The Earl By E. Stohlman

E. Stohlman is an American watch company, founded by Eugene Stohlman, from Maryland in America. Eugene Stohlman, a skilled third-generation watchmaker embarked on a journey deeply rooted in family heritage. Drawn by the intricate beauty of watch mechanisms from a young age, Eugene absorbed the secrets of the craft through his grandfather and Uncle’s patient teachings. His unyielding passion led him to pursue formal education in Horology, earning degrees and numerous certificates that solidified his expertise. As time passed, Eugene’s dedication bore fruit in the form of original watch designs, a culmination of years refining his art. With unwavering familial support and his grandfather’s sage guidance, he forged ahead to establish his own watch brand, a lifelong aspiration. This brand harmonized tradition and innovation, where meticulously handcrafted timepieces intertwined with modern technology. Today, Eugene stands with pride, a testament to his artistry showcased across a table adorned with his creations – The Earl Collection. Each watch embodies his devotion to horology, a realization he cherishes. Customers, captivated by the gleaming timepieces, glimpse not just intricate craftsmanship but a story woven through time. This collection masterfully encapsulates a fusion of retro allure and contemporary sophistication—a “vintage-modern” marvel. Ideal for those who seek the enduring charm of vintage watches without compromising on reliability or understated modern elegance. Today we got our hands on one of “The Earl” variations, join us in our review of The Earl Watch By E. Stohlman.

As mentioned above, Eugene’s first collection is “The Earl”, with six different models, each one is a limited edition of 50 units, individually numbered.

The Models are:

• The Earl, White Mother Of Pearl, with a white mother of pearl dial, with blue indexes and watch hands.
• The Earl, Gray Rose, with a gray dial and a turned inner dial.
• The Earl, Star Burst, with a star burst dial engraved.
• The Earl, Chocolate, with a brown dial.
• The Earl, Black Enamel, with an enamel black dial.
• The Earl, Black Mother Of Pearl, with a black mother of pearl.

All of the models comes in a 39mm case, made of 925 Sterling Silver, Rhodium plated, with a height of 14.3mm, a lug width of 20mm and a lug to lug of 46mm. The watches are equipped with a see through 316L stainless steel caseback. The front crystal is double domed sapphire with an anti reflective coating.

All of the watches comes with an onion style crown with a resin insert, and they come with a handmade nile alligator straps with a hypoallergenic leather back, tapered to 16mm.

Inside all of the watches we find MWW7081a Movement, which is a fully assembled and tested automatic from Maryland. The MWW 7081 is the creation of Maryland Watch Works in Hagerstown, MD. The 7081 is based on the ETA 2824 architecture and can be used as a replacement for the 2824. This movement is comprised of Swiss and other foreign parts and final assembly takes place in Hagerstown at the MWW shop. If you’re asking yourself why is it called the 7081, you’ve got a great question. Maryland Watch Works is located in the heart of Hagerstown, MD. Also known as ‘Hub City’, Hagerstown is positioned at the crossroads of two major interstates I-70 and I-81. The reference number 7081 is a proud affirmation to the local ties of Hagerstown. 

The Calibre beats at 28,800 vibrations per hour and provides a 38 hour power reserve.

The timepiece under review, provided by E. Stohlman, is the Gray Rose. This watch features a gray dial. Now, let’s delve into our examination of this watch, exploring how we acquired it and our impressions of its qualities.

To begin, we’ll focus on the packaging. The timepiece is encased within a top-notch cardboard box. Upon lifting the upper section of the cardboard, a watch box swathed in cloth is revealed. Beneath this fabric, there lies a wooden case embellished with the E. Stohlman logo on its lid. The box exudes a sense of opulence and refinement, truly encapsulating a luxurious essence.

Once you open the wooden box, you find a red leather travel case, once again, a high quality product. Finally, inside the leather travel case, we find the watch.

It’s crucial to grasp a significant aspect about E. Stohlman watches. There’s a certain quality that doesn’t quite translate through photography. The watch’s inherent beauty and the tangible sense of quality that accompanies holding or adorning it just don’t fully come across in online images, whether they’re on the official company website or other review platforms. Despite our efforts to capture improved photos of the watch, the intricate interplay of colors, as we’ll explore shortly, along with other elements, poses a substantial challenge in accurately conveying their true allure.

Now let’s get to know this watch together. What truly catches us off guard is the material selection: .925 sterling silver. Opting for silver is a captivating departure from the more common stainless steel. It boasts a notably softer composition than stainless steel, and even ranks softer than 14k gold. Consequently, it’s prone to developing a unique patina relatively swiftly. However, one noteworthy absence is the patina itself. Ordinarily, silver undergoes oxidation, gradually adopting a black hue unless routinely polished. To maintain its luster, Stohlman employs rhodium plating for these cases.

The watch case comes with a stepped bezel, an onion shaped crown and horn lugs. All of this elements pay tribute to the design of post WWI wristwatches, which were usually pocket watches with lugs allowing them to be worn on a strap.

The Earl model is available in six distinct options: Gray Rose (featuring a gray dial with rose gold indexes), Star Burst (showcasing a sunburst silver dial, gold bezel, and indexes), Chocolate (displaying a brown dial with rose gold indexes), Black Enamel (characterized by a black dial with silver indexes), Black Mother of Pearl (presenting a black mother-of-pearl dial with rose gold indexes), and the White Mother of Pearl edition, displaying a white dial with blue indexes, blue hands and blue logo.

The dial encompasses an inner circle housing a day display positioned just below the company’s logo, which rests beneath the Arabic numerals at the 12 o’clock position. At the 6 o’clock mark, slightly beyond this circle, the date window is elegantly framed. Encircling this inner portion are Art Nouveau-inspired Arabic numerals, bearing a captivating twist. E. Stohlman takes a unique approach by placing the applied indexes on delicate pedestals, subtly lifting them. This subtle elevation creates a mesmerizing interplay of light and shadow on the dial, particularly when the dial catches light from specific angles. The most interesting choice that Eugene Stohlman made, is to include a rainbow colored minute tracker on the outer part of the dial. These rainbow markers are simply beautiful, and their shades are changing as you expose them to light in different angels. All in all, the dial presents a captivating aesthetic, and the only aspect that didn’t resonate with our preferences was the guilloche pattern on the inner circle. However, this is largely a matter of personal taste, and there’s a possibility that others might genuinely find it appealing.

The leather strap feels luxury, as it sits perfectly on your wrist. At the end of it we will find a fold over deployment clasp. We must mention that the clasp, at least on the model we got for review, was very tight and hard to open. We don’t know if it’s only because it’s a new watch, but we were really afraid of breaking it while opening it.

As previously mentioned, the Earl model is available in six distinct variations, each comprising a limited edition of 50 pieces. The watches are priced at $1,600 each. Notably, the exceptional Star Burst variant carries a price tag of $1,800. You can pre-order your watch from E. Stohlman website. Once they start shipping these watches, the prices will climb to $2,000 (the Star Burst will be $2,200).

In summary, The Earl by E. Stohlman stands out as a striking and distinctive timepiece. It boasts an uncommon case crafted from 925 sterling silver, showcasing a rainbow minute track with an intricately textured guilloche pattern on the dial. Complemented by a premium leather strap and an equally high-quality bracelet, it exudes a sense of exceptional craftsmanship. One more thing worth mentioning is the Calibre inside the watch, which is not a truly “American Made” but it’s an “Assembled in America” calibre, which is something you rarely see.

We hold a strong intuition that E. Stohlman will carve a significant presence in the watch industry moving forward, and we eagerly anticipate witnessing the unveiling of more distinctive timepieces from this remarkable company.