It's only been a few months since we talked about Kiwame Tokyo, a new micro-brand from Japan that aims to deliver “honest watchmaking from Asakusa” and “affordable Japanese watches.” A project by industry veteran Masami Watanabe, the brand began with an attractive pair of Calatrava-style watches offered at a fair price: the Kurotsuki and Usuki models. After the success of the first collection, it is already time for Kiwame Tokyo to release its second collection, a pair of fieldwork-inspired watches; More robust, more practical, but still full of classic elegance: here are the Iwao Ginkai and Iwao Sumi models.
With the first Kurotsuki and Usuki watches, Kiwame Tokyo got off to an impressive start, offering timeless elegance, sharpness and an undeniable sense of style at a truly fair price – at least given the attention to detail. These debut watches were clearly inspired by Calatrava watches from the 1930s/40s and featured Breguet numerals on the dial. They attracted a lot of attention and sold out quickly. The second collection, consisting of Iwao Ginkai and Iwao Sumi, now highlights a more utilitarian side of watchmaking without losing the classic elegance of the first models.
The Kiwame Tokyo Iwao are based on the same platform as the previous watches. This means an identical case and the same outsourced movement inside. It's all about the new dial and what a difference a dial can make. The graduated case features the same Calatrava style, with a diameter of 38mm and a coin-edged bezel with a vertically brushed flat finish. The central case is brushed on the sides and polished on the top. The specifications are positive with a water resistance of 100 m, an AR-coated sapphire crystal and a screw-down solid case back. And yes, we really like the thickness of 9 mm.
As I said, the Kiwame Tokyo Iwao is all about the dial. There are no more delicate Breguet numerals and syringe-shaped hands here. We're looking for sportier watches with a field-like feel. Available in silver (Iwao Ginkai) or black (Iwao Sumi), the dial now features an angled inner edge with a printed minute track. The dial itself is all about contrasting textures, with a heavily grained (embossed) pattern in the center and a satin-finished hour ring that creates a two-layered structure “where roughness and calm coexist.” The indices alternate between Arabic numerals at 12, 3, 6 and 9 and diamond-cut bar indices. At 12 o'clock, a curved, applied logo plate fits naturally into the three-dimensional dial layout.
Inside the case is a well-known, solid and reliable movement from Miyota, the caliber 9039. This automatic movement runs at a 4 Hz frequency and stores approximately 42 hours of power reserve. It is presented here in a pure time version. It is set to a decent accuracy of -10/+15 seconds/day.
Worn on leather straps with a quick release system, the new Kiwame Tokyo Iwao Ginkai and Sumi are still well made, still beautifully designed and still affordable $690 (before tax). The watches will be available on kiwametokyo.com starting December 25, 2025 at 10:30 a.m. Japan time.
https://monochrome-watches.com/kiwame-tokyo-iwao-sumi-iwao-ginkai-accessible-automatic-field-watches-from-japan-introducing-price/