HANDS-ON: The Tusenö Windseeker is a handsome watch with 1970s swagger
Fergus NashThese days it’s not as impressive as it once was to have a successfully funded Kickstarter campaign. If you have a watch with an original design that offers good value for money, then you’ve got a great chance of hitting your goal. What’s not as easy to do is become your country’s most funded watch in your first-ever campaign, then going on to open a physical showroom in only five years. That’s exactly what Tusenö have done in Sweden, and the Tusenö Windseeker is the latest example of their phenomenal brand building.
The case
Tusenö have released sporty divers and dressy chronographs, but the Tusenö Windseeker is all about sleek style and a sense of swagger. The case flares out fairly wide from its lugs, not in dimensions but in scale. This gives it a sort of inflated look to the case synonymous with 1970s style, and the brushed surface of the lugs and bezel reinforce the sports watch placement. There are plenty of polished areas to highlight a sense of luxury though, such as the edge of the bezel and the chamfers along the lugs and bracelet.
You can tell that the Tusenö Windseeker was designed by watch enthusiasts, because the dimensions are perfectly tailored to 2023 tastes. The 39mm diameter grants enough wrist presence to feel modern without taking up too much wrist space, while the 47mm lug-to-lug length brings comfort to most sizes of wrist. The 10.5mm thickness is actually quite impressive, given that it uses an automatic movement cased with 100m of water resistance.
The dial
With slightly bowed and mirrored panels as the foundation of the dial, the Tusenö Windseeker backs up its name by evoking the deck of a timber sailboat. This kind of reference to a Riviera lifestyle is right at home within the Windseeker, managing to ooze a level of luxury well beyond its price tag. The minute markers are printed on a small ring of a rough texture, giving an extra dimension to the dial with the different diffusing of light. Arabic numerals are etched into the steel rehaut at each of the applied hour marker positions, which almost could be mistaken for diamonds when the light hits them just right.
The slender take on sword hands lend a subtle aggression to the dial, while a pop of contrasting colour adds some zest through the seconds hand tip and the Windseeker text. The Tusenö Windseeker comes in three dial colours which each bring a different kind of charm, although they are all still very versatile between office and sports contexts. The black and blue references both have yellow accents, while the mesmerising grey dial features dark blue details. On all three watches, the circular date window at 6 o’clock looks neat and tidy.
The bracelet
The bracelet on the Tusenö Windseeker is the same as their previous Shellback diver, with flat, blocky links that have quite large and polished chamfers. The mix of polished and brushed surfaces makes light roll over the bracelet almost unpredictably, showing off a dazzling display whenever you turn your wrist. The clasp is a butterfly design, with the Tusenö Göteborg logo etched into it. Should you wish to swap it out for a leather strap or something else for some variety, you will have plenty of options thanks to the 20mm lug width.
The movement
As of 2020, Tusenö announced that all of their future watches would be made as small-batch runs in Switzerland and entirely mechanical, doing away with some of their earlier quartz offerings. Despite retaining a distinctly Swedish brand identity, they’ve even adopted the Swiss-made label. The movement they’ve chosen is the Sellita SW200-1, which really is the no-brainer choice for an affordable Swiss watch. Still used by many larger brands in much more expensive watches, the SW200-1 has that smooth 4Hz beat rate across a 38 hour power reserve. It’s also easy to regulate, affordable to service, and generally reports great accuracy even without chronometer certification. The movement is visible from the sapphire caseback, and I actually appreciate that Tusenö have chosen to keep the Sellita-branded rotor, too.
The Tusenö Windseeker pricing and availability:
The Tusenö Windseeker will launch on February 16th at 4PM CET, and you can find out more on their website here. Price: US$599 / €749 / KR7,495
| Brand | Tusenö |
| Model | Windseeker |
| Case Dimensions | 39mm (D) x 10.5mm (T) x 47mm (L2L) |
| Case Material | Stainless steel |
| Water Resistance | 100m |
| Crystal(s) | Sapphire |
| Dial | Black, blue, grey |
| Lug Width | 2omm |
| Strap | Steel bracelet |
| Movement | Sellita SW200-1 |
| Power Reserve | 38 hours |
| Availability | Available from February 16th |
| Price | US$599 / €749 / KR7,495 |