Front view
Dial, hands and bezel as delivered.
Case-back view
Case-back engraving and, where fitted, the sapphire display.
Movement
Calibre with its finishing and decoration.
On the wrist
Worn shot for proportion and strap drape.
IWC Schaffhausen · Aquatimer
IWC Schaffhausen Aquatimer 36 mm Ice Grade
Reference 67181OR.28
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- IWC Schaffhausen
- Collection
- Aquatimer
- Model
- IWC Schaffhausen Aquatimer 36 mm Ice Grade
- Reference number
- 67181OR.28
- Year / era
- 1986 · 1980s — mechanical revival
- Complication
- Moon phase
- Movement
- In-house manual-winding
- Case material
- Grade 5 titanium
- Dial type
- Ice blue
- Strap / bracelet
- Alligator leather with folding clasp
- Water resistance
- 50 m
- Limited-edition status
- Limited edition of 188 pieces
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 36 mm
- Case thickness
- 11.3 mm
- Case material
- Grade 5 titanium
- Bezel
- Octagonal with 8 hexagonal screws
- Crystal
- Sapphire with internal AR treatment
- Dial
- Ice blue
- Hands
- Faceted dauphine hands, polished by hand
- Indexes
- Applied faceted white-gold indexes
- Bracelet / strap
- Alligator leather with folding clasp
- Clasp / buckle
- Folding clasp in matching case metal
- Water resistance
- 50 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 54A — In-house manual-winding
- Movement type
- Automatic, self-winding
- Frequency
- 21,600 vph (3 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 65 hours
- Number of jewels
- 21 jewels
- Complications
- Moon phase
- Functions
- GMT second time zone, date
- Watchmaker
- Finishing, assembly and timing are carried out in the manufacture's own atelier.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1986 – 1991
- Limited-edition quantity
- 188 pieces
- Current market information
- Trades close to retail on the secondary market, with steady demand for full-set examples.
Designer
Marc Newson
Marc Newson is an Australian industrial designer whose work spans Qantas cabins, Apple hardware and Jaeger-LeCoultre's Atmos clocks; his watch design reduces the object to pure geometry and legibility.
Historical significance
IWC Schaffhausen Aquatimer 36 mm Ice Grade sits within IWC Schaffhausen's Aquatimer line, introduced in 1986. It carries the house codes established since 1868 — grade 5 titanium case, ice blue dial and in-house manual-winding — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The reference was originally planned as a one-year run and stayed in the catalogue for well over a decade.
- The bracelet tapers across its length, which is why the profile looks thinner on the wrist than the specification suggests.
The House
IWC Schaffhausen
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1868
- Founder
- Florentine Ariosto Jones
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Tier
- Luxury
- Major collections
- Portugieser, Pilot's Watch, Portofino, Ingenieur, Aquatimer, Da Vinci
- Signature technologies
- Proprietary case-hardening and polishing · Shock-absorbing movement mounting · Certified chronometer regulation
- Famous movements
- In-house manual-winding · In-house automatic, Superlative Chronometer · In-house automatic chronograph · In-house automatic, chronometer certified
- Notable watches
- IWC Schaffhausen Portugieser 38 mm Blue 18k (2000) · IWC Schaffhausen Portugieser 40 mm Black Carbon (1962) · IWC Schaffhausen Portugieser 38 mm Silvered 18k (1987) · IWC Schaffhausen Portugieser 36 mm Slate Grade (1991)
Brand history
IWC Schaffhausen has spent more than 158 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's Portugieser, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Florentine Ariosto Jones established IWC Schaffhausen in 1868, working from Switzerland at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every IWC Schaffhausen calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1868
Florentine Ariosto Jones founds IWC Schaffhausen in Switzerland.
1899
IWC Schaffhausen earns its first international recognition for precision timekeeping.
1969
The quartz era forces IWC Schaffhausen to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
IWC Schaffhausen enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
IWC Schaffhausen continues to produce Portugieser, Pilot's Watch, Portofino and other icons in limited numbers.