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The Messerschmitt Bf 109 and the Battle of Britain: A Timepiece Forged from History

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The Thomas Morse Scout: From Training the First American Aces to Inspiring Modern Horology

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The Nieuport 28: America’s First Fighter Pilots and Their Flying Legends

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The Legendary Focke-Wulf Fw 190: Crafting a Watch from WWII’s Most Feared Fighter

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SOPWITH WATCH COMPANY

The Authentic Scarcity of Sopwith Limited Edition Timepieces

Sopwith watch cases are created from a finite supply of extraordinarily rare metals. Each edition is limited not by a marketing plan, but by the simple reality that historic metals are in very short supply.

For example, fewer than twenty-five complete, original Gnome 9N rotary engines are documented worldwide. By weight, this makes the steel of the Sopwith Aero Marquis Nieuport 28 Limited Edition watch case approximately 74,197 times more rare than pure gold, and 6.1 times more scarce than all of the combined metal recovered from the Titanic’s hull. The verified Gnome 9N steel still in existence weighs roughly one-third that of the annual worldwide production of emeralds.

There will be more gold in the world next year than there is this year because gold is still being mined. There will not be more steel from a World War 2 fighter airplane. There isn’t a mine on earth that produces Messerschmitt Bf 109’s.

The luxury watch industry generally relies on cases manufactured from bulk steel in China and Southeast Asia. The relatively small number of brands who genuinely melt their own steel and cast their own cases commonly receive their metal in the form of bulk bars and rods manufactured elsewhere.

By contrast, Sopwith Watch Company secures historic steel in small lots from around the world – California, Belgium, Pennsylvania, Ireland, North Carolina, Latvia, France, Germany among other locations. Each piece is personally acquired by the company founder and brought back to Sopwith headquarters in Indianapolis, one pound at a time and one piece at a time.

The block of a Le Rhône rotary engine weighs at about seventy pounds. The gears of Richard Petty’s Daytona-winning Plymouth weigh less than eighty pounds.

It is in these forms – and these small increments – that Sopwith acquires the base metals of its watch cases.

When you find a Sopwith watch that warms your heart, acquire it immediately because there is no artificial scarcity being created. We simply can’t make any more.

Sopwith Watch Company

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Sopwith Watch Company
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Sopwith Watch Company

Quick Links

  • Shop
  • Our Story
  • Preserving History
  • Press Room

Headquarters

  • 1350C W Southport Rd, Unit 321
    Indianapolis, IN 46217
  • Email Us
  • 317.590.3495

Sopwith Watch Company Newsletter

Stay up to date with our latest news.

Follow Us

Copyright © 2025 Sopwith Watch Company | Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions