151-COE "Corps of Engineers" 

Following up on the success of our 801-COE we decided to introduce a smaller automatic version of the Corps of Engineers design.  A perfect complement to its bigger brother, the 151-COE has many of the same design features that made the 801-COE so great, like the real glass Grand Feu enamel dial and classic style blued steel hands.   The 151-COE also has a beautiful RGM-made solid gold rotor specifically designed for this model.  

The 151 models have an American-made case in either stainless steel or titanium.  The thin bezel and large dial are a hallmark of the 151 models, in fact, the dial is larger than watches of a much greater size. The case is thin for its diameter and fits comfortably to the wrist.  

Movement Caliber: Swiss-made automatic, heavily modified 2892-A2, 23 jewels, 28,800 vph. Rhodium finish - Cote de Geneve lines and perlage, 52 to 56-hour power reserve. RGM American-made 14K solid gold winding rotor, hand-finished and decorated. 

Optional Movement: RGM- Sellita SW300-1 - Swiss-made automatic, 25 jewels, 28,800 vph. Rhodium  finish - Cote de Geneve lines and perlage, 56-hour power reserve.

Functions: Hour / Minute / Second 

Case: Satin brushed American Made 316L Stainless Steel or CP2 Titanium, 38.5 mm x 10.6 mm. Curved sapphire crystal, 20mm lug width, and water-resistant to 5-ATM. Case length from lug end to lug end 48mm. The 151-COE case has a different bezel than other 151 models, it's a bit taller for the thicker dial and it has a single radius curve.

Weight: 2.0 oz. in stainless steel

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The inspiration:

When the United States joined “The Great War” in April 1917, British and French governments made the arrival of American engineers their top priority. By the end of August 1917, nine newly organized engineer railway regiments, recruited largely from the nation’s private railway workers, had arrived in France. Since the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had adopted the General Railroad Timepiece Standards of 1893, they brought with them about 1,000 American-made Hamilton railroad watches that met those standards. Each watch incorporated several technical features to ensure easy winding, legibility and accuracy to within 30 seconds a week. In an effort to reduce reliance on transAtlantic shipping routes, the AEF Quartermaster Corps chose to procure more watches from within Europe, ordering from several Swiss companies. 

The original Corps of Engineer watches had real glass enamel dials, widely used in the watch industry at the time, though rare in modern watches. Since the beauty and depth of a real glass enamel dial cannot be simulated, the only way to achieve this classic look was to produce it in the same way. So the dial was designed and a master of the Grand Feu (French for “Great Fire”) technique was commissioned to make the enamel dials. Creating an enamel watch dial is a highrisk art. Enameling is a technique in which colored powdered glass is applied to a metal plate. The surface is then heated to a temperature high enough to cause the powdered glass to melt and form a new surface. The Grand Feu technique ups the stakes. The repeated baking of successive layers of enamel at extremely high temperatures ensures a uniquely crisp aesthetic while permanently setting the enamel. Using such high heat to create these beautiful dials also poses a risk: each time it is re-fired, the danger of cracking, melting or burning increases. With great risk comes great reward - the appearance of a real glass enamel dial is unmistakable.  

Similar to the original from which RGM drew its inspiration, the dial on the Corps of Engineers 151 is a work of art. The General Railroad Timepiece Standards of 1893 required that the watches have bold Arabic numerals on a white dial with dark hands. RGM’s model features an easily readable deep white glass enamel dial with large luminous numbers. The hands are also classically made of blued steel in a period style that perfectly match the dial and design of the complete watch. The luminous material on the dial and hands is non-radioactive SuperLumiNova.