The C1 Bel Canto versus the C12 Loco – which Christopher Ward are you?
Tom AustinChristopher Ward is taking the watch world by storm right now, with the recent Alliance of British Watch and Clock Makers report highlighting that the Anglo-Swiss brand holds a 14% market share of the British watch industry. It has a wide and varied choice of models in its catalogue, but over the last two or three years, a series of releases has proven that the brand is capable of offering more than the average watch brand, for far less than average prices.
Two watches in particular stand out as the flagships that define what modern Christopher Ward stands for, bringing unusual concepts and complications to life while remaining accessible and offering unbelievable value for money. The first is the C1 Bel Canto, a visually and audibly impressive sonnerie au passage which is now instantly recognisable, and the second is their latest high-horology-disrupting range-topper, the C12 Loco. They are two very different watches with distinct approaches, but one thing I hear frequently when people discuss them is simple: which one do they prefer? So let’s settle this, which Ward are you? Team Loco, or Team Bel Canto?
| Brand | Christopher Ward | Christopher Ward |
| Model | C1 Bel Canto | C12 Loco |
| Case Dimensions | 41mm (D) x 13mm (T) x 48mm (LTL) | 41mm (D) x 10.37mm (T) x 47.5mm (LTL) |
| Case Material | Grade 5 titanium | Stainless steel |
| Water Resistance | 30 meters | 30 metres |
| Dial | Sunburst or laser-etched guilloché style | Brushed & textured |
| Crystal(s) | Domed sapphire | Sapphire front and back |
| Strap | Rubber, leather or titanium bracelet with folding clasp | Stainless steel integrated bracelet with deployant clasp or rubber strap with folding clasp |
| Movement | Sellita SW200-1 with FS01 module, automatic | CW-003, mechanical, hand-wound |
| Power Reserve | 38 hours | 144 hours |
| Functions | Hours, minutes, sonnerie au passage | Hours and minutes |
| Availability | Now, from the Time+Tide Shop | Now, from the Time+Tide Shop |
| Price | Starting at £3,195 | Starting at £3,795 |
Striking a chord
The Bel Canto needs little introduction by now; it has become the epitome of Christopher Ward’s brand image, and after an initially small and safe selection of dial and colour variations, it has begun to mature and develop with several different options that appeal to a broader audience. The watch’s design is centred around its party piece, the sonnerie au passage complication that sits at its heart, chiming for every hour that passes.
It’s this delightful complication that sets it apart from most, because most watches featuring a chiming complication usually come with a caveat: you need a savings account equivalent to a small country’s GDP to afford one. Christopher Ward brought high horology to the real-world enthusiast with the Bel Canto. It disrupted the almost gate-keeping-like culture that can happen in the watch scene, questioning the trope that only the most exclusive and elusive watches are allowed to feature such complications.
The design itself is a triumph; it’s not a small watch by any means, at 41mm in diameter and 13mm thick, but the grade 5 titanium case keeps things extremely lightweight, almost to the point you forget it’s on your wrist. The size is there for a reason; firstly, it houses the basics of a Sellita SW200-1 movement, but it balances the dial’s complex layout of additional mechanics, a modified jumping-hour module which operates the chime, while leaving enough clean space to play with colour and texture.
Since the launch, we’ve seen new dials appear, such as the gold or green guilloché of the Classic, or the sunburst red of the Andrew Morgan collaboration piece, The Red One. These alternative variations bring a fresh perspective to an already striking design, showing that Ward is satisfied with the gamble they took with this watch, tweaking the design and offering something new to keep the range interesting.
A lesson in locomotion
A couple of years after the Bel Canto arrived, whispers of something new on the horizon from Ward were picking up. There had always been an exciting thought of, “If they can do this, then what’s next?” surrounding the brand. However, the watch community was starting to rumble with more rumours. The luxury integrated bracelet watch for the masses, The Twelve, had launched, and while a great watch, in many ways, it was something we’d all seen before, and certainly not a ground-breaker like the Bel Canto. But it served as an excellent entrée for what was to come, and formed the foundation for the next chapter in Christopher Ward’s journey towards disrupting high-horology.
If the Bel Canto was the debut smash hit, the Twelve is more of a B-side banger – a great release, but not the one everyone remembers first. That difficult second album was still in the works, and it needed to be something special to keep that momentum going for the brand.
And so, the C12 Loco launched, yes, featuring that distinctive stainless steel 41mm integrated-bracelet case design of the Twelve, but based around something very different this time. It’s much more than just a traditional watch with a cut-away dial claiming to be ‘open-worked’. In a similar way to the Bel Canto, the dial is the movement, and the movement is the dial. The front face of the dial features exposed bridges that house the free-sprung balance and escapement, completely separate from the rest of the movement. At the same time, the back of the watch reveals other mechanics, such as the large twin barrels, which provide the movement with a whopping 144-hour power reserve.
The CW-003 movement in the Loco is a testament to Ward’s extensive R&D process and an exercise in ingenuity and creativity. Most brands at this level would opt for off-the-shelf items, perhaps with some relatively simple decoration, and run with that, but CW wanted to prove to the world that they mean business, and it shows. The exposed, elongated bridges across the front of the watch are lovingly bevelled by hand, along with polished screws, and the oversized bevelled cocks that hold the winding mechanism in place at the rear of the watch.
The entire aesthetic is deliberate and architectural; it makes you feel like you’re holding something special, mainly because so much attention and care have been taken on the overall fit and finish of everything from both sides. Lastly, there’s a symmetry and cohesiveness across the front, between the large dial at the top, the oversized balance wheel in the middle, and the escape wheel at the bottom.
Christopher Ward spent around five years developing the C12 Loco, named as such for the inspiration taken from locomotion, seeing that visually, you can see everything moving in unison. You can learn more about this journey directly from the brand itself, as the fantastic story is presented in a documentary on their YouTube channel, which was used as part of the watch’s launch. As we’ve seen before from the brand, there’s a small range of bold launch colours available: the orange, as pictured, alongside blue, black and white. The dial is split in half, with the upper half featuring a brushed finish that catches the light perfectly, and the lower half in a subtle microblasted texture, which helps to frame the exposed free-sprung escapement.
Once again, this is a great canvas to start with for Ward, as it’s almost certain that fresh, new colourways will be launched soon, perhaps with some alternative dial textures and finishes to spice things up even more. That pyramid motif from the Twelve, anyone?
What are they like to wear?
Both watches are pretty full-on experiences to wear, in general. They don’t tend to blend into the crowd, say, like a Submariner would. Instead, they both have oodles of character, which, if I’m honest, most other watches at this level cannot compete with. Okay, I will admit that the two models featured here aren’t in the most subtle of colourways, but why should they be? These are both conversation-starter types of watches, and as such, you want them to stand out from the drab and mundane.
The wear experience from a functionality perspective is comfortable; both watches are light and airy, especially on the supple rubber straps. Neither of them is too large or too small; they sit in the typical 40-41mm region for most wrists. While I could argue that a squeeze down to perhaps 38mm might be an improvement, it may detract from legibility, which is already not tool-watch-like. And while it’s great to look down and see that free-sprung escapement working away on the Loco, I must admit, nothing beats that subtle hourly “ding” from the Bel Canto, which I found to help me manage time and be more aware of time passing in general.
The verdict: which Ward are you?
As I mentioned earlier, every time I’ve discussed the C12 Loco with anyone, the topic inevitably raises its position as the flag bearer alongside the Bel Canto, and which one is preferred over the other. Technically, they’re incredibly different watches, with the Bel Canto focusing on an audible horological experience and utilising an existing movement to carry out the hard work. While the Loco is more of a showcase of how far Christopher Ward has come, it displays that they are not to be scoffed at when it comes to pushing the limits of in-house movement technology and design. Together, they are both contemporary-looking watches, but there is something more classical in the Bel Canto’s aesthetic that sets it apart from the ultra-modernistic Loco, and that might be the deal breaker for you.
The best thing about both is that, for watches that contain bespoke-manufactured, “rare” complications, for what they are, they are incredibly affordable, and that’s the real kicker here. Usually, watches with this kind of attention to detail and exploratory design are significantly more expensive and unattainable. For me, it’s a difficult choice, as I love the modernistic looks and technical prowess of the Loco, but the audible charm of the Bel Canto wins me over. (The Bel Canto’s cheaper, too.)
I tend to prefer round watches over integrated bracelet designs, and I love the more understated finish of the Bel Canto’s titanium case over the brighter and more polished steel Loco. We initially said the Loco is a Bel Canto killer, but in reality, the Bel Canto remains Christopher Ward’s debut smash hit that true fans love. The Loco is the next logical step for the brand, especially from a technical point of view, but if it’s charm you’re after, the Bel Canto pips it to the post, at least in my opinion. Anyway, both are available from the Time+Tide Shop, if you fancy picking one (or both) up for yourself.