Trafford Crossroads Core 40 and 36: The Swiss Crossroads Stops Selling Out

Trafford Watch Co. has spent most of its short life selling watches in bursts. The Texas brand, founded by Nathan Trafford, launched in 2020 with the SOE Roadster, a vintage-racing chronograph, and found its own voice in late 2022 with the Crossroads: a nearly cushion-shaped case with bowed sides, big sans-serif numerals and sunburst dials named after Texas icons. That first Crossroads went to Kickstarter at $399 with a Seiko VH31 quartz or $499 with a Miyota 9035 automatic, and the releases that followed kept the same rhythm of campaigns and seasonal colorways that vanish once they sell through.

The Crossroads S raised the stakes this year with a thinner case, a hand-wound Sellita SW-210 and the brand’s first Swiss Made designation, at $899. It also kept the drop model, with “Season One” colorways arriving in pairs and selling out. The new Crossroads Core changes that. Offered in blue and red, each in a 40 and a 36 size, it is the same Swiss watch as the S, moved into a permanent lineup for buyers who would rather not refresh a product page on launch morning.

Core itself isn’t new. Trafford introduced it in July with the Daytripper and Touring GMT, both running Miyota 9075 automatics in 39mm cases. The Crossroads is the first Swiss model to join, which makes it the real test of whether a microbrand that built its following on scarcity can sell the same watch on availability instead.

Permanent Doesn’t Mean It Ships Tomorrow

Trafford’s pitch is easy to like: no limited-edition scramble, no sold-out pages, just a lineup that is there when you are ready. Read the product pages closely, though, and both colorways are currently listed as pre-orders, with estimated shipping in December 2026 and orders fulfilled in the order received. Permanent means the reference won’t be retired after a batch sells through. It doesn’t mean a watch leaves Texas the day you pay.

That is a point about wording, not a flaw in the model. Pre-orders are how small brands fund production, and waiting is one of the trade-offs of buying microbrand that buyers already accept. What Core actually removes is the pressure to decide within the first hour. On an $899 watch, losing that pressure is worth more than an edition number would be.

The Swiss Movement Is Where the Price Went

Trafford is explicit that the Core Crossroads uses the same case in two sizes, the same movement and the same dials as the S. The differences are the colors and the fact that it stays in the catalogue. So the movement story is the S’s story: a Sellita SW-210, hand-wound, regulated to +/-5 seconds, with a 42-hour power reserve, built in La Chaux-de-Fonds and assembled in Porrentruy.

Set that against where the Crossroads started. A Miyota 9035 automatic for $499 on Kickstarter has become a Swiss hand-wound at $899. Part of that jump is the Swiss Made label, and part of it reflects how affordable automatic movements keep getting pricier for small brands. Trafford’s other Core models stay on Miyota, so the Crossroads is clearly the step up in the range.

Hand-winding is a deliberate choice, and it cuts both ways. Dropping the rotor is a big part of why the case can sit at 9mm. It also means a 42-hour reserve, so you will be turning the crown roughly every other day. In a rotation that is a small ritual. As an only watch, it can become a chore.

Nine Millimetres Makes This a Dress Watch

The case is 316L stainless steel with a protective hardening coating, 9mm at its tallest point, under a double-domed sapphire crystal with interior anti-reflective coating, a hollowed-out underside and a bevelled edge. The bezel is slimmer than on the original Crossroads, which gives the dial more room. Water resistance is 10 ATM.

The sizing needs a little translation. The 40 actually measures 35 x 36mm, with a 46mm lug-to-lug and 20mm lugs. The 36 measures 31 x 32mm, with a 40mm lug-to-lug and 18mm lugs. One caveat: when Worn & Wound handled the original Crossroads, which Trafford also rated as wearing like a 40, the reviewer found it closer to 41mm. Cushion cases tend to wear larger than their width suggests.

At 9mm, this lands much nearer dress territory than field-watch territory. It isn’t as flat as the 7.4mm quartz Corniche Visionnaire dress watch, but it will slip under a shirt cuff with room to spare. My own limit for that is around 13mm, so this has plenty in hand.

The dial carries the Crossroads signature. The centre is raised and slopes toward the edges under a sunburst finish, with polished numerals inset into the slope and filled with C3 Swiss Super LumiNova. The polished hands are lumed to match, and a lume chapter ring runs around the outside. That is more lume than you would expect on something this dressy.

Color is where Core separates itself from the seasonal S releases, which used colorways with names like Fern and Vine. Blue and red, both offered in both sizes, are the colors most buyers already know they will wear, which is exactly what a permanent lineup should offer. Red is the bolder pick, and it also echoes the dark red Cabernet dial from the very first Crossroads.

The Bracelet Pushes It Past $1,000

Both colorways ship on a leather strap at $899. The new H-link bracelet, with a butterfly clasp, on-the-fly micro-adjustment and quick-release end links, costs another $249, which takes the full package to $1,148.

There are other reasons for caution. The warranty runs two years and covers manufacturing defects, not cosmetic wear or accidental damage.

Specs, Pricing & Availability

Conclusions

I would order the 40 in blue on leather and leave the bracelet for later. A cushion case on a strap suits the Crossroads’ mid-century character better than steel links, and it keeps the price at $899. The 36, with its 40mm lug-to-lug, is the better choice for smaller wrists or anyone who likes vintage proportions, and it gives up nothing in specification. This makes the most sense for someone who already owns a reliable automatic and wants something thin and Swiss with real character to wear alongside it. If you need one watch to do everything, a hand-wound cushion case isn’t that watch.

Trafford is betting that a microbrand can keep a design permanently available without killing the interest that sold-out pages create. If Core works, the drop stops being the default playbook for small brands at this price, and buyers get to choose on design rather than timing.