“Matthew Humphries is an Established Automotive designer, whose work is recognised on an international level. After leaving the Morgan Motor Company as their Chief Designer and designing cars such as the Morgan Aeromax, Eva Gt and New Morgan 3 wheeler, Matthew set up   Matthew Humphries Design car consultancy and later launched MHD watches in 2014. Matthew has combined his extensive knowledge and skills from the automotive industry, with his passion for designing watches.

All MHD Watches are designed and assembled in the UK with a distinct automotive style and emphasis on luxury. MHD watch design focuses on producing an elegant daily driver timepiece to complement modern & classic vehicle collections. A True MotorSports WristWatch.

MHD watches product lines:

1. The in-house designed and assembled in the UK, limited edition quartz watch collections. The first to be released in this line in May 2016 was the MHDSQ1. Limited to only 300, the SQ1 captures the style & case shape of 60’s & 70’s motoring watches, whilst the dial takes influence from cars of the same period, in particular, the rev counter of the classic Porsche 911 dial.

2. The Second in-house Designed and assembled in the UK, Limited edition watch is the MHD CR1. Limited to an edition of 500.  The MHD CR1 captures the style of the 60’s/ 70’s motoring watches, with its bold industrial stainless steel case, screw down knurled edge crown and paired with the infamous leather rally strap adorned by many a racing driver.  The CR1 takes influence from classic vehicle gauges whilst maintaining a modern function feel with a Chrono movement  synonymous with motor racing.”

Today we’re gonna take a look at the MHD CR1 watch. First of all, I found about MHD through Hodinkee post, after that, I found out he design one of my favourite cars, the Morgan Aeromax. This is the first racing inspired watch I’m gonna review, I wanted to review something like this for a long time. So finally I got my hands on one 🙂

The box it came was quite subtle, nothing special, just a black cardboard box with the mhd logo on it. But in this case the packaging isn’t the main thing, it’s the watch! At first look, the watch looked really good. I took it out of the box and already you could see the that this is a quality product.

The case is made from stainless steel with a brushed finish. The shape is quite unusual, reminded me those 70s omega Speedmaster and seamsters with that oval shape. On the right side you will find knurled screw down crown, which has a ton of grip and you can even set time with gloves on. And also there are two knurled pushers for the chronograph functions. The screw on case back is stainless steel, you will find some spec written on it. The watch is 10ATM water resistant. The crystal is mineral, but it is bevel edged and raises a bit over the case. Looks very vintage.

The dial looks like dials taken out from some kind of 70s Porsche. The font, the colours, the layout of the dial is just perfect. on the outer side you will find the minutes rind, which is slightly hidden, and looking straight at the watch you won’t notice it. The hands are rectangular, and I think they suit the dial very good, it looks more automotive. Maybe the only thing I would add, be a little accent of colour. Like a bright yellow, red or orange would suit it.

The strap is genuine leather 20mm. This is actually first watch I received with rally strap. At first, I thought it looks stupid, I get it that it has ventilation and it’s easier to wear it on summer and for racing drivers it’s easier. But I just didn’t like it, but now, I think I want to put one on every watch I own 😀 The movement is Miyota 6s21 chronograph quartz movement. It isn’t mecha-quartz, but it still has quite nice smooth seconds hand.

Overall the watch is a great deal for just 250 pounds. If you want something racing inspired, modern, but at the same time vintage looking, then get this. This watch is just perfect, nothing to add here. It seems that I say this about every watch, but I choose what to review, so if I choose it, then I like it very much. I won’t review anything I don’t like.

Price: £250.00 @ matthewhumphriesdesignwatches.com

CR1 spec with Black dial
• Brushed finish Stainless steel case.
• Stainless steel case back with “Limited edition of 500” marking.
• Knurled Crown, with screw down fixing.
• Bevel edged mineral crystal glass.
• Internal brushed finish bezel.
• Case size 42mm, 11mm deep.
• Satin finish black dial with white & grey markings.
• White window hands (cut-out for constant visibility of sub dials)
• White second hand. ( extra long for easy visibility )
• Japanese Miyota 6s21 Chrono quartz movement.
• 10 atm water resistance.
• 20mm leather rally strap