We're WT Author, the Microbrand that designs & builds limited edition watches from our own Studio & Workshop in Shropshire, UK. Let us look back to where it all started, September 2012, spending 1 year meticulously creating our earliest edition. The collection was successfully launched at 13:00, Friday 13 September 2013, spawning 7 further Watch Chapters since.

This April, we're celebrating our 10th Anniversary by launching 10 new tool watches on Kickstarter with an enticing selection of Rewards & Add-ons that commemorate WT Author. Each Variant's limited to only 50 serial numbers.

Every year, we continue to grow our legacy by charting the evolution of the wristwatch. We don't claim to be experts on how to successfully launch a product with zero budget, nor do we over promise with what’s on offer. From our experience, if it sounds too good to be true then it probably is. Others may make these mistakes time & time again but we survive by reinvesting our profits to build a watch that's always better than our last. This thorough, honest & straightforward nature's our most important quality. We stick to our promises & never let anyone down.

Here we are at the halfway point of the campaign to bring you a very special announcement - the Stretch Goal is now LIVE!

As it stands, the campaign has raised over 200% of its funding goal in just two weeks. We're so grateful for your support.

Now with two more weeks to go we hope to raise over 300% with your help...

And to say thank you, every FINAL COUNTDOWN watch backer will also receive an exclusive watch strap, upon hitting the 300% goal.

The hook & loop construction canvas band comes fitted with a WT Author branded rip tab fastening and will be made available in Black.

Animation by Ultra Studio, a Motion Design Studio based just outside London, specialising in CGI Animation & Motion Design.

We're WT Author & here are The 10 Rules of Watch Design...

Following last year’s successful launch of our 8th Watch Chapter [the Nº 1973 Diver watch] we're proud to announce the latest campaign for the FINAL COUNTDOWN.

Inspired from 1980s tactical hardware, the FINAL COUNTDOWN Watch Chapter introduces the aggressive aesthetic to our growing collection of timepieces that so far includes examples of aviation, racing & diving stories to name a few. We have taken every essential aspect from 10 legendary designs & modernised them from top-to-bottom within our own expertly engineered unique components.

The FINAL COUNTDOWN Watch Chapter's an automatic & hand wound mechanical wristwatch collection with a quick date setting, unidirectional rotating bezel & exhibition back. Each stainless steel watch head measures 44mm diameter [excluding crown] × 49mm length [lug-to-lug] × 13.4mm depth [excluding lugs] & is tested to 10 ATM [100m / 328ft] water resistance. The watch head utilises a beautiful combination of meticulously polished & carefully brushed surfaces. This has been elevated further with the use of highly polished silver-tone numerals on a matt black, ion plated, unidirectional rotating bezel. The robust crown features a bold, deep red anodised finish, consistent with all of our Earlier Editions. The screw down exhibition back, printed with the WT Author mark & uniquely allocated serial number, gives the wearer uninterrupted access to view the inner workings of the intricate mechanical movement. The bespoke watch head's finished with a matt black fluoroelastomer [FKM] band with a silver-tone brushed stainless steel branded buckle. The FINAL COUNTDOWN Watch Chapter features 10 contemporary designs applied to a fine matt dial, bringing a subtle contrast between the delicately painted artwork. Bespoke hour markers & other details are applied to the dial with a stunning Super-LumiNova finish except Nº 1981 Black [Stealth] & Nº 1985 Blue [Bird of Prey] & Nº 1985 Yellow [Doomsday].

Show your support. Select the 1st Pressing FINAL COUNTDOWN Etching that includes all 10 dial designs. The unique blueprints, acid etched onto a 210mm × 148mm stainless steel plate used by the Studio to approve each unique Variant. 1st Pressing Etching can also be selected in multiples as an Add-on to complement your chosen FINAL COUNTDOWN Reward at £60 / approx. $80 [you save £25] *¹.

The Nº 1980 Green Variant [Invincible] takes inspiration from aircraft carrier radar displays. HMS Invincible was the lead ship of her class of three light aircraft carriers commissioned by the Royal Navy on Friday, 11 July 1980. It features a contemporary solid sapphire green lens, overlaying a unique monochromatic dial with C3 Super-LumiNova details. The Variant's finished with a gunmetal, matt stainless steel head plate.

The Nº 1981 Black Variant [Stealth] is designed in accordance with features to make detection by radar or sonar difficult. The first flight of the single-seat, twin-engine Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk took place on Thursday, 18 June 1981. It features a jet black dial with tonal design details. The Variant's finished with a black ion-plated, matt stainless steel head plate.

The Nº 1982 Grey Variant [Squadron] references the iconic attitude indicator found in tactical aircraft. The first Tornado GR1 was received by the Royal Air Force on Wednesday, 6 January 1982. It features a contrasting grey & black dial, incorporating a vivid orange hazard chevron minute track & C3 Super-LumiNova details. The Variant's finished with a silver-tone, matt stainless steel head plate.

The Nº 1983 Red Variant [Altitude] takes visual cues from the launch of long-range, all-weather, defence systems. Block II variants were all tested by October 1983.

It features an exquisite solid sapphire red lens, overlaying a unique monochromatic dial that incorporates a hazard chevron minute track & Super-LumiNova details. The Variant's finished with a silver-tone, matt stainless steel head plate.

The Nº 1984 White Variant [Orbit] envisages a vast network of satellites that played a prominent role in global defence. The Strategic Defence Initiative [SDI], derisively nicknamed  the "Star Wars program", was launched in 1984. It features an impressive stark white dial, incorporating beautifully  decorative artwork & Super-LumiNova details. The Variant's finished with an ion plated black, matt stainless steel head plate.

The Nº 1985 Blue Variant [Bird of Prey] includes a visual reference from the Type B British roundel. The insignia can be found on the British Aerospace Harrier II. It's first flight was Tuesday, 30 April 1985. It features a contrasting blue & deep red dial with tonal design details. The Variant's finished with an ion plated green, matt stainless steel head plate.

The Nº 1986 Yellow Variant [Doomsday] captures a moment in history that catalogued a series of catastrophic global events. It features a magnificent yellow dial against highly contrasting jet black design details. The Variant's finished with an ion plated bronze-tone, matt stainless steel head plate.

The Nº 1987 Orange Variant [Vanguard] displays the instantly recognisable submarine radar display. The Vanguard-class submarine ‘Victorious’ was laid down Thursday, 3 December 1987. It features unique painted orange artwork with Super-LumiNova details. The Variant's finished with an ion plated bronze-tone, matt stainless steel head plate.

The Nº 1988 Phantom Variant [Eagle] references markings from instrument panels found on tactical jet aircraft. The first production of the F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft was made in 1988. It features turquoise & Super-LumiNova dial details contrasting  against a dark grey dial, & a vivid yellow hazard chevron minute track. The Variant's finished with an ion plated gunmetal, matt stainless steel head plate.

The Nº 1989 Khaki Variant [Guardian] takes inspiration from tactical aircraft camouflage. The AH-64 Apache was first used in combat in 1989. It features tonal & Super-LumiNova dial details set against a khaki dial.  The Variant's finished with an ion-plated green, matt stainless steel head plate.

The type 316L stainless steel watch head securely houses the intricacies of the delicately assembled mechanical movement, displaying its complexity through the uninterrupted rear lens. It has been designed to fit perfectly on the wrist within a robust & solid watch head that has been assembled to be put through its paces. The result's a timepiece with a 44mm diameter [excluding crown], a length of 49mm [lug-to-lug], contained within a depth of 13.4mm [excluding lugs] & a lug width of 22mm.

The bold unidirectional rotating bezel offers quick functionality through substantial grip areas on the edge of the component. The high contrast aesthetic presented through the ion plated, black surface & silver-tone markers is enhanced further by a strong combination of matt & highly polished finishes. The unidirectional ratcheting mechanism stops any accidental movement  to the bezel thus avoiding any chance of less time being recorded.

The intricately machined screw down exhibition back includes deep, tooled recesses to reflect our established  signature "poker chip" aesthetic influenced by our Earlier Editions. The component includes a robust gasket to create a powerful seal that ensures water resistance tested to 100m / 10 ATM. The exhibition back's fitted with a lens to ensure the watch retains its maximum water resistance whilst offering an uninterrupted presentation of the mechanical movement's inner workings. The stable construction with precisely defined architecture has been designed & machined to be as beautiful as every other component on the watch. The rear lens is finished with our intricately printed mark & serial code to indicate its allotted number in the limited edition Watch Chapter.

The custom-machined, screw down crown enhances the water resistance. To defend the component from accidental knocks or other interactions, it's housed within a substantial crown guard that flows directly from the lines of the lug straight into the side of the watch head. The crown's deliberately placed at the 4 o'clock position with lugs that fall tightly to the watch head, avoiding any discomfort to your wrist.

The solid sapphire crystal lens is constructed in extremely high temperatures & made up of crystalline aluminium oxide. Each item's precisely cut with diamond saws that are then grinded & polished into shape for the finished product. It offers significantly more scratch resistance vs. traditional glass, plastic or acrylic crystal as well as being extremely strong & shatter resistant. The solid sapphire crystal lens has an identical hardness to natural sapphire.

The watch dial is where we can be the most expressive. The FINAL COUNTDOWN watch comes in 10 Variants. Each component carries a specific correlation of meticulously designed hour, minute & second indices. The result's a timepiece that’s rugged, reliable & legible.

The highly distinctive minute, hour & second hands are substantially sized with a combination of brightly coloured gloss paint  & Super-LumiNova coatings. The bold forms have been designed to be easily read & visible against a dial if it's in total darkness.

Super-Luminova is based on a non-toxic  formula consisting of strontium aluminate. This is one of several powerful luminous pigments available in the watch industry today. We have opted for a light green lume for the FINAL COUNTDOWN.

Made from a custom high-performance fluoroelastomer [FKM rubber], the quick release FINAL COUNTDOWN watch band's durable & strong, yet surprisingly soft. The smooth, dense material drapes elegantly across your wrist & feels comfortable next to your skin.

Every Variant comes accompanied by the following artefacts:

Limited edition watch sketch print with signature & corresponding code to match the Variant's serial number.

Limited edition technical drafts with signature & corresponding code to match the Variant's serial number.

Capturing the FINAL COUNTDOWN watch build process.

The FINAL COUNTDOWN story visualised within a beautifully formatted booklet.

Our packaging has been engineered to be 100% reusable & recyclable, as well as providing a lightweight solution to reduce wasteful distribution. We endeavour to use recycled stock at every possible opportunity. The inherent beauty of this repurposed material's adorned by our own exclusive artwork.

You may be responsible for duties, fees & taxes applicable in your region. Check out https://www.simplyduty.com/import-calculator/ for an estimate of what may be required.

If you're new to WT Author or if you have some gaps in your collection & can't wait until November then get your hands on one of our Earlier Editions. We're offering Add-on Rewards that save £150 off RRP, hot off the assembly bench & shipped by July 2022.

Simply pledge for an 'Earlier Edition: Automatic Variant' or 'Earlier Edition: Quartz Variant' Add-on Reward, we will contact you after the campaign end to select your chosen watch *².

Visit https://bit.ly/automatic-kickstarter for more information.

Visit https://bit.ly/no-1905-kickstarter for more information.

Visit https://bit.ly/no-1914-kickstarter for more information.

Visit https://bit.ly/no-1929-kickstarter for more information.

Visit https://bit.ly/no-1934-kickstarter for more information.

Visit https://bit.ly/no-1940-kickstarter for more information.

Visit https://bit.ly/no-1953-kickstarter for more information.

Visit https://bit.ly/no-1968-kickstarter for more information. 

The Nº 1980 Green Variant [Invincible] lens clarity will be improved significantly in final production.

   

*¹ Pound Sterling [GBP] to United States Dollar [USD] conversion correctly estimated at time of publication.

*² £150 saving on all Earlier Editions will be conditional on making a pledge on any physical FINAL COUNTDOWN Reward. Collectors must retain the FINAL COUNTDOWN Reward after delivery to remain qualified for £150 saving on all Earlier Editions or be charged full price if FINAL COUNTDOWN Reward is returned. This option's available for 14 days after delivery.  Each Variant is strictly limited meaning all Earlier Edition Add-on Rewards will be processed on a "first come, first served" basis after the campaign end & priority will placed on fulfilling early Backers primarily.