u/Baltic_Builder

A few months ago I shared the first concept of KEEL here. Now the first physical prototypes are finally here.
KEEL is inspired by my day job in shipbuilding, and this prototype was photographed right where the idea came from.
The grid on the dial was inspired by the structural layout of ship construction, while the NB001 marking comes from the build-number markings we use in shipyards.
Really curious to hear your first impressions now that it’s a real watch.

Some of you may remember the KEEL concept inspired by my work in shipbuilding.

KEEL is a brand created from two personal passions — shipbuilding and mechanical watches.

The project has now officially entered the development and prototyping stage.

For the first launch I decided to focus on two configurations built around one common case platform:

— North Sea
— Regatta

The goal behind KEEL is to create a modern industrial marine watch inspired by real shipyard materials, steel surfaces and industrial textures — combined with a clean and premium overall aesthetic.

More updates soon.

A few days ago I shared the first KEEL concept here and honestly didn’t expect this kind of response.

I went through all the comments again — a lot of the feedback genuinely helped shape the direction further.

One thing many of you pointed out was the chalk-style “NB060” marking. Some loved it, others felt it made the dial too niche. I think both sides made sense, so for now I moved it away from the dial. Maybe it comes back one day as a caseback detail or special edition.

Another suggestion that stayed with me was adding a subtle accent color. Instead of yellow, I used a green tone inspired by the fish hold coating from the actual vessel that started this idea. It’s used to help keep live fish calmer during transport. I originally used it only on the seconds hand, but decided to make it slightly more visible this time.

The dial is still the part I want to focus on the most. I want it to feel closer to real blasted steel — raw, imperfect and industrial — while keeping the overall watch clean and balanced.

The changes are small, but the project feels much more alive to me now.

Really appreciate all the feedback so far.

Hey guys,

I love watches, but my day job is building ships.

These photos are from one of the last hulls I supervised here in Poland —
from raw steel plates in the workshop…
to a finished hull, just before it was sent to Norway for final outfitting.

If you look closely at the first photo, you’ll see how hull plates are aligned and joined together.
This is the idea behind the dial.

And the marking “NB060”? In shipyards we literally write build numbers with chalk on steel — that’s where it comes from.

I put together a simple render to show the idea.

It’s still just a concept, but I wanted to share it here.

Would you wear something like this?
Or is it too industrial or niche?

Appreciate any honest feedback.