Before getting into The 4th Dimension itself, I want to take a step back and talk about the brand behind it. Because with Canuck Timepieces, I think the story is just as interesting as the watches.
My friend Jiliano from The Watch Brief sat down with James for a great interview, “An Interview with Canuck Timepieces: Collaboration, Creativity, & Canadian Microbrands.” It’s a great way to get to know the man behind the brand, discover how it all started, and understand the ideas and philosophy that shape his watches and collaborations.
If you want to dig a little deeper, I highly recommend giving it a read. Now let’s get back to business.
Canuck Timepieces
Founded by James Williams in Simcoe, Ontario, the brand didn’t begin with a grand plan to create a watch company. In fact, it started much more simply with James buying parts from AliExpress and putting watches together for himself. It was a creative outlet, a way of experimenting with designs and, essentially, making the watches he wanted to wear.
Then he started sharing some of those creations online.
People noticed.
Followers began asking whether they could buy the watches he was making, and what started as a personal creative project slowly evolved into something much bigger. James began working with other artists and designers, turning those early experiments into a brand built around collaboration, creativity and accessibility.
The first model that really caught my attention was the Unity in Art, featuring Juxtaposed Watches. Those pieces immediately stood out to me with their bold, colourful designs and their willingness to do something different. They weren’t trying to blend into the crowd, and that’s exactly what drew me in.
And, well, the colours certainly didn’t hurt. I’ve always had a soft spot for colourful watches. I enjoy the traditional, more restrained designs too, but if I’m being honest, I probably have a slight preference for a splash of wild tones. There’s something I really appreciate about a brand being brave enough to make such bold choices, especially with its first line of models. It immediately tells you that they’re not afraid to experiment and, more importantly, have a bit of fun with watches.
I’ve also had the pleasure of knowing James for quite some time now, so I’ve had a front-row seat, in a way, to watching Canuck Timepieces grow from those early beginnings into what it is today. It’s something I’m genuinely happy to have witnessed.
And perhaps what makes that journey even more impressive to me is that James isn’t just building a microbrand. He’s doing it while being a husband and a dad. Anyone who is trying to balance family life with a passion project knows that it’s not exactly an easy feat. Finding the time, energy and motivation to keep creating while putting your family first takes a lot.
From what I’ve seen though, James is doing a pretty damn good job of it. He’s managed to grow the business, keep pushing out genuinely interesting designs and build a brand that people clearly connect with. His watches have been selling out remarkably quickly, which says a lot about what he has managed to create in a relatively short time.
And perhaps the best part is that he hasn’t done it by simply following what’s already out there. He keeps experimenting, working with other creatives and finding new ways to approach watch design.
Which brings us to The 4th Dimension.
Canuck x AndoAndoAndo
The 4th Dimension is the third and final chapter between Canuck Timepieces and AndoAndoAndo, continuing a project that has already produced some wonderfully unconventional watches.
The collaboration began with The Black Hole, followed by The Wormhole, with both pieces taking inspiration from Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar, a film that holds a special place for James and is his all-time favourite movie.
Rather than simply putting an Interstellar theme on the dial, the collaboration has been about translating ideas from the movie into actual watch design. Each piece takes a different concept and interprets it through the mechanics, details and visual language of the watch.
With The 4th Dimension, the roles within the collaboration are particularly interesting. James is the driving force behind the concept and design of the watch, taking the traditional three-hand layout and asking a simple question: why not approach the way we display time from a completely different direction? His idea was to create a watch that visually represents time flowing, rather than simply having hands move around a static dial.
AndoAndoAndo provided the artistic canvas for James’ concept, bringing his idea to life within their 35mm PVD-coated case and caseback. The result is a great example of how their strengths complement each other — James’ concept and vision combined with AndoAndoAndo’s distinctive case design.
I really like seeing how these two approaches come together. It isn’t simply a case of putting two names on the dial; each brings something different to the table, and the final watch feels like a genuine meeting of ideas rather than one side simply adding to the other.
And that, for me, is what makes The 4th Dimension so interesting.
Before we get into the watch itself, there’s one important thing I should mention: the piece I’m reviewing is a prototype. So, while this review is based on my experience with this particular watch, some details may still be tweaked, refined or changed slightly before the final production version is released. As an example, as far as I know the lume will be even stronger on the final products.
Let’s see our hero
The 4th Dimension is not the kind of watch you can simply glance at and immediately understand. And I mean that in the best possible way. Even before you know how it works, the dial makes you stop and look twice. I certainly had to take time to really understand how it works and how to set it up.
At its heart is a very simple idea: what if the hands didn’t move at all?
Instead of the traditional hands sweeping around a stationary dial, The 4th Dimension turns the concept upside down. A fixed indicator, sits at 12 o’clock, decorated with the signature of James, while the numerals rotate underneath it.
It sounds simple when you explain it, but seeing it in operation is something else entirely.
A dial that refuses to be ordinary
The dial is obviously the star of the show here. There are no conventional hands, and no traditional hour and minute markers to guide you.
Instead, the rotating discs create a constantly changing display as the numerals pass beneath the stationary indicator.
It gives the watch an almost futuristic, sci-fi feel, which is exactly what the design is going for. The inspiration from Interstellar isn’t just a marketing reference either; it’s woven into the details of the watch.
I particularly love the Arabic numerals. They’re deliberately distorted, almost fuzzy and slightly alien-looking, giving the dial a wonderfully strange, otherworldly character. They feel almost like a visual interpretation of the 4th dimension itself, familiar numbers but presented in a way that feels as though they’ve been pulled from somewhere beyond our normal perception. It’s a small detail, but one that makes the dial even more intriguing. And honestly, it’s also wonderfully geeky, which I absolutely love.
The most obvious nod is also one of the easiest to miss. Truth to be told, I certainly wouldn’t have spotted it myself if James hadn’t pointed it out, especially since I don’t know Morse code. Right in the centre of the dial, the rotating seconds disc features a series of concentric elements that spell “STAY” in Morse code. It’s such a subtle little detail that you could easily overlook it, but once you know it’s there, you can’t help but appreciate the thought that went into it.
For anyone who has seen Interstellar, the reference will immediately make sense. For everyone else, it’s simply a fascinating little hidden detail or an Easter Egg if you will, in an already unusual watch.
Another thing that adds to the unconventional nature of the design is the crown. It’s positioned at 6 o’clock, rather than in the usual 3 o’clock position. It almost feels as though the crown is anchoring the watch while everything above it is free to rotate.
Despite all the unusual elements on the dial, legibility is actually excellent from almost any angles. Once you understand how the display works, reading the time is surprisingly quick and intuitive. And when the light goes down, the added BGW9 lume really comes alive. It shines brightly, adding another layer of character to an already very unconventional watch.
And then there’s the size.
At 35mm, The 4th Dimension is considerably smaller than many modern watches, but with a 43mm lug-to-lug and 20mm lugs, it doesn’t wear like a tiny vintage watch. The proportions are actually quite interesting, and I’ll get more into that when we talk about wearability.
The movement
Inside is the familiar Seiko NH38A, an automatic movement that has become something of a favourite among many microbrands. And to be honest, it’s a proper workhorse, proven, reliable, readily available and relatively easy to service. For a watch like this, I think it’s a sensible choice, especially considering the focus on affordability, accessibility and serviceability.
There is also a see-through caseback, allowing you to watch the NH38A doing its thing. It’s always nice to have that option, although this is one area where I think there could be an opportunity to take the experience even further. (Below is the caseback of the final models, not the prototype)
Since the NH38A isn’t a decorated movement, I could actually see a closed caseback with some kind of artwork or another hidden Easter egg working beautifully with this watch. Perhaps something connected to Interstellar, the 4th Dimension concept, or even the story behind the collaboration. It could turn the back of the watch into another little discovery for the owner. I know many watch enthusiasts love to see the movement at work, so this is more of a personal opinion/preference than a real criticism.
On the wrist and closing thoughts
This is where the 35mm case becomes particularly interesting for me. My usual sweet spot is somewhere around 37–42mm, so this is actually the second watch I’ve worn that falls below that range(first one was the Kuoe Royal Smith 90-008). Naturally, I was curious to see how it would feel on my 17cm wrist.
And surprisingly, it doesn’t feel small at all. It sits comfortably on the wrist and has a really nice presence, helped by the 43mm lug-to-lug. It’s compact, but it certainly doesn’t disappear on the wrist.
At 11.6mm thick, including the crystal, the dimensions are pretty reasonable when you consider what’s going on inside the case. With the movement and, more importantly, those rotating discs, I understand why getting this any thinner simply isn’t realistic.
Because the case itself is only 35mm, the 11.6mm profile is naturally a little more noticeable, but I actually think it suits the watch well. It gives the case a nice sense of substance and, together with the 43mm lug-to-lug, helps the watch maintain surprisingly strong wrist presence despite its compact diameter. So in short, despite its compact size, it feels substantial on the wrist without becoming cumbersome.
But honestly, comfort isn’t the first thing people will notice when you wear this watch.
It’s the questions.
You can almost guarantee someone will look at it and ask
“What kind of watch is that?”
“How do you read the time on it?”
And that’s one of the things I enjoy most about watches like this. There are plenty of beautifully executed watches that you can admire without ever needing to explain them. The 4th Dimension is different. It naturally starts a conversation — a genuine one — and I think that’s one of the best things a watch can do. It gives watch enthusiasts something to talk about, something to discover together, and a reason to connect over something genuinely different.
And once you explain that the indicator doesn’t move, the numerals do, and there’s a hidden Interstellar reference in the seconds disc, it becomes more than just an unusual way of telling time. It becomes a story you can share.
For a brand whose philosophy revolves around storytelling, collaboration and bringing something different to the affordable watch market, I think that’s quite fitting.
Specifications:
- Material: 316L Stainless Steel
- Size: 35mm diameter, 43mm lug to lug with 11.6mm thickness
- Crystal: Sapphire with AR coating
- Movement: Seiko NH38A Automatic
- Water Resistance: 10 atm, 100m
- Display: Rotating hour/minute discs with fixed indicator
- Lume: BGW9 Super-LumiNova
- Strap width: 20mm
- Price: 496 USD
Link to the watch:
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