Not everything in Silicon Valley revolves around high-tech consumer electronics. There are many affluent tech enthusiasts drawn to the allure of traditional mechanical watches. To cater to their passion, a watch enthusiasts' club was founded in Silicon Valley in 2018. Known as Collective, their first collaborative work was the Zenith El Primero Chronomaster C.01, reimagined in silvery-white to match the design language of modern tech products, followed by the H. Moser & Cie. Pioneer Centre Seconds C.02 with a rotating 12-hour bezel for tracking time in two zones. For their third collaboration, Collective Horology turned to IWC Schaffhausen to create an exclusive 125 pieces of the Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Edition C.03 ref. IW388105. The collaboration with IWC also marks the group’s expansion to London, where they hope to attract even more enthusiasts.
COLLECTIVE HOROLOGY
Collective is the first organized club of watch enthusiasts based in Silicon Valley, California. Founded in 2018 by brand marketing and strategy leaders Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, who worked with Facebook, Apple, and Google, Collective aims to create “collaborative watches for the enthusiast community.” Currently, participants can choose between two series: the Collective Series, which involves annual collaborations with a beloved watch brand, and the Portfolio Series, which commissions super-exclusive watches from independent watchmakers like J. N. Shapiro and Urwerk.
THE UTILITARIAN SPIRIT OF THE FLIEGERCHRONOGRAPH
The inspiration for creating the Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Edition C.03 came to Collective co-founder Gabe Reilly during a visit to the IWC manufacture in Schaffhausen, where he saw his favorite IWC model - the Fliegerchronograph 3706. Produced from 1994 to 2005, the 3706 model is iconic for IWC fans, marking an era when the brand moved away from frivolous tool watches with third-party movements to producing elite tool watches with in-house movements.
According to company co-founder Gabe Reilly: “C.03” is our love letter to IWC. With the IWC Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Edition “C.03”, we sought to create a watch that reflects our favorite era and IWC model - the late 1990s and the IW3706, the first Pilot’s Chronograph. This time and watch still live in the hearts of collectors worldwide. The brand was unapologetically straightforward, with no-frills Swiss-German design, showcasing serious watch credentials. In this project, we aimed to capture that spirit and bring it into a modern context.”
According to the technical specifications set by Collective, the IWC Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Edition C.03 ref. IW388105 is a reliable, no-nonsense watch “that you want to wear, and wear heavily.” The 41mm stainless steel case with a height of 14.5mm features matte surfaces with polished pushers and a screw-down crown. It is water-resistant to 100 meters.
Similar to the 41mm Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Spitfire released in 2019, which also adopted traits from early 1990s models, the model for Collective members has special features distinguishing it as a collectible piece. A distinctive feature of the Collective model is the date and day disc with a black background and weekdays printed in white with their German abbreviations (Mon=Montag). The clean, austere design is highlighted by a monochromatic matte black dial with large Arabic numerals and bold white markers. A triangle with two dots and prominent hour indexes on the minute-second scale emphasize the utilitarian appeal of the watch with three additional dials (a 30-minute counter at noon, a 12-hour counter at 9 o'clock, and running seconds at 6 o'clock). Another distinction is the use of white Super-LumiNova coating on the hands and indexes to enhance contrast.
COLUMN-WHEEL CHRONOGRAPH
The sapphire case back reveals the IWC-manufactured caliber 69385, an automatic column-wheel chronograph, part of the 69xxx family first introduced with the Ingenieur model in 2016. The chronograph caliber was designed and developed from scratch in collaboration with ValFleurier (Richemont Group's manufacturing facility) as the brand's entry-level chronograph to replace Valjoux ébauches. Comprising 231 components, the movement with a blackened rotor and bi-directional pawl winding system efficiently captures the wearer’s wrist motion, offering a 46-hour power reserve. The movement is decorated with perlage on the plate and Côtes de Genève pattern on the bridges.
AVAILABILITY AND PRICE
The IWC Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Edition C.03 comes with a black calfskin strap and a 5-link stainless steel bracelet. It is limited to 125 pieces exclusively for Collective members. The retail price is £6,450 or $7,150 USD. Those interested in joining Collective Horology and acquiring these watches can visit collectivehorology.com, where more information is available, along with a membership application.
More information on classic IWC Pilot’s Watches can be found at www.iwc.com.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS – IWC PILOT’S WATCH CHRONOGRAPH EDITION C.03
Case: 41mm diameter x 14.50mm height - stainless steel, matte and polished - screw-down crown - sapphire crystal front and back secured against displacement by air pressure - water resistance 100m
Dial: matte black - date/day window with black background and day in German - rhodium-plated hands and indexes with white Super-LumiNova coating - 30-minute counter at noon, 12-hour counter at 9 o'clock, and small seconds at 6 o'clock
Movement: IWC caliber 69385, manufacture - automatic winding - column-wheel chronograph - frequency 28,800 vph/4 Hz - power reserve 46h - 33 jewels - black rotor - hours, minutes, seconds, custom chronograph
Strap: black calfskin and stainless steel bracelet with 5 links
Availability: limited to 125 pieces, exclusively for Collective members
Reference: IW388105
Price: GBP 6,450, USD 7,150