FeatureClash of the Icons: World Timers – IWC Pilots Worldimer vs Carl F Bucherer TravelTec

The Watch Guide presents to you an exciting and unique concept we call “The Clash of the Icons”, where we are going to compare two of the most decorated, iconic and most sought after timepieces from around the world and bring them head-to-head, against each other.

Every brand’s constant endeavor is to outdo its competitors on all possible parameters, be it world-timers, divers, chronographs or classics. So we thought why not bring the brands together and do a showdown once and for all. Now, of course, it would be wrong to declare anyone as the underdog, because let’s face it, it would be unfair to timepieces of this calibre and level. But nonetheless the clash would be the perfect platform to highlight their best features and how they excel against their counterparts under four parameters, which are:

USP (What makes the watch so unique)

User-Friendliness (Are the features easy to use)

Comfort

And…

Value for money (Who gives you more for less)

Our first clash is going to be between two decorated heavyweights of Swiss world timers – IWC Pilots Worldtimer and the Carl F.Bucherer TravelTec. But before we go head to head, let’s give you our brief take on world timer watches and how important they are today for businessmen, travelers and pilots alike.

Worldtimers: How it all started

50 years after Greenwich, England was eventually established as the prime meridian of the world’s 24 main time zones in the 1930s. Once that was officially declared, Swiss watchmakers had already started working really hard to build a watch that displayed them all on a single watch dial (remember, we’re still in the 30’s).

And they did, in a matter of time. Louis Cottier created the first ever mechanism that supported the display of all time zones. And by the end of the decade, all the biggies came along with their versions of it. Vacheron Constantin made the first world timer pocket watch, and Patek Philippe made the first ‘Cottier’ inspired World Time wristwatch. By the 50’s, the big crown, Rolex, came into the foray with its first GMT-Master watch, which was set to Greenwich Mean Time by default and you could add a home location as well. A function that went on to be particularly useful for pilots back then.

A rare complication, reduced to maybe a software on your phone today. A lot has changed since the 50’s for world timers. Today only a handful of genuine Swiss watchmakers remain, who can truly deliver a reliable world timer. One of them being Carl F.Bucherer, whose triple time zone chronograph – the TravelTec, has been a runaway success story, even after 11 years since it first made its debut.

On the other hand, we have IWC. Schaffhausen’s pride and home to one of the most priceless complications ever built, IWC also came up with its own version of a world timer and changed everything. Let’s find out who outshines whom on our shortlisted parameters:

1. USP – What makes the watch unique

First up is the IWC Worldtimer. It’s interesting to see here how the brand from Schaffhausen stuck to the classic Pilot’s design philosophy, not making a separate collection all together. They obviously wanted to bring utility to the already ‘pilot-friendly’ watch. And so they have, with two inner bezels depicting different city-wise time zones and a rotatable 24 hours ring that will do the math for you, giving you a clutter free experience of a world timer.

The TravelTec, on the other hand, looks very technical, giving us a lot more than just a world time complication. There are chronograph counters on the dial and an inner rotating bezel as well, that does the math at the push of a button, allowing you to see three time zones at one go. Straight out of the box, this watch means business and performs as well as it looks.

2. User-friendliness – is it easy to use?

But what might seem to be a clutter free experience can be a difficult ordeal for the man depending on this IWC. Though in theory, setting the watch to the current local time is a breeze, even the local dates change as you switch through multiple time zones. But it’s the hour-wise different time zones that have been marked on the inner- bezel, that make this watch just a little complicated, especially if you wanted to know the time back home in a flash. Having the 24 cities ring is not bad, you have the time of the world on your wrist without having to do anything at all. But not really advised for quick glances.

The TravelTec, surprisingly gets the brownie points in terms of user friendliness. You have to refer to the multiple time zone reference mentioned on the case back, and once you’ve got a hang of it, you can quickly glance through your desired three time zones by a single push of its “revolutionary mono-pusher” at 10 o’clock. For a man who does his business around the world and has to keep a check back at his own office, this watch is ideal for those quick glances and really, does the job better.

3. Comfort: Nice to see, good to hold, a pleasure to wear?

Having a watch with a plethora of complications obviously means it will be slightly bulky on the wrist and this is exactly where the TravelTec falls short compared to the IWC. It is a solidly built watch but a tad bit heavy on the wrist. Maybe not ideal for everyday wear; and maybe Carl F. Bucherer realized this themselves, which is why they compensated the slightly bulky case with a comfortable leather strap.

The IWC Pilot’s Worldtimer, on the other hand, is extremely comfortable compared to the TravelTec. And this is because the case is definitely thinner and the clasp leather strap adds to not just comfort but the iconic look of the Pilot’s collection. Points to IWC for overall comfort surely.

4. Value for money – Who gives you more bang for the buck?

The IWC Pilots Worldtimer retails in India for approximately Rs. 607,000. But what you get in return is an iconic watch, a reliable movement, and a fairly rare world timer coming from IWC, all as a package. A Pilot’s watch has always been a part of my bucket list and if it’s for you as well, you should consider adding this to your collection.

But when it comes to giving more bang for the buck? The TravelTec for sure. The watch hasn’t gained respect in the watch making world overnight. For eleven years now, Carl F.Bucherer’s TravelTec has been the preferred choice and loved among travelers and connoisseurs. Retailing for approximately Rs. 760,000 in India, you might say it’s a little more expensive but for a fraction of a difference, you’re getting so much more, i.e. a triple timezone and a chronograph with an extremely reliable Swiss movement.

As much as I love the IWC, the watch that gives you ‘more for less’ would surely be the TravelTec.

And with this, we wrap up our first clash! I hope you all enjoyed it as much as we did to bring this to you.

You can decide the next clash by mentioning which watches you would like us to compare, in the comments section below!