Fossil DF-5000 Series - A Luxury as Fine as This I’ve Never Known
Fossil Defender. It has been a minute since we’ve posted about anything related to a fan favorite, the Fossil Defender. I was cleaning out some inventory recently and came across a Defender that I completely forgot I had, a DF-5003 from the second run of Defenders.
Fossil Defender. It has been a minute since we’ve posted about anything related to a fan favorite, the Fossil Defender. I was cleaning out some inventory recently and came across a Defender that I completely forgot I had, a DF-5003 from the second run of Defenders.
I bought this a few years ago from eBay and the seller had listed it as brand new. It was not brand new when I received it, but very close with slight signs of use. The case shape and 34mm size is not a combination I would wear in the late 90’s or today and as such will be selling this piece very soon on eBay to make room for new Fossil watches.
A quick post on the beauty of this watch is warranted and let’s document it here before sending it off to the next owner.
The DF-5003 came from a family of 24 DF series watches launched in 1999. The 5 styles of the DF series took a different vibe than the DE series and came in priced very high and marketed as such. The 5000 styles of these watches were nautical in theme and aptly named Starboard.
Three items I wanted to highlight here.
The original price was $350
Tonneau case shape is a strange one for Fossil. Not many watches look like this from them in the past.
The movement is a Time Module Inc (TMI) VX36, which is a subsidiary company of Seiko. Lately it’s been good to see Fossil moving a lot of their new watches over to the more reliable Japanese quartz movements and the Defender DF-5003 was a trendsetter!
Fossil Sport Tourer -- a new collection of fine chronographs
Launching today is a new series that we’re excited about from Fossil – the Sport Tourer. We are thrilled to see Fossil back with some racing inspired chronographs and with a Japanese quartz movement. The name of the new series makes sense given Fossil can no longer use the Speedway name.
Launching officially today is a new series that we’re excited about from Fossil – the Sport Tourer. We are thrilled to see Fossil back with some racing inspired chronographs and with a Japanese quartz movement. The name of the new series makes sense given Fossil can no longer use the Speedway name.
Let’s talk about new pieces before we go into some collector nerdiness.
The Sport Tourer collection launches officially on February 15 with 5 colorways that feature either a stainless-steel bracelet, leather straps or silicone strap.
All cases sizes for this initial launch are 42mm with a 22mm strap/bracelet. Prices in USD range $195-$220. Searching for movement information and came up empty handed, but Fossil does say it’s a Japanese center second chronograph movement and wouldn’t be surprised if it’s a Miyota movement as used before by Fossil and many, many others.
Model numbers are as follows - FS6043 for the cream dial with the perforated strap, FS6044 for the yellow dial, FS6045 for the black dial with the white sub-dials. FS6047 blue dial and the FS6046 for the green dial. Pictured below with links to the Fossil site to read more.
At first glance we’re leaning towards a FS6044 for our first Sport Tourer purchase – because let’s be honest some of the yellow dial Speedways from the late 90’s/early 2000’s are amongst our favorites. Coming in at a close second and our Facebook group confirms this – the cream dial with the leather strap is not far behind – love that drive theme!
You may be thinking; these pieces look familiar. There are lots of chronographs out there and lately the trend is racing/driving themes, which is great for collectors like me, who happened to love cars too. Some of the most memorable chronographs of Fossil past are the Fossil Speedway and Fossil Defenders and while not an exact copy of the Sport Tourer series, these older models including the Compass series of watches from the 2010’s all seem to welcome Sport Tourer to the family. The nods to heritage of previous designs is one of the things we like about Fossil. Keep it up!!!
Fossil DF Defenders
A few from the Fossil Compass Series of 2013-14
Fossil Speedways with an arkitekt cousin
one could argue that the recent retro series looks similar too sans date window
New Solar Defenders for 2023
Picture a dreary work trip in Europe, it’s rainy and cold and you are tired, jet-lagged and longing for comforts of home. Your phone goes off and it’s your friend Adam alerting you that new Defenders are now appearing on Amazon & Zappos. Wiping the rain off of your phone and in 100% bewilderment there they are - 3 new Defenders! A deeper dive into Google and 3 more new Defenders are discovered for a grand total of 6. Could there be more?
Picture a dreary work trip in Europe, it’s rainy and cold and you are tired, jet-lagged and longing for comforts of home. Your phone goes off and it’s your friend Adam alerting you that new Defenders are now appearing on Amazon & Zappos. Wiping the rain off of your phone and in 100% bewilderment there they are - 3 new Defenders! Why didn’t I know about these — where is the heads up? A deeper dive into Google and 3 more new Defenders are discovered for a grand total of 6. Could there be more? Happy 2023, let’s dig in!
Not much is known at this point about these Defenders. No Defender specific model numbers, no special marketing or packaging and nothing is appearing on Fossil.com in the US yet (they are appearing on Germany’s site as of 2/9/23). The movements are all solar and the descriptions are very earth friendly and one can only assume it’s a step towards Fossil’s advertised sustainability efforts to being good for the planet.
As a fan of the now defunct One Eleven Watches, I’m excited to see the solar movements and earth friendly materials promoted in our favorite line of Fossil watches.
The 6 new pieces are model numbers FS5973, FS5974, FS5975, FS5976, FS5977 and FS5978 and are pictured below is corresponding order.
For now we’ll keep the Defender Guide updated with the latest.
Update as of February 15, 2023! The new Defenders are now live across Fossil’s various country sites. Find the links below for each colorway here in the US. Important to note the case size is 40mm unless otherwise noted. We look forward to reviewing soon in person, in the meantime happy shopping.
FS5973 - Defender Solar-Powered Stainless Steel Watch
FS5974 - Defender Solar-Powered Medium Brown Eco Leather Watch
FS5975 - Defender Solar-Powered Luggage Eco Leather Watch
FS5976 - Defender Solar-Powered Stainless Steel Watch 46mm
Fossil GMT Watches – they do exist!
Let me be the first to tell you that Fossil GMT watches do exist and currently there are 2 of them for sale on Fossil.com in limited quantities. In the past 20 years or so there have been 2 others in the Fossil catalog available to all. We can’t wait to uncover these other 2 older GMT models and show what series they were a part of, but first we must discuss the latest ones!
Let me be the first to tell you that Fossil GMT watches do exist and currently there are 2 of them for sale on Fossil.com in limited quantities. In the past 20 years or so there have been at least 2 others in the Fossil catalog available to all. We can’t wait to uncover these other 2 older GMT models and show what series they were a part of, but first we must discuss the latest ones!
Before we dive in, if you don’t know what a GMT movement it’s okay. I won’t go into details on this post because we normally don’t go into watch nerd stuff around movements & accuracy like other watch sites. Below find a few links on the GMT movement put in plain English that allows you to learn - I always thought the history and use case was fascinating and would have loved to use them as a pilot on Pan Am in a different life and to have Fossil offer a GMT options brings a smile to my face.
Fossil FB series is really, really and okay one more time really growing on us. FB for those who haven’t figured it out yet stands for Fossil Blue (yeah!) The FB series is really encapsulating the vintage 60’s/70’s diver vibe and as such have released 2 GMT diver watches rated at 200M and both are limited editions. Fossil FB-GMT Silicone LE1107 and Fossil FB-GMT Titanium LE1100 are currently for sale on Fossil.com.
I’ve been road testing the silicone model LE1107 for almost 2 months now and it’s been camping, canoeing, mountain biking, swimming and surfing (or trying to surf) in the ocean. It’s durable, it’s light and comfortable. All these extracurricular activities haven’t affected the crystal or the case at all, everything is clear and no markings or scratches – a great watch for those of us who enjoy being active. The silicone strap however does attract sunscreen and after 2 months it’s got white spots that do come off with some scrubbing – but I’m a weird and like the patina on the strap.
The Titanium LE1100 model was quite a surprise when I received it. Harkening to the titanium watches from Fossil in the past, which I never owned I was shocked at how light this model is and even more shocked that his silicone brother is actually lighter (by .4 ounces!). The LE1100 is quite a dressier piece – you really could wear it work every day and then in the evenings party with its active brother the silicone LE1107. The color of the blue on the bottom half of the dial really stands out with the titanium color of the bracelet – the few times I’ve worn this watch you can see people’s eyes go right to it and since all we can see is people’s eyes in 2020 (thanks COVID), it made an impression on me that people do notice watches…which means I need more!
You can’t see it, but I’m wearing a suit in my home office with this piece!
When we discuss limited editions we always have to talk about the packaging. The FB-GMTs are no exception, both have similar packaging with only a slight variation to match the colors of the LE1100. The Pelican style case is a nice touch and similar to some limited editions of the past.
Okay let’s get into some history!
Series of watches are fun to collect and be a part of…… Defenders obviously have been our favorites for years, but there also lives many others in the Fossil world including Road Trip, Airmaster, Curator, Speedway and others. It’s no coincidence that the latest GMT watches are found in the newly revived Fossil Blue series and the earlier models were found in the DF Defender line and the short-lived Swiss line…..3 of our favorite series past and present!
The DF-5002 is the first 24-hour movement watch that I could find in the Fossil archives. It was part of the Starboard series in the DF line. Other models in this line retailed for $350USD, not quite sure what the original price was, but know it was high! The 24-hour movement is unique because you can’t adjust it, you adjust the hour hand of the movement to go back or ahead of what GMT is set at. Unique compared to any other GMT watches I own.
The FSW7006 Swiss FS-5 is the other previous GMT watch from Fossil. This is one of the few Fossil Swiss not in my personal collection because it was very limited and expensive $895 at its release. Either way it’s part of an exclusive GMT club within the Fossil world.
Welcome to the exclusive club of Fossil GMT watches, LE1100 and LE1107! I know all of you like clubs and limited editions, feel free to join us!
Limited Edition FB-GMT Dual Time Titanium Watch LE1100 - 954 produced
Limited Edition FB-GMT Dual-Time Black Silicone Watch LE1107
Fossil Defender back again and limited
Today we find ourselves with the latest addition to the Fossil Archival Series: The Defender. Did we mention it’s also a Limited-Edition Defender? Let’s make this official – today we are proud to welcome the first Fossil Defender to be included in the limited-edition club!
Time travel with us to almost a year ago when we saw the launch of the Fossil Archival Series with the release of the modern take of the 90’s mood watch – those things went fast! So fast, that I didn’t even get one and one could say with sure certainty that its success changed the roadmap for Fossil to release more of these retro releases.
Today we find ourselves with the latest addition to the Fossil Archival Series: The Defender. Did we mention it’s also a Limited-Edition Defender? Let’s make this official – today we are proud to welcome the first Fossil Defender to be included in the limited-edition club! Launched officially today this Defender has a run of 854 watches and these will go fast! Folks on our Fossil Collector’s Club Facebook group are talking about it and buying them up already.
Let’s talk about the watch & packaging first and then bear with us we’ll geek out at the end for all you Defender fans.
Many of us in the collecting world are obsessed with packaging. Fossil historically has the most fun and sometimes most thoughtful packaging on limited edition items and other special releases. The LE1062 comes in a steamer trunk replica leather presentation box with the Defender logo embossed on the top of the box.
The Defender comes with interchangeable bezels that rotate off & on easily. For long time fans of Fossil, you’ll find some similarities to the old Fossil LE1002: The Explorer, which features interchangeable bezels too in limited edition packaging. Our newest Defender also features a leather & nylon field strap --- so you’ve got options to make your Defender, your Defender!
Here’s where we geek out on this watch. We love Fossil Defenders here at the Underground Fossil Collector’s Club – this site and community was built on people looking for Defenders. The original Defender line was DE and launched in 1995. Unlike more recent Defenders this latest addition is a tribute to those original Defenders.
Did you notice the logo on the face? That logo ceased to exist with the last of the original Defenders, the DE-1544 and was not featured on any future Defender releases except for advertising pieces.
Did you notice the crown position? Only 2 other Defenders ever had the 4:00 crown position – DE-1526 & DE-1527.
Lastly do you see the similarities! The LE-1062 is a modern take on DE-1527 with a larger case, but unfortunately, it’s not an automatic (aut-o-matic). Also unlike its predecessor which was rated at 200m, this new addition is only rated at 30m, which is “splash resistant”, so don’t take your new Defender swimming!
Fossil Defender DE-1527 and the newest Defender LE-1062
Overall this latest addition to the Archival Series is a much-needed win for us Fossil fans. Could they have done a few things better like the movement and water resistance? Sure, they could have, but that’s really not the point of these throwback designs from yesteryear. Fossil has a long history of military/aviation pieces and limited-edition collections that come in at an affordable price point and the new Defender is the perfect combination of each with a price at $255.
Welcome back Defender! Available now on Fossil.com
A touching non-eBay rare Fossil Defender find
As collections grow we start to branch out to other forums to find nice pieces without having to pay wishful seller premiums. Anyone can start a website and attempt to sell collectible Fossil watches for $129. Likewise, anyone can sell watches on eBay and buy low with one user ID and sell high with another user ID…...we know who they are and over the years we’ve learned to avoid those traps. All of this to say in 2018 it isn’t difficult to still obtain vintage timepieces online at a reasonable price.
The purpose of this post isn’t to list out these other online avenues for great finds, but to highlight a nice story that worked out well in our ongoing attempt to finish the Fossil DE collection.
The rarest DE Defenders are the 4 similar models DE-1524, DE-1525, DE-1535 and DE-1536.
Some would argue that the DE-1542, DE-1543 and DE-1544 are rarer, but at least those appeared in several US catalogs. The 4 similar models only appeared in one Defender catalog, which we featured a few months ago.
Collecting tip is the more desirable Defenders and to some extent Speedways appear for sale in Germany more so than anywhere else and our site metrics would indicate that to be true - we have a lot of German collectors. I don’t always search German classifieds, but when I do I find a rare Defender and in late 2017 a DE-1535 made a grand appearance on a German classified site.
Common concerns dealing with classified sites anywhere is reliability and trustworthiness of the seller. Add a few thousand miles between us and questions rise up like will she actually ship it? What guarantees will I have? How bad is the exchange rate?
Swallowing my nerves I sent off a simple email expressing interest and name dropping the Collectors Club and to my surprise Nadja, the seller was very personable and I knew instantly I could trust her. After a few awkward email exchanges with the language barrier we had a deal! Like all watches she bought it to wear it and realized it was too heavy for a woman's wrist even after swapping out the original brown strap for a black one. Nadja even went as far as sending me pictures of the watch all packaged up and a parcel number for tracking.
After a few weeks the DE-1535 made it's way to Ohio where it's proudly displayed with all the other DE Defenders. I like stories like this and had to share -- we're all people and these unique interactions is what makes collecting anything fun. In the end I have a fun story to tell, a rare Defender watch and an extra OEM strap for another Defender that needed a good strap and I'll save that for another story. Happy Collecting!
A Fossil Defender DE Series Guide to start the new year!!!
Happy 2018! Let's celebrate by posting a 16 page guide of the Fossil Defender DE series from 1995. We have scanned all 16 pages and listed them out below individually and then uploaded the entire guide as a PDF. If you aren't from Germany, we apologize in advance -- found this in a lot of Fossil documentation found (and rescued) from Germany.
the old bucket list of watches
To compare a watch to something on your bucket list is probably a bit much, but did I get your attention? We all have those watches amongst other things we are always on the hunt for. It’s the thrill of the hunt that keeps us going and it’s the most fun. I have watches that I’ve hunted for years only to wear them once or twice, but at least I have them. Two such watches on my “bucket list” of watches that I would pay anything for showed up in the same day on eBay and I pulled the trigger.
Defender DF-1003
When I first starting hunting & collecting Defenders in 2009, this Defender showed up on eBay for $50 and wasn’t sure the rarity or the value. Believe it or not Defenders were selling on eBay for $10-$30 all day long, this was before a wonderful Fossil Collector’s Club website came online and prices starting going up! Who is that guy? What a jerk! Anyways $50 was too high and as the auction closed for about $56 I remember thinking that’s the one I want.
Fast forward 7 years later to a rainy, autumn Sunday morning in Cleveland, Ohio and as I’m sipping my coffee while ignoring my children who are playing Minecraft in the other room, this Defender shows up at the top of my feed! Buy it now for $59.99, done! It wasn’t until afterwards that I saw the pictures of the crown being broken and even though the listing said the watch kept time, it doesn’t! I don’t care, I have it and if you follow us on Facebook you’ve probably seen that some of these chronos from Fossil are all related and all have the same movement. Anyone know a good horologist?
Fossil Automatic Breaker LE-1015
When this watch first hit the waves in 2013…get it waves? I took notice and so did many other watch collectors and blogs. By Googling Fossil LE-1015 you’ll get a taste of the torture that we’ve experienced for many years now because these watches are highly reviewed, very expensive (for a Fossil) and extremely limited. Now and again they come up on forums for about the original retail price of $445, which is too rich for the blood of this father of 2 in the great Midwest.
LE-1015 has been on my eBay watch list for years now and has never come up and it still hasn’t come up. While working on a Sunday night (living the dream!) and waiting for files to come in, I started browsing on eBay and this watch in it’s orange waterproof case appeared as the picture with the WORST title ever for this watch – no one would know what the watch was based on the title of "Fossil Watch Thin Blue Line Collection". I felt the rush of anxiety hit me, was this it, really? Checked out the seller profile, seems legit -- view all the pictures, okay and I hit buy it now for $89. I didn’t even double check that I had $89 in my account – bought!
On the other side of obtaining these 2 rare watches, I do find myself not searching as much for other watches – I had a major score in one day and I know that’s rare, it’s nice to take a break from screen time and just enjoy having the watches and taking in the holiday season with a rare watch underneath my ugly Christmas sweater.
Fossil Facts - Volume 1 Issue1
Occasionally we run across some internal documentation that sheds some light into the world of Fossil in the 90's. The below scans are one such item circa 1996 called Fossil Facts. This 4 page document was used for employees for quick hit talking points around the brand and some knowledge about the watches.
My favorite piece in this whole thing is when asked about the Fossil Image, the response is "Fossil focuses on the wholesome brand image of "America in the 1950's" targeting the value-driven, back to basics consumer of the nineties.
Ironically it was nice to see that Defender was marketed as “an exciting series of watches that is “classic rugged” in styling and geared for ages twenty and up”. Looks like I missed the target demographic for that by a couple of years in 1996 – now I’m pushing 40 and that 'classic rugged style' is what I’m looking for.
Missing Fossil Defender
It finally happened....
After buying and selling 100's of watches on eBay and other forums, I have had a postal theft and I know it's a postal theft because we've had other recent incidents with packages that have been opened prior before arrival to our house. None of the prior incidents have lead me to file a complaint or be upset because nothing was stolen -- this time around however an envelope with a very rare (and not valuable) Fossil Defender DF-5003 with a black or dark blue face was nowhere to be found in the package. In fact the package arrived opened and empty.
this is what i got -- Post Office said they should never have even delivered it like this
Attention Pawn Shops, resellers or anyone else who may come across this slightly banged up Fossil Defender DF-5003 on it's way from Austin, Texas to Cleveland, Ohio -- please let me know. I'd love to use the power of the Internet and this site to find this watch because filing a complaint with the Post Office doesn't seem to go anywhere especially since insurance wasn't on the package. They offered their apologies and essentially said sometimes they employ bad eggs.
I just want a good home.....