Some watch firms punch way above their weight. The UK independent, Farer, is definitely one of them. You won?t see Farer in the posh boutiques; they prefer to sell directly. There are no swanky catalogs either, just a clear, efficient website. Yet the firm is quietly getting on with making watches that are often different and always striking. It says a lot about the company and its designer that you can pick any Farer out of an ID parade with no effort at all, yet each is different and has its own character. Here are three of their latest, just to make the point; all completely different but all recognizably Farer.

Farer started out with three-hander mechanicals and these three hark back to those early watches. The genetics are pretty clear, too. Farer has a knack of teaming classic designs with striking, often multiple and overprinted, colors. It says a lot for the firm that this results in clear, easy-to-read watches rather than complete dogs? breakfasts. 
Where Farer chooses color to make a design point, they?re very much average – in a good way – when it comes to case sizes. The trinity of new three-handers uses a 39.5mm stainless steel case with 20mm lugs; so comfortable to wear and easy to swap straps around. The cases are 316L stainless, polished and water resistant to 50m; enough for everyday wear without worrying. The caseback is held on by a simple but very useful Farer four-point screw system, with one screw at the base of each lug.

Each ...