This is the Shinola Canfield Chrono Model C56, it’s one of the newer releases from the Detroit-based American watchmaker that features a “two-eyed” chronograph and a date window at the 6 o’clock position.
The name “Shinola” originally belonged to a shoe polish company founded in Rochester, New York, in 1907. Shinola shoe polish became widely popular throughout the 20th century in America, and the brand’s name was immortalized in the American lexicon due to the phrase, “You don’t know sh*t from Shinola” – a colloquial way to criticize someone’s poor judgment or general ignorance.
The Canfield Chrono Model C56 has an Aragonite 5021.D quartz movement that is hand-assembled in Detroit from 79 components.
The shoe polish company eventually went out of business in the 1960s, as the need for shoe polish had waned significantly due to changes in the footwear industry.
The Shinola name was revived in 2011 when entrepreneur Tom Kartsotis created a new watch company, named Shinola LLC. This company wasn’t just about making watches – it was founded with the mission of bringing manufacturing jobs back to the United States, particularly to Detroit, Michigan, a city that had been hard-hit by de-industrialization, the off-shoring of jobs, and the decline of the local automotive industry.
Shinola LLC was founded in the heart of Detroit and made a point of hiring as many Detroit locals as possible to fill vacant positions. The new company started out selling a new generation of American-made watches, they then later expanded out into leather goods, bicycles, and other lifestyle products.
The company’s first step in Detroit was to set up a watch factory inside the historic Argonaut Building (once part of the General Motors headquarters) in Midtown Detroit. Shinola watches are assembled in the USA, though they source many of their parts globally, particularly the movements, which often come from Swiss manufacturers.
By building its manufacturing base in the city, the company sought to create an association between Shinola’s brand and the rebirth of Detroit, positioning Shinola as part of the renaissance of American craftsmanship.
The watch has a stainless steel case and case back, a leather strap, and a double-dome sapphire crystal.
The slogan “Where American is Made” became synonymous with Shinola, reflecting the company’s commitment to creating jobs and reviving US manufacturing. They initially trained their watchmakers with help from Ronda AG, a Swiss movement maker.
The Shinola Canfield Chrono Model C56
The Shinola Canfield Chrono Model C56 is a newer model, featuring a reliable Aragonite 5021.D quartz movement that is hand-assembled in Detroit from 79 components. This movement drives the hour, minute, and second hands as well as the chronograph functions and date window, and it’s built using a combination of components from Detroit and Switzerland.
The watch has a stainless steel case with a 43mm diameter and an 11.25mm thickness. It uses screw-down construction, and it has a double-domed sapphire crystal with a depth rating of 5 ATM. It has a black main dial with a contrasting concave ring in canary yellow, and a black leather strap.
With a case diameter of 43mm and a width of 11.25mm, the Canfield Chrono Model C56 was designed to suit most wrist sizes.
The Canfield Chrono Model C56 is now being offered on Huckberry for $950 USD as well as a best price guarantee, free US returns, and free US shipping.
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Silodrome was founded by Ben back in 2010, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in the alternative and vintage motoring sector, with well over a million monthly readers from around the world and many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media.
