Jack Mason is a watch brand so American I wouldn’t be surprised if one of their watches got up, put on a cowboy hat and a pair of spurs and jumped into the nearest rodeo. However, while you might expect their watches to be as big and bold as a southern barbeque – and some of them are – they’re no strangers to more restrained and elegant design too. Case in point, the new Canton Day-Date, a daily wear timepiece with a classy calendar display and guilloché finish.
The Canton was previously introduced as a time and date model, meaning the primary update here is the introduction of the days of the week display at 12 o’clock as well as new colours and a new dial texture. The days function sits in a semi-circular arc between the 11 and 1 o’clock hour markers with the days written out in full. It’s a format made iconic by the Rolex Day-Date and you can definitely feel that influence here, although Jack Mason avoids too much comparison thanks to the 6 o’clock position of the date with a magnification lens below the sapphire crystal rather than above it – giving the display a markedly different layout.
Plus, where Rolex’s Day-Date predominantly has a sunray brushed finish across its face, the Jack Mason Canton Day-Date uses guilloché. Guilloché is a style of engraving that creates dramatic geometric patterns like the cross-spiral of diamonds seen here. It’s a technique traditionally performed by hand but in modern watchmaking the term is also used for milled engraving by equipment like CNC machines. For a modern brand like Jack Mason founded in 2015, the latter is the most practical option.
There are three colours of dial available: Slate, Lagoon and Chocolate. Slate is a cold, grey-blue tone that reminds me of ice while Lagoon is much more of a teal/green-blue like tropical waters. Chocolate is pretty self-explanatory in brown, though it does feature some extra accents absent on the other models such as the gold-coloured hands and hour markers.
Housing this updated dial is a 41mm diameter steel case with a 12mm thickness. It’s built for everyday wear with 150m water resistance protecting it from the weather as well as any accidental spills or pool-side related incidents. It has a smooth bezel and brushed lugs that lead into a three-link steel bracelet fitted with micro-adjustment clasp.
Inside, and visible through the exhibition caseback, is the Sellita SW240-1 top grade movement. It has a 40-hour power reserve and an accuracy of +/- 5 seconds per day (regulated in the USA). It’s fitted with a custom gold-coloured rotor with a curving profile inspired by the horns of longhorn cattle – did I mention they’re a Texan brand? That rotor is set against a backdrop of fine finishing that includes perlage, blued screws and brushing.
It’s priced at $1,849 (approx. £1,350). At that price it’s a great affordable alternative to high-end, luxury daily calendar watches like the aforementioned Rolex Day-Date or even the Tag Heuer Carrera Day-Date which is near enough triple the price at £3,750. Plus, the Jack Mason Canton Day-Date is more than just a value proposition thanks to a distinct layout and guilloché finish. It’s available from August 28th.
Price and Specs:
More details at Jack Mason.
