There is a type of horology that strikes the perfect balance between everyday elegance and field-tested ruggedness. One that has for the most part disappeared from big brands’ catalogs in favor of either truly exquisite horological creations or highly purpose-driven ones. There are exceptions to the rule of course coming from the highest ends of horology which tells you at once that you would have to dish out a sizable amount of money in order to acquire one. Because today if you want a handsome timekeeping device which has the hidden personality of an SOB, well then, either you go the mainstream route—Rolex, Omega, and Blancpain—or the higher independent route—Christopher Ward, Serica, and Fears. Indeed the latter three examples do provide us with elegant and robust watches and one could argue that Fears does it exceptionally well and in respect of long-established but mostly gone horological traditions. Ya know, back when a dress watch was also a tool watch. 

Like many of you, I romanticize the times of debonair explorers and bold adventures that embarked on dangerous expeditions which often resulted in massive casualties and more unanswered questions. (Ah, sarcasm.) Not that mankind shouldn’t venture to the four corners of the earth, quite the contrary, but we do tend to idealize what these folks did and we want to imitate them by going on similar adventures and/or wearing similar gear. That’s why the Rolex Explorer 1 and Blancpain Fifty Fathoms have remained immensely popular throughout the decades. But…we yearn to wear these watches on a daily basis because everyday they remind us that either we could go on a bold adventure ourselves or that we already are adventuring in our own ways. As Seneca said, sometimes even to live is an act of courage and so not only should we wear watches that make us happy, but we shouldn’t deprive ourselves of wearing the right gear regardless of what we do. 

So, let’s talk about the Fears Brunswick 40 “Odyssey Edition”

Specifications 

Fears has been making elegantly robust watches for a century and continues to do so under the leadership of Nicholas Bowman-Scargill, the brand’s fourth Managing Director. The Brunswick collection is Fears’ elegantly understated hand-wound collection as it puts it but the “Odyssey Edition” is a different monster if you will. It was designed as a limited edition to commemorate the Great British Odyssey by which Angus Collins will solo row around mainland England, an event Fears is the official timekeeper of. Collins will be wearing a unique watch called the Experimental 01 and the Odyssey Edition (we can now drop the quotation marks) will be the version made available to the general public but in limited quantities of 100. The first main difference between this Brunswick and all other Brunswicks is the automated nature of the caliber within, a La Joux-Perret G101 (4Hz/68 hours of power reserve) which makes sense for a watch which commemorates such an endeavour. 

I personally wouldn’t want to manually-wind my watch everyday whilst being rocked by the waves. 

All Brunswick models are fitted with cushion cases which have the unique visual character of being both elegant and sporty, here measuring 40mm in diameter, 45.8m lug-to-lug, 13.4mm thick and coming with a 20mm lug width. The width but shortness of the case endows with it a delightfully muscular presence, at least it does so on my 6.50”/16.5cm wrist, without ever erring too much into the hardcore tool watch area. The crown and case-back screw-down for 150 meters of water resistance, the crystal is made of sapphire, the hands and hour markers are made of brass that is polished with a diamond tool and PVD-coated in Fears Blue, then filled with generous quantities of SuperLuminova X1. Whilst there are three options for fastening systems—bracelet, blue sailcloth and an Erika’s Original orange Marine National—the model I borrowed was shipped on the latter and I’m glad it was so for it creates a powerful mix of the rugged elegance I alluded to in the introduction. 

Design 

So let’s talk design because there is a lot to be said in that area. As we know, the Brunswick 40 Odyssey Edition is, first and foremost, a case. A cushion-shaped stainless steel apparatus endowed with a rounded-rectangle profile—the elegant part of it according to your humble servant—and rounded-rectangular lugs—the rugged part of it still according to your humble sevant—which appear, but are not, soldered to the case, and are thin and gently curve down towards the wrist. Fears endowed the case with a gorgeous juxtaposition of mirror-polished accents on the lugs, case flanks, the part around the lugs, and the fixed bezel, and horizontal brushed surfaces on the upper sections of the case and vertical ones between the lugs. I thoroughly appreciate the efforts Fears put into polishing the area framing the lugs which reinforces the case’s elongated and generally flat profile. That is an unusual detail to see on a cushion-case and a dual-purpose timekeeping device. 

This type of case is very much vintage and old-fashioned looking—Fears has been making versions of it since the 1920s—and therefore comes with a delightful onion-shaped crown, fully polished, which knurling is deep enough to make it easy to grab and operate despite its surface treatment. I find the combination of the crown and cushion case quite special as it strongly, and beautifully, intensely contrasts yet perfectly blends in with the dial’s layout and treatment. The latter has a discreet sector setup—notice the machined circle framing the applied hour markers—and two levels—the minute track is angled and separated from the dial by another circle. All dial surfaces are made of a matte lacquered finish, the main section of which displaying a granular treatment. This means the dial absorbs light which is an important feature of tool watches, whilst the PVD-coated polished brass hands and markers gently reflect it, creating yet again a contrast. And that seems to be a keyword with this model: contrast. 

And so we continue with that theme further examining the dial and what makes it utilitarian and elegant. First, the “Fears Hands” which are long, straight (they don’t taper) and complemented by tiny protrusions in the shape of thorns, which perfectly reach and align with the applied hour markers and minute hash-marks respectively. The hour markers are organized in large Arabic numerals at the cardinal points and batons everywhere else, a combination which is generally regarded as being that of proper exploration watches from the 1950s. The minute track for its part has a semi-railroad design, framed at its outermost section by a blue circle, and composed of deep blush hash-marks indicating the minutes and numerals indicating the five-minute increments, where those at the quarter-hours are highlighted in a deep red. Though the latter detail is almost impossible to capture in photos, it looks superb paired with the orange Marine National strap. Again, contrasts within contrasts now. 

The Heart of the Matter

At the heart of the matter is the fact that the Fears Brunswick 40 Odyssey Edition is, according to yours truly, the most accurate definition of the elegant tool watch the likes of which we haven’t seen a ton of in the past few decades. Besides the Explorer 1’s and Aqua Terra’s of the world, rare are the models from independent brands which strike such a perfect balance between the dressy—the cushion case, polished accents, onion crown—and the utilitarian—the water resistance, PVD-coated brass hands, sapphire crystal—in the way the Brunswick does. Looking at all other models from that same collection we can easily see that this one stands out, not as a sore thumb but instead as a majestic eagle, for its design and construction basks in contrasts, gentle ones and more intense ones, elegantly echoing of each other so that, should you own this model, you could certainly wear it in all and any circumstances and environments, either to stroll the streets of downtown Bristol or indeed row around the island of England. 

I’m glad that this type of watch still exists today and that there are brands like Fears which dare making them. The fact that everything changes all the time and that many houses of horology strive to be different and to make new and modern things fast and all the time, shouldn’t preclude others from making singular connections with the past and, therefore, with a type of horology which, perhaps to many people then and now, made and makes a lot of sense. The Fears Brunswick 40 Odyssey Edition is indeed a watch that makes a lot of sense both for Angus Collins and for us. That’s all I have to say about that! 

Conclusion

This masterpiece of horology is limited to 100 units and is currently available on pre-order on Fears’ website, with shipping estimated for late July 2025, once Angus Collins has completed his adventure. As we’ve seen with the Radcliff 39.5 Date Raven Black and more recently with the Arnos Pewter Blue, Fears’ creations are always made to the highest standards of manufacturing and finishing, and that is true also here looking at the Brunswick, a beautiful contrast of characters, shapes, and colors, which will logically remove $3,750 USD (excluding VAT)/$4,500 (including VAT) from your watch purchasing budget. For which price you will be guaranteed not only to own one of the most elegant versions of a commemorative timepiece, but one that is equally capable of accompanying you on whatever adventure you’re about to embark on. 

Thanks for reading.