Since the whole world has been turning upside down in the last two years, it might be the right time to present a watch that does everything the opposite of what we’re used to. I’m talking about the Raketa Russian Code.
The watch comes from the collection of new Raketa watches powered by the automatic Raketa 2615 movement. You can find my first impressions of the new Raketa lineup in my review of the Raketa Baikonur, which is also available on my website.
So, why is the Raketa Code so unusual? Quite simply—ALL the hands rotate in the opposite direction, that is, counterclockwise. The idea behind this watch is that counterclockwise rotation is actually more “natural” to our world, since the Earth rotates around the Sun in a counterclockwise direction. The Moon also orbits the Earth in the same way. And since Raketa promotes itself as an open-minded company that thinks differently (remember the story about using 0 instead of 12…), it’s only logical that they’d want to experiment with a watch that challenges convention.
The simplest way to achieve this reverse motion would be to just add an extra gear to an existing movement, but that would increase the thickness. Instead, Raketa completely rearranged the movement in reverse, and this modified version is labeled 2615R.
The watch was released as a limited edition of 300 pieces: 150 with a black dial and 150 with a white dial.
So, let’s dive into the details of this watch.
Even though everything is reversed in this watch, the crown remains in the standard position on the right side. However, setting the time and hand-winding are done in the opposite direction from what we’re used to. So, if you want to wind the watch, you have to turn the crown backward; if you want to advance the hands, you also need to turn the crown backward. Odd? Not really—since the hands follow the "natural" path. :)
The crown features the typical Raketa red dot marking.
An interesting detail is the choice of crystal. As can be seen in the photos, the watch has a domed sapphire crystal, which is meant to enhance the 3D effect of the Earth depicted in the center of the dial. To be honest, I don’t really notice any positive impact from this design element.
Unfortunately, Raketa did not opt for an open caseback on this watch, which is quite common in other models from the new collection. A pity—and, in my opinion, a mistake. The caseback only has a small window above the balance wheel, which is not particularly impressive to look at.
The watch has a very wearable diameter of 40.5 mm, though to be honest, it looks and feels even larger on the wrist. For a 40 mm watch, it’s unusual that such a wide lug width was chosen—22 mm! This gives the watch a larger overall visual presence.
Much can be said about the overall appearance of the watch. The dial, at least in my opinion, is not particularly attractive—or to be blunt, it’s rather ugly. Too many colors, and the Earth image in the center makes the watch appear less serious. But—this is a Russian-made watch, and if you are even slightly familiar with Russian or Soviet-era watch design, you’ll likely agree that this is a very typical Russian approach to dial aesthetics. And of course, the Earth in the center is there to illustrate how the Moon (represented by the second hand) orbits the Earth. Then there's also the Zodiac ring, just in case the dial wasn’t busy enough already...
Since I mentioned the hands—those on this watch are terrible. I can’t imagine a worse choice. In other Raketa watches, we see many nicely designed hands that would have suited this model far better. But here, the hands look cheap, plasticky, and poor in quality. Interestingly, the white dial version of this watch comes with different hands that are much nicer.
The watch wears very well and sits nicely on the wrist. But it constantly causes confusion! Only after wearing it for a while do you realize how difficult it is to change long-standing habits. Even though you’re fully aware that you need to be careful, your brain still struggles. I don’t have much trouble with the hour hand, but when it comes to reading the minutes, I really have to think twice.
Just to give you an example—what time is it in the picture on the left? It’s 1:22:44 (or 13:22:44). Not so easy, right? And in the first picture? It’s 12:43:48.
It’s quite clear why Raketa named this watch Code and promotes it with the slogan: "Can you read the time?"
Like all new Raketa models, the watch comes in a colorful box with a Raketa booklet—where the Code watch gets a prominent mention.
So, my final verdict: great idea and concept—kudos for that! I truly appreciate such bold, unconventional approaches. Raketa, this concept deserves better promotion! But it’s a shame the overall design is let down by the dial and hands. Instead of wearing it as often as possible to confuse everyone around me, I only put it on for special occasions—or when I’m with friends who already know that my taste in watches is a bit... eccentric.
P.S. A shorter version of this review was first published on the Portal Satova watch forum in March 2020.
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