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Rlt 4 Review

25K views 17 replies 9 participants last post by  pg tips 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
RLT Watch Co. - RLT 4 Limited Edition 50 Pieces price £240

Movement : Swiss Automatic ETA 2824.2 with hack seconds. Tested and adjusted to keep time to Chronometer standards. Limited edition number engraved on the rotor.

Watch case : 43mm All steel case with screw on display back, 12mm Thick. Onion Crown. Thick Bevelled Mineral glass. Total weight (Excluding strap) Approx. 92.5 Grams.

Dial: Black with calendar and luminous figures. Luminous hands.

Band: English Hand Made Black 22mm Flieger strap with white stitching. Spare set of screwed bars are supplied with the watch.

These watches are assembled by ourselves, in England, from all Swiss parts. They are tested and adjusted to keep time to Chronometer standards.

Limited Edition of only 50 Pieces. Rose wood box with Limited Edition plaque. 12 Months Warranty.

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From an earlier post of mine:

General Comments

Pictures of the watch are all over the RLT forum and on the RLT commercial site; I can recommend PG’s review and photos.

The RLT4 is a large watch in the style of the Limes Nightflight Vintage and Glycine Observer; it is however in my opinion a better looking watch than either the Limes or Glycine. The case is 43 mm in diameter and 12 mm high and 53mm lug to lug, the lug spacing is 22mm and the watch minus strap weighs 92.5g (from Roy’s description).

Case

The case is beautifully made and if rumours are true about its source then we are fortunate indeed.

The case is a tasteful combination of brushed stainless steel on the sides, polished stainless steel and crystal display back with milled edges and a milled bezel. The brushing is uni-directional giving the sides of the case a nice satin sheen. The lugs are well engineered with screwed bars and no sharp edges.

The crystal is thick mineral glass with bevelled edges and sits slightly proud of the bezel so perhaps a danger of chipping with hard use (which non of us will do of course!).

The crown is of “onion†style, not sure about this I think I would have preferred a normal crown, however it is a minor issue. Onion crowns are certainly a lot more comfortable.

Strap

Roy has given the RLT4 a black handmade English flieger strap with white stitching and a nice taper from 22mm to 18mm at the buckle. The only criticism I have is that the stainless steel buckle is a grey colour, it would have been better to have a polished stainless steel buckle to match the case. Overall the watch sits well with the strap.

Dial and Hands

The dial is black with highly luminous numbers sitting inside a substantial seconds scale; a date window replaces the number 3. The RLT Watch Co. England logo sits under the 12 and between the 10 and 2. The hands are of squelette type and again highly luminous with a non luminous second hand. I like this dial, it has a nice vintage look but has retained a contemporary feel.

Movement

I know bugger all about movements and will leave comments to those that know. It will be interesting to see if it performs as well as my RLT5 (less than a second a day). I like the hacking facility â€" helps when you are accuracy obsessed. The watch number is engraved on the rotor and clearly visible through the display back.

Box & Papers

Box is really nice and appropriate for the style of the RLT4 â€" rosewood with brass plaque. There are no papers.

Price

For the price of £240 you get a lot of watch for the money, and with a limited number of 50 I have no doubt that this will become a valuable collectors item in the future.

I am really pleased with the watch it looks great on my 8.5†wrist, a real winner Roy thank you!
 
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#2 · (Edited by Moderator)
Here's my first impressions (refered to by John above) written the morning the watch arrived, 11th December 2003, a very nice early Christmas present indeed.

Well the first thing to hit you is the box. Wow. The cardboard box the wooden box comes in is nice but the rosewood box is gorgeous. I will have to take very good care of it. The Brass plaque on the lid is not over the top, nicely telling you where the watch came from and the number, mine is 03/50.

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When you open the box you immediately get hit with the wonderful smell of the leather flieger strap. Very nicely made with contrasting white stitching. You also see how big the watch is. Now I know Roy stated it’s 43mm but it just looks huge. Stunningly big and chunky. On my 6 3/4†wrist it looks massive and that’s just fine by me. I don’t know if I’m gonna like my 36mm Seiko as much now! Here it is next to my 38mm Hamilton!

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The dial is fantastic. The RLT logo is just the right size, nice to see it’s there but it doesn’t dominate the face. The lume on the numerals and hands is already glowing and I’ve only had it on a couple of hours. It’s gonna glow tonight, that’s for sure.

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The hours and seconds hands just break into the chapter ring and with the watch being so big you can actually watch the hours hand move!

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#3 · (Edited by Moderator)
The crystal is flat and very slightly raised out of the case with a nice bevelled edge. The coin edge bezel is very nice and sets the watch off a treat. The case is thick and chunky. It’s also brushed which I think is a nice touch. The holes for the screw bars are nicely recessed leaving the screw heads poking out by about ½ a mil.

The onion crown is fantastic. I’ve never seen one before but it is a revelation. After spending years trying to wind stupid little flat crowns this is just so much easier. It just fits between finger and thumb a treat.

Mind you I don’t think this will ever need winding by hand. I can see I’ll be wearing it every day, even if it’s only for and hour or so after work. The back as we know is see through and looks rather like a ships port hole. Not everyone’s cup of tea but I like view backs. I like to see what makes a watch tick. It also makes it possible to see the serial number engraved on the rotor, nice touch.

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#4 ·
Here's a picture of the Lume

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And a close up of the bevel edged crystal

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Comments by Forum member JayGee

Got home from an off-site meeting this afternoon to find a Royal Mail "We tried to deliver but you were out" card waiting for me. Hot-foot it off to the local delivery office, a quick (but careful!) couple of minutes with my Swiss Army knife and RLT-4 13/50 is now sitting comfortably on my wrist.

The word "Substantial" springs to mind, and not just for the impressive size of the beast either! Every single part (box, presentation/storage case, strap, crystal, crown, screw-in strap pins,....) gives the impression of being engineered to last. In spite of the proportions (and weight) it sits very comfortably on my wrist. It's nice to have something with a vintage vibe about it that's so instantly readable and, while it's certainly never going to be a "beater", I suspect it's going to be taking over from the customised (by Roy) O&W M-watch and Poljot "New Aviator" chrono as my principal everyday "working" watch from now on...

Roy should feel very proud of the result of the end product of all the time, effort, and frustration it's taken to get 13/50 out of his imagination and onto my wrist. I certainly do....

Comments by Forum member US Mike

Ah yes! RLT4 09/50 has arrived in Nashua, NH US and a striking piece it is.

The dial is huge in relation to the case and is extremely easy to read (especially for us with declining vision). Great attention to design detail; minute and second hands end in the minute track; coin edge on the back shows design coordination; superb finish. Hands and hour markers glow brightly when not in direct light. Am I going to have to lay it face down so it doesn't light up the room when going to sleep?

Onion crown and coin edge bezel complement each other and remind me of the Chronoswiss Orea and Timemaster cases.

A lot has already been said about the boxes - they shout CLASS (and $$$).

THANK YOU Mr Taylor for an outstanding addition to my collection at a price that doesn't require approval of the

QUOTE

"Watch Aquisition Limiting Factor"

Comments by Forim member John b

Roy & Co. and Lads & Lasses of the forum:

It would be redundant to add to the too numerous to mention accolades and superlatives already bestowed on the RLT4.

I just want to publically thank Roy for all of the hard work that went into the planning, design, and execution of IMVHO a great timepiece.

Thank you Roy; I love my #7/50.

John

Comments by Forum member Rockpile6

I just received RLT4/27 via FedEx and I must say; What a superb job! Even the box is well done. Please put me on your subscription list for future efforts

.

Comments by Forum member Willydale

My RLT 4 finally made it! Has been sitting at Fed Ex since very early Saturday morning. Guess I can only concur with earlier postings. IT IS A GREAT WATCH!! I am as happy with this watch as any recent acquisition.
 
#5 · (Edited by Moderator)
Comments by Eddie Platts

I don't know what all the hoo-hah is about Roy but 008/050 arrived today and I'm delighted with it. Wearing it now and it definitely makes a statement on the wrist.

Thanks,

Eddie

RLT4 on bracelet, photo by Forum member Texastime

Watch by RLT

Bracelet by: UTS

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I would just like to add, totaly unsolicited, that in the 5 weeks I've had this watch it's been barely off the wrist, (except when I'm at work).

It holds the same wonderment today as it did that exciting Thursday morning as I rushed to get pictures of it before I had to put it back in it's box and go and work an afternoon shift!

Time keeping on mine is a consistant +5 seconds a day and some owners are getting even better than that!

Roy has already had reports of other makers trying to copy his design! Not surprising as it is an absolute fantastic watch. I love it to bits, thank you Roy.

pg tips
 
#6 ·
Just received my RLT4 (41/50)

Wow
:)
! What a gorgeous watch, the pictures do not do this timepiece justice! The coin edge, the onion, the razor sharp dial contrast, the bright illum (very long lasting) - all spot on. The hand illum on my watch doesn't seem to contrast with that of the dial as much as shown above. The watch is large, but well-proportioned and the smoothness of the contours keeps it from being bulky.

The strap is the goods. The smell of leather permeated the room when I opened the box! I've had good looking watches, accurate watches, great sounding watches, watches that feel good on the wrist, but I've never had a great smelling watch before!
:lol:


Thanks Roy!
 
#8 ·
Do yourself a favour and spend another fiver and get a Brown USA oiled padded leather strap from Roy to go with it. Well worth the money!

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#9 · (Edited by Moderator)
Got my RLT4 17/50 this morning! And, you guessed it.... im very impressed!
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Ive had a great morning what with this and the Samurai arriving!
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The watch case is quite large but even on my small 71/4inch wrist it looks fine - its all what you get used to I guess! Ive been wearing my Monaco for the past 2 weeks and its a similar size tho the lugs make it longer. The coin edges top n bottom and the crown compliment eachother perfectly and the thickness isnt a problem. The back window is a nice Oris like touch and helps show off the quality of the whole watch. Its all very nice indeed....
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The face is very classy and the hands and dial printing add to the already quality feel of the rest of the package. The lune difference on the hands seems normal now I know more about lume and how its done etc but I do prefer them to be the same - hardly an issue tho especially as the hands are very detailed.

The strap is stunning! Its very thick and solid and smells like its made of acres of dead cow... which of course it is! If I get lost in the jungle for some reason then I hope Im wearing this watch so I can eat the strap when I run out of food! ummmm, steak for dinner!
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I fitted one of Roys deployment clasps to the strap and this is a great addition as I tend to yank too hard on straps causing them to get bent and they crack - not so with deployments of course.

All in all this is a great timepeice and I have to say its a lot of watch for the money. The workmanship and qaulity of the watch are beyond reporach. If, like me, youve been contemplating one of these for a while then I suggest you buy one as with only 50 ever being made then its really quite a special watch and I doubt you'll meet anyone else wearing one!
 
#10 ·
Nalu said:
Just received my RLT4 (41/50)

Wow
smile.gif
! What a gorgeous watch, the pictures do not do this timepiece justice! The coin edge, the onion, the razor sharp dial contrast, the bright illum (very long lasting) - all spot on. The hand illum on my watch doesn't seem to contrast with that of the dial as much as shown above. The watch is large, but well-proportioned and the smoothness of the contours keeps it from being bulky.

The strap is the goods. The smell of leather permeated the room when I opened the box! I've had good looking watches, accurate watches, great sounding watches, watches that feel good on the wrist, but I've never had a great smelling watch before!
laugh.gif


Thanks Roy!





Wearing mine for the second day, having tasted the basic delights of the quartz RLT6S first, I decided I liked the look of this monster. I should explain I'm a watch tyro, as you may all have guessed, going back into wearing wristwatches after twenty years of naked wrists. I like variety though, and wanted to try a heavyweight. Nalu above says it all in terms of my initial impressions. I have 31/50, so not sure how Roy is managing the sales process of this limited edition. It's gorgeous, heavy, solid, beautifully made and smells amazingly strongly. Love the view of the mechanism too. Happy customer here!
 
#12 ·
oldfogey said:
Wearing mine for the second day, having tasted the basic delights of the quartz RLT6S first, I decided I liked the look of this monster. I should explain I'm a watch tyro, as you may all have guessed, going back into wearing wristwatches after twenty years of naked wrists. I like variety though, and wanted to try a heavyweight. Nalu above says it all in terms of my initial impressions. I have 31/50, so not sure how Roy is managing the sales process of this limited edition. It's gorgeous, heavy, solid, beautifully made and smells amazingly strongly. Love the view of the mechanism too. Happy customer here!





Glad you like it.
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#13 ·
oldfogey said:
I have 31/50, so not sure how Roy is managing the sales process of this limited edition. It's gorgeous, heavy, solid, beautifully made and smells amazingly strongly. Love the view of the mechanism too. Happy customer here!





Im suprised theres any left but its great to see another one find a good home! In answer to your question - people can just take the next number in line (what most people do by default) or if you ask Roy he will let you choose from the numbers still available if you prefer - hence why I had 17 even tho there were watches with lower and higher numbers avaialble at the time. HTH.
 
#18 ·
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