The Speedmaster That Fetched $1.9 Million At Auction
Patek Philippe, , and Audemars Piguet watches are not the only ones that fetch staggering amounts of money at auction. Omega watches have also proved their tremendous value to collectors at auctions over the last few years. One watch that comes to mind is a Speedmaster CK2915 that fetched over CHF 3.1 million in 2021. Just recently, NASA astronaut Wally Schirra’s gold Speedmaster BA145.022-69 sold for $1.9 million as well. It seems that passionate collectors really do love a watch with a great story.Especially if it is connected to a famous person, a watch might get that extra bit of attention at auction. A prime example would be Paul Newman’s very own “Paul Newman” ...
New: Oris Strapfinder Branded Straps For Your Oris Watch
Oris quietly introduced the Strapfinder section to its website a couple of weeks ago. Among the 60+ straps are options for just about every watch the brand sells. Various widths, materials, colors, and closures abound, with each strap branded with “Oris” on the clasp. If you have an Oris watch and have been wanting to switch up your strap game while keeping it on-brand, the Oris Strapfinder has you covered.Oris is all about options. Many of its favored watch designs come in various sizes, dial colors, and even metals. This allows one to find the perfect Oris for them. But, until now, one was essentially stuck with the strap or bracelet that Oris provided with the watch. Of course...
All-New Grand Seiko Karesansui SBGY027: The Zen Watch
To me, watches are a way to stop the world around me for a moment. Choosing which watch to wear in the morning, winding it, setting the time… All of this gives me a moment to stop running on the way to my kids’ daycare, then school, and eventually, the office. The same happens when I glance down at my watch during the day. I don’t necessarily look at the time. However, I often catch myself looking at my watch when I’m searching for the right words, for example. Somehow, a watch can put you into a different state of mind. The people at Grand Seiko really understand this principle in a way that no other brand does. The design of their new limited edition for the Europea...
Dress-Watch Season Is Here Cartier, Omega, And Baltic
Have you felt it already? That cold nip in the air as the daylight hours taper away one day at a time. The trees lose their summertime verdure as leaves blush with the ochre and copper tones of fall. Dress-watch season is finally here. As we begin to leave the long, warm, short-sleeved days of summer behind - that time of the year when the sports watch reigns supreme - and the pre-winter layering begins, it's the slimmer dressier pieces that get their chance to shine. Sure, watches should be worn regardless of season, but there's something about the first days of fall that gets me thinking about the smaller, dressier pieces in my collection. However, the occasional day (or week) of torrentia...
Available Now: Fratello Fortis Flieger F-43 Bicompax Umber
We’re proud to officially release the first model in the Fortis Fratello Capsule Collection. It’s a Flieger F-43 Bicompax chronograph with an umber-brown dial, and it is available now! This and all future watches in the Fratello Capsule Edition will be available exclusively in our shop.Fratello Fortis Flieger F-43 Bicompax Umber Brown Capsule EditionWhen we introduced the Fratello Fortis Flieger F-43 Bicompax in umber brown to you last week (here), we received several comments on the dial. In some photos, you can see the vertically brushed finish on it, which reminded some of you (and me) of the Mercedes-Benz Zebrano interior in the 190 (and other) models. But this only becomes a...
Hands-On: Vario Empire GMT
Yes, in the past couple of years, we've seen many GMT watches come to market from major players in the industry and micro/independent brands alike. It might seem like there are too many GMTs now, but on the positive side, it's a great time to shop for a travel watch. The latest GMT I want to direct your attention to is the Vario Empire GMT. It is an Art Deco flyer GMT that looks like no other and has a reasonable price tag of just under US$700. I promise that you will agree this is reasonable. However, right off the bat, I’ll say that this watch won't be for everyone because looks matter more than function here. It may or may not be for you, and I'll await your comments at the end of t...
The New Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean GMT Dark Grey
The latest Planet Ocean by Omega is an impressive piece packed with the brand’s latest innovations. The 45.5mm case is made of silicon nitride ceramic [Si3N4] and houses a movement made of titanium components. It’s tough, it’s light, and it’s multi-functional. Without further ado, let’s have a look at this new Seamaster Planet Ocean GMT Dark Grey reference 215.92.46.22.99.002.Planet Ocean 600M GMT Dark GreyOn paper, this might be your perfect do-it-all watch! For example, the case is made of highly resistant silicon nitride ceramic, which is only 50% of the weight of zircon ceramic, with Grade 5 titanium elements (e.g. the dial, bezel, and crown). Inside, we fin...
New: Czapek Quai Des Berges 40.5mm N17 Double Soleil
With the Antractique, Czapek has something of a hit watch on its hands that draws a ton of attention. Therefore, you would be forgiven if you have lost sight of the brand’s more traditional offerings. Allow me to put them front and center in your working memory once more. Here we have a brand-new entry to the Quai des Bergues line - or, rather, two new entries.Let's have a closer look at the new Czapek Quai des Bergues models in a new size and fitted with new black or blue dials. Czapek Quai des Bergues 40.5mm N17 Double SoleilCzapek already has an extensive collection of Quai des Bergues watches in its catalog. Until now, they all measured either 42.5mm or 38.5...
New: Le Triptyque Louis Erard Alain Silberstein Khaki
Let’s face it: most watches aren’t very eclectic. Yes, there are exceptions, but probably over 90% of wrist-worn timepieces are somewhat predictable, serious-looking items. They might feature a colored dial and a few accents, but the rest is business as usual. Then there are watches designed by Alain Silberstein. His novel-looking creations often feature visually magnetic red, yellow, and blue elements. The use of those primary colors in combination with bold, atypical shapes often reminds me of Keith Haring’s style of street art. And now, after both the black Le Triptyque and white Le Diptyque series, the designer is back with Louis Erard, bringing a khaki trio of the part...
The New Berneron Mirage 34: My Favorite Watch Of 2024
The new Berneron Mirage 34 joins last year’s 38mm models in the small brand’s growing lineup. As we’ll see, these aren’t simply downsized editions. Each model showcases a stone dial and a new caliber. Hint: these are my favorite watches of this year so far.Sylvain Berneron is the name behind the eponymous brand he started in 2022. He did this while working as the chief product officer at Breitling (he has since departed to focus solely on his company). I had the chance to meet him several times during his tenure at Breitling and always enjoyed our discussions. He’s into cars, general design, and, naturally, watches. In fact, it was his Patek Philippe Calatrava 5...
New: Spinnaker Fleuss 40 Automatic Seconde/Seconde/ 2024w
Romaric Andre, aka seconde/seconde/, is a busy man these days. I have barely recovered from the Christopher Ward Desk Diver, and now he is back with a collab with Spinnaker. It goes to show that the often snobby watch world is looking for some lighthearted fun. Well, lighthearted fun is what we get today! This is the new Spinnaker Fleuss 40 Automatic seconde/seconde/ 2024 Edition for Halloween. If that sounds familiar, you are onto something. The brands teamed up for Halloween before, giving the world the spooky 50 Phantoms. Now they are back for this Halloween with two new offerings.Spinnaker is releasing a batch of 888 of each variant for order today. A thousand of these 1,776 watches will...
New: MB&F Eddy Jaquet LM Split Escapement 2024 Series
Take a look at your bookcase, and tell me if you have a copy of one of the following books - The Three Musketeers, The Jungle Book, Robinson Crusoe, The Call of the Wild, The Last of the Mohicans, Moby-Dick, Robin Hood,?Treasure Island, or anything by Jules Verne, like Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. Check out the new MB&F Eddy Jaquet LM Split Escapement watches if you do. You might want to enrich your book collection with a matching watch.The collaboration between MB&F and master engraver Eddy Jaquet started in 2020 with a series of eight unique watches with engraved dials inspired by Jules Verne’s novels. By the way, the series claimed a GPHG Artistic Crafts Award in 2...
Ole Mathiesen wins The Classic Danish Desing Prize 2004
Today, 26 October 2004, Ole Mathiesen from Copenhagen, Denmark, has won the 2004 Classic Danish Design prize with a watch model which he produces since 1962.Just like 42 years ago, this watch now comes in two variations, the OMB1 and the OMB2, with with roman numerals and index markers – both with a mechanical (hand winding) movement.Click here for the full article ??...
We are Chronocentric!
An interesting video about ‘our time’ of one of our Dutch (former) astronauts, Wubbo Ockels. Wubbo Ockels was an astronaut on the STS-61A mission in 1985. Amongst others, Reinhard Furrer was also an astronaut on this mission. Reinhard Furrer wore a Sinn 142 timepiece during his time in space, Wubbo Ockels wore a Seiko 100M sports chrono that he received from NASA (according to his own words in a recently published magazine). He still wears this watch on a daily basis ??The video takes 22 minutes of your precious time, but already in the first few minutes it will become clear why we are ‘chronocentric’. Derek Ziglar (who passed away in 2005) of Chronocentric really pic...
Hands-On With The Audemars Piguet Millenary 4101
Ever since its introduction at the?Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH) in 2011, we’ve been waiting to get our hands on this Audemars Piguet Millenary 4101, ref. 15350ST. In the past, we’ve almost only covered their Royal Oak collection (here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here and then some more (114 times)).The only time we covered the Millenary collection was when we mentioned the Star Wheel and the introduction of this Millenary 4101 in 2011. We called it one of the nicest surprises in 2011 but in fact, we only got to lay our hands (and lens) on one just recently. Luckily, the sensation when looking at it was still the...
Hands-On with Oris Audi Sport Limited Edition II
You might remember our photo-essay from last week on the DTM Finals with Oris and Audi Sport. The watch we are about to take a closer look is actually the piece I had on me during this visit to the legendary Hockenheim ring. It's a pretty cool timepiece with a great size and wrist presence. So ladies and gentlemen, without further ado, please feast your eyes on the Oris Audi Sport Limited Edition II.AudiOris has a long history?with car racing. They have a partnership with Formula 1 team Williams since 2003 but even before that cooperation was sealed they already had an endorsement deal with F1 driver Allan McNish. Though McNish's career was moderately successful throughout the years, Oris wa...
Glashuette Original Vienna Boutique opening, with the introduction of two new Senator Excellence Caliber 36 models
Event report on the Glashuette Original Boutique OpeningGlashutte Original (Glashuette) kindly invited us to witness the opening of their new boutique in Vienna, Austria. As well while the, mostly German speaking, press was present they took the opportunity to introduce two new models in their caliber 36 Senator Excellence series.Two New Glashuette Original ModelsThe day started off with the introduction of the two new watch models, while the opening of the boutique was planned in the evening of the program. The weather was exactly what one can expect in the second half of October in Austria, not very inspiring. The venue where the two new watch models were revealed made pretty much up for t...
Hands-On MeisterSinger Circularis Automatic Review
15 Years of MeisterSingerA few weeks ago, Gerard published an article on the 15th anniversary of MeisterSinger and its single-handed?watch. You can find it here. A must-read for all fans of MeisterSinger watches.Today, I review the MeisterSinger Circularis Automatic (reference?CC908). This watch comes in various executions, but I selected the Sunburst Blue version on a brown alligator strap for this review.MeisterSinger Circularis AutomaticThe MeisterSinger Circularis Automatic is something clearly related to the famous 1Z (1 Zeiger) or ‘No.1’ as it is called nowadays, but it is their next-level watch (I hate the word product). Instead of the famous ETA 2801-2 or Sellita SW210 mo...
Hands-On With The Seiko Prospex Dawn Grey Series
Seiko introduces two new models of their popular Turtle and Samurai collections, both part of their limited edition Dawn Grey series. And what’s more, these watches are for the European market only. That said, we are pretty sure that Seiko fans outside Europe, can source one if they want. The Dawn Grey series has a nice colour-scheme of grey and orange, according to Seiko it should remind you of the colour of dawn over the Sea. Well, there’s that, but these are also simply beautiful looking watches. They also reminded me of something we’ve seen earlier though, but about that later on.Let’s have a closer look at this new Dawn Grey Turtle and Samuari.Seiko?Automatic Div...
Breitling Summit Impression With An Introduction Of The New Models
Earlier this week we joined Breitling on their first Breitling Summit' in London. Together with several colleagues and partners of the brand, we spent a day going through the Breitling's changes, its direction and the up and coming collections.Opening ActFirst, a word of welcome when Breitling’s CEO Georges Kern, takes the stage. He explains about the brand and its history and how to guide things in new and more clear directions as Breitling is not only about pilots watches. Structuring the collection into the 4 segments of land, sea air and professional. Each of which comes with a selected group of brand ambassadors or squad members as they call it. Also a quick introduction about new...