A few weeks ago, whilst cleaning up my attic, I found a box with all sorts of watch stuff. Inside were also two discs that I received in December 2007.On there, an interview between astronaut Wally Schirra and Chuck Maddox. This interview was recorded on February 17th 2007 in Beverly Hills, a few months before Schirra passed way age 84 on May 3rd 2007. Chuck Maddox passed away a year later, on May

Welcome back to Wrist Game or Crying Shame, the weekly series that puts you in the driver’s seat. This week, we put the pedal to the metal with a real chunk of gold as we ask you to vote on the Corum Gold Coin Watch. But first…Last week, we asked you to decide whether the 2017 Omega Speedmaster 60th Anniversary edition was worth your hard earned ducats. Well, you all showed up in force

It is with sadness we must convey that Grand Seiko has taken the governmentally-advised decision to cancel its upcoming summit. It would have been held in Tokyo from the 4th-5th of March 2020.Grand Seiko had intended for the summit to be a vehicle to celebrate its 60th anniversary, alongside the 55th anniversary of?Seiko Divers. If you haven’t already checked out the models released to mark

Timex is enjoying something of a renaissance. After last year’s run of unexpected throwbacks, the American-born brand returns with an old school automatic buddy for the Q Timex - the Timex M79 Automatic.You’ve heard of flippers, right? No, not the dolphin. Those people that buy that they plan on re-selling. Often, they’ll have a deal in place before their purchase has even arrive

Thank goodness for Swatch. Whenever we might find ourselves taking everything a bit too seriously, everyone’s favorite plastic-peddler shows up with a joyous dollop of color to remind us that watchmaking is supposed to be fun. The new James Bond collection is exactly that.The new James Bond film, No Time To Die, will mark Daniel Craig’s final outing as the British super-sleuth. To mark

Regardless of how much stock you put in the zodiacal cycle, it’s always interesting to find out in which year you were born and to see how closely the traits of that sign match up with your own. Coincidentally, I was born in the year of the Ox (back in 1985). This is, including the year I was born, the fourth time I’ve entered my own zodiacal period, which means I should prepare once m

Here at Fratello, we love vintage dive watches. They not only represent the times in which they were made but also express the quality and precision of manufacturing available these days. So when I came across this awesome collaboration, I felt the need to take a closer look at the new CronotempVS? Oris Spirit of Sixty-Five.Back in the sixties, two underwater diving pioneers Hans Hass and Christia

When I opened up our Fratello mailbox this morning, I found Grand Seiko’s press release on this new SLG005 White Birch watch. I couldn’t help to think of the house where I grew up. In my memories, it was a large house with a nice garden and driveway. At the end of the driveway, where the road started, was a white birch.I write in my memories, as in reality, the house wasn’t that

This one came as a shock. Never before in my watch-filled and fuelled life have I worn a Beads of Rice bracelet. And then Forstner - my all-time favorite bracelet maker - comes along with a new version of this popular and stylish style and I just had to try it for myself. The only question was, where would it end up?I’m a lucky guy. I get to review watches every day I go to work. A lot of th

I have built a reputation as that guy who collects unusual watches. I admit that some of my watches are pretty bizarre, but that’s not their unique selling proposition. For me, they are the most surprising, inspiring, and creatively original timepieces. But what’s more challenging than finding many of them is finding out that they even exist in the first place.I must admit, I don’

Some have claimed that the wristwatch is dead. With cellphones, smartwatches, and all the smart assistance we might need, wearing a watch has been deemed anachronistic - an expression of a time gone by. So what are we doing? Collecting jewelry? Playing dress-up in outdated fashion? No! No matter the reason you wear a watch, there are people out there that still use watches for practical reasons. I

We like to talk about vintage watches a lot within the Fratello team. Though most of what we write about is largely focused on the most recent releases and developments, for many of us, a lot of the fun can be found in the sometimes weird and often wonderful world of vintage watches. It’s a world full of history, remarkable watches, incredible stories, and quirky details. It inspired us to c

I don’t know if it’s just me, but I feel that sector dials are making a solid comeback. My first renewed attraction to them was in 2017 when Jaeger-LeCoultre presented a 25th-anniversary Master Control Date with a sector dial. The second one that caught my eye was the Longines Heritage Classic in 2019. And last year, in 2022, Omega presented the rather stunning CK 859 Master Chronomete

Back in 2022, I reviewed a couple of Yema’s Superman models, and I really liked the vintage vibes of the pointy lugs and the clean diver’s dial. The 39mm size is perfect for a wide variety of wrists, and I even thought the old-school bezel lock was charming. Unfortunately, I found the overall finishing and the quality of the bracelets disappointing, and my colleagues have shared simila

As watch lovers, we tend to be drawn to mechanical movements. There is something mysterious about the dozens of springs, wheels, pinions, jewels, screws, and plates that conspire to unwind a mainspring and turn its stored tension into a precise display of the time. I think the allure is in the fact that it is just simple enough to roughly understand and complicated enough for most of us to never f

I don't have a lot of vintage watches on my wishlist anymore. Some, I was lucky enough to find over the years. Others, I moved on from or saw in the metal, which changed my perspective about them. Very few examples, though, still make my heart beat faster. I must admit that most of these models come from Angelus. Sadly, we don't see these too often on the market anymore. So whenever one appears, i

In the great Grand Seiko tradition, the horological year starts early. We already covered the brand’s first releases of 2025 on January 31st, and Mike wrote about another on February 3rd. Now, less than two weeks into the month, Grand Seiko treats us to one more delight. Today, the brand announces the wonderful SBGH368 “Sakura Kakushi.” This release combines a rose gold 62GS-styl

Today marks the final day of celebrations of the Chinese New Year. The Lantern Festival closes out the festivities that started on the 29th of January with the Lunar New Year. IFL Watches created a special 25-piece limited edition of the Oris Divers 65 to mark the beginning of the Year of the Snake. The watch features a colorful hand-painted dial that truly stands out. Against the backdrop of the

Until recently, I had only heard of Makina watches and hadn’t had the chance to try one out. But that all changed when the Filipino brand offered us the chance to try out its latest creation, the Mephisto_III GMT. The Mephisto is not necessarily a new watch as the regular version was the brand’s debut model in 2017. But with the addition of a GMT complication and a new dial color, toda

Just before the big BaselWorld 2009 exposition, Glashutte Original (hereafter GO) presents their Senator Navigator Perpetual Calendar.This 44mm pilot watch in stainless steel has a matt black dial (as a pilot’s watch always should have) with large Arabic numerals and blued hour and minute hands. I don’t know if I am a big fan of too much functionality on a pilot’s watch, especial