The OW Compendium ‘PLATINUM ANNIVERSARY’ Edition

by Brent Robillard

Seventy years of watchmaking

When I first met Charles LeMenestrel in Geneva in 2024, I was already a fan of Ollech & W ajs. What I didn’t realize at the time was that a simple dinner—and the opportunity to handle pieces from his personal vintage OW collection—would set both Ollech & Wajs and The Calibrated Wrist on a shared path. That evening revealed something deeper than product heritage: a lineage of stories waiting to be told.

This year, OW celebrates 70 years of watchmaking–a platinum anniversary.

So, in collaboration with the brand, our team at The Calibrated Wrist is publishing “The OW Compendium– ‘PLATINUM ANNIVERSARY’ Edition.”

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A first for OW and The Calibrated Wrist

This is the first-ever book about Ollech & Wajs, and it is the first-ever book published by The Calibrated Wrist. Why start here? Because the best watch watchmakers do more than make good watches. They exist at the confluence of horology and history. Their timepieces bear witness to moments, missions, milestones, and memories. In some cases, they are part of the story itself. They are time capsules as much as they are timekeepers.

Ollech & Wajs is one such brand.

Check out the C-1000 Y from Ollech & Wajs

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A storied past

For decades, OW watches have found their way onto the wrists of explorers, divers, pilots, and servicemen—not through glossy campaigns or celebrity endorsement, but through trust earned in demanding environments. These are watches chosen for purpose and carried into situations where reliability matters more than recognition. Over time, those choices have shaped a body of stories that extend far beyond product references and catalog years. They are human stories, and they deserve to be preserved.

A glimpse of the interior of The OW Compendium – ‘PLATINUM ANNIVERSARY’ Edition — The OW Compendium features stories dating back to the brand’s founding in 1956

This book exists to do just that. Part historical record, part visual archive, part narrative collection, it traces the evolution of Ollech & Wajs while honouring the people and units who made these watches part of their lives. It is a celebration not only of a brand, but of the lived experiences intertwined with it.

Richly illustrated and meticulously researched, the OW Compendium brings together a remarkable archive of original photography, technical diagrams, data and period ephemera.

It’s a celebration of idiosyncratic design, mechanical integrity, and a legacy shaped far from the spotlight.

Stories from the Vietnam War featured in The OW Compendium – ‘PLATINUM ANNIVERSARY’ Edition — Ollech & Wajs has a rich history in South East Asia

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Reading the The OW Compendium – ‘PLATINUM ANNIVERSARY’ Edition while wearing a 1968 Oceangraph from Ollech & Wajs — The OW Oceangraph 1968: just one of many emblematic models covered in the OW Compendium @calibre321

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A work of history

As a publisher and a watch enthusiast, I believe that heritage brands—especially those that operate outside the glare of household-name recognition—deserve thoughtful documentation. Their histories matter. Their stories deserve to be celebrated. And there is no more fitting medium for that preservation than a book. Itself a time capsule.

This is one small contribution toward ensuring that the stories behind Ollech & Wajs are not only remembered but carried forward.

To order your copy of the OW Compendium, click this link and enjoy!