Lew & Huey is an American watch company with headquarters in Philadelphia. The microbrand specializes in creating automatic watches, using Asian movements from Tianjin Seagull, Miyota, and Seiko. Its name is a phonetic take on the Chinese Mandarin phrase 'luen huey', meaning reincarnation or rebirth.
The company was founded in 2012 by Chris Vail, producing its first run of watches in late 2013.
The initial Kickstarter campaign for the companies first watch, the Riccardo, had reached only $10,781 of its $40,000 goal when it ended on June 16, 2013. However, a second campaign for the same watch exceeded the same goal after raising $42,699 between June 19 and August 18, 2013. The company continued to fund many of its new projects via kickstarter, with its last project ending unsuccessfully in December 2014.
Lew & Huey produces automatic watches with Chinese and Japanese movements at price points varying between $325 and $750 USD.
Currently, Lew & Huey has several models:
Riccardo: The first watch by Lew & Huey, it is an automatic chronograph that features a sunburst pattern with applied indices. The Riccardo also has anti-reflective coating and sapphire crystal displays on both sides of the watch, and provides a ST1940 chronograph movement by Tianjin Seagull. The ST1940 is the modern equivalent of the Venus 175 movement (a celebrated Chinese chronograph caliber) and features a 33 jewel movement that beats 21,600 times per hour.
Acionna: Named after the Gallo-Roman religion water goddess, the Acionna is built around a hacking and hand-winding 24 jewel Miyota automatic movement that is capable of providing a 42-hour power reserve when fully wound.
Cerberus: Designed as a reference to the Cerberus, the mythical three-headed dog that guards the gates of hell, the Cerberus is also created to a versatile 'everyday' wear, with styling cues taken from classical designs. It is built around a hacking and hand-winding 24 jewel Miyota automatic movement that is capable of providing a 42-hour power reserve when fully wound.
Orthos: The first purpose-built diving watch of Lew & Huey, it features combination of modern and vintage styling cues. The movement used in this watch is a hacking and hand-winding 24 jewel, 21,600 BPH Seiko automatic movement that is capable of providing a 41-hour power reserve when fully wound. In early February 2015, a lengthy discussion developed on WatchUSeek over the Orthos when a WUS members wrote that, "After setting the time, crown doesn't click back into the date/winding mode properly when i push it in." There were varied opinions of what constituted a faulty mechanism. In the end, many users wrote of consistent behaviors with identical movements in other brands of watches.
Spectre: Featuring a sunburst patterned dial and brushed/polished surfaces, the Spectre is a pilot watch built with functionality and uncluttered design in mind. The movement used in this watch is a hacking and hand-winding 24 jewel, 21,600 BPH Seiko automatic movement that is capable of providing a 41-hour power reserve when fully wound.
The movements featured in Lew & Huey watches are either Chinese or Japanese. Currently, Miyota, Seiko and Tianjin Seagull movements are employed.
As of right now, Lew & Huey watches are only available through direct contact with founder Chris Vail or through the official Lew & Huey website.
