RPaige Watch is the brainchild of the extraordinary talented Richard Paige. With a huge passion for watchmaking he successfully founded several exclusive watch stores. Richard also established the incredibly popular website TimeZone.com. This site was widely considered one of the world’s most popular online portals for watch enthusiasts.
Presently he resides in Hawaii a location immortalized by Tom Selleck (in the highly successful 1980’s TV series Magnum P.I.) and normally not associated with fine watchmaking. His company Rpaige produces a range of limited edition handmade timepieces using vintage pocket watch movements. These have been carefully sourced and were produced mainly between 1897 -1929. Apparently the motivation for establishing the brand was his frustration at the limited choice of quality timepieces available at the $2,000-$3,000 price point.
When I communicated with Richard recently he was proud to send me images of his latest creation the sublime Hybrid Skeleton. The case of this magnificent watch measures a respectable 44mm x 14mm excluding the crown and lugs. This timepiece was specifically designed and custom made to the client’s requirements. The dimensions of this splendid creation would definitely appeal to a broad spectrum of buyers. I would also conceive this would be a comfortable watch to wear due to its to its elegant and classical design. Amazingly the timepiece weighs only 82.7 grams.
The Hybrid Skeleton is an aesthetically beautiful looking watch, which exudes sophistication and charm. All elements of this refined timepiece are reclaimed including the original Elgin dial and hands circa 1910. Richard has customized the hands with red enamel and has delicately cut a section from the dial to expose the mechanical movement. I love the sharp black numerals and second counter located at the 6 o’clock position. Overall the design is understated and in my opinion very effective.
The company has equipped the Hybrid Skeleton with a caliber produced by the renowned watchmaker Elgin. The movement dates back to 1913 and was originally developed for the Hunter pocket watch series. This vintage manual winding mechanism comprises 15 jewels and oscillates at a frequency of 18,000 bph. It is noteworthy that RPaige’s watchmaker meticulously cleans and restores every component of the movement to ensure the optimum performance. Richard also personally engineered and designed a new winding system for the watch using the original stem crown. Apparently this technically challenging process involved three separate manufacturing attempts, over the duration of nine months.
The Hybrid Skeleton is a handcrafted bespoke timepiece that was made to order and was priced at $2,700.