# First attempt at Watch design



## maya169

Hi there! I have been playing around with watch designs and thought I would get some opinions from people in the know. I would really appreciate any feedback or criticism, its the only way I will Learn!  I Don't intend to manufacture the design.


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## Medusa

I think it looks amazingly good. You should make one or have one made for yourself. It looks totally doable. The case is relatively simple and casting the snake would be no problem. The only thing I would consider is what type of movement, and if the gears that are visible from the front are functional or ornamental. Non-functional, ornamental gears don't go over well with a lot of watch enthusiasts.


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## maya169

Hi! I have been working with a Swiss horologist, Who recommended if I went ahead and built it to use a eta 6497 movement that could be easily modified. Would want the gears to be functional and not just ornamental. Thanks for the great feed back!


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## maya169

If I get A few more positive comments, I may change my mind about trying to manufacturing it


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## Medusa

maya169 said:


> If I get A few more positive comments, I may change my mind about trying to manufacturing it


Rely on your confidence more than others comments. You are the artist.

All I can say is I am happy that I manufactured my watch and I encourage you to do the same.

TIMEMACHINIST


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## antikitera

I don't like the roman number printed on the side of the case, I would find another solution, like applied indices o carved dot, or gemstones, or put the numbers somehow where the dial should be, also I don't like the ruby in the center, maybe smaller would be better? For anything else, great and also great your modeling and rendering skills.


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## maya169

Was thinking of having the numerals etched into the metal of the case, Rather then just printed on. And also thinking that the watch should be a sizeable one. around 40mm diameter.


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## maya169

this is a shot of the back I just did.


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## frozenotter

Not bad. Shows you have an out-of-the-box imagination. Here's the good and the bad from me:

- I don't like the spiked hands at all.
- The snake is cool but can appear to look like a dead worm stuck in the watch from the back.
- I don't like the solid gold snake. 
- I don't care for the lugs, case shape, finish, or the oversized crown and its shape. Check out an IWC Portuguese crown.
- The roman numerals leave more to be desired. Look as if they are design placeholders. 
- The movement and coloring looks fantastic. 
- Snakes eyes are real rubies? Tongue material could be difficult and the wrong choice could degrade the watch. 
- Gold plate and shape looks excellent. 
- I see overall potential and possibility. 


Just my .02, by the way.


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## maya169

Are TIMEMACHINIST your designs? They are amazing!


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## maya169

Your the second person to mention the roman numerals. So will investigate alternatives! Thanks for the feed back!


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## antikitera

I like the golden snake more instead, I've also noted that the hands are quite short


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## maya169

Slightly longer hands. Noted, thank you!


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## Scribeliever

Love it! Perfect for Halloween, too. Perhaps make the hands more readable/high contrast -- I lost them in the snake.


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## benben23

It reminds me of that Simpson's episode. Trust your instinct and take others opinion with a grain of salt









Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk


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## maya169

Was thinking of switching them for breguet style hands. Perhaps in blue or red.


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## DEPA

Nice designs. I really like it. Just one thing which I would you to consider is, that don't underestimate the ssue with the handheight. In order to get the plasticity which you have used in your designs, the snake needs to be very high. I just finished the Tockr watches which have a radialengine from vintage airplanes. The total dialthicknessis 2mm and we needed search for a movement which has handheight H13. So far so good, if there wasn't just a problem sourcing it. Not ETA, not Soprod nor Selitta was able to deliver movements with a higher handheight than H8. So we decided to make the movement by ourselves. The snake can be made by casting or by stamping. Problem is just the colour. Needs kind of handpainting with all the patterns of the snakeskin. Keep this in mind before you start the project.


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## maya169

Hi I have thought a lot about the hand height. And the watchmaker I am talking to has assured me that it is possible. I originally thought that if I had it made, then I would go to a Asian manufacturer and use a Miyota movement. Unfortunately no Asian manufacturer would touch the design. So instead I decided to go Swiss, With a Swiss movement modified to fit my needs. I also have been in talking to a very talented artist from Italy to paint the scales of the snake.


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## DEPA

Then I wish you good luck


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## Ajaccio

Hi Maya169,

Excellent design. Except for the hands. They are way too small.
The Minute and Seconds hands should almost reach the end of the dial (well, there is no dial on your watch, but you get my point).
I would try "leaf" hands, which have a more natural feeling than your hands.

Also not sure about the snake's tongue. It would be super-extra small and thin, and would be prone to breaking in case of a shock.
Or maybe you can make the tongue in a rubber-type material that would allow it to move.. would be nice.

And don't wait for the approval of others. Go for it ! Make this watch (only with nicer hands ;-) )


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## maya169

I will make some design changes and Seriously consider making the watch now. Perhaps Launching a kick starter in the near future. Will post updates as I begin the journey. And thanks again for the encouragement and advice!


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## futat2

I realy like the design, one chang I would make is move the snake head to the 12 position and luminate the eye. that would make a great night marker.


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## Kitan

I would wear that, it has the feel originality on the design. Wow! nice job


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## maya169

Great idea about the head position!


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## Camguy

That is extremely cool! I think the Roman numerals are fine, appropriate somehow actually, but maybe use all twelve instead of just the cardinal points. Most definitely bigger hands, both in width and length. Being able to easily read the time is the main reason to wear a watch, after all.

I love the way the snake slithers around the gears! The back is awesome too.


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## maya169

Thanks for the feed back. It is important to me that form follows function.


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## callmev

wow is that a prototype for just mad pts skills? amazing


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## maya169

I haven't got to the prototype stage yet. But thanks for the compliment! I hope I can put as much detail into the prototype as I did the renders!


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## maya169

Hi! What do you guys think a fair price for this watch would be? modified Swiss movement, Hand assembled in Switzerland, decent leather strap. Hand painted snake. limited to 34. While making money is not the primary motivation. I would rather not lose too much either!


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## watchobs

You should persue this and follow you're vision of what it should be. Not what others want it to be! To many cooks............... In terms of price, you would want to approach your watch builder who I would hope will be able to give you a cost rundown in terms of price for your proto and then decisions between you and watchmaker/manufacturers will dictate fair market price approach for multiples. You seem to have a beyond worthy niche for design concept. Now the real work for things you might not be as gifted in will dictate whether your intial flames of enthusiasm can carry you to the promised land or will the hurdles of what you don't know snake through your high potential for success. I wish you the outcome you truly desire and will be following this thread in hope that concept makes it beyond just that! Stay true to that dream/concept and make it happen!


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## futat2

maya169 said:


> Hi! What do you guys think a fair price for this watch would be? modified Swiss movement, Hand assembled in Switzerland, decent leather strap. Hand painted snake. limited to 34. While making money is not the primary motivation. I would rather not lose too much either!


I don't think it would be that simple, you need to take a few things into account. find out how much its gonna cost to get the amount of watches you want to sell landed, add the cost of getting a prototype and figure in the amount your time in design is valued. add them all up and divide buy the number of units for sale. anything less then that plus 20% I would consider a loss. anything over that plus 20% would be a good starting value. So in light I would say 500 to 3000 depending on your numbers. however being your first watch lower would be better. Need to build the brand.


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## maya169

O.k So now we have a company! Were called Bristol clockworks. Because, well were based in Bristol U.K. It's our city. We thought that if we adopted a French moniker we wouldn't really be being true to ourselves. And now the real work begins!


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## maya169

Some rear shots I Just finished. The last one Is a work in progress with new Roman numeral design.


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## white

Beautiful! Not to discount current looks, just a few things I'dd play with: crown style and position, lugs, and rough angels. I loved the placement of roman numbers but feels like the spacing is too narrow. Also black arrows slightly off.


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## maya169

Hi! do you think the lugs should be curvier? And which angles do you mean?

Thanks!


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## Sanjuro82

Very cool design! Very impressed.


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## maya169

Thank you very much! Hope you keep an eye out for the kick starter lol!


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## maya169

I never knew producing a CAD drawing of the movement and its components would prove such a challenge. Have resorted to purchasing a movement, disassembling it, and measuring every part.


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## wg84

I like the overall idea, but you know that this design as it is could not be produced in real life right? 
I'm not sure how familiar are you with with mechanical movement but this movement that you show in the renders in real life would not function at all. I noticed that you used a skeletonized ETA 6497 or 6498 as a base for your design which is great, but
you used the movement upside down in the case and you placed the hour wheel on the bridge side of the movement which is just completely wrong. Also, an ETA 6497/6498 has its 4th wheel which carries the seconds hand either at 6 o'cock or 9 o'clock position not at the center. If you wanted to use the movement upside down with the seconds hand at the center you would have to heavily modify the entire thing to make that work. You would need new bridges, a new setting mechanism, cannon pinion, center, hacking seconds mechanism etc. 
Hope I didn't offended you in any way, I just wanted to point out some of the fundamental problems that you have with this concept.
Before you go any further with the design I would suggest you research about mechanical movements, how they work, how to modify them etc. so that you understand what would work and what wouldn't. (if you want a produce design that would actually function)


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## maya169

Hi I am aware that there would be heavy modifications needed. These renders were really only to give a rough idea of how I want the finished article to look. But thanks for your input!


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## Hephaestus Master

I want to know the movement of this project? ETA or Miyota?


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## TunaSbdb009

Very cool.


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## maya169

ETA 6497.


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## maya169

its going to be a big piece. Mainly because I don't want the snake to appear too skinny. Its important to make a visual impact.


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## RichardVal

Impressive project! I think curvier lugs could be more coherent with the form of the snake and the round case, so would be cool to see how that works out.



maya169 said:


> Hi! do you think the lugs should be curvier? And which angles do you mean?
> 
> Thanks!


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## RichardVal

I really like your creativity in the designs, the black one is definitely my personal favorite. What program have you used to make these designs?


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## ciccio_started_it

wg84 said:


> I like the overall idea, but you know that this design as it is could not be produced in real life right?
> I'm not sure how familiar are you with with mechanical movement but this movement that you show in the renders in real life would not function at all. I noticed that you used a skeletonized ETA 6497 or 6498 as a base for your design which is great, but
> you used the movement upside down in the case and you placed the hour wheel on the bridge side of the movement which is just completely wrong. Also, an ETA 6497/6498 has its 4th wheel which carries the seconds hand either at 6 o'cock or 9 o'clock position not at the center. If you wanted to use the movement upside down with the seconds hand at the center you would have to heavily modify the entire thing to make that work. You would need new bridges, a new setting mechanism, cannon pinion, center, hacking seconds mechanism etc.
> Hope I didn't offended you in any way, I just wanted to point out some of the fundamental problems that you have with this concept.
> Before you go any further with the design I would suggest you research about mechanical movements, how they work, how to modify them etc. so that you understand what would work and what wouldn't. (if you want a produce design that would actually function)


You're totally right here except one thing: eta does produce a central sweep 6497... it's much more expensive than the sub sweep movements but it does exist.

Follow me on Instagram @ciccio_started_it


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## HeroXLazer

ciccio_started_it said:


> You're totally right here except one thing: eta does produce a central sweep 6497... it's much more expensive than the sub sweep movements but it does exist.
> 
> Follow me on Instagram @ciccio_started_it


Wait, do they actually? What is it called, and where do I find it? That's the exact movement I need.


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## ciccio_started_it

HeroXLazer said:


> Wait, do they actually? What is it called, and where do I find it? That's the exact movement I need.


Tourby sells them here:

https://www.tourbywatches.com/accessoires/movements/

I'd wager they could be found elsewhere cheaper. Just google eta 6497 central seconds, there's info about them out there.

Follow me on Instagram @ciccio_started_it


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## maya169

Hi Autocad.


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## anvilart43

Very Cool indeed. I like where this is headed. If it was me I would move the snake head to 12:00 and lose the tounge, but keep the ruby eyes. Extend the hands out closer to the edges, and blend the lugs into the case so there is a sweeping transition and use a small almost embedded crown. I know this stuff has been mentioned before but it is just my vote. I think the snake moving through the movement is wicked cool.


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## faizan1990

Very different. Like gold version


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## jeremiep

Super cool and unique. Kuddos


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## Typos

Very interesting design, hope to see more in the future!


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## Watchology101

I love it. Are you keeping the case simple for the sake of ease of manufacturing? And if possible, why not make the strap match the scales of the snake just to tie in that motif a little more?


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## maya169

Hi. Keeping it simple because what with the snake I didn't wan it to become too busy.


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## sachan

Wow, snake inside my watch, I don't know where did You get the idea, but it is very interesting. Respect!


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## vindicate

Cabestran has something similar haha. Anyway, does anyone know what software to use when designing such watches?


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## Nis-chik

Fantastic watch. Is it already available?


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## maya169

Hi! 

Not quite yet. Am contemplating some engraving on the case. But watch this space!


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## maya169

Hi! 

Not quite yet. Am contemplating some engraving on the case. But watch this space!


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## kalburnfall

Impressive. Very cool minus the Roman numerals on the bezel and the flieger style crown. Maybe onion crown.


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## skyefalcon6

Medusa said:


> Rely on your confidence more than others comments. You are the artist.
> 
> All I can say is I am happy that I manufactured my watch and I encourage you to do the same.
> 
> TIMEMACHINIST


I was curious and did a google search. Found your site. I went directly to the Weapons Division. lol.


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## pumxee

Look good. But I'm not a fan of the crown. It sticks out way to mucoh.


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