Mark XII >> Mark XV >>> Mark XVI > Mark XVII; a long winded, hopefully informative rant
Wed, 28 November 2012 10:44
The number of messages I get asking for comparisons of the various IWC Mark watches has led me to type up this rant. It is long winded, makes unjustified assertions, and was written from the perspective of an armchair watchmaker. Please do not take offence to anything that follows, feel free to respond and please point out errors. The photos here were stolen from Google Image searches and I can't be bothered to cite specific data points but list a (non-comprehensive) collection of useful sites for further reading at the end. If you choose to read through this please keep in mind what the geniuses at Pixar put most eloquently, "In many ways, the work of a critic is easy. We risk very little, yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. We thrive on negative criticism, which is fun to write and to read. But the bitter truth we critics must face, is that in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful than our criticism designating it so."
Making the unjustified assumption that the collector considering the relevant watches is unlikely to consider the Marks X or XI due to their historical/vintage characteristics, hand wound movements, and also in order to simplify this comparison the following will deal purely with the automatic base model pilots watches (nothing more than the date on the dial). For perspective, these are the watches that made IWC *the* maker of pilots watches going back to the British W.W.W. standard and against which all modern models should be measured. No matter how Ford updates the Mustang, I'm always going to compare it to its muscle car-era predecessor.
Mark X
Mark XI
In short, the ranking comes down as follows:
Mark XII >> Mark XV >>> Mark XVI > Mark XVII
The Mark XII is more desirable than the Mark XV which is much more desirable than the Mark XVI which is only marginally more desirable than the Mark XVII. Feel free to make cross-model comparisons on your own but obviously it follows that the Mark XII is absurdly more desirable than the Mark XVII.
In terms of bracelets, while the "brick" style bracelet is both marginally more attractive/substantial than the "beads of rice" (BOR) style bracelet and employs IWC's awesome system for securing the links together/making adjustments easy as opposed to the Gucci-style screws employed on the BOR style, the latter is much more comfortable on the wrist.
First, here are the basic specs for the watches addressed here as well as photos on both strap and bracelet.
Reference
Mark XII / Ref. 3241
Mark XV / Ref 3253
Mark XVI / Ref 3255
Mark XVII / Ref 3265
Strap photo
Bracelet photo
Case diameter
36 mm case diameter
38 mm case diameter
39 mm case diameter
41 mm case diameter
Dial colour(s)
Black dial only
Black or white dial
Black dial only
Black dial only
Bracelet style
Beads of rice
Beads of rice or brick
Brick
Brick
Movement
IWC cal.884 (JLC 889/2 base)
IWC cal.30100 (ETA 2892 base)
IWC cal.30100 (ETA 2892 base)
IWC cal.30100 (ETA 2892 base)
Production
1993-1999
1999-2006
2006-2012
2012-Present
For those with time to waste and inclined to arguing over minutae on internet forums, the reasons for the judgement follow;
Dial font
Classic, compares favourably to the Mark XI
Classic, compares favourably to the Mark XI
Reminiscent of the font used for comic strip dialogue
Reminiscent of the font used for comic strip dialogue
Size
Classic, small by modern standards but respectable
Respectable
Respectable
Tolerable but pushing it
Movement pedigree
Impeccible.
The JLC 889/2 was also used in contemporary Master Control watches. The Master Control test is more rigorous than the COSC specs the rest of the industry advertises.
Some.
Think of the Ford F-150 of watch movements but sold by ETA (Swatch Group) to IWC in kits for assembly in Shaffhausen.
Some (earlier models)/None (later models).
At some point in production Swatch started delivering the 'F-150' movements fully assembled to IWC. This is significant as there was no longer any for the watches movements to benefit from the magical pixie dust sprinkled on movements assembled by IWC. Earlier models have some pedigree having been modified by IWC, later models (I've seen dates from 2008 to 2010 thrown around, I have no idea which is accurate) have none.
None.
None of these watches have movements assembled in Shaffhausen. There isn't even a chance to get lucky and find one that was. No pedigree.
Case size
Classic but not overly substantial on the wrist.
More substantial.
Even more substantial.
I could knock you out with this thing if I wasn't looking.
Date window
Nothing special.
I'd prefer it not be there but it's functional at least.
Standard.
Looks awesome with the white dial as you don't have the jarring effect of adjacent white/black. Clean, simple dials are best.
Great.
Date window finally matches the dial colour.
Stupid.
I appreciate that the window matches the dial colour. That said, the attempt to mimic the visual effect of an aircraft's altimiter is ill-advised at best and insulting at worst.
At best (assume the intent was purely aesthetic); If you want to know what the date it takes an extra second to lock onto todays date. At worst (assume this was intended to be useful) Wearing this watch means the designers assume you can't figure out what day of the month it was yesterday or it will be tomorrow based on today's date. I hope they were wrong.
Hands
Classic.
Classic.
Ehh- interesting flair but not what I want in a pilots watch.
Ehh- interesting flair but not what I want in a pilots watch.
Wholistic assessment
The closest you can get to the *real* pilots watches that made their mark in and after WWII without sacrificing the automatic movement.
Upsized version of the XII with a proven but very common engine which is only partially redeemed by having been assembled in Shaffhausen.
This is where things started to go wrong and move away from the classic styles that made IWC a legendary name in pilots watches. I find the comic book font intolerable.
Annoyed at the debacle that is the date window here it is hard to remember to be bothered by the font introduced on the XVI. Analagous to having one's nose broken in an attempt to distract from the pain felt from being punched in the gut.
Last note
Defenders of the new practice whereby Swatch delivers the movements to IWC fully assembled and IWC simply slaps them into their cases (interestingly enough bringing the firms closer to their traditional roles in some ways) defend the practise this by saying that Swatch makes the movements to IWC standards.
Acknowleding that reductio ad absurdum is not a gracious argumentative strategy, following this to its logical conclusion implies that the assembler of the movement (and perhaps then the case as well) is irrelevant. Part of buying an IWC is buying into the notion of the firm's history and the idea that a single watchmaker painstakingly assembled it on his own in the idyllic two story wood-stove heated workshop high in the Swiss mountains. Obviously this is not at all the case; that said, years ago when ebauche kits were delivered and the aforementioned watchmaker would change out the parts that were not up to IWC standards before assembling the movement (implicitly gracing it with the magic pixie dust in the air at the IWC workshop) there was at least something to the perception of personal attention and there being something *unique* about buying an IWC pilots watch. Nowadays if you buy an IWC Mark XVII as far as I know you're essentially getting the same product as the buyer of a Hamilton, albiet with a higher quality case and a pricier advertising campaign behind it.
Full disclosure: It should be noted that (not coincidentally) I own the Marks XII and XV. Also, although I've made a best effort not to embarrass myself here I have no doubt that spelling errors and probably factual errors made it into this rant. Please feel free to point them out accompanied by whatever comments/disagreements you might have. Ideally, having a collection of opinions on the various models in the Mark series and discussing whether the series is in fact in decline will make things easier for prospective collectors and/or help them avoid expensive mistakes.
Relevant sources:
Tweaking the Mark XII - Part 1 TimeZone www.timezone.com/library/horologium/horologium0041
IWC www.iwc.com