When it comes to wristwatches, color can be everything. It won’t matter how impressive the movement is, how intricate or simple the dial looks, or how much water resistance it has — if the color scheme doesn’t strike your fancy, you’ll likely move on to the next piece. IWC understands this notion, which is why it launched its “Colors of Top Gun” series a couple of years ago, taking its popular and iconic Pilot’s Watch models and imbuing them with indelible style thanks to the use of colored ceramics. This time around, the German brand has outfitted its 41mm Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Top Gun and Pilot’s Watch Timezoner Top Gun in nature-inspired colorways.
Following up the “Mojave Desert” variants of the 46mm and 44mm Chronograph Top Gun, IWC has added a version of the watch in the 41mm reference. Sandy brown from head to toe, this new timepiece certainly challenges what we would consider an outdoor watch, but the luxury piece has so much wrist presence that you can get away with wearing it just about anywhere. Housed in a ceramic case, the watch features three left-side-oriented chronograph registers (also brown) and a rubber strap with textile inlay.
The second watch debuting in this latest release features a new colorway altogether. Utilizing forest green ceramic, the Timezoner Top Gun has gotten a “Woodland” variant, inspired by the flight suits worn by pilots at the Top Gun flight school. This timepiece also has a see-through caseback and a case ring and crown made of matte black Ceratanium, a proprietary new material from IWC that combines lightweight titanium and scratch-resistant ceramic. The Timezoner is a fantastic travel watch in its own right, with a 24-hour window and a rotating bezel that features the cities across the world — one from each time zone.
While the Mojave Desert Chronograph Top Gun is not limited in edition size, the Woodland Timezoner Top Gun is limited to just 500 pieces. Priced at $11,700 and $17,400, respectively, these two new Pilot’s Watch “Colors of Top Gun” pieces are now available from IWC’s website.
