Early June we received a letter from one of our readers from Germany, who we will refer to as HU and shares his Speedmaster story with us.Omega Speedmaster Pro 145.012-67“I?was a 10 year old kid when the first Moon landing got my undivided attention. Somewhat later, I dreamt of having his very own Moonwatch, as I knew about the astronauts wearing the Omega Speedmaster. Omega watches could al

Sell crazy someplace else, we’re all stocked up here. says Melvin Udall, Jack Nicholson's character in the movie As Good as it Gets.The Heuer Autavia sold at Phillips for 75,000 CHF (photo credit: www.phillips.com)The line above could easily explain the current market for vintage chronographs. As I sat down on the couch with, fittingly, a glass of champagne (this was pure happenstance as we

Nothing beats a great summer watch! A watch that is affordable, cool looking and water resistant. Seiko is the go-to brand when you are in the need of such a watch. Today I take a look at the Seiko Prospex Samurai references SRPB53K1 (silicon strap) and SRPB49K1 (stainless steel bracelet) that definitely fall into the summer watch category.Seiko Prospex SamuraiIn case you don’t know, the nic

You may already have heard about Crafter Blue. At the very beginning, Crafter Blue designed and engineered the curved end rubber straps for popular dive watches.Two years later, they began to design our own dive watch and launched our first watch Mechanic Ocean 300m in 2018. Meanwhile Crafter Blue helped another brand UNDIVE to design the strap for their dive watch. Unfortunately, the watch discon

Konnichiwa, horologically enthused perusers!? It’s This Week in Watches for June 23, 2019!So, I’ve roughly counted it and I’ve done something like 30 flights over the last 60 days.? I’m kind of happy to be back at home while I write this despite returning to heat that just doesn’t belong in a country that finds air conditioning unhealthy.? What the hell is up with tha

Limited editions are not to everyone’s taste. Sometimes, the sheer volume of limiteds can be overwhelming. With the #SpeedyTuesday editions we’ve contributed to that as well. While limited editions may be more common these days, that’s nothing new. Let’s have a closer look at my Top-5 of earlier NASA/Apollo dedicated Limited Edition Omega Speedmaster models.In 1969, Omega i

Today, we’re taking a look at an authentic Omega Seamaster 300M and a very high fidelity replica. It used to be very simple to tell the difference. Fakes were cheap knock-offs. They often made obvious mistakes. Many of the key details were wrong. Sometimes, everything was wrong. But in today’s world,? replica watches are getting better and better. Sometimes, they are awfully close to t

It’s Two For Tuesday time and this week we take a look at the Seiko Marinemaster 300 versus the so-called Baby Marinemaster. Let’s see if a mere 100 meters is all that separates these two (marine)masters of the deep.Before we get to the Marinemaster and its stable mate, let’s talk Omega. Specifically, I asked you to consider the iconic Speedmaster Professional against the far new

Limited editions come in all shapes and sizes. They also come with all kinds of nods to their inspiration. When it comes to the Casio Honda Racing Limited Edition EQW-A2000HR, we have a very full-blooded manifestation of the risky and riveting world of motorbike racing. With aesthetic and material cues riddled throughout this piece, we ask whether it achieves its remit.I’ve had the recent pl

In February of this year, Grand Seiko announced four new GMT watches as new additions to their Elegance collection. Two of the four models are the Spring Drive powered SBGE269 and SBGE 271. The other two are the mechanical Hi-Beat SBGJ249 and SBGJ251. Together these four models form the special Seasons series of watches. This series focuses on the changing of seasons that inspired the dials for th

All aboard for another voyage on the S.S. Wrist Game or Crying Shame. This week, we examine a watch that feels a bit polarizing to me: the Yacht-Master II. Before we leave for sea…Marco! Polo! Marco! Polo! Ah, just kidding. Last week, I brought you back to the days of Studio 54 with the Piaget Polo. Folks, this equestrian-intended watch bracelet engaged in quite the horse race and it went d

Squale may be a name more familiar to the most hardcore vintage dive-watch collectors. The Swiss brand with Italian heritage, however, is certainly not exclusive to a discerning few. The dive-watch specialist has an illustrious history with its fingers in some truly iconic watches since the 60s. Today, one of them is getting a long-absent sequel (just like Top Gun!). Forty years after developing a

After years of resistance, since the revitalization in 2016, Fears finally embraces the life aquatic with its Brunswick 40 Topper Limited Edition. Famously, Fears’s fourth managing director cannot swim, focusing the brand’s direction on exquisite classic timepieces for dry land. But when revered Californian wristwatch retailer Topper came knocking, sporty was the only way to go. The co

Darling of the avant-garde watch scene Ressence has launched its latest creation, the Type 5 AIT. A collaboration with Monaco-based collective Art In Time, the new edition of the brand’s Type 5 dive watch contributes to protecting the environment and promoting sustainable development locally and globally. How exactly? Let’s find out.It all starts with HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco. In

A huge benefit of having recently moved back to France (my home country) is that I get to discover French brands I didn't know existed and visit their boutiques in the nation's capital. One of these brands is Charlie Paris, founded in 2014 by two childhood friends with a passion for horology. While the brand started by developing three-hand quartz timepieces, in the past couple of years, it has re

I didn’t have to buy this Angelus Chronodato, but I wanted to. One look at that dial with its crazy patina and the seldom-seen tachymeter scale and you will be hooked too.I never buy gold-plated watches… until I have to. Sometimes, you don’t have the luxury of a wide range of choices and just have to go with what you can get. Take the Tourist Everlight, the world’s first me

When it comes to watches, I am a self-professed bracelet lover. I always encourage fellow enthusiasts to get the bracelet version for a number of reasons. Sometimes, however, a watch isn't offered on a bracelet. Usually, that means the watch has less appeal to me, but that was definitely not the case with the limited-edition Fratello Oris Big Crown Bronze Pointer Date. Now, after sourcing a newly

It’s Friday, and that means another Top 5! This week’s topic, however, is a bit different. Ever since we started this list series, we have focused on different iconic watches or watch series. We decided to shake things up a bit this time and explore another watch-related subject. This week, we have compiled a list of the top five watch brand ambassadors. Let’s discuss it!Brand am

Summer is here, and a lot of people are getting ready to leave for their summer holidays. For many watch enthusiasts, it’s the perfect opportunity to bring out their best summer watches or buy a new one. Norqain plays into the summer theme with two new skeletonized versions of the Wild ONE. Each celebrates summer in a unique way, with one for active summer days and another for late summer ni

Last week, I wrote an article on why I thought mechanical watches under $1,000 don’t make sense. In a way, it was an article like many other articles I’ve published here on Fratello. I had a thought, we discussed it during our editorial meeting, and we decided that I’d do an article on it. What happened next was beyond any of my expectations.Just as with any other article, I was