Hands-On Debut: Farer Lissom Watch
The British masters of color are back at it again. Farer has released an entirely new collection of watches powered by handwound movements nestled in slim cases with dials full of color. As soon as you read Farer, though, you probably expected the rest. Farer is as well known for being a British brand as it is for its extensive use of color in every single model line it offers. If Christopher Ward is carving out the tool watch and high-end complication space amongst British brands, Farer has definitely made a name for itself by offering well-made watches that know how to have a bit of fun. The new Farer Lissom collection brings another small seconds display to the brand’s catalog, with an array of new colors including the Forrest, seen below.
The Farer Lissom brings a new footprint to the brand’s stable, and not just in dimensions. Farer has 38mm watches already, but with a height of 7.95mm, the Lissom is almost 2.5mm thinner than the next thinnest Farer. What’s more, the lugs descend below the caseback; in my extremely accurate eyeballed estimate, I’d say 3mm below. That means it naturally hugs the wrist, but I can see it looking a bit odd on very large wrists, as the 42.8mm lug-to-lug would make the watch descend well before the wrist does. The water gets a water resistance rating of 50m and has a pull-out crown that’s easy enough to get out and wind (a necessity for a handwound watch) and has Farer’s signature bronze inlay with it’s arrow ‘A’ logo.
There are two interesting elements of the case. The first is the engraved outline cut into the brushed sides of the case, which adds a bit of character without creating distraction or overly fancifying the profile. The second is that Farer opted to polish the interlug section of the case. This keeps it consistent with the lugs and the bezel, both of which it abuts, leaving the sides the only polished portions. That said, it’s something I rarely see, and the only other example (though I’m sure there are others) is the first-generation Nodus Sector. Of note (or maybe not), Farer says the Lissom is finished to the highest possible “Grade A” standard. I’ve only heard case finishing referred to as Grade A one other time, in reference to Rolex finishing. I assume it refers to industrial, machine finishing as opposed to Philippe Dufour “You’ll get your watch when I’m damn well done with it” finishing. I’m not sure if there are grades other than A, or if it’s just there to say it can’t get any better. The Lissom’s transitions are crisp. and the brushing is well defined, but I couldn’t discern a massive difference between it and some of my other watches.
Each Lissom is paired with a suede strap in a coordinated color with light padding and a branded buckle. I’m on the record against padded straps, but this is less offensive than others, with plenty of give out of the box. That said, I did get some wrist shift, where the bend padding resisted the curve of my wrist and made the watch shift up toward 12 o’clock; strapping it a bit tighter mitigated this, but it shouldn’t have been an issue in the first place. The straps are quick release, so there is an easy fix.
The Lissom comes in five different colorways, all with their own names. The one I had for review is the teal and orange Forrest, and there’s also the raspberry Arber, white Balfour, deep purple Lindley, and white-on-black Solander (you can check out the other variants in the gallery below). The models are named for noted British botanists, but you probably already knew that, erudite anglophile that you are. There are plenty of details to unpack here, so let’s get started.
The dials of the Lissom all feature a subtle texture, with matte finish recessed subdials and a small recessed ring between the center dial and the dark chapter ring. I’m quite fond of the teal with its cream and orange accents, but I think the black Solander is something quite special with its white-on-black starkness. I’ll also give credit where it’s due: Farer has repeatedly used purple and done so better than any other brand, so the Lindley also gets a nod. You just don’t see a lot of matte black dials, and there’s almost an eeriness to the Solander that captivates my weird mind. But I digress.
Legibility here is excellent, with amply sized hands and plenty of contrast. One nitpick I have is the orientation of the numerals. It’s truly unimportant since I can tell the time without actual numbers, but part of me would prefer uniformity with all the numbers either facing in or out, not both. Anyway, except for the white dial Balfour, every Lissom has Lumicast Arabic numerals made of solid Super-LumiNova X2, the highest grade currently offered. It’s hard to see how much brighter it may be, but the hands and lume blocks were both adequate in my experience, so I’m not complaining.
The Lissom collection sees Farer’s third use of a Swiss La Joux-Perret movement, with the manual D100 movement. Farer used LJP G101s in its Three Hand and 36mm Three Hand collections, but the previous small second offering, the Cushion Case line, used the Sellita SW216. The La Joux-Perret D100 is finished to the manufacture’s highest grade — soignée — with striping, blued screws, and adjustment to four positions. It offers 50 hours of power at 21,600 vph, and like most Farer movements, has a bridge finished with a repeating motif of the brand’s logo. It also reportedly has diamond-polished chamfers, but hell if I could see them. All in all, it’s a nicely executed movement and with the Farer Aqua Compressor returning later this year, it will be interesting to see if the brand continues to transition to LJP.
The Lissom counts as the 17th collection from the brand and reaffirms its commitment to making a wide variety of watches that can suit every need, from rugged adventure to elegant evening. While the dimensions and handwound movement may suggest a dress watch, the accents on the case, texturing of the dial, and bold colors give this collection a bit more levity — even the black and white dial — for a decidedly casual feeling on the wrist. As the brand’s second small second model, it offers a less sophisticated counterpoint to the soft-edges and less multi-color Cushion Case collection, and I think it does a great job in doing so. The Farer Lissom watches are priced at $1,295 USD. For more information, please visit the Farer website.
