Easy to read watch

[porkchop]

Does any geek out there know which is the best combination of colour on a watch to help read the time without wearing glasses. Would a BLACK face with White hands be better than a WHITE face with Black hands. Have there been any test done on this very important issue ! No jokes about my eyesight please! Look forward to your suggestions.

[maggie21]

Why don't you buy a watch with large numerals on.

[heathfield]

White hands, black face is better. Note that this is what the military and professional divers use.

[porkchop]

Hi Heathfield. You know, i think your right. The amount of black faced watches is amazing. Now perhaps we may get Black newspapers with white print. Maybe thats a bridge to far!

[heathfield]

Check out the Sun and the Mirror front page headlines most days of the week. They're already doing it!

[gen2]

Re newspapers:
That would use up more ink and add to their costs.
It would also be more likely to blacken the hands of readers and then they couldn't read their watches if the'd opted for a black background. LOL

[wildwood]

One of these might even suit you better.

http://www.shopwiki.co.uk/talking+watch

[mjd]

I seem to recall research done (on behalf of the Jockey Club?) years ago which showed that the best combination for clarity was Yellow on Black.

[society]

You're right Mjd. Some countries use yellow writing on navy blue or black background for license plates so it would be easier for the cops to read, and especially at nights and from a distance.

[Clanad]

My grandfather was a railroad engineer (the one that runs the steam engine) and carried a "Standard" railroad watch. To meet that standard the watch was required to meet these official regulations:

(Ca. 1895)

Pocket watches should be:
American made 18 or 16 size
Fitted with 17 or more jewels
Temperature compensated
Adjusted to 5 positions
Lever Set
Timed to +/- 30 sec/week
Fitted with a: Double roller, Patented regulator, Steel escape wheel
Have plain white dial with: Black Arabic numerals, Each minute delineated
Open face
Configured with the winding stem at 12 O'clock

I have a collection (here in the U.S.) of railway watches and all are white face, black hands and Arabic numerals...

[heathfield]

Too right, Clanad - there was a time (forgive the pun) when all watch faces were white-enamelled, and hands were steely black. But think back to those pre-digital aircraft instrument panels with which you were very familiar - they invariably used white hands on a black face. (Incidentally, I'm very jealous of your railroad watch collection!) ;-)

[Clanad]

Actually, heathfield, the very earliest aircraft instrument s were white with either red or black "hands"... as seen in this Piper J-3 (Ca. 1938) photo:
http://www.nationalmu...70116-F-1234S-006.jpg

The ones on the left, especially the far left Tachometer are newer additions and are not authentic to this particular example...

Here's another that's better but the owner still couldn't find an old altimeter, which is the only black instruement (or, with the advent of glass cockpits, they're now called "steam gauges".)

It's a wonder that many really old pilots weren't sterile since the hands of the instruments were all coated with radium... the thinking being that if the notoriously unreliable c0ckpit lighting failed the hands would actually glow for about 15 minutes... time enough to get the craft on the ground, I suppose...

I have about 35 railway watches... some from the early 1900's... most in bell jars... most gold cased... I have the Hamilton - 23 Jewel - Model #950B pictured here (among others) http://www.oldrailroadwatches.com/most_wanted ...

[Clanad]

Ooops... forgot the second J-3 link... http://www.pbase.com/...bowitz/image/86722266

[heathfield]

Well Clanad, Re: instruments, i really had something more like this in mind...

http://www.douglasdc3.com/cockpit/3cockpit.jpg

As for RR watches - now I'm really envious! Maybe you could mount them in something like this...

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk...T-PANEL-/400123692653

;-)

[Clanad]

Although I've flown the C-47/DC-3 many hours, heath, my favorite vintage airplane has to be this: http://www.ipass.net/ginkgo/N9612home.html ...

A wonderful recondition, but the earliest (1928) Ford Trimotors had the cream colored instrumentation for th emost part. The cockpit lighting was red apots mounted over each pilots shoulder and directable by moving the light in its holder. God help the 'stewardess' who opened the c0ckpit door on the proverbial dark and stormy night, thereby destroying, temporarily, night vision from the red lighting. Funny thing, though, the aviation charts had a few red symbols on them that simply disappeared in the red bath of light... nice memories though... Still prefer the Boeing 727 or Douglas DC-9... but that's another story..
Thanks for the pictures(sorry for the mini-thread hijack, porkchop!)

[porkchop]

I started out inquiring about the merits of a watch with a black or white face and i am amazed at all the various answers varying from railway watches to instrument panels in cockpits of aircraft. Extremely interesting, thanks to all. Porkchop.