished bevels, a pattern that is continued throughout the entire case and bracelet. The one critique I can level against this case is that it only comes with 30m of water resistance, and I do wonder if just adding a screw-down crown would have helped beef it up a bit more to reach those sports watch standards. But then again, this is a very dressy sports watch.
While I was lucky enough to be wearing the standard stainless steel version with a blue dial, there is also an rather exciting black-on-black model that has a full DLC-coated case and bracelet that is then paired with a black dial. A real stealth piece in that colour combination and thinness. I cannot emphasis enough how well this watch sits on the wrist. Its flat and wide dimension ratio means it hugs the wrist, hardly protruding off it with the slightly articulated and slanted end links meaning the 43.3mm lug-yo-lug measurement fits comfortable across any wrist size.
Turn the watch over and we see the twelve-sided caseback reflecting the design of the bezel is secured with screws and features a large sapphire display window. This is to show off the manual wind movement inside that fills this case from edge to edge. Finishing things off with a well-sized knurled crown, a smart choice by the design team at Ward as there is often the temptation to put an extra small crown on these thin watches that are then impossible to use, but as you’re going to be winding this watch relatively frequently, you need a crown that is easy and comfortable to use.
The bracelet
Regular readers of our Hands On reviews may be questioning my choice in order here, as we normally start with the case and dial paring at the top and work our way down to movement and bracelet later, however, I want to highlight this rather stunning bracelet at the top here, and also level the one gripe I have with it. In its base design, this bracelet matches that of the original The Twelve pieces, solid, Y-shaped links that taper with the broad surfaces being brushed and the bevels highly polished. It also keeps its quick release functionality so it can be swapped out for the rubber counterpart (sold separately) with ease.
But let’s look at how Christopher Ward has altered the original bracelet so it can fit this new, thinner model. The links only measure 2.9mm in thickness and articulate wonderfully. But it is the clasp where the brilliance and small short coming appear. The clasp used on the original models would have measured thicker than this watch head, and so they needed to find a new design that could keep it balanced while on your wrist. So the new butterfly clasp that operates through push buttons folds elegantly in on itself from each side so that the total height of the clasp is just 4.2mm.
However, I have been wearing this watch through some pretty hot weather here in London, and there are no half links nor is there any micro-adjust. So I started with the watch feeling just a smidge too tight and then had to settle for it being a little loose first thing in the morning. If there was a way to work some micro-adjust into a clasp of this thickness, which I’m certain there is, that would elevate this watch beyond all others to me.
The dial
Next we come to the dial, and this is another example on this watch of refinement and stripping everything back to the bare essentials. It’s perhaps best to describe this dial by what’s not there than what is. Gone is the seconds hand, gone is the date window, and gone is the Christopher Ward criss-cross texture. Instead we have have a simple two-hand display, surrounded by baton markers that double up at 12 and a soft grained texture to the flat dial.
Part of what made me create such a strong connection with this watch when I first put it on was the effect this dial has. But taking everything away the dial has even more presence when on the wrist. You have the simplest form a dial can possibly take, and that acts as a visual reminder that what’s on your wrist is just as pared back. There is, of course, the polished edges to the applied markers and hands, but nothing ostentatious, if anything those glints of light just aid in legibility, so everything hasn’t been finished to a matte texture. There are four dial options avaialbe, the light blue or teal that I had, a darker blue and a silvered dial that are all available on the standard stainless steel case and bracelet, while the aforementioned black dial only comes on the black DLC case.
The movement
It seems odd to only start talking about the movement this late into an article, but here we are. Helping to keep this watch as thin as possible and ticking away is the manually wound Sellita SW210. This super thin movement offers 45 hours of power reserve and has been decently modified for Christopher Ward’s use. The bridges that hold the power train have been skeletonised, allowing you a clear view of the key components that deliver energy to the balance. The finishing is fitting for this watch and its price point, with minimal fancy flourishes, but industrially completed touches which help to elevate your experience when viewing the movement through that big sapphire display caseback.
I’m not going to hear any arguments that say this needs to be an in-house movement for them to be impressed. The Sellita is serviceable worldwide, has a recognised architecture that can be worked on by any trained watchmaker, and it also helps keep the cost of this model to that accessible price point that Christopher Ward has come to dominate in the last five years. While it’s not as complex as the Bel Canto, many of the suppliers who worked on that calibre have been brought in to perfect this one, such as Paoluzzo for the machining and APJ for the finishing.
The verdict
If you’ve got this far in this article and you’re still unsure on my feels for this watch, I would suggest going back and having a closer read, because I have been nothing but impressed by The Twelve 660 from the moment I put it on my wrist. The dimensions are perfect, the execution of this elegant sports watch concept has been near faultless, and in typical Christopher Ward fashion they have achieved all of this at a price that a few years ago would seem impossible.
I try on hundreds, if not thousands of watches in this job, and it has got to a point that it is now rare for me to create a connection with a watch, especially for that connection to be almost instantaneous, but I am happy to report that this watch bucks that trend. I have always been a fan of slim watches, partly because of my smaller 6.5 inch wrists, but also because I believe they exemplify the very best of watchmaking. Building up or our is easy, stripping back and taking away is hard. I believe you find the most beautiful watches under 7mm of thickness, and this new 660 may have just stolen my heart.
Of course, I am not blind to this watch’s shortcomings, and I have a small list to take to Mike France down in Maidenhead in order to get this to the next level. But none of those are deal breakers. The watch, in its entirety brings together a lot of excellent elements that create a whole that is even greater. While many may see this as a simple slimming down of a watch that already exists, I can see it as much more than that. A lot more has gone into the creation of this watch, and when you have it on the wrist and spend time with it, you notice all of these small features, and in same cases omissions, that help this watch transform into something far beyond a simple slim sports watch.
Christopher Ward The Twelve 660 pricing and availability
The new Christopher Ward The Twelve 660 is available now from the brand and in our Time+Tide Discovery Studios. Price: £1,250/US$1,495/€1,625 (steel on rubber strap), £1,395/US$1,660/€1,805 (steel on bracelet), £1,295/US$1,550/€1,695 (DLC on rubber strap), £1,495/US$1,790/€1,955 (DLC on bracelet).
| Brand | Christopher Ward |
| Model | The Twelve 660 |
| Case Dimensions | 38mm (D) x 6.6mmmm (T) x 43.3mm (LTL) |
| Case Material | Stainless steel Stainless steel black DLC |
| Water Resistance | 30 metres |
| Crystal(s) | Sapphire front and back |
| Dial | Blue, teal, silver, black (only on DLC case) |
| Strap | Matching bracelet or black rubber, both with butterfly clasp |
| Movement | Sellita SW210, manual wind |
| Power Reserve | 45 hours |
| Functions | Hours, minutes |
| Availability | Now |
| Price | From £1,250/US1,495/€1,625 |