Watchlords

Known today for its practical and sturdy pilots’ watches, German brand Laco is perhaps better known, in historical terms, as being one of the five brands (the others being Stowa, A. Lange & Söhne, Wempe and IWC) who made the original WWII B-Uhr (derived from ‘Beobachtungs-Uhren’, meaning ‘observation watch’) pilots’ watches for the Luftwaffe. Plotting precise locations during flights was the job of the Beobachter, or observer, who wore a watch over their flight jacket so that it could always be referred to quickly.

Coming in Type A or Type B designs, the former had dials which were black with white indices, white elongated sweep seconds hands, and sword-shaped hour and minute hands. Type B was characterised with a black dial that had hour numerals replaced by five minute increment numbers from 5 to 55, with an inner ring marked 1-12.

Although IWC’s pilots’ watches have become an enduring part of their line up, of the five, Stowa and Laco are the two brands that stand out for steadfastly reproducing/ paying homage to, the B-Uhrs, including 55mm sized models such as the current Laco “Replica 55 B Erbstück” or similar limited editions in the past, a nod to the original size. Laco, in particular, has all manner of sizes, dial colours and movement variants.

Over the years, many brands beyond the original five have released their (smaller) versions of both Type A and Type B designs.

https://horologium.com.au/2020/02/17/ne ... -gmt-grau/

That doesn't suck. The price does, but the wartche is OK.

Laco quality is off the charts, seriously. I'd wager that's one fine watch right there. I can only base it on the 400 bucks I spent on a lesser Laco model, and it's one of the best bangs for the buck I've ever experienced in the hobby. Laco case work and finishing is spectacular.

Nice looking watch!