On October 3rd, Vincent Deschamps of Mainspring Watch Magazine published his review of the First Flight.

We've been looking at this watch for so long that it's hard to see it clearly anymore. Every prototype, every revision to the crown and the hands, lives in our heads. So having someone who reviews independent watches for a living wear it and tell us what he found was exciting, and a little nerve-wracking.

His verdict, in his words: it's "legible, clean, vintagy, endowed with great specifications."

On the dial, he wrote: "Everything about the dial screams purposefulness and perfectly suits a vintage-inspired pilot's watch." That is exactly what we were after. A pilot's watch should tell you the time at a glance and get out of the way.

He also noted the lume, the brushed case with lugs that arch down toward the wrist, and the Miyota 9039 regulated to within ±10 seconds a day. These are the details we've written about in this Logbook, so it was good to see them noticed.

Then there are the two lines we keep coming back to:

"The watch is as good as I thought it would be and I sincerely love it! You did a wonderful job for your first release."

"The 1903 Watch Co. First Flight is a powerful storyteller."

That last one landed because the story is the reason we started: a pilot who loves watches, 12 seconds and 120 feet at Kitty Hawk in 1903, and the question of what an instrument built in that spirit would look like today.

You can read the full review on Mainspring.

Thank you, Vincent, for the time and attention you gave this watch. And thank you to everyone who has already reserved a First Flight. You're taking a chance on a brand that is still turning drawings into watches, and we don't take that lightly.

Reservations are open now at 1903watchco.com, and pre-orders officially open December 17th.

More soon.

— Pete