Tudor Black Bay Pro Review
After we saw the new Tudor Black Bay Pro and GMT S&G, we shared our thoughts with you on the design of these watches and the direction Tudor is taking with them. Not all of my Fratello colleagues are fans of these new releases, but several of us here actually do like these watches for what they are. I belong to the latter group. I actually like the Black Bay Pro and GMT S&G, and I’d have a hard time choosing between the two.Following the introduction at Watches And Wonders, Tudor let me spend some time with the Black Bay Pro to have a closer look at it. Honestly, I don’t even feel like addressing the obvious, as even Tudor doesn’t make it a secret that this watch is...
Hands-On: The Nodus Sector Deep
The more watches from micro/independent brands I review, the more I ponder the following question: Do we need more? While these types of brands do not always innovate, they certainly know how to offer great value. They may not revolutionize the industry in the traditional sense of the word, but they help in popularizing the hobby. I recognize the merits of the hard work that brands such as Nodus put in and how much we can now get for less than $1,000. And it's not always about money. Rather, it’s more about quality - the quality of the design, fabrication, and wearing experience. Nodus and the recently released Sector Deep perfectly exemplify this idea.Not to toot my own horn, but it s...
Finding Futurism In Watches For Less Than $3,000
Retro is still surfing a big wave of popularity, which is the unassailable truth. Though I often start articles by pondering whether or not we’ve reached peak vintage love, it’s still here, and I have nothing against it. But if you want something different, how about some futurism for less than $3,000?Sure, I love the feel of the 37mm Black Bay 54, but there is room for tech-cool and intensely modern watches. Modern can mean $100K Urwerk genius but also affordable watches that defy outdated categories. Why stick to the codes of dress watches and pilots’ or divers’ tools? Here are 10 examples to give you a taste for modern, even avant-garde watchmaking for less.SpaceOn...
Taking The Bravur La Corsa Rosa IV For A Spin
The Bravur La Corsa Rosa IV is a chronograph from the Grand Tour series of the cycle-crazy Swedish brand. The color of the sub-dials and the central chronograph seconds hand clearly state, I am a Giro d'Italia Watch (please read this in your best Italian accent). Since the famous stage race is in its final week, I thought it would be appropriate to take the 38.2mm steel chronograph for a ride to find out what kind of watch it truly is. Is it a watch you wear on the podium while lifting the Trofeo Senza Fine above your head? Or is it a chronograph you want to wear on the bike while climbing the monstrous Stelvio?Not too long ago, I wrote a little something about Bravur's new Team Heritage Col...
The Best Watches Under $2,500: RJ's Picks
Although $2,500 is not nothing, it's a very difficult budget to work with - or so I assumed. Initially, I thought I would always go vintage or pre-owned with this budget. For example, it can buy you a nice vintage Longines, Omega, IWC, Breitling, or Jaeger-LeCoultre. But I checked with our managing editor Nacho, and the assignment was to curate a selection of new watches. Diving into the watches available within this budget positively surprised me, though. I found several worthy timepieces from microbrands and bigger, well-known brands alike.We've offered collaboration watches in this price range, such as the Aquastar Deepstar II, Nivada Grenchen Racing Chrono, Straum Jan Mayen, Oris Divers ...
Hands-On: The New Tissot Chemin Des Tourelles Squelette
The Tissot Chemin des Tourelles is a straightforward daily watch with a slightly formal air. Before the rise of sports watches as everyday pieces, this Tissot model would have been considered “a watch” - in other words, not the type of piece that an enthusiast site like Fratello normally covers. However, the new Chemin des Tourelles Squelette adds just enough pizazz to warrant further examination.Open-worked-dial timepieces are a different breed. High-end pieces show incredible workmanship, ingenuity, and detail. More affordable offerings display battery-powered movements and bring some level of style to what might otherwise be very boring watches. In the middle, though, some com...
Hands-On With The J&Berg B2
I love watches that refuse to stick to a genre and offer a clean-slate perspective that doesn’t look back in time. Going hands-on with the J&Berg B2, I see both of these qualities and put Finland on the map of microbrand cool.Titanium is very much the material du jour, but I have a conflicted relationship with the light metal. Don’t get me wrong; its prowess is undebatable. With its corrosion-less and lightweight properties, titanium is great for sports watches. I’m just not overly happy with the light feel of titanium bracelets, but on a canvas strap, it works great. Add a slim 38mm case design, and we’re really talking.J&Berg and the freedom of small brandsF...
Blu: MT3 Majesty Tourbillon explained by the master himself
It has been almost 2 months ago, since Frank and I visited BaselWorld 2009. One of the highlights was visiting the Blu stand in Hall 2.0 on our last day there. After looking at their displayed watches for a while, I decided to go and ask for some more information about them, as I liked their style and use of precious materials. My questions about the brand were answered by Mrs. Lederer, wife of Bernhard Lederer (Blu stands for Bernhard Lederer Universum). She invited us over to a desk, to show us some watches of the Blu collection and give us some more explanation on the brand. Our discussion was mainly about materials, such as diamonds on Blu’s watches for men. When our questions beca...
OMEGA Speedmaster Professional Moonphase 3575.20
Speedmaster Broad Arrow or Speedmaster Professional?It’s Speedy Tuesday! Don’t let the broad arrow hands fool you! Often confused with the Speedmaster Broad Arrow, this Moonphase model is definitely part of the “Speedmaster Professional” collection. This Speedmaster Professional Moonphase is based on the Speedmaster ’57 re-edition ref.?3894.50.37 that was introduced in 1997/1998. It was in production from 1999 till 2003 and has the famous hand-wound Lemania based caliber 1866 movement. This is a modified version of the caliber 1861 movement, that can be found in the current line-up of Speedmaster Professional ‘Moonwatch’ timepieces.This Speedmaster P...
#TBT Oris Star ChronOris
Over the last couple months, we've spoken a bit about Oris and their new retro-themed Sixty-Five Diver. It's obvious that we are enthusiastic about the watch and cannot wait to have it on our wrists for trial. Today, though, I'll shift gears and talk about a different Oris piece that deserves some attention if you are into vintage watches. It's a watch that Oris also chose, in 2005, for a newly remade edition that was quite well put together in my opinion. After a few weeks of pricey vintage, #TBT is back in the affordable game with the interesting and attractive Oris Star ChronOris.We spoke about the history of Oris a bit during the original preview on the Sixty-Five, so I won't spend much ...
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Concept Laptimer
Audemars Piguet introduces their Royal Oak Concept Laptimer Michael Schumacher. A timepiece that took 5 years to develop after Formula 1 legend Michael Schumacher asked AP to come up with a watch able to measure and record an extended series of consecutive lap times. Only 221 pieces of this Royal Oak Concept Laptimer will be produced to commemorate the number of F1 world championship point-winning races the German legend competed during his career.It is a Royal Oak Concept different from the ones we’ve seen before (here) or from the one that AP showed us during the SIHH 2015 (a loud minute repeater). In that respect, it is quite unexpected that AP introduces this Royal Oak Concept Lapt...
Watch Brand Ambassadors Does It Work?
How on Earth can a brand think that by giving actor Y or actor X a watch for free, that it makes me want to buy one too? You guessed it right, I am not a fan of most watch ambassadors.When I saw George Clooney and his wife at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, it made me think of this topic on watch ambassadors I wrote in 2015, and realized it is still a hot topic that is often discussed among watch enthusiasts. A few moments later, I saw that Prince William was wearing a mid-sized Omega Seamaster. He wears that watch all the time and it is to be believed that he received this watch from his mother, Diana. I would say that this is a watch ambassador, probably totally unaware and ...
The 80s: A Legendary Caliber, the Lemania Carrera Chronograph
The Heuer Carrera in the 1980sThe Eighties were a decisive decade for the future of Heuer: the TAG corporate group assured the future of the prestigious brand. Heuer became TAG Heuer and the Carrera chronograph was reborn with a new movement. The Quartz Crisis strongly affected the watchmaking industry in late Seventies and early Eighties. Cheap electronic watches from the Far East inundated the world's markets. Jack Heuer had recognized the trend toward quartz and electronics at an early date and successfully deployed these new technologies in timekeepers for auto races. One of his most successful creations was the Heuer Chronosplit, a quartz wristwatch with a built-in stopwatch function. A...
In Some Cases We Will Never Know For Sure
Sometimes we see a watch that we don’t recognize. Either it was very rare, a fake, a frankenwatch or a prototype.Today, we have a watch like that for you here on Fratello. A gold Speedmaster Professional that looks very similar to the well-known and sought-after BA145.022-69, but with a strange looking dial.We don’t need to introduce you to the gold Speedmaster Apollo XI from 1969, I am pretty sure. We covered that watch many times here and even recently when we did the comparison article between this year’s 50th-anniversary edition of the Speedmaster Professional Apollo XI in Moonshine gold and the original 1969 model in gold. Often referred to as the Nixon watch, as it wa...
J.N. Shapiro Produces Astounding Engine-Turned Metorite Dial
The longer you stay in this game, the more you come to realize one thing. There is watchmaking, and then there is watchmaking. A huge amount of modern watches fall under the first intonation. Many stand with one foot in either camp. But those from brands like J.N. Shapiro are comfortably within the bold category. And with his latest, engine-turned meteorite dial, he’s clearly keen to remind us why he deserves to be there.According to an encyclopedia of Arts and Sciences from 1819, one must master 34 separate crafts to make a watch entirely from scratch. Reputedly, legendary British watchmaker George Daniels came close, mastering 32 of the 34. Daniels did not make his own crystals or sp...
#TBT: Sphinx O'ver Electrifie Anyone For Mushrooms?
This watch is not easy to process. It is even harder to describe. The Sphinx O’ver Electrifie is an incredibly rare, battery-illuminated, hand-wound piece. Get ready for a shocking mix of traditional elegance and crazy originality in today's #TBT. Wearable? Tell us what you think.I?bet you remember my love affair last year that was so elaborate to explain that I hardly managed to fit it into two lengthy, but I hope satisfactory 7-minute reads. The Tourist Everlight was a genius watch, but despite its originality, it never reached a reputation big enough to get on collectors’ lists. Quite the opposite. Due to issues with batteries leaking, large chunks of the sold production were ...
Bvlgari's LVCEA Collection Gets An Aventurine Dial
I have a weak spot for aventurine dials. These glass crystals with copper inclusions represent - to me - a starry sky. A perfect dial for dress watches or elegant ladies watches. Enter the Bvlgari Lvcea!Using this beautiful material isn’t new to watchmaking. But unfortunately, only a few brands dare to use it and Bvlgari is one of them. The main problem with this material is that it can easily crack during the production process. And since it is not cheap, a lot of brands stay away from using aventurine for their dials.…I wouldn’t mind Bvlgari come up with a gold Octo with an aventurine dial.With the release of the new Bvlgari Lvcea models, there are now two more watches wi...
7 Vintage Watch Bezels That Would Never Be Made Today (2021)
I?can't help myself. Anytime I?see an original vintage watch bezel I've never seen before, I?am intrigued and amused. A?witty, surprising, or unusual bezel gives any?watch a hard-to-beat attitude. The best news is that it doesnt necessarily have to be an expensive watch.No grails today. Just a?selection of random brands, some of which you might have never heard of. Just sheer originality and creative bezel freedom. Some designs might look crazy, but you can't argue that each of them is fascinating in its own way. Get ready.Image source: IG @chronyves79Orator Automatic DiverDespite no striking colors, this is anything but a typical bezel for an otherwise pretty standard skin diver watch. It l...
Introducing The New TAG Heuer Monaco Titan! (2021)
TAG Heuer is on a roll at the moment. The Swiss brand's last two green-dialed beauties (a Carrera and a Monaco, both limited to 500pcs each) sold out super fast, and quite rightly too. TAG Heuer seems to come in for a lot of criticism in the watch collecting community; I'm not totally sure why or if it's warranted, really. Nevertheless, the brand has some fantastic models, a really cool history, and the propensity to release some excellent watches. What's not to like?The TAG Heuer Monaco Titan(ium)Today, we see TAG Heuer dropping another new watch, this time circling back round to the Monaco again. Will it be as much of a hit as the green-dialed one? Who knows, but I must say it's equally as...
What's (Not) To Like About The New Seiko Presage Style60's? (2021)
When Seiko launched the first all-mechanical Presage collection in 2016, it was a clear statement. With the Presage line, Seiko presented affordably priced automatic watches that punched way above their weight. Presage takes center stage as Seiko's leading mechanical watch collection, the Japanese manufacturer proclaimed. And although most watch fanatics focus on watches and collections with a longer history, Seiko wanted to focus on a new generation of mechanical watches for the current and future generation of watch wearers/lovers. But Seiko still needs inspiration from the past to put Presage in the spotlight. This time around, the brand has found it in the ’60s. So, what's (not) to...