Thursday, 31 March 2016

Eterna – The Watchmaking Pioneer Celebrates 160 Years

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For the past 160 years, Eterna has been driven by the same powerful force: a daring and pioneering spirt. Passionate and determined, the company continually takes on the challenges of fine watchmaking by creating, developing and optimising its timepieces with remarkable consistency. It is from this perspective that the company, based in Granges, Switzerland, has enriched and revolutionised the art of traditional watchmaking with a steady stream of horological innovations. As a result, the Eterna-Matic ball-bearing mounted rotor system established a new standard which has never been surpassed, while Eterna’s continuing technical innovations demonstrate the company’s pioneering and creative spirt. […]

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KickStarter Starts For The Lebois & Co Avantgarde Date 2nd Relaunch

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A few weeks ago I’ll already wrote that Lebois & Co was about to start the 2nd campaign on Kickstarter for their Avantgarde Date watch: the 2nd Relaunch edition, limited to 100 pieces only. From now on you can become a backer on Kickstarter for the Lebois & Co Avantgarde Date 2nd Relaunch, with a beautiful sapphire blue dial. I asked the founders of today’s Lebois & Co watch company why they seek out for Kickstarter’s funding mechanism, as – to be honest – there’s today a bit too much watch stuff going on there. However, the reason for Lebois […]

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#TBT Omega Speedmaster 145.012

Omega Speedmaster 145.012 cover

Writing an article on the Omega Speedmaster 145.012 isn’t overly novel for us at Fratello Watches. No, it’s been covered from a historical perspective here and several variations have been discussed as well. However, I’ve not covered it and thought I’d lend my personal story as to how I came upon this Speedy and why I decided to procure it. Perhaps I won’t add too much different than what’s been said here before, but as I looked through the annals of #TBT, I felt we were missing something. So, without further ado, it’s Speedy time on #TBT… I spoke at […]

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Wednesday, 30 March 2016

Buyer Beware – Mulco Escafandra and a Mea Culpa

The Mulco Escafandra for sale shot (photo credit A.Gregoriades)

Last week, I published an article on a newly received Mulco Escafandra in my #TBT series of articles. You’ll note that the article is no longer online because I have serious doubts about the legitimacy of the watch. Actually, they’re really no longer doubts. Readers, for this, I hope you accept my apology – and lay off watching or buying these pieces. Mea culpa…these are not good pieces. First off, I want to thank one of our readers, Kit “Bloodkrishna” Chung for contacting us at Fratello Watches with a rather complete explanation of why he felt the Mulco Escafandra was […]

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What The Industry Can Learn From The Apple Watch Bracelet!

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Almost a year after the release of Apple’s first watch, it is often said – and even on watch forums – that the succes of the Apple Watch is part of the reason for the disappointing results of the Swiss watch industry, that has led to an immediate staff decline, at several large Swiss manufactures. To me this is very questionable, not to use the word non-sense. Any person who loves high quality watches, may buy the Apple Watch, just because it’s fun or out of curiosity. But that $300 dollar sexy gadget, what the Apple Watch is, will not change […]

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Tuesday, 29 March 2016

Speedy Tuesday – Speedmaster Customization, Yay or Nay?

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Never tired of exploring the borders of the Omega Speedmaster Professional world, we bumped into an Italian company named ‘Moontime‘. We touched the topic of Speedmaster customization before (click here), but that was done on personal title. We never ran into a company that is specialized in Speedmaster customization in the way Moontime from Italy does. Moontime is a company which specializes in Omega Speedmaster customization. They promise that ‘the customizations are made by skilled goldsmiths’ and that they are of ‘excellent quality of materials and workmanship’. Also, they guarantee their modified watches for one year. Customizing watches is nothing […]

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Monday, 28 March 2016

Chrono24’s New iPhone App – Watch News From Blogs and On-Line Magazines

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Until now the only well-known mobile app to feature various watch blogs and on-line watch magazines was Watchville. After Fratello Watches left Watchville, Chrono24 let us know that their app would be featuring an integrated overview of watch articles from various websites, including ours. A solution without ‘removing’ our advertisements (hey we need to make a buck), without incorporating their own advertisements and one that gives us a ‘visit’ for every actual read article. Music to our ears, especially since the Chrono24 app is widely known and used by hundreds of thousands of people. On the 15th of March, the new version became available […]

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Sunday, 27 March 2016

Some Thoughts On BaselWorld 2016

Chronoswiss Sirius Flying Regulator-2858

BaselWorld 2016 Disappointing, nothing exciting, quiet, more of the same, just a few comments that were heard during the BaselWorld 2016 exhibition. More or less the same was heard during the SIHH last January. Most watch brands played safe this year, no risks taken. Line extensions mainly, where different colors or materials were used to create more options for consumers. Some brands even lowered their prices or at least are offering something in their lower price categories. Some colleague journalists and editors complained a bit, shrug their shoulders and said it was all a bit quiet this year. But is […]

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The Best Designed Watches

Friday, 25 March 2016

Vulcain 50s Presidents Classic: Two New Unique Colors

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Last week, Vulcain introduced two new colors for the 50s Presidents Classic series. It’s the most basic variant with three hands and a date at 6 o’clock. Let’s do a quick review to discuss the highlights of this watch. More Originality Vulcain introduced the Presidents’ series to create a classical and formal watch, but with these new colors they try to transform the watch in a more unique and less conservative looking watch. Classic Case The steel case (316L) is very elegant and stays true to the typical Presidents case. It keeps the water out up to 5 atmospheres. On the front […]

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Thursday, 24 March 2016

#TBT Mulco Escafandra

Mulco Escafandra cover

Dual-crown Super Compressor watches appear to be gaining a lot of momentum in the vintage marketplace so on todays #TBT, we’ll take a look at a very interesting piece: the Mulco Escafandra. A few short weeks ago, I covered another watch with a case from the famed supplier EPSA in the Enicar Sherpa Super Jet and going forward, I’ll likely cover more. These watches are really catching my eye right now and, besides, who can afford vintage chronographs anymore? Vintage Super Compressors are hot…and “new ones” are coming As you’re likely well aware, our entire Fratello team visited Baselworld 2016 […]

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TAG Heuer Monza

TAG Heuer Monza cover

At Baselworld 2015, TAG Heuer issued an interesting chronograph in the Carrera Telemeter. Following on the footsteps of this piece, the brand has decided to go retro once again in order to celebrate the 40th anniversary of one of its other racing-inspired chronographs. Our team met with the marque at this year’s show to take a look at the attractive TAG Heuer Monza. Retro is back with the TAG Heuer Monza With the recent introduction of the Autavia Cup (don’t forget to vote!!!), where online users can vote in a knockout-style contest to determine the theme of an Autavia reissue, […]

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Wednesday, 23 March 2016

Hublot Classic Fusion Berluti All Black and Scritto

Hublot Classic Fusion Berluti

Hublot And now something you have probably not seen yet. On the 3rd day of Basel World we visited Hublot to take a closer look at their 2016 novelties. The first piece we were introduced stole the show…for me, anyways. We were given the new Hublot Classic Fusion Berluti in black ceramic and 18k gold and I have to say, even though Hublot is not my main focus, those are some seriously nice looking watches. As we learned, last year marked the 120th anniversary of Parisian shoemaker legend Berluti. For this occasion Hublot teamed up with the atelier to produce […]

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Eberhard & Co Scafograf 300 (Ref. 41034): A Legend Returns

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Eberhard invited us to come see their novelties for 2016, so we did. When they showed the new Scafograf we were immediately hooked by the splashy colorful accent-colors and the comfortable shapes of this dive watch, so let’s quickly take a first look at this dive machine. Historical Piece – Scafograf The Scafograf is one of the oldest models of Eberhard. Launched in the exploring 1950s this watch has truly evolved through time. Through time, the water resistance of this piece quite varied: from 100 meters for the earliest models up to 1000 meters with the Scafograf Super in 1983. The predecessor […]

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Tuesday, 22 March 2016

Speedy Tuesday – Omega Speedmaster Moonphase Co-Axial Master Chronometer

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It is Speedy Tuesday and we’ve got something fresh from BaselWorld for you today: the Omega Speedmaster Moonphase Co-Axial Master Chronometer. In January, we showed you the blue version here first, but last week Omega showed us the entire collection of their new Speedmaster Moonphase Co-Axial Master Chronometer watches and we were able to take some great images during our appointment with them. Omega used one of our images on their own Instagram feed as well, the one that shows the photo realistic Moon in detail, including the footprint left by Neil Armstrong. Not only did Omega came up with the […]

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Sunday, 20 March 2016

The New Rolex Explorer Reference 214270 – Our Thoughts

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In my opinion, or better said, for me personally, the Rolex Explorer was always one of the purest Rolex sports watches. An understatement, as it has no moving bezel, cyclops or other ‘super recognizable’ Rolex features. Except for the Oyster bracelet perhaps. The dial was very clean, no date and Roman numerals on 3, 6 and 9. I would love to own a vintage reference 1016 or even later 14270 (we wrote about that one here in one of our #tbt features) or 114270. However, 36mm is not for me. It was in the far past, but being a student […]

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Fortis Baselworld 2016: the Novelties

Fortis Baselworld 2016 cover...

At last year’s Baselworld, Blaise and I visited Fortis as we really hadn’t made contact with the brand during the last several years. We were pretty impressed with their new offerings at the time and their overall range. In fact, I reviewed the then-new Tycoon chronograph and Blaise reviewed a Monolith. We enjoyed the watches, and therefore, were looking forward to the Fortis Baselworld 2016 releases. I’ll go ahead and surprise the hell out of you with this statement; Fortis brought amongst the best – if not the most attractive and reasonable – all around new collections of sports watches […]

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Saturday, 19 March 2016

New Colors For The Eberhard Grande Taille Extra-Fort

Silver variant with silver subdials

New Elegant Colors This BaselWorld, four new dial variants of the Grande Taille Extra-fort (reference number 31953) were presented by Eberhard & Co. They expanded the color palette of this traditional chronograph by adding the following combinations: A silver dial with silver subdials A blue dial with silver subdials A grey dial with grey subdials A silver dial with black subdials General Looks Let me first introduce the watch in general. With its mirror polished case and raised Roman applied numerals this is definitely a classic looking watch with elegance. Due the curved lugs it also fits small wrists. It’s […]

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Seiko at Baselworld 2016: The Highlights

The Seiko Presage 60th Anniversary with black lacquer dial

In 2015, Seiko upped its international game by bringing some great pieces to Baselworld that, previously, would have been kept solely in the Japanese market. We saw a heavy focus on the Prospex series with new Tunas and a huge anniversary Marinemaster in titanium. This year, Seiko celebrates its 135th anniversary as a company (every year, Seiko finds something to celebrate ending in a “5” or a “0”), so the company brought more great novelties. This is in no way a comprehensive list of everything new, but instead a glimpse at some of the things coming our way. Enjoy the […]

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Oris Divers Sixty-Five 42mm

The Oris Divers Sixty-Five 42mm cover

Oris continues to be one of our favorite brands here at Fratellowatches. We’ve come to enjoy the value proposition that their pieces present in concert with great build quality. Last year, at Baselworld 2015, the team loved the Divers Sixty-Five in 40mm with its retro dial and domed crystal. Well, the watch has proven popular, but it’s clear that Oris received requests for a larger watch and the answer is now here. Welcome in the new Oris Divers Sixty-Five 42mm. Oris could have easily copied a successful formula by simply upsizing the 40mm Sixty-Five but they decided to reach into […]

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Friday, 18 March 2016

Tudor Black Bay Dark Reference 79230DK

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Confusion all over the place. By us, by Tudor, by other members of the press. Is it called the Tudor Black Bay Black or Black Bay Dark? Tudor even mixed it up on their Instagram feed. During the presentation in BaselWorld, one day after the event we wrote about here, we were able to sort it out quickly when Tudor management got involved. It is the Black Bay Dark, it was wrong on the presentation slide and wrong on the official Tudor feed on Instagram. Tudor Black Bay Dark All confusion aside, the Tudor Black Bay Dark is killing it. […]

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Tissot 1936 Heritage

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Tissot is an old-line brand within the Swatch Group Empire that, from time to time introduces something that calls upon their rich heritage. The Visodate and Navigator are good examples.  It’s nice to see that they’re not always about T-Touch despite the fact that we love the watch. So, this year in 2016 at Baselworld, I was excited to see an interesting release from the brand based upon an early pocketwatch that was often converted to a wristwatch. It’s big, it’s not overly practical, but it gets my vote as one of the more interesting and enjoyable niche releases from […]

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Thursday, 17 March 2016

OMEGA Globemaster Annual Calendar Platinum – Live Photos and Pricing

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Just recently I wrote about the new Omega Globemaster Annual Calendar (click here). The responses on our social media channels were a bit mixed, especially about the writing on the dial. However, like always, it is something you can only really judge when you saw the watch(es) in the flesh. Today we did. Our first appointment in BaselWorld, on the first day, was with Omega and the entire Fratello Watches team was impressed by the new line-up of Globemaster watches (we will get to the Speedmasters in another article). Omega had over 100 new references and 62 of them have […]

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Wednesday, 16 March 2016

Watch Strap Review Part 19. – V.R. Workshop

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Every March the (watch) world is celebrating in Switzerland. BaselWorld takes place and we cannot be more excited about it. However I also have a duty to all watch strap lovers around the world and no fair can stop me from doing my usual monthly review. After February’s article on Strapped Watch Co. from Chi-town we boarded the imaginary Fratello Jet (a Gulfstream G650 in case you wonder) to cross the ocean back to good old Europe. Another article, another country; Latvia. The company we are about to view has hands in everything. They make leather straps, duffle bags, suspenders, wallets etc. […]

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Tudor Kick-Off Dinner in BaselWorld: Black Bay Bronze & Black Bay Dark (Live Pics)

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Yesterday evening Bert and I had a wonderful event organized by Tudor. After we’ve gathered at hotel ‘Les Trois Rois’ in rainy Basel we were guided under umbrellas by the head of design by Tudor. Only 500 meters further a boat with military camouflage was waiting for us. We entered the stealthy boat and after the lights went out a captain transported us to our final destination. A long corridor with blue lights and submarine sound effects led us to the next floor. After amuses and a sparkling glass of champagne the people of Tudor led us to the dining room. Tudor added nice details […]

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BaselWorld 2016 Omega Speedmaster Novelties Preview – CK2998 Tribute And GSotM Meteorite

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In January, we already showed you the new Speedmaster Moonphase Chronograph Master Chronometer  (click here for our preview of that watch with some notes on its history) that will be unveiled tomorrow in the flesh in Basel. However, Omega has (at least) two more tricks up their sleeve for us this year: here is the Omega Speedmaster Novelties preview for 2016. Perhaps you remember this interview we did with “friend of the show” RJ Kama (@rjkama on Instagram) about his collection of Omega watches. We asked him about his grail Speedmaster and this is what he answered: “My Grail would […]

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Tuesday, 15 March 2016

Lebois & Co 2nd Relaunch Edition

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A quick note for those who followed the revival of the Lebois & Co watch brand. They will soon (March 27th) start with the funding project of the blue dialed version of their Lebois & Co Avantgarde Date – 2nd Relaunch Edition. We recently did a write-up on the finalized Avantgarde Date with the satin white dial, in this article. Lebois & Co will again limit the production to only 100 pieces. This time, the Lebois & Co Avantgarde will have a beautiful sapphire blue dial. More information can be found on www.leboisandco.com

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Speedy Tuesday – The Rise of the Speedmaster Reduced

Omega Speedmaster Reduced

A while ago, I wrote a comparison article between the Omega Speedmaster Professional and the so-called Omega Speedmaster Reduced (officially it was just called Speedmaster Automatic). I’ve noticed that over the last couple of years, the interest in the Omega Speedmaster Reduced increased quite a bit. Actually, when I retrieved all the information on the interest in Omega Speedmaster watches over 2015 on Chrono24, the classifieds offering the reference 3510/3810 (Speedmaster Reduced and its Schumacher editions) for sale received over 270.000 unique visits. When I just started collecting (and focussing on Speedmasters) in the mid-1990s, the Speedmaster Reduced was actually considered […]

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Monday, 14 March 2016

#TBT Wittnauer 242T Chronograph and Some More Wittnauer

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Hey wait, a #TBT on Monday?!?! Yes!!! I was in the air last Thursday on the way from the US of A and wasn’t able to publish this story on the Wittnauer 242T. Big deal…why not wait until this Thursday? Well, there’s a little thing going on called Baselworld. We know our vintage fan base is a ravenous one, so you get your fix early before we inundate you with new watch news! Enjoy!! Karma can be a wonderful thing and it’s really what brought me the subject of todays #TBT: the Wittnauer 242T Chronograph. You see, it was a […]

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Friday, 11 March 2016

IWC Night Shooting at the SIHH

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During the SIHH in Geneva last January, I was invited by IWC for their IWC Night Shooting event. Together with a few colleague journalists we had full access to the IWC booth, all accessories and a hand full of IWC watches. Around 7pm, (when most guests are leaving the venue) we are welcomed by the people of IWC. The decorated booth breathes aviation with a Spitfire mounted on the ceiling and lots of other aviation props. As if you walk into a filmset! After a drink and a quick introduction tour, we kick off in the boardroom that was modelled like the interior of a private plane. After […]

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Thursday, 10 March 2016

Hands-on Review – Christopher Ward C9000 Harrison Single Pusher Chronograph

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Christopher Ward The first watch review of this year by yours truly has to be something extraordinary. That’s a nice word; extraordinary. It is the best word to explain the watch we are about to take a closer look at. Let me share with you how we came across this amazing timepiece not too long ago. As our frequent readers might remember, last November, we visited Salon QP in London. It’s one of those rare occasion when we get to hang out with like-minded people, fellow journalists and with the other Fratelli as well, so it’s always fun. We hit the […]

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Wednesday, 9 March 2016

Lebois & Co Avantgarde Date Ready To Be Delivered

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During the last year, we kept you up-to-date regarding the Lebois & Co re-launch by Dutch watch enthusiast and entrepreneur Tom van Wijlick and his partner Eveline. Last time we showed you one of the last prototypes, but today it’s time to show you the real deal. One of the final tweaks consisted of the caseback and the dials. Early backers for the Lebois & Co funding campaign on Kickstarter will receive their watch shortly, as the 100 first Lebois & Co timepieces are ready and (to be) delivered. I’ve received one of their Avantgarde Date watches last week, to […]

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Tuesday, 8 March 2016

‘Drive de Cartier’, La Maison’s New Men’s Watch!

Dashboard and steering wheel of collectors car

Before I will rattle about the new ‘Drive de Cartier’, a few words about the changes at Cartier, that brought the brand to release this new and different mens model. Cartier is known for their historic collection and design details from these early models, that often come back in new collections. Cartier always relied on their rich design history. Since 2008 however, Cartier changed slowly from a Maison in design, to a powerhouse of  mechanical calibers. About ten years ago, the brand built a huge 30.000m2 manufacture in La-Chaux-de-Fonds and led by Carole-Forestier Kasapi, the brand launched one movement after another, from […]

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Monday, 7 March 2016

Seiko SRP777 Versus Seiko 6309 – Hands-On Seiko SRP777 Review And Comparison With The Original

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After we were among the first to show you the new Seiko SRP777, SRP775, SRP779 and SRP73 in this post, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on them and see if they are just as good as the original Seiko 6309. Michael wrote a wonderful review for our #tbt feature on the Seiko 6309 here and he concluded with “It’s a cornerstone piece for any collection and it looks good in most settings. It’s also one of those watches that tend to get the respectful nod from those wearing watches 10-20 times more expensive.”. He also made me enthusiastic about the […]

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Sunday, 6 March 2016

TAG Heuer: Jeff Kingston Visits The Manufacture And Explains How A Chronograph Works

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Eduard Heuer was the inventor of the oscillating pinion. This is a key component in the construction of many chronograph movements and, in particular, is the component that lies at the centre of the system for starting and stopping of the chronograph. We will go to Chevenez, near the French border to observe the assembly of all of these components into a movement. One of the watchmakers of TAG Heuer will show us how chronographs start and stop, leading us through the chain of events from the moment the chronograph start button is pushed, through the turning of the column […]

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Friday, 4 March 2016

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Ultra-Thin Perpetual Stainless Steel

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Ultra Thin Perpetual-9512

It was introduced in 2013 already, this Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Ultra-Thin Perpetual in stainless steel. This year, Jaeger-LeCoultre showed us the Master Ultra-Thin Perpetual with a beautiful black Sunray-brushed dial. The price remains to be under €20.000 Euro, including VAT. A perpetual calendar under €20.000 Euro in  time where some brands dare to ask that same amount for 2 or 3 hands watch in stainless steel. Apples to apples of course, but finding a perpetual calendar in stainless steel from a respectable manufacture brand like Jaeger-LeCoultre in the same price category is quite a challenge. In the pre-owned market, you will […]

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Thursday, 3 March 2016

Introducing the 41mm Omega Globemaster Annual Calendar

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Last year, Omega introduced the Globemaster on press day’s eve in BaselWorld (we reported here). The 39mm Globemaster comes in stainless steel, bi-color, (Sedna) gold and platinum and we had the chance to review the 18ct Sedna gold version (click here for my in-depth and somewhat emotional review on the Globemaster). Last October, Omega introduced the first Globemaster that was ready for deliver during their METAS and Master Co-Axial press conference in Bienne (click here for an explanation on METAS and Master Chronometer) and soon after they started to deliver the first Omega Globemaster watches to the boutiques and retailers. […]

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#TBT: Enicar Sherpa Super Jet

Enicar Sherpa Super Jet

If you’ve followed the vintage watch market to any extent, and #TBT for that matter, Enicar is a name that surfaces with relative frequency. The brand has become a darling to many collectors and for good reason; the watches were well built, uniquely detailed and generally well sized to current tastes. The bulk of the attention on the brand, though, has been centered on the chronographs such as the Sherpa Graph, Aqua Graph and others. Today, however, we move into another realm of tool watch from the brand: the world-timer. #TBT takes a look at an impressive piece that deserves […]

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Wednesday, 2 March 2016

Hands-On Tissot T-Touch Expert Solar Review

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Being a kid in the 1980’s, I grew up with digital watches. In fact, my first watch was a Casio that I got in 1986 during a holiday in the UK. Still have it and it still works. Today, my focus is a bit more towards mechanical watches, but I see no reason to neglect a good digital watch. Including Apple’s smartwatch (that we reviewed here) and the Z-33 or X-33 from Omega. All interesting digital watches and today’s subject is no different; the Tissot T-Touch Expert Solar Review. Although I was familiar with T-Touch watches, introduced in 1999, but I […]

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Breguet: Jeff Kingston Explains the Tuning Process of Minute Repeaters

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Since 2003 Breguet has had four major expansions of its Vallee de Joux workshops. We will move our cameras to the adjacent work benches, those for minute repeaters. Minute repeaters are particularly demanding to assemble as they call upon not only supreme watchmaking skills but artistic talent to tune the sound. In the video we will watch key steps in the tuning process of one of Breguet’s minute repeaters including delicate adjustments to the sounding gongs, which incidentally were also invented by A.L. Breguet. Want to know more about the assembly of the world’s finest timepieces? Subscribe to our YouTube […]

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Tuesday, 1 March 2016

Speedy Tuesday – White Dial Speedmaster Professionals To Choose From

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Unlike the Rolex Daytona, where it is quite common to make a choice between a white dial or a black dial, the Speedmaster Professional comes with a black dial. Most of the time, that is. There are some limited and numbered editions from the past where Omega decided to use a white dial instead for the Professional. In all other cases, you need to seek for Speedmaster models that do no belong to the Professional series (or are a ‘Moonwatch’) if you want to have a white dial. With this article, I’d like to give you an overview of white […]

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