BaselWorld 2009: TAG Heuer Monaco
One of the big bummers of the BaselWorld 2009 show was that I was unable to take a closer look at TAG Heuer’s new watches. The gigantic booth had this display in front of it, with both the old Monaco (1133) (it was the actual watch that Steve McQueen wore in Le Mans) and the new 40th anniversary Monaco.The girl (a rented promo model with a cool leather TAG Heuer ‘Gulf’ jacket) couldn’t allow us to go inside the booth to make some decent pictures and she was also told NOT to give any press kits to the press (I had a press card via Perpetuelle).I wonder if that’s really the policy, since TAG Heuer at least floods my mailbox with ALL of their new releases and celeb...
Glycine introduces the Airman Base 22 Back to the original 1953 Airman
Glycine (founded in 1914) introduced a multiple time zone watch in 1953, the Glycine Airman. These watches were meant to be for travellers and pilots that needed a watch that enabled them to read two different time zones. Through all these years, the Airman watch was never absent from the Glycine collection, but it changed a bit every once in a while. Purists will swear by the original vintage Airman model (nicked ‘Old Airman’) that was in production from 1953 till 1973. This model was embraced by the military (chopper) pilots during the Vietnam war with its useful second time zone and AM/PM indicator. These first models had a Felsa caliber 692 movement and was succeeded in 1960 ...
BaselWorld 2011 Serious Engineering On Your Wrist With Urwerk's UR110 And UR202S
Urwerk is one of those brands where reading time isn’t the primary concern, as there are other devices (e.g. iPhone or BlackBerry) that are much more accurate and cheaper to do so. Now, this rule goes for every mechanical timepiece, but one could try to justify a $7,000.- USD for reading time and it will be quite difficult to do so with a +/- $70,000.- USD Urwerk UR-110 (nicknamed ‘Torpedo’).Urwerk is not about accuracy, reading time or creating ‘just’ an expensive luxury timepiece, it is about micro-engineering. Felix Baumgartner and Martin Frei, the founders of Urwerk, are trying (and I think they are succeeding) to follow nobody and set their own limits when...
Golden Balance Wheel 2013 (Goldene Unruh) Awards
Goldene Unruh 2013Every year, readers of the German Uhren Magazine and Focus magazine (a Munich based news magazine) can select a winning watch from a number of brands, in different price categories. This year, the selection process was even easier for voters using the Focus internet platform.Anyway, in total 25.246 people participated and voted for their most favorite watches amongst the 426 candidates. Voting took place between 15th of December 2012 and the 31st of January 2013. The categories of watches are as follows:Category A – up to 2500 EuroCategory B – up to 5000 EuroCategory C – up to 10.000 EuroCategory D – up to 25.000 EuroCategory E – over 25.000 Eu...
Girard-Perregaux Tri-Axial Tourbillon
One of the big surprises this year in Basel was the Tri-Axial Tourbillon timepiece by Girard-Perregaux. This company from La Chaux-de-Fonds in Switzerland has basically two pillars for their collections, watches and haute horlogerie. During our visit to Girard-Perregaux (you can find our report here), we noticed that these are really physically separated as well. Like Chinese Walls.The Girard-Perregaux Tri-Axial Tourbillon Reference 99815-52-251-BA6A is part of the haute horlogerie collection of course. The decentralized dial – using a Clous de Paris motif – indicating hours and minutes is located at half past one while a huge aperture (or dial) for the tourbillon cage is at 9 o&...
Column The Swiss Watch Industry Is Bankrupt
Fratellowatches starts with a new series of articles as of today, columns written by others as well as by ourselves. Columns about the watch industry, watch collecting, trends, design and so on. We start our first column with a publication by Professor of Turnaround Management Jan Adriaanse.ImagineImagine a world without . Imagine a world without Breitling. Imagine a world without Swatch. Can you? We can. But are most of the 140,000 visitors of Baselworld 2014 able to do so? We doubt it.When we asked international acclaimed watch blogger-journalist Robert-Jan Broer he implicitly confirmed: I haven't seen smart watches yet at Baselworld () I doubt whether it is at the top of minds here in Swi...
Fortis Brand Relaunch and the Fortis Terrestis Collection
Around 2003 or so I saw a watch in a magazine that was produced for the Hungarian Air Force in a very limited number. It was the 3rd edition commissioned by the Air Force. The first two editions were given to different squadrons based in Hungary (Ppa and Szolnok), after that the Air Force also ordered watches for themselves. This was the first time (and not the last) Fortis produced a custom made watch for flight squadrons and this was the first time I came across the brand: Fortis.Photo of the above mentioned watch from https://trendmagazin.hu/cikk/a-papai-pilotak-egyedi-karorajaI had a meeting with Fortis during BaselWorld this year and got to see some really nice and unusual watches. If ...
Zenith: An Exclusive Visit to the Manufacture
Zenith: An exclusive visit to the manufacture, where Zenith's director of movement development shows important construction details. Zenith developed a special complicated watch to celebrate its 150th Anniversary, the Georges Favre Jacot timepiece which is equipped with a fusee and chain constant force system.Zenith traces the roots of this watch to its development of marine clocks.We will meet with the director of the movement development who will explain how the system works and show some of important details in its construction such as a protection system for the delicate chain and an integrated spring to keep the watch running while it is being wound.Then we visit the complicated Zenith ...
Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Control Perpetual Calendar 52Mondayz, week # 14
A bit of Richemont attention is appropriate in these post-BaselWorld days in my opinion. So for this week, I pick?my late father’s Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Control Perpetual Calendar as 52Mondayz watch.Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Control Perpetual Calendar 52Mondayz, week # 14He bought this watch to commemorate the millennium year 2000. It was a variation to the regular Master Perpetual with a silver dial. This model with a black dial was only in Jaeger-LeCoultre’s collection for one or two years and sports a glass back.Master Control 1000 HoursMost ‘Master Control 1000 Hours’ models, like Master Moon, Master Geographique, and the Master Reserve de Marche, became available...
Delma Klondike Moonphase with Distinctive Day-and-Night Indicator
Delma enhances design and precision of signature Klondike Collection by introducing Klondike Moonphase with distinctive day-and-night indicator.For centuries, celestial guidance has been a fundamental skill of all great navigators and a delight of impassioned stargazers. Born out of a tradition of design excellence and precision craftsmanship spanning almost a century of Swiss watchmaking, Delma today introduces the Klondike Moonphase automatic chronograph with full calendar, moon phase, and day-and-night indicator. The most complex and elegant timepiece in the Klondike Collection to date, the Klondike Moonphase celebrates the vitality of life with unparalleled precision, style and durabilit...
Speedy Tuesday Hands-On With The Speedmaster Apollo 8
Last week we already showed you the Speedmaster CK2998 Pulsometer, and this week it is time for a little hands-on with the new Speedmaster Apollo 8.?Omega dedicates 2018 mainly to the Seamaster collection, celebrating its 70th anniversary and the 25th anniversary of the Seamaster 300M. However, that did not refrain them from releasing a number of new Speedmaster watches as well. Some of you already knew what was coming, due to the leaks that Omega encountered in the period just before BaselWorld. Although some think this has been done on purpose, this wasn’t the case. Does it harm Omega? Of course not, but the surprise effect wasn’t really there anymore. An exception could be thi...
Just Out Hamilton's New Intra-Matic Auto Chrono With Blue Dial
Hamilton, part of the Swatch Group, is making waves in the industry for quite some time now.To start with, they appear on movies probably as often as Omega does. This might sound like a bold statement from me, and it is absolutely not backed by any data from the brand. Though if you think if some of the bigger box-office movies of the last 10 years or so Hamilton was part of many of them. Think of the Men In Black franchise for example, or Interstellar. But also in Ocean's Eleven, The Commuter, The Shape Of Water, The Italian Job, Quantum of Solace, The Terminal, the list goes on and on. What Hamilton is also great at, is coming out of re-editions that are just superb. Like the Hamilton Intr...
Pre-Owned Picks Survival Watches From Breitling
We tend to tell romanticized stories of brave men and women in survival situations. As watch-lovers, we find ourselves drawn to the wrists of these heroes and heroines. A watch worn during an adventure can take on a character of its own. And for those of us that can’t get enough of these little tickers, they can make or break the story of survival itself.How many of you have pointed at your Omega Speedmaster, explaining to the non-watch aficionado that it went to the Moon? Or how the Speedy helped bring the Apollo 13 astronauts back to Earth? Maybe you drone on about the DEEP-SEA Sea-Dweller diving the depths of the Mariana Trench? Perhaps you prefer to talk about the Smith’s Ex...
Cartier Santos Dumont XL In Three Manual Winding Versions
Cartier is well-known for its stylish, slimline dress watches. Among the many elegant forms, the Santos collection often stands-out as an edgier take on the classic form. Now, in an attempt to further modernize a model that was birthed more than a century ago, the Cartier Santos Dumont XL hits the shelves.Living up to 116 years of heritage is no mean feat. In 1904, Louis Cartier created the very first Santos model for his friend and aviator Alberto Santos-Dumont. This “large” square model has seen quite a few overhauls in its time and the latest focuses on increasing the diameter while keeping the model as thin as can be. The original style is largely retained, with the Breguet-s...
Bell & Ross BR 03-92 GREY LUM
The new Bell & Ross BR 03-92 GREY LUM is the latest addition to the brand's Instruments line.Bell & Ross has three major model families, Vintage, Experimental, and Instrument. The latter is arguably one of B&R's most iconic model families. Within that, the BR? 03 group is also the largest with 27 timepieces. From steel to PVD, two-tone, and even ceramic one can choose from many different looks as well as complications. The BR 03 line contains simple time-only pieces as well as watches with power reserve indicators, GMTs, and ever-popular chronograph complications. The BR 03-92 GREY LUM is coming to this line with its simple yet unmistakably Bell & Ross design. Great size, cle...
The New Cartier Ballon Bleu And Ballon Blanc Watches Have Arrived!
The much-appreciated Cartier collection - the Ballon Bleu family - welcomes three new models. This line, introduced in 2007, brings Cartier's calling cards to the party. Refined craftsmanship and a nod to the brand’s fine jewelry legacy make the Ballon Bleu the kind of crossover piece that keeps on giving. While the diameters of men’s watches trend downward, the availability of larger ladies’ watches continues with this release, with the Ballon Bleu now available in 40mm.At 40mm wide and 12.45mm thick, this watch could easily be worn by men or women. There are a ton of options, ranging from the distinctly feminine, to the undeniably neutral. The steel version with the leath...
Glashutte Original Ambassador Boris Hermann Sits Down With Fratello
We sat down with Glashutte Original ambassador and world-renowned sailor, Boris Hermann…Rob Nudds: Hi Boris, thanks for taking the time to talk to Fratello. Where are you right now? On dry land or in the middle of an ocean somewhere?Boris Hermann: Hello, except for a short trip to the Alster (a small lake in the middle of my hometown Hamburg) for an interview, I’ve been on land with my little family since the end of the Vendee Globe and hope that I’m not too much in the way. But I didn’t have much time to relax - after several interviews I’m already in the middle of the preparations for the upcoming adventures with my team.RN: Some of our readers might not be fa...
Buying Guide: The Best Seiko Watches From The 1960s
We like to talk about vintage watches a lot within the Fratello team. While the daily routine is largely focused on the most recent developments in the world of watches, the most fun for many of us lies in the world of vintage watches. It's a world full of history, remarkable watches, incredible stories, and quirky details.It inspired us to come up with a series of articles focusing on the best watches per decade from a select group of brands. Some of them priceless, some of them still affordable. But all of them are interesting watches. In this installment, we will take a look at the best Seiko watches from the 1960s.In the 1960s, we witnessed developments that challenged the status quo of ...
Hot Take: Aquastar Deepstar Mid-Size Chronograph
For all those who feel that watch brands don’t listen to our recommendations, Aquastar begs to differ. After hearing requests for something smaller, we now have the new Aquastar Deepstar Mid-size chronograph. Let’s have a look.When the first Aquastar Deepstar chronograph returned in 2020, we were truly enthusiastic. The return of a truly iconic vintage design paired with great finishing made it a favorite when we visited Fratello HQ to film a video on it. Brand lead Rick Marei put a lot of effort into the watch and went to great lengths to explain the history of Aquastar in subsequent calls. He sold us here at Fratello on the Deepstar, and collectors sure seemed to love it as wel...
Hublot Square Bang Debuts Plus New Big Bang Integral Ceramic
With the dust having settled after the first four days of Watches & Wonders 2022, we can see clearly see the impressive number of new releases from all the different brands. Hublot, of course, also brought the heat with an array of new model variations and an entirely new line. As usual, the brand does not shy away from loud colors and cutting-edge materials for its Big Bang collection. On top of that, Hublot introduces the new Square Bang with a familiar but new shape for the brand. Finally, there are some remarkable one-offs that combine materials, colors, and watchmaking magic. So let’s find out more about the new Hublot releases.The great thing about seeing all the new Hublot r...