Watches & Pencils #13 – Weight of Watches

Today we look at a short but furious match between “heavy weights”…. I’ve selected some of the heaviest watches on todays market and boy, they are heavy. The weight is substantial and you could almost use them to train your biceps: Tool Watches When we think of heavy watches we normally think of tool watches. Brutal heavy-duty machines with an impressive weight. Size seems to matter as well, but not always (read on for further explanation). Attraction Often, tool watches attract us because they (also) symbolize strength. Certain aspects can boost those “body-builder” watches. For example: rough and brushed surfaces, minimalistic lines and […]

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Hands-On Porsche Design Chronotimer Series 1 All Titanium Review

It was probably in 1997 or 1998 that I did an internship at this hospital for my Informatics study. There was a guy working there who had this stunning titanium watch on his wrists, a Porsche Design. I think it was one of the models done in partnership with IWC, but the memory doesn’t provide any further details. I do know that he told me he got it for his graduation and longed for that specific watch for quite some time already. There was no further interest in watches I discovered, he just wanted to have that specific watch. Somehow, Porsche […]

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#TBT: Meylan Chronograph

If you’ve never heard of a Meylan Chronograph, don’t be ashamed because up until recently, I hadn’t either! Well, I had never seen or heard of one until a few months ago when Andreas of LocalTime showed me something he had just found. It didn’t take long for me to decide I wanted it in my collection, but I had quite a wait on my hands as the watch had to travel from the USA and go through quite an extensive “spa treatment”. When the watch finally arrived, it was worth the patience because it’s really a fascinating chronograph. Of […]

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Curren 8152 Men's Brown Leather Strap Watch - Silver White Review -Aliexpress Amazon Ebay

Hands-on Grand Seiko SBGV019G 9F Quartz Limited Edition Review

Once in a while we make an exception and cover a battery-operated watch here on Fratello Watches. While we normally prefer mechanical movements, it doesn’t mean some quartz movements aren’t interesting. What should one think of the multifunction watches like a Speedmaster X-33 or Spacemaster Z-33, or the Apple Watch? But when it doesn’t concern a multifunction watch, there needs to be something special about it, right? For example, a watch like the Rolex OysterQuartz Datejust and Day-Date at least contain some mechanical parts. For me, the Grand Seiko SBGV019G I am about to review is a special watch as […]

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WatchTime Magazine Announces New Editor-in-Chief

As per March 1st, friend of the show Roger Ruegger (known for his blog dive into watches) will be the new Editor-in-Chief of WatchTime Magazine. The current Editor-in-Chief (for 16 years), Joe Thompson, will take the role of Editor-at-Large and remains with the publication as a writer and reporter. I’ve been an avid reader of WatchTime Magazine (Ebner Publishing) myself since 2000 or so (not anymore, as it is not available in The Netherlands since a couple of years) and together with the German magazines Chronos (published by Ebner), Uhren Magazine (published by Ebner) and Armband Uhren (published by Heel) […]

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Speedy Tuesday – Omega Speedmaster Pro Moonphase ST345.0809

About a month ago, during the annual SIHH exhibition in Geneva, Omega introduced a new Speedmaster with moonphase indicator. We wrote about that new caliber 9904 Speedmaster Moonphase here. Besides this new Speedmaster Moonphase Chronometer that will be shown in a few weeks from now in Basel, there is a Speedmaster Professional with Moonphase available as well. It has been in the collection non-stop since 2003 actually (click here to see this watch on the official Omega website). That particular Speedmaster Professional has roots that go back to 1985. In that year, Omega introduced no less than 3 different Speedmaster Moonphase models. […]

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Hublot: Visiting the carbon case production and discover how carbon cases are made!

Did you ever wonder what goes into the construction of a watch case and in particular a watch case made of high tech materials like carbon fiber? We got deeper insights into the Hublot carbon case manufacturing workshop in Gland, Switzerland to find out. We will follow the fabrication of one of the parts of the watch case from its arrival as a raw form, through its cutting, polishing and final assembly into the case. Our visit allows us to see the many hand steps, some of which resemble assembly of a watch movement, to create the complex Hublot Big […]

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Overlooked: The Caseback

The front side of a watch gets lots of attention in general. Often more than the caseback, so I’ve decided to write an article dedicated to casebacks and their designs. Besides some nice and extravagant examples, I will discuss some general facts and my personal way of analyzing and categorizing case backs. So please, sit back and relax. General introduction and layout The back of a watch, often referred to as a “caseback”, can reveal several ‘hidden’ parts compared to the front side. Hidden lugs or several parts of the movement for example. The front side of a watch is […]

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FOUND: Omega Speedmaster Professional 105.012-65 Blue Dial For Sale

Last week I received an e-mail from Bob about his Omega Speedmaster Professional 105.012-65 blue dial watch. A rarity, as we wrote back in December 2014 when we discussed the blue dial Speedmaster Pro 145.012 from the Omega Museum. During our Speedmaster GTG in Düsseldorf last year (click here for the report), we’ve seen another blue dial Speedmaster from one of the guests. Bob is offering his Speedmaster Professional 105.012-65 blue dial on eBay and the current bid is already on $7,400.- USD. Why is this watch so special? There is not much to explain about these watches to be […]

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Watches in the Wild – Demarcus Ware (Denver Broncos) wearing a Rolex Sky-Dweller

If you don’t live under a rock you probably heard about the Denver Broncos beating the Carolina Panthers a few weeks ago at Super Bowl 50. It was a two worlds collide kinda thing; the Broncos are one of the oldest teams in the NFL (established in 1960) and the Panthers are a pretty young squad (established in 1993). The Broncos have three Super Bowl championships; the Panthers have zero so far. Denver has a veteran quarterback to lead them, from one of the most prestigious football families, Payton Manning. On the other hand the Carolina leader is a young […]

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#TBT: The Top Five Vintage Sports Chonographs…and Five More

Top five vintage sports chronographs: sounds audacious, doesn’t it?  This week, on #TBT, I’ll take a breather from reviewing an individual watch. Instead, I’d like to – hopefully – entertain you with some thoughts on building a nice collection of vintage 1960’s, and maybe some 1950’s and 1970’s, chronographs. We all see these #sexpile shots and while they’re often comprised of “come as you are” watches, you have those out there who think it’s a good idea to focus on a specific genre or direction within one’s collection. I’ll play along with the latter, although I actually enjoy a lot […]

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Audemars Piguet Historian Michael Friedman And His Top 3 Of Audemars Piguet Watches

In the mid-1990’s, when my love for mechanical watches really took off, I bought as many magazines and watch books I could possibly find as information on the internet was rather difficult to find and not so common as it is now. In a couple of these generic watch books, giving the reader an overview of different watch brands and their models, I always had a couple of favorite brands I’d like to read about. One of them was Audemars Piguet. Not only their octagonal Royal Oak models that I seem to have been appreciating from the first moment on […]

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German Military Timepieces – Book Review

German Military Timepieces It is obvious that whenever we need to research about our watch – or anything else for that matter- we reach for our smartphone, tablet or laptop. If you are one of these guys and only use a book as a doorstop or level the table leg please stop reading now! If you are still here it means you love and use books often. It is true that nowadays most information you find in books is available on the Internet…all you need to do is find it. The problem with searching online is that most of the […]

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U Watch U8 Smartwatch Bluetooth Watch Unboxing & Review - Apple Ios & Android

Speedy Tuesday – The Rare But Unloved Speedmaster Rattrapante Chronometer

Years ago, even before I started Fratello Watches, I visited this Omega dealer near the place where my parents lived. I think I might already have my first Speedmaster that I bought in October 1999, so probably around 2000/2001. The sales person showed me this – then – new Omega Speedmaster Rattrapante Chronometer reference 3540.50. At the time, a futuristic looking watch with a carbon fibre dial and 3 rectangular pushers. A pusher to start/stop the movement, one to reset the chronograph hands and one (at 10 o’clock) to operate the split-seconds. The stainless steel case (42.25mm) showed a lot of resemblance […]

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Watch Strap Review Part 18. – Strapped Watch Co.

It is February and we have yet another Watch Strap Review for you. Even though we try and find strap makers from around the world we also have to give space for guys coming from the same country, especially if we’re talking about countries like the US or Italy where many craftsmen are dealing with leather goods. Don’t worry, we will widen our map with a new country again but for now let’s talk about a strap maker based in the US. It is a very sympathetic company that has a great potential to be one of the best around […]

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Square Mirror Face Silicone Band Digital LED Watch Review -Aliexpress Amazon Ebay

Vintage Market Update: Winter 2016 – move quickly!

It’s been roughly three months since our list Vintage Market update, so it’s high time for another. It’s the middle of winter for most of our readership and it also coincides with a relatively dead spot in the calendar, so why not kick back and read a little bit about what’s been happening and what may come? In this installment of the Vintage Market update, I’ll cover some relatively recent phenomena while doing my best to highlight some relatively available opportunities. Let’s jump in… The market for vintage sports watches was hot a year ago and it’s only reached more […]

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#TBT Yema Rallye Chronograph

The last time I reviewed a Yema, the Daytona as it’s nicknamed, I came away with a rather lukewarm feeling. The watch was nice, but I likened it to a lookalike product; it’s close to the real deal, but somehow lacking in the details. Today, though, we focus on a different model, the Yema Rallye, and I’m delighted to tell you that this watch is far more worthy of praise. Furthermore, the model, in a slightly different format, has a real motorsports connection. #TBT returns from its recent travels to the distant lands of gold plating and smaller sized watches […]

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Zenith: Assembly of the Academy Georges Favre Jacot movement

Zenith developed a special complicated watch to celebrate its 150th anniversary, the Georges Favre Jacot timepiece, which is equipped with a fusee and chain constant force system, to its development of marine clocks. Zenith traces the roots of this watch to its development of marine clocks. The last stages of the assembly of the Academy Georges Favre Jacot watch actually are the fusee and chain. How they are placed into the watch is demonstrated in the following video. Want to know more about the assembly of the world’s finest timepieces? Subscribe to our YouTube Channel, IBG Worldwide. IBG Worldwide is […]

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Breaking: a Universal Geneve Compax “Nina Rindt” found for next to nothing

Earlier this morning, had you awoken very early and jet-lagged in Tokyo, you might have joined other annoying Western tourists in going to the seafood market to watch – and likely get in the way of – the auctioning of the mighty Bluefin tunas. If actually living in this amazing city and throwing a lavish dinner party, perhaps you’d choose to buy 10 lbs of this delectable fish for your cherished guests and find yourself parting with something on the order of $3,000 – 3,500. However, had you decided to sleep in, get dressed, ensure your trusty credit card was […]

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Introducing Eza Sealander

Last week the new owners of Eza came down to the Fratello Watches HQ in The Hague and showed us their Eza Sealander. Needless to say that we always like to have watch people over in our office to ramble about watches over a coffee, we love it when we get to see a new watch or new collection that has not been launched yet. If you are into vintage watch collecting, you might recognize Eza as the brand from Pforzheim, Germany. That’s correct. Pforzheim was long time one of those cities that was associated with watchmaking, and even today you […]

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Speedy Tuesday – Your Chance To Own A Flown Speedmaster X-33

With only a few hours to go, there is still a chance to own that flown Speedmaster watch. Russian cosmonaut Sergei Zalyotin (53) received this Omega Speedmaster Professional X-33 from the Russian Federal Space Agency in 2000 and used it during missions to both the Mir and International Space Stations. Even though he has been connected with the Fortis Cosmonaut Chronograph watch, he wore the X-33 on the Soyuz TM-30 mission in 2000 and the Soyuz TMA-1 mission in 2002. Christie’s estimates this watch between $10,000 USD and $20,000 USD and currently it is at $16,000 USD. That is a lot of money […]

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Parmigiani Senfine – On Its Way To 90 Days of Power Reserve

The name Senfine is perhaps giving too much hope, meaning “eternally” in Esperanto, but this concept watch by Parmigiani is already showing some promising results when it comes to power reserve. Where your average mechanical watch has probably a power reserve of somewhere between 40 hours and 10-days (there are some exceptions, like the Rebellion T-1000), Parmigiani strives to get the power reserve for their Senfine up to 90 days. Without using barrels the size of a hockey puck of course. However,  Parmigiani isn’t there yet… As written above, the Parmigiani Senfine is still in a development stage and will be […]

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SHARK Mens LED Digital Date Day Sport Watch Gulper SH107 Review -Aliexpress Amazon Ebay

Christie’s Online Auction of Rare Omega Watches

Only a few months ago, Christie’s had their Omega Speedmaster 50 Auction held in New York City with a 100% selling rate. This time, Christie’s is having an online auction (that still runs for almost 3 more days) with some incredibly nice Omega watches. Not only Speedmaster pieces, also Seamaster and Constellation pieces for example. There are 26 lots in total, that you can find here, I am not sure why all of them are considered to be rare Omega watches, as some of them can be fairly easy found on eBay and Chrono24. However, some of them are very […]

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The difference between a tourbillon and a carrousel

What is the difference between a tourbillon and a carrousel? Gain exclusive insights into the workshop of the oldest watch brand in the world! Blancpain is unique in the world of watchmaking as it is the only house which has mastered the art of placing a carrousel in a wristwatch. Carrousels were originally conceived to defy gravity and the associated rate errors when the watch is in a vertical position. In this way, carrousels are like tourbillons. But watch connoisseurs often get confused in trying to understand how carrousels and tourbillons are different from each other. Fortunately, Blancpain has created […]

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#TBT Clebar Chronograph Venus 178

“Clebar” is apparently slang in French for wet dog. I suppose that’s better than a cat, but it’s still not overly flattering. Then, we have Robert-Jan’s colorful take on the word – he thinks it sounds like an ill-gotten malady that would often require a shot of penicillin. Either way, Clebar is also the name of a watch brand and a certain chronograph model is the subject of today’s #TBT.   I’ve had this watch for roughly a year now and it’s a study in mystery no matter how you slice it. Information is scarce and the design is confounding. There’s […]

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SHARK Digital Military Men Led Date Day Watch SH032 Review -Aliexpress Amazon Ebay

Follow Us on Instagram

As you’ve probably noticed, we publish an article per day – and some times two – since 2015 on Fratello Watches. We use Facebook and Twitter to let our followers on those channels know that there is new content on our website, as we do with Instagram. However, on Instagram we publish more photos per day to show you what occupies us. Either high quality images done by our photographer Bert Buijsrogge that he took during a shoot or just to show what we are wearing ourselves or what brand we are visiting (behind the scene shoots). We currently have […]

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Speedy Tuesday – An Overview of Speedmaster Books

With all the stress of the watch shows like SIHH and BaselWorld in our mailbox, we are unable to answer all Speedmaster related questions we get in a timely matter. However, a lot of them concern questions about authenticity and originality. Super-LumiNova or a modern bezel on a 1960’s or 1970’s Speedmaster is an example of the obvious ones, but some times it is difficult to tell whether a watch left the manufactory in Biel with a certain set of hands or case back or bracelet or .. [fill in] or that it has been replaced afterwards. Don’t forget that […]

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SHARK Army Military Red 3D Dial Men's Sport Silicone Watch SH172 Review -Aliexpress Amazon Ebay

SHARK Men's SH393 Analog/Digital Dual Time Watch Review -Aliexpress Amazon Ebay

Need Your Help – Lost Omega Speedmaster in Paris

One of our dear readers sent us a message about a lost Omega Speedmaster Professional. His uncle lost his 1970 Omega Speedmaster Professional 145.022-69 while he was in Paris. It was on a leather strap and it probably just fell off. The Police in Paris has been noticed, but chances are quite small that this watch will find its way to the Police station. The person who lost it was very attached to this watch. He inherited it from his father, who passed away when he was only 12 years old. He is not a watch collector of any kind […]

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