I have to admit that I am not really into cars, and quite honestly I really hate driving. I do love to drive fast though. It’s not necessarily the driving part that I hate, it’s the other drivers that make me hate the experience. Muscle cars of the 1960’s and 1970’s will always have a special place in my heart. I used to own a 1969 Plymouth Roadrunner. That car I really liked, it was a work of metal art. I also am loving how a lot of the muscle cars are being redone with a modern take. The Challenger is my favorite of the updated modern cars and it is on my want list which I am currently saving for one for next year. So I do love certain cars and I do love driving, just on my terms. That’s what I respect about Gorilla Watches, they have merged the world of muscle cars with the world of watches but they did it on their terms. Not a rehashed design here, not a homage piece, something unique and refreshing in terms of design. Let’s check out what’s “under the hood” here shall we?
When the Phantom Black Fastback arrived the whole watch had my attention. Usually the dial or the case grab my attention first, but there was so much to take in at first I honestly didn’t know where to focus my attention. This is definitely not a bad thing either my friends. When my eyes and mind finally caught up with each other, I did go to the crown first. With a car, is the rear-end your favorite or is the front-end your favorite? Well just like a car and favorite parts, a watch shares a similar preference system especially when breaking down details, and the crown is my favorite part of a watch. A crown design and function can honestly make or break a watch purchase for me.
The crown on the Fastback certainly passed my on the lot inspection in terms of design. An oversized crown, check! Gorilla Watches went with a unusual choice in terms of shape, the Phantom Black Titanium crown is triangular which is pretty damn cool. Gripping this beast is extremely easy, just take a look at the edges of this crown together with the size/shape, this crown grips and operates like a crown lovers dream. When I was out on the photoshoot portion of this review, it was in the mid 20’s temperature wise, so I was switching between gloves and no gloves. The crown was so easy to use both ways whenever I had to reset the time to 10:10 for my pictures. This crown has so much detail I really enjoyed looking at it from behind the lens. The crown guards are almost just as interesting as the crown itself in design and because that are integrated from the forged carbon layer of this multi layered case.
The 44mm case is made up of different layers and each layer is made of a different material. The fixed bezel for example is made of bead blasted ceramic which gives the bezel a stealth appearance and has hydrophobic coating ensures protection against blemishes. The case itself is made of forged carbon which lends itself to the comfort of the Fastback in terms of overall weight vs. overall size. The same can be said for the Titanium caseback. The caseback features the badass Gorilla Watches Gorilla logo which inspired my art piece for this review. These layers come together making for a very satisfying wrist presence. The square shape of the case offers a nice alternative to the classic round shaped case that I have been accustomed to. This case has amazing wrist presence especially on the super soft camo rubber strap. Though this case wears big, it is super comfortable because of the ultra light materials (110g total weight) that Gorilla Watches used here.
With a great unique case design one would only hope that the dial would follow suit. Hell that is only natural right? The Gorilla design team’s hard work to come up with a fitting dial for their Fastback series really shows when you take the time to see all the little details that come up big on the design delivery. Honestly what detail do I start with here, seriously there are a lot. The hour hand has to be one of the most unique hour hands that I have seen. It really reminds me of the spoilers from the muscle cars of the 1970’s. I didn’t realize that the white, semi circle was actually part of the hour hand, I thought that it was part of the dial itself. The white portion itself is open where the next layer of the dial can be seen through it offering some nice overall depth to this dial.
There is a really cool correlation between the second hand and the minute hand that goes further that the typical hand relationship. Taking a closes look at the minute hand as the second hand crosses over it, the second is the exact shape of the skeletonized portion of the minute hand. A very cool and well planned out design detail. Gorilla nailed this design and which was also carried over to the length of both hands. The minute and seconds hand both extend quite far, almost touching the inner chapter ring. This is where I prefer my hands on a watch to reach from both a design standpoint and from a functionality standpoint. This of course looks better aesthetically, but it also helps me when it comes to making a more precise timing measurement. The dial has a fantastic old dashboard feel to it and the green tinted numeral style and layout is so reminiscent of the speedometer on my old Roadrunner. What I like about this dial is that it is extremely unique and it is busy but it is kept in the rhelm of legibility.
I am really drawn to unique designed watches personally especially in the overflowing sea of homages and rehashed designs. I might sound like a broken record here, but it is true. How many Sub-Mariner clones do we need? Do we really need another watch that has Gas/Helium Escape valve engraved or printed on the rehaut of the watch? It’s just like how there are so many movies that are just remakes of older movies. Is this how lazy our society has become in terms of creativity and in terms of handing money over in acceptance of this laziness? I completely appreciate what Gorilla was trying to achieve with the Fastback watch. Offering watch enthusiasts a break from the monotonous designs that seem to flood the market more and more. I personally believe that Gorilla achieved their goal with the Fastback.
The Fastback Phantom Black watch is a very unique & well designed watch with an modern edgy wrist pressence. It’s design may not be for everyone, but fans of modern design and fans of classic cars will definitely appreciate this watch. I appreciate because it is a break from the monotonous. The dial and the case complement each other quite nicely with that same magic that the classic muscle cars had how the body of the car was complemented by the equally beautiful design interior. I have to admit that it took me sometime to get use to the lightness of this watch. I know that may sound strange, usually if there’s a weight complaint it’s because the watch is too heavy. I am used to wearing heavy watches so the curve for me is getting used to lighter weight watches. In my mind, a light weight watch feels “cheap”, but that is not true the this case of the Fastbreak.
I want to personally thank you for reading and as always your comments and questions are welcome below.
I would also like to personally thank Gorilla watches.
$880 USD
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Review Tests Passed:
*Easy grip and function of the crown with/without gloves on in wet and dry conditions
*Miyota 8215 accuracy rate -18 seconds per day
*Dial legibility test in light and environments
*Lume duration test 8 hours
*Temperature test 24 hrs in below 30 degrees
*Comfortability test (camo strap) in work environment, outdoors.
*No scratches on case or crystal during all tests
Specifications:
* MOVEMENT
* Miyota 8215, Self-winding
FUNCTIONS
* Hour, minute, seconds hands
CASE DIMENSIONS
* 44 mm case diameter
* 48.5 mm with crown guard
CASE MATERIAL
* Forged carbon, anodised aluminium,
* titanium, ceramic, steel
CRYSTAL
* Scratch resistant sapphire,
* anti-reflective coating, both sides
CROWN
* Screw-down for improved water resistance
WATER RESISTANCE
* 100 meters / 330 feet / 10 ATM
BRACELET
* Rubber strap,
* titanium pin buckle
WEIGHT
* 110 grams with strap and buckle
Time to Blog Watches 