An adventurous soul still needs to know the time; how better to keep track than with the heart of a recycled Land Rover sitting on your wrist? The RNR Collection from REC — which stands for “Road Not Required” — combines the British icon of freedom with the classic look of a beautiful Swiss-made watch. The idea came from the feeling every time you get behind the wheel of a rugged adventure vehicle and take off on roads untraveled.
REC worked with Land Rover aficionados, entrepreneurs, and artists to obtain old pieces of the vehicle model to create a limited run of beautiful, unique watch dials. There’s the Beachrunner, which brings ocean-side surfing vibes. The Defender-inspired R.O.C.K. Fighter brings about a desert-possessed aesthetic that makes you yearn for roadless adventures. Bring the soul of a classic British icon to the beauty of a REC watch and find your own adventure.
Beach Runner – $1795
The 2018-released RNR Beachrunner is REC’s first-ever Swiss-made watch with a dial hand-made from the roof of the classic Land Rover Series III owned by Daniel Espirito Santo out of Portugal. In an effort to combine the timelessness of REC watches with the classic spirit of Britain’s Icon, the RNR Beachrunner is a ruggedly beautiful representation of freedom on the road.
What we love about the design is the coordination between timepiece and over-land vehicle. The bezel took the aesthetic of the spare tire mount upon the hood (which the crown protector emanates). The powerful front end grill provides the crown protector with its stark horizontal lines. The inner bezel sports the same five-bolt pattern as the Land Rover uses for their wheels, while the color scheme reflects the heart of the 1981 Series III.
The body of the watch is made from 316L stainless steel with top glass sapphire crystal with multilayer anti-reflective coating. It comes with a laser-engraved and deeply-etched case, back, and crown, as well. The dial is handcrafted aluminum cut directly from Santo’s 1981 “Beachrunner,” a Land Rover Series III. The strap is constructed from black rubber with a 20-millimeter buckle.
The dial is controlled by a self-winding mechanical lever. It ticks at 4 Hz with an accuracy of ∓ 12 seconds and keeps 38 hours of power reserve. The crown measures 40 millimeters in diameter, stands 10 millimeters off of your wrist, and weighs only 110 grams.
This collection is limited to only 552 pieces worldwide, which speaks to its authenticity — that was exactly the amount of material that the Beachrunner roof could provide this design. Paying homage to the strict lines of the famous Land Rover body and curve of the classic tires, the Beachrunner will impress whoever checks out your timepiece.
R.O.C.K. Fighter – $1795
The R.O.C.K. Fighter dial is handcrafted from the door of a 2003 Land Rover Defender owned by German off-road explorer, Michael Ortner. This specific Land Rover was Ortner’s tool to climb steep mountain ranges and cross vast creeks from Sardinia to Corsica, to Iceland and Morocco.
Rather than discarding the old left-hand door, Ortner worked with REC to recycle the aluminum into a rough-and-tumble watch design. The punched and lacquered recycled watch dials to showcase the dents and scrapes of adventures absorbed in the Defender’s 17 years — more most Land Rovers see in their entire lifetimes.
As one of REC’s RNR watch designers, Thomas Funder, says, “Capturing the iconic design trademarks of the Land Rover while designing a timepiece that can completely stand on its own was no easy task.” The R.O.C.K. Fighter incorporates multiple aspects of the Defender design: the watch strap reflects the cargo-holding hood strap, the five-bolt pattern of the wheels are reflected in the stamped case back of the watch (which is directly taken from the checkered plates of the vehicle), and the dial is reminiscent of a navigational compass.
The body of the watch is extremely similar to the Beachrunner, but with a few key differences: the stainless steel case is sandblasted with vertical brushes, polished surfaces, and a rubber bezel. The desert canvas and black leather strap offer a laid-back adventurous aesthetic to complement the Defender style. The metal dial of the Defender offers a different look than the Beachrunner.
The R.O.C.K. Fighter is limited to 463 pieces, as the door of the Defender offered a very finite amount of material with which to work.
The RNR Watch – Built to Last
Both RNR watches offer a 2-year, full warranty, and free worldwide shipping. You can also choose your serial number from the 552 or 463 pieces available, but you also have 30 days to return any watch if it doesn’t completely mesh with your adventurous spirit.
