1776 Atelier Celebrates Independence of the United States and Watchmaking with the Liberty 250

The resurgence of watchmaking in the United States is real. But not through what it used to be in the past, when American watches were produced in large quantities on an industrial scale. Should we complain? Absolutely not. Thanks to names such as RGM (a veteran compared to the rest), J.N. Shapiro or Keaton Myrick, we’re witnessing the birth of a very active American independent watchmaking scene. Talking about independence, another name should be mentioned: 1776 Atelier. A date with a strong meaning, as the independent American watchmaking company based in Texas and Ohio has just presented the Liberty 250, a 25-piece gold watch created for the 250th anniversary of the United States.

First of all, 1776 Atelier… Founded by Jason Lu and Zach Smith, the young brand is based in Texas and is part of a handful of brands trying to restore the American watch industry. Lu didn’t start his career in this field, but is a self-taught watchmaker who started by restoring pocket watches, later mentored by Donat Kornagel of DK Precision and Philippe Narbel. Smith is a WOSTEP-trained independent watchmaker and precision machinist based in Ohio. With 1776 Atelier, the duo aims at creating high-end, finely finished watches made in the USA, in small quantities, “with an emphasis on traditional craftsmanship, in-house movement manufacturing, transparent sourcing, and hand finishing,” as claimed by the brand.

The Liberty 250 watch, as you could have guessed from both the name of the timepiece and the brand, is dedicated to the celebrations of the 250th anniversary of the United States. But don’t expect loud Stars and Stripes features and red-and-blue accents. The Liberty 250 watch is classical, deeply hand-decorated and more restrained than expected, considering the overall theme. The watch is housed in an 18k rose gold case manufactured by RP Uhrgehäuse in Germany to 1776 Atelier specifications, measuring 41mm in diameter. The case is polished on top, brushed on the flanks, features a concave bezel, sapphire crystals on both sides and is water-resistant to 50 metres. But that’s not the interesting part of the story here.

What matters is the movement and the view through the front sapphire, thanks to the absence of a classic dial that gives the movement the right to express itself entirely. Let’s start with the obvious and the non-American bits: the movement’s architecture is based on the gear train and calculations of a Unitas 6498 pocket watch calibre – like many other indie watchmakers. But it’s more than just a game of outsourcing a movement and transforming it. 1776 Atelier claims that more than 90% of the movement is manufactured in-house, including the main plate, bridges, wheels, screws, balance, and regulating components. The primary movement components are produced from raw American-sourced brass, ground to flatness using restored vintage machines before machining.

Several improvements to the original 6498 base have been made, for instance, by replacing the stock Etachron system with a free-sprung balance, and four screws recessed into the balance rim. It still beats at a slow but coherent pace of 18,000 vibrations/hour. Then comes the beautiful part of the story: decoration, which is, like the rest, done on American soil. Finishing includes hand anglage, black polishing, solarisation grinding, hand engraving, thermal colouring, and hand-finished steelwork. The openworked architecture of the movement made it possible to have 224 internal angles, which requires over 200 hours of hand craftsmanship. The back of the movement is also decorated to a high degree, with Geneva stripes, media blasted surfaces and anglage.

And if that wasn’t enough, the dial element, a layered construction featuring a scalloped design, also incorporates 62 internal angles. Time is read thanks to a pair of handmade two-piece hands, which are shaped, fitted, polished, riveted and thermally coloured (in a plum tone) by hand. As a watch made to celebrate a quarter of a millennium of existence for the USA, the 1776 Atelier Liberty 250 does come with a certain amount of references, such as star-shaped hour markers.

Last but not least, each of th 25 Liberty 250 watches will be delivered in a handmade wooden presentation box crafted by an artisan woodworker in Arizona. A small piece of authenticated wood from a beam originally installed in Independence Hall in 1735 is incorporated into every box. Available from 1776 Atelier directly or through authorised retailers, the Liberty 250 watch is limited to 25 pieces and priced at USD 44,000 excluding taxes. More details at 1776atelier.com.