Matthew and Son JCB preview MAS watch

Matthew and Son burst onto the microbrand scene last year with the Irukandji dive watch. Their sophomore effort, the Matthew and Son JCB is now live on Kickstarter.

Introducing the Matthew and Son JCB

Those of a certain age will recognise the Matthew and Son (MAS) brand name as a Cat Stevens song. The brand owner is really called Matthew, and he does have a Son, so it is an appropriate choice! The MAS JCB is a dress watch that is designed in Australia and has enough interesting design features for it to warrant a place outside of our monthly Kickstarter watches round up.

Matthew and Son JCB – Specifications

The watch is powered by a high beat Miyota 9039 automatic movement (with each movement being regulated before shipping). It has a double-domed sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating on the underside; a 38mm 316L stainless steel case, with a mixture of brushed and polished finishing; a signed, screw-down crown for water-resistance; and an oil-pressed, ‘thistle’ case back design on the reverse.

The JCB will ship with a premium, genuine leather strap with signed buckle or a ‘Beads of Rice’ bracelet with milled clasp and screw-links. The bracelet will be either unlocked as a FREE stretch goal or available as a low-cost addition if the stretch target is not met).

Matthew and Son JCB – First Impressions

You may wonder what caught our eye about this watch? Well, for starters, it is relatively rare for a brand to produce a decent, automatic dress watch. The market is saturated with diver’s watches and low-end quartz minimalist watches, but it is rare to see a brand putting effort into a more formal looking watch. Secondly, the watch’s size and design make it versatile – the 38m watch will wear bigger because of the relatively large dial, and it seems to have robust enough specs to be used as a daily wearer.

The choice of JCB as a model name may raise some eyebrows in the UK, where is synonymous with heavy machinery but in this case, it stands for John Crosson Barnes: brand owner Matt’s grandfather. Overall, we like the design, and the price looks good.

Buy a Matthew and Son JCB Watch

The Matthew and Son JCB is live on Kickstarter now and costs about £250 (depending on the exchange rate). At the time of writing, there are 19 days to go, and it has reached about two-thirds of its funding goal. Find out more at the Kickstarter page.

By Mike Richmond

Mike spends what little spare time he has writing for WRUK; and what little money he makes building up his collection of timepieces.

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