I would like to share a secret with all of you. When I first got into watches, I fell for Rolex’s old marketing campaigns which sold the idea of a debonair explorer wearing a small, elegant, and cool watch. I immediately saw myself in that fictional character—who I imagined would be a French Sir Edmund Hillary—as I aspired and still aspire to be that person. (Too much information, anyone?) But the watch he or whoever else went with him allegedly wore to the summit of Mount Everest or left at Base Camp—who cares?—was a pre-Explorer 1 Rolex Oyster Perpetual with a while dial, applied markers, pen-nib style hour and minute hands, and lume. Back then I loved the idea of an elegant watch that doubled as a tool watch and which didn’t look like one. Back when folks, whether they were risking their lives to ascend snowcapped mountains or ran a successful business on Fifth Avenue, would wear it as their only watch. 

So I spent days, weeks, and months searching for a modern and affordable version of that watch and never found it. For a while I entertained the bizarre dream of owning an Explorer 1 although I cannot see myself dishing out that much money on one watch. So I hoped that a micro/independent brand would be kind enough, one day, to make a version of it but I wasn’t too hopeful. That was until Kuoe was created and specialized in small, superbly made, and robust everyday watches. (They get everything made in Japan.) So it was perhaps just a matter of time before they would release the Royal Smith 90-006, the watch we’re going to take a look at today. By all intents and purposes, I believe this watch is the one I’ve been waiting for all these years and now it’s here—on my wrist—looking snazzy and ready for any adventure. 

Specifications

Yes, Kuoe does make good watches. Technically they are made of the good stuff and, from a finishing standpoint, they punch well above their weight. So much so, actually, that I would feel comfortable saying that they make some of the best watches on the market for under $1,000. (Hot take, anyone?) So let’s get started. First, we find a fully polished 316L stainless steel case measuring 35mm in diameter, 41.8mm lug-to-lug, 10.6mm thick (including the domed sapphire crystal) and coming with an 18mm lug width. The Royal Smith 90-006 can be fastened to your wrist either by way of a fine leather strap or a straight end-link bracelet which comes in three versions: Bonklip, 5-link, and a Beads-of-Rice. The case-back and crown screw-down giving this model a very good 100 meters of water resistance. I think we’re off to a very good start. 

Inside the small case there is a premium Miyota 9039 caliber which ticks at 4Hz and has a power reserve of 42 hours. The movement is pretty but not gorgeous, a statement I can make because the case-back is see-through (although the nature of the crystal is unknown.) Being made, I believe, to either climb a summit or run a successful business, the Kuoe Royal Smith 90-006 displays good quantities of green-glowing SuperLuminova on the hour and minute hands as well as the hour markers. At the cardinal points, the lume is applied within the markers and everywhere else, it comes in the form of  small dots located outside the markers on the minute track. What do you think so far of this elegant and nimble everyday watch? I think it’s looking pretty good and why not now mention its price: $895 USD on a leather strap. 

Design

But as you may have gathered, what I really want to talk to you about is the design of the Royal Smith 90-006. The dial being the pièce de resistance showcasing a finely machined waffle pattern which extends past the minute track. Upon close inspection the pattern is indeed flawless and you would be able to sense it even without hovering a loupe above it. The domed sapphire crystal I mentioned earlier does a great job giving us a clear view of all elements we find underneath it, like the fully polished applied markers I also mentioned earlier, and the fully polished hands. The markers at the cardinal points look like directional signs equipped with triangular ends pointing inward, while the other markers are in the shape of golden bullets, sharp and legible. The hands, for their part, remind me of the tip of high-end quills with a base which narrows down towards the pinion. 

The rest of the dial is equally interesting (to me) as it truly shows the attention with which Kuoe designed and manufactured it. From the crisp minute hash-marks printed in black and the thin black surrounds around the lume plots, to the Kuoe logo and the few words printed below the pinion. And to be frank, the case is just as mesmerizing to look at for being fully polished to high standards even to the smallest of crevices between the lugs and the case-back. Kuoe left no square micron unpolished which is rather impressive. Moreover, the case has a classic, elegant profile with shorts lugs which widen as they seem to wrap around the sides of the case. Of note are the chamfers which are hard to see since the entire case is polished and the fact that the bezel sits in by a couple of millimeters framing the dial to make it appear smaller. 

The Heart of the Matter

The Kuoe Royal Smith 90-006 is the type of watch you have to study up close to fully understand what makes it unique. At first glance, it appears like numerous vintage-looking elegant everyday watches. But its seemingly simple appearance hides a level of visual and technical refinement which is equal to that of higher-end watches. In other words, it is deceptively simple yet very refined, and you need to linger on every aspect of the dial and the case to fully grasp its magnificence. Because although it is vintage inspired, it looks and feels much more than that, as indeed Kuoe meticulously designed each element carefully so that they work harmoniously together, and the high level of manufacturing and finishing binds them all together. Like butter binds different ingredients together to create something new and better. (Pardon me but I’m French.) 

As we know, its design was inspired by that of 1950s exploration watches and, probably, by other models as well from the same time period. As far as I know, there aren’t any modern watches from established Swiss or Japanese brands which have this dial layout, let alone at this price point. That is another strong selling point for the Royal Smith 90-006 which makes it shine like a delicate pearl amidst a bad batch of dull and monotone look-alikes. And at this point of the review I would like to say the following: if it ain't broken, don’t fix it. I often wonder why we feel the need to constantly reinvent the wheel, and when it comes to watches, sometimes the smarter thing to do is to bring back a classic design and to inject it with a noble dose of bespoke personality. Nothing more, nothing less. 

Conclusion 

We often hear people say that dive watches are the most popular type of timekeeping device in the world. Maybe that’s true, maybe it isn’t. And perhaps others would say field or GMTs are the most popular ones. What they have in common is the fact that they are tool watches even though some are more elegant than others. But I would argue that any watch with good water resistance and a robust caliber can be a tool watch as well. What we, watch enthusiasts and collectors, and they, watch designers and brand owners, have been overlooking is the inherent charm of yesteryear debonaire exploration watches. Smaller watches with elegant dials and cases, good specs, in other words watches we can technically and, more importantly, visually do it all with. 

That’s what the Kuoe Royal Smith 90-006 is to me and I’m glad I was able to spend some quality time with it. 

Thanks for reading.