Coffee Corner Watch Talk: The Low-Down On Dubai Watch Week And The Circula ProTrail Automatic

In case you want to visit the upcoming Dubai Watch Week that’s happening this weekend, please be aware of one very important thing: it’s being held in New York City. The watch fair, which normally takes place in the Middle East, has put itself firmly on the map of important horological events. The move to NYC is temporary, and it will put the important American market and watch culture in the spotlight. The watch event comprises panels, debates, and masterclasses. And while finding out where to go and what to do, I tried out the new Circula ProTrail Automatic field watch. Find out about the event and the microbrand field watch in this edition of Coffee Corner Watch Talk.

This year’s Dubai Watch Week Horology Forum, titled “Moves New York”, is a two-day affair that will take place from September 24th–25th in a 5,000-square-foot space at 875 Washington St. in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District. The eighth edition of the Horology Forum will focus on integrating watchmaking, fashion, and culture. Expect discussions, open conversations, and debates between collectors, industry executives, journalists, fashion specialists, artists, and enthusiasts. There will also be hands-on activities during masterclasses such as watchmaking demonstrations and a very relevant, quick watch-photography course. The NYC event won’t have a show element in the shape of brands showing off novelties. But there will be a presentation by auction house Christie’s about collecting, plus a chance to see the world’s largest collection of Patek Philippe electronic clocks. The exhibition includes 40 electronic clocks custom-made by Patek Philippe between the 1950s and 1980s.

Electronic Master Clock & Slave Patek Philippe Model L4031 from circa 1975 — Image courtesy of Antiquorum

Dubai Watch Week —  Get into a “ClickClock” debate

The goal of the Horology Forum is to nurture and share horological knowledge with the existing community and new enthusiasts. This is what Hind Seddiqi, Director General of Dubai Watch Week, has to say about it:

“Channeling the incredible diversity of talent, interests, cultures, and people of New York City, this edition of our Horology Forum has been purposefully curated to focus on our overarching objective of providing an educational platform for all attendees and fostering connections. We look forward to welcoming new and existing watch lovers to an experience designed to celebrate the passion of our community.”

The Horology Forum is free and open to the public, but you do have to register — you can do that right here. Something fun and educational will be a debate format named “ClickClock”. After a debate between specialists, the microphone is open to the audience. And since debating is energy-consuming and dries the throat, the pop-up “Sandwatch” cafe is the perfect on-site spot to recharge. And no worries if you can’t make the trip to New York. The panel and debate videos will be available on the Dubai Watch Week website from October.

Finding my way with the Circula ProTrail Automatic

The new Circula ProTrail Automatic is a “for the people, by the people” kind of watch. It is a modern take on the classic field watch that was co-developed with over 1,000 watch lovers. Voting was open on the Circula website to decide the shape of the case, the design of the hands and dial, the use of color, and the name as well. After the people had spoken, the brand went to work, resulting in an anti-magnetic, scratch-resistant field watch 2.0 with the name Circula ProTrail Automatic.

An angular, anti-magnetic, unscratchable adventurer

The steel of the 40 × 46 × 12mm case has modern angular shapes as well as brushed, hand-sandblasted, and polished finishes. An outstanding functional feature of the ProTrail Automatic’s steel case is that it is scratch-resistant to 1,300 Vickers. In comparison, the Rado Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic Diver that I reviewed last week is scratch-resistant to 1,250 Vickers. A specialist company from Frankfurt diffuses carbon into the surface of the case. That process, called Kolsterising, results in that impressive Vickers rating. Furthermore, the watch is anti-magnetic up to 80,000 A/m (~1,000 gauss) thanks to a soft iron cage. Inside the cage beats the automatic caliber Sellita SW200-1 with Élaboré Grade finishing. You can’t see it, however, because the movement hides behind the engraved screwed-in case back. It helps ensures a water resistance of 150 meters.

Watch love in the details

Just like the Circula SuperSport that I reviewed a while back, the ProTrail Automatic shows many little details that speak of watch love. There’s the screw-down crown, for instance, with a luminous Circula logo, a domed sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating on the inside, and a dial with a circular structure on the inner ring and a matte finish on the outside. The use of Swiss Super-LumiNova BGW9 on the hands and indexes looks nice and also very functional in a dark field. There are three variations of the new Circula ProTrail Automatic, and they all come on a sailcloth strap with a sandblasted stainless steel pin buckle. The ProTrail Automatic is available for pre-order until the end of September for a special price of €749. On October 1st, the price will go up to €799, which is still very reasonable. The first deliveries are scheduled for November this year.

For more info and to order the ProTrail Automatic, please make your way to the official Circula website.

I’m signing off for now. Have a great watch week, and I’ll see you in seven days for the next Coffee Corner Watch Talk.

Find and follow me at Lex Stolk • Instagram