Photo courtesy of Fortis
Why fret over a single-coloured strap when you can have 10?
Everyday is a colourful day with the Fortis’ Colors Watch set. Photo taken in zero gravity (weightlessness) during a parabolic flight experiement
COLOUR CHASE
The Fortis Color Watch is a good reason
why you should add more colour to your life.
By Timmy Tan
T
he year 2012 marks a significant milestone for Fortis as it is a time
for commemorating the 100th anniversary of the brand’s founding.
It is also a year of exceptional watches from the brand, among which
the Fortis F-43 Flieger Chronograph Alarm GMT Chronometer C.O.S.C.
which is limited to 100 pieces is the star of the year.
It is also a colourful year for the brand as it revives an iconic model first
launched 45 years ago in 1967. That model was known as the Flipper which
features a detachable watch movement in a case that could be fitted into straps
of different colours.
The Flipper was a plastic watch which had water-resistance equivalent to the
depth of 200 metres. It quickly established a good fan base and became a
bestseller, according to the brand.
“Always a pioneer, Fortis launched the colourful Flipper plastic watch with
a cheap quartz movement in the mid-1970s – almost a decade before the
Swatch,” writes Lucien F. Trueb in his book, The World of Watches.
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Fortis’ 100th anniversary celebratory timepiece:
the F-43 Flieger Chronograph Alarm GMT
Chronometer C.O.S.C., limited to 100 pieces
“The colour of the skin is in no way connected
with strength of the mind or intellectual powers.”
Photo: TANG Portfolio, taken with a Leica D-Lux 5
~ Benjamin Banneker (1731 to 1806), African-American scientist, author and surveyor
The Fortis Color Watch revives the spirit of the Flipper from the 1960s. Up to 10 different coloured interchangeable straps are available
Though there are differences in the launch year (Fortis states
that their Swiss plastic watch Flipper was launched much
earlier, in 1967), what is worth noting is that it came years
before Swatch watches took the world by storm.
Unfortunately and ironically, the Flipper quartz watch could
not “save” the company which fell victim to the quartz
crisis which began in the 1970s. In 1982, the company
was rescued by German investors Peter Peter and his wife,
Liese-Lotte. The couple retain control and ownership of the
company till this day.
[Editor’s note: Coincidentally, the year 1982 was also the
year the first Swatch watch was produced.]
The Flipper watch has had its fair share of celebrity fans.
Among them was British rock guitarist and bassist Ron
Wood from The Rolling Stones. Wood wore his Flipper
watch during the 1982 Rolling Stones tour.
Acclaimed American composer, conductor, music lecturer,
pianist and author Leonard Bernstein (1918 to 1990), best
known for his music in West Side Story was said to have
made his choice of a Flipper strap depending on his mood.
Even former James Bond actor Roger Moore was captured
on film sporting a blue Flipper in 1984.
Interestingly, the term flipper today carries negative
connotations in the watch industry where it refers to
individuals who generally acquire a highly desirable watch
and resell it almost immediately for a quick profit.
The negativity stems from the fact that there are selfish
individuals who abuse their positions in the watch industry
to acquire watches in high demand at steep discounts
and “flip” it by reselling it at a good profit to enthusiastic
buyers who generally wish to be among the first to own such
hot pieces.
Most times, such acts deprive genuine collectors from early
acquisitions of timepieces they truly desire. They then have
to postpone their eventual purchase date and in extreme
cases, drop their purchase idea especially when they become
annoyed after discovering that the watch so dear to them
was so easily bought and sold by traders (and flippers) before
they can even own an actual one. Flippers may also be one
reason why premiums are attached to certain new models.
In fact, the word “flipping” is defined as an informal word
that is used “for emphasis or to express mild annoyance,”
according to the Oxford English Dictionary. The bottom
line is: flippers do annoy genuine collectors who own their
pieces for the longer term.
Perhaps that may explain why the modern-day Flipper is
now called the Fortis Color Watch?
For the straps of the 2012 Fortis Color Watch, 10 different
colours are available: black, white, red, yellow, navy, olive,
purple, blue, orange and transparent. Black is a must-have
colour as it is more in tune to the Fortis look as an aviator
or space watch. The rest are typically fun colours which add
a new dimension to the emotions of the wearer of the
Color Watch.
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As in the past, the Color Watch utilises an
economical quartz movement. It also has the
date display, a feature which we discovered
many owners feel as being critical.
US$300-plus (S$399). This obviously makes the 10-colour strap set more
attractively-priced.
Due to its competitive pricing, whether the quality of the Fortis
Color Watch is superior to comparable Swiss-branded peers may
be debatable. It is highly recommended that potential buyers adequately
assess the quality of their intended purchase. One tip is to check that the
movement fits snugly and securely into the colour strap.
For us, the Fortis Color Watch 10-strap set is a cool kit to have, whether
for the young or the old. The idea of having different colour options
depending on one’s emotional outlook or mood for the day just makes
life very much more refreshing.
Photo: TANG Portfolio, taken with a Leica D-Lux 5
The silicone strap features a unidirectional
rotatable bezel which we appreciate, in
addition to the stainless steel butterfly folding
clasp. Similar to the Flipper of the past, the
Color Watch has water-resistance but it is
equivalent to the depth of 100 metres (the
Flipper of the past was water-resistant to 200
metres). Well, this is supposed to be a fun
watch and it should only be right to sport it
in the pool.
The Fortis Color Watch, in our opinion, is
very reasonably-priced, notably for the set of
10 colour straps at around US$700 (S$850).
This means each strap is around US$70 if the
quartz movement module is not factored in.
This seems very reasonable especially when
compared to alternative brands.
The three-colour straps set, from what we
understand, comes in the standard colours of
black, white and transparent, and is priced at about
Two plus-points are the unidirectional rotating bezel and the
stainless steel clasp found on the silicone strap of the Fortis Color Watch
Fortis Color Watch
Introduced in 2012
Features:
• Quartz movement
• Black dial
• Date display
• Mineral glass
• Unidirectional rotating bezel
• 42mm diameter case in steel
• Water-resistant to 100m / 10 bar
• Silicone strap
• Butterfly folding stainless steel clasp
Available in a set of 10 interchangeable straps or 3
interchangeable straps. Each set comes with one quartz
movement module
300
Fortis Color Watch
Introduced in 2012
An evolution of the Flipper watch first launched in 1967
TimeWerke Wrist Level: Three Thumbs Up!!!
LEGEND FOR TIMEWERKE WRIST LEVELS
One thumbs up
Worth taking note of
Two thumbs up
Worth a visit to the shops
Three thumbs up
Worth serious consideration