Hodinkee
Vintage Watches: Early Parmigiani Fleurier And The Enduring Appeal Of ‘Overbuilt’ Watches
How one man revived a Swiss village through a focus on old-school craft and how we collect these over-the-top pieces today.
6,490 articles · 78 videos found · page 133 of 219
Hodinkee
How one man revived a Swiss village through a focus on old-school craft and how we collect these over-the-top pieces today.
Worn & Wound
A recurring theme that we’re seeing in the watch enthusiast space this year is a heightened interest in interesting quartz watches. It comes up all the time on our podcast, on Instagram, and certainly in the YouTube comments for our recent coverage of a quartz release from TAG Heuer. Clearly, there’s an appetite for this stuff, but it seems like the big Swiss brands are still a step behind their Japanese counterparts in terms of delivering watches that are high on value while pushing the envelope in terms of quartz tech. Exhibit A: Citizen, and their new Eco-Drive 365 line, which gives us a fairly substantial movement upgrade in a package that doesn’t look quite like anything else on the market. The big news here is the introduction of the all new Caliber E365 Eco-Drive movement. As the name implies, these light powered movements have a running time of an entire year on a full charge. That’s an impressive accomplishment, just about doubling the running time of a standard Eco-Drive movement, which already made for the ideal watch to completely forget about in a sock drawer for months at a time. The new caliber is able to maximize power consumption for an even longer running time than previous movements while keeping the same 27mm diameter as its predecessor. The new E365 calibers are accurate to within 15 seconds per month. For the first batch of E365 releases (which unfortunately won’t be available until fall of this year) Citizen is looking back to the e...
Quill & Pad
The "good ol’ days” aren’t over yet – at least in the world of mechanical watches, where the appreciation of traditions and the creation of lasting values are as essential as the balance wheel and the escapement. Here, Sabine Zwettler takes a look at five of her favorite modern retro-styled watches from Blancpain, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Panerai, Breitling, and Seiko.
Worn & Wound
For the latest Massena LAB limited edition, William Massena’s boutique brand specializing in tasteful remakes of classic pieces with real watch nerd pedigree is reaching back to the 1960s, and showcasing a different type of tool watch. The collaborator for this edition, Angelus, is a historic Swiss brand known largely for their excellent chronographs, and the limited edition seen here is based on a deep cut made specifically for physicians. The Chronographe Médical x Massena LAB is the first watch in Angelus’s new La Fabrique collection, which will specialize in recreating important Angelus watches in small batch limited editions. The principle behind a “doctor’s watch” is fairly well known. These watches were typically chronographs that incorporate a pulsation scale at the perimeter of the dial or within a bezel, making it easy for a doctor to quickly calculate the heartrate of a patient. Their operation is simple: start the chronograph, count ten heartbeats (or the number the scale on your watch is calibrated for), and then stop the chronograph. The chronograph seconds hand will be pointing to the number of heart beats per minute. You can imagine that the practicality here for a doctor, particularly when watches like this were being made in the 1950s and 60s, was off the charts. Even for the average person, it could be argued that a pulsation scale would be more useful day to day than something like a tachymeter or a telemeter. The Chronograph Médical lim...
Time+Tide
The Depancel Legend 60s is their first hand-wound mechanical chronograph. It follows a more competitive and serious design language than the Meca-Quartz Serie-A Stradale. The Seagull ST1901 movement is based on a vintage Swiss movement - the Venus 175. If you’ve somehow missed some of our previous articles about Depancel, then the first thing you’ll … ContinuedThe post The Depancel Legend 60s is a twin-register throwback with bags of style appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Worn & Wound
The TAG Heuer Aquaracer has had a relatively sorted history since its introduction in 2004, taking on a range of identities scarcely connected between era specific design codes that come and go. The bits that have connected through the years remain as compelling today as they were in the pre-Aquaracer 2000 Series watches, and after a generation of Aquaracer growth, their latest effort in the Solargraph feels to have finally found a lasting voice by tying it all together in a cohesive package. This is the first Aquaracer since those early 2000 Series watches that has felt like a fully matured concept to my eye, and I hope it’s a sign of things to come within the family. To this day the Aquaracer exists in many forms spread across the Aquaracer 200, 300, and 1000 ranges. Each adopts the general dive watch aesthetic at the core of the collection, but you’ll find complications ranging from chronographs and GMTs alongside gem-set colorful dials in a range of sizes. It’s a collection that covers a lot of ground. The Solargraph, as seen in its newest guise released earlier this year, manages to capture a near perfect distillation of the Aquaracer design language, and manages enough restraint to feel like a fresh, and I’ll venture to say more timeless execution of the theme. That’s merely at first blush, however. We recently spent some time with the watch to see just how well that pans out in practice. $3050 [VIDEO] The TAG Heuer Aquaracer Solargraph is the Aquaracer W...
Time+Tide
The Cyrus Klepcys Vertical Tourbillon Sapphire features a golden bridge inspired by a design of Leonardo Da Vinci The vertical tourbillon placement is inspired by traditional pocket watches. It’s a limited edition of 10 pieces, celebrating the 10th anniversary of Cyrus. My last exposure to the Swiss independent luxury brand Cyrus Genéve was the Klepcys DICE Racing … ContinuedThe post The Cyrus Klepcys Vertical Tourbillon Sapphire is a unique watch inspired by Leonardo Da Vinci appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Worn & Wound
“Watches, Stories, and Gear” is a roundup of our favorite content, watch or otherwise, from around the internet. Here, we support other creators, explore interesting content that inspires us, and put a spotlight on causes we believe in. Oh, and any gear we happen to be digging on this week. We love gear. Share your story ideas or interesting finds with us by emailing tcalara@wornandwound.com Header Image Via: Orbit Winder Co. Art, Watch Winder & Desk Display All In One Via IFLW As far as watch accessories go, straps, travel cases and storage solutions are usually what takes up our entire supplemental horological budget. It’s not a stretch to even throw watch books and custom watch art into the mix. Let’s face it, a watch winder is probably the last thing you’re thinking about purchasing, if at all. Via IFLW Rarely do you see a watch winder that actually looks visually appealing. Typically it’s just a lazily designed compartment that houses a rotating watch holder. You might as well just have a nice looking watch box and when you feel like wearing a particular watch, pick it up, and be the human watch winder. But the folks over at Orbit Winder Co. might have an intriguing winder that could potentially change our minds. Via IFLW Say hello to the Orbit Winder – a cleverly designed piece of moving art that marries the hypnotizing movement of a tourbillon with the functionality of a winder. The Orbit Winder houses a single watch at its center, and once activated, ...
Worn & Wound
“Three, two, one … GO!” Leif Mumma stabs the hard-packed snow with his ski poles and launches himself out of the start gate. He immediately takes a different, more central line down the steep Ozone face. By the looks of his sheer speed and direct approach, he’s charging hard, taking the mountain head-on. Judging his quick decision making and go-big-or-go-home style, you wouldn’t think that this is Mumma’s first rodeo, but it is. He’s just a rookie on the Freeride World Tour. With a handful of speed, Mumma dramatically cuts in and out, just holding onto his ski’s edges down what seems to be one of thinner areas on the mountain face. He makes one technical jump off a rock face, lands, then cuts right. Then another. As Mumma dances around several spruce trees, the oohs and aahs arise from the spectators along the opposite ridge. At that moment, we’re all witnessing poetry in motion. All Downhill From Here Suddenly, an audible crack breaks the excitement. The mountain face starts to erupt on Mumma’s left as he completes a 20 foot jump. Whatever snow that was settled along the lower center portion of the face has now released, rushing down like a raging waterfall. Mumma is just out of the avalanche’s grip as he attempts his last trick. Out of nowhere Mumma’s ski gets caught by a sharkie (an exposed rock in a sea of snow that resembles a shark’s dorsal fin). He’s projected off of the face, his arms and poles flapping like a wingless bird, and his body...
Quill & Pad
Ian Skellern had both a pleasure and an honor to be interviewed by Ariel Adams on the aBlogtoWatch Superlative podcast. Their wide-ranging conversation covers how Ian started writing about watches, what he thinks the horological world is doing right and wrong, and co-executive producing (with Hind Sediqi) the film Making Time.
Time+Tide
Rado has always been a unique company in the annals of Swiss watchmaking – a collision of heritage and high tech is how one could describe their ethos. Now part of the massive Swatch Group, the brand was launched in 1957, and soon began producing distinctive models that were unlike most everything else out there. … ContinuedThe post The retro-futurism of the Rado Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Worn & Wound
Swatch, the brand that is just about everyone’s first watch, celebrated their 40th birthday this week. On March 1, 1983, Swatch unveiled its first collection of plastic cased, battery powered watches, and it’s not an exaggeration to say that it just might have saved the Swiss watch industry. After a long period of dominance in the mass production of watches, quartz watches made by Japanese companies at a massive scale radically changed the watchmaking landscape, putting the traditional mechanical watchmaking industry into something of a tailspin. The massive success of Swatch through the 80s and into the 90s injected cash and enthusiasm into Swiss watchmaking that the industry still benefits from to this day. We write about anniversaries all the time in these pages. As we’re all fond of saying, “Every year is an anniversary year.” But in the coverage of the big Swatch 4-0 that I’ve seen this week, I’ve much more commonly heard it referred to as a “birthday,” and I think that’s important. Anniversaries can be joyous occasions, but the word implies a certain seriousness that isn’t right for Swatch. A birthday is different. It’s fun, there’s cake, and hopefully some color. That’s how I think of Swatch (minus the cake). Swatch and I are just about the same age. I turned 40 in October of last year, and it’s interesting to think about the brand approaching middle age, as I, much to my dismay, seem to be doing as well. Does Swatch also have naggi...
Hodinkee
The aptly named Model No. 1 is the first release from a Swiss-Canadian NewYorker named Jesse Marchant. And it's worth taking all around the world.
Time+Tide
Watch enthusiasts do not always share the Swiss philosophy of neutrality. Being enthusiastic about something inevitably leads to hot takes, strong and stubborn opinions and, in turn, some snobbery. On the wrong day, I am definitely guilty of it myself – we’re all human after all. The reality is this niche hobby becomes less welcoming … ContinuedThe post 10 signs you’re becoming a watch snob appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
WatchAdvice
There are several watches that most watch enthusiasts should own in their collection at one time. The Omega Seamaster Professional Diver is one of those watches. If it’s good enough for James Bond, then it’s good enough for me! This isn’t the first time that I’ve owned a Seamaster. I had a 2005 quartz version almost 20 years ago. At that point I’d only owned a Tissot PRS 200 as a “good” Swiss watch. As a fan of James Bond, (and what young male isn’t?), I always wanted his watch. I mean how cool was the wave dial, the deep blue bezel and at the time, that unmistakable bracelet. It looked great in the office and on weekends at the beach. I loved it. Financial issues meant I had to sell it about 7 months after buying it, and that hurt. About 15 years and many watches later, I decided it was time to purchase another, this time the latest iteration of the SMP 300. I chose the black polished ceramic dial with the laser etched waves, date at 6 O’clock, glossy, almost silky polished ceramic bezel with white inset dive indicators. And this time, on the steel and opting to add the rubber strap too. Very versatile and with the steel bracelet and rubber strap, two very different looks for different occasions. Just a casual low light shot In 2018, Omega launched their updated version of the classic Bond watch. This time in a 42 mm case, making it a little bigger and bolder, and after a slight hiatus, bringing back the wave pattern on the dial. The new wave pattern is ...
Deployant
One of the most notable aspects of the Bulova Astronaut Re-Edition is its design. The watch features a 41mm stainless steel case with a black dial and luminous hands and markers, similar to the original watch. It also features a distinctive Day/Night bezel which helps the wearer track two time zones simultaneously. The watch is powered by a Swiss-made automatic movement, which ironically makes it no longer the 'most accurate watch in the world'; a phrase used to describe the original 1968 model with the 214HN sub-caliber.
Worn & Wound
It’s hard to believe, but Frederique Constant celebrates their 35th anniversary this year. This is a brand that’s truly part of the old guard when it comes to the contemporary, affordable watch scene. Making the “nice Swiss watch” accessible to the masses was a big part of why the brand was founded, and over the course of their history the entire watch industry has changed multiple times over, currently finding itself in a healthy spot where more and better watches are finding their way onto the wrists of enthusiasts at a pace that couldn’t have have been imagined three decades ago. The line between “luxury” and “affordable” continues to shift, and there’s no doubt that Frederique Constant has played a role in those changes. Specifically, Frederique Constant has broken new ground when it comes to making complicated watchmaking affordable. We all know about their excellent perpetual calendar, which they are still able to sell for a little less than $10,000 several years after its debut. But they also dabble in other historically significant and tech forward complications. Over the years we’ve seen everything from flyback chronographs to moon phases equipped watches, and of course their Slimline Monolithic with an ultra high frequency oscillator. But it could be argued that their signature complication, the one that the brand has leaned into the hardest and gained the most acclaim for, is the worldtimer. So it makes sense that for Frederique Constant...
Time+Tide
Having previously owned two vintage watches powered by Landeron movements, I’ve always believed they were unsung heroes in the world of Swiss chronographs. One of the watches I had was a Rotary that dated all the way back to 1937, and the Landeron 47 inside it still worked perfectly and intuitively. Méraud have made my … ContinuedThe post HANDS-ON: The Méraud Antigua is a yachting watch that bobs along on a delightfully retro wave appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
WatchAdvice
What we like: Dial is a real head turner3D Printed Carbon case is a winnerMassive five-day power reserve What we don’t like: Some may find it to be expensiveThe fingerprints easily show on the crystal Some may not appreciate the 3D-printed case Overall rating: 7.75/10 Value for money: 7/10 Wearability: 8/10 Design: 8/10 Build quality: 8/10 2022 was a big year for the independent Swiss brand Oris. Amongst the brand’s major updates to some of its collections was the continued release of its limited edition timepieces based on ecological conservation. The last major release for Oris in 2022 was the Coulson Limited edition, a watch created from the latest partnership with Coulson Aviation. Alongside creating luxury timepieces, Oris also works in a variety of different areas to bring “Change for the Better” for the planet and its people. Oris is also now independently certified as a climate-neutral company, with the watch brand working closely with other pioneering agencies to bring the change required to make the world a better place. One of these agencies is Coulson Aviation, which Oris just recently partnered up with. Coulson Aviation is a family-run independent company based in Canada that sends out pilots, planes, and also much-needed equipment to areas of the world that are heavily affected by wildfires. The resources and help provided are split between the US and California for the Northern Hemisphere summer and for the Southern Hemisphere summer, Australia and...
Quill & Pad
After nine hectic years as Editor-in-Chief and co-founder of Quill & Pad, Elizabeth Doerr announces her well-earned retirement.
Deployant
Méraud Watch Co. presents the Antigua, a gorgeous manual chronograph watch with NOS Landeron 248 caliber movements, in a maritime motif.
WatchAdvice
Why I Bought It It was different to a SubmarinerI like slightly larger watchesAll the Rolex heritage with a modern look The Ownership Reality It would help if you had a medium-sized wrist to pull it offNot great with a suit and cuffWe need to part with over $4000 more to own vs a Sub with a date! Overall rating: 8.25 /10 Value for money: 7/10 Wearability: 8/10 Design: 9/10 Build quality: 9/10 I was never a Rolex lover. There I said it. I thought Rolex was a brand for people that wanted to show off and tell people they had money and didn’t really know about watches. For some people, this is still probably the case, but this all changed for me many years ago once I started delving a lot more into the watch world, brands and their history, as well as their manufacturing techniques. And when I started researching Rolex a little, I started to understand just what made them tick, so to speak (yes, bad pun intended!) Now, I have a lot of respect for The Crown, what they stand for, and the processes and materials they use. The fact that they are one of the very few brands that develop and make their watches fully in-house, end to end, including metallurgists who develop the specific properties and proprietary blends of metals that go into them, including a foundry, I was a convert. These days I see Rolex for what Hans Wilsdorf originally intended – a tool watch that is able to handle whatever you throw at them and is designed for specific industries and occupations. Whilst mos...
Time+Tide
Some may refer to Vacheron Constantin as the third member of the Swiss holy trinity of watchmaking. But after an incredibly strong showing last year, Vacheron may be the one you really need to explore. Here are five of our favourite releases from Vacheron Constantin in 2022. First up, is the brand’s irrefutable … ContinuedThe post VIDEO: Five of our favourite Vacheron Constantin releases of 2022 appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
Apparently, Rado can turn you into a tennis champion. When the British player, Andy Murray partnered with the Swiss brand in 2012, he’d never won a Grand Slam. After signing with Rado, however, he proceeded to win the US Open and then became the first Brit to conquer Wimbledon since 1936, when he won the … ContinuedThe post Ash Barty collaborates on a new Rado True Square inspired by her mum appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Quill & Pad
Jacky Ickx and Chopard co-president Karl-Friedirch Scheufele have been friends for 27 years. In 1989 Scheufele and Ickx drove the Mille Miglia together. “We got to know each other there. He turned up and said, ‘Well, I have no intention of driving. You’re driving; I’m going to watch the scenery’,” Scheufele recently laughed. It is such shared events in addition to the legendary race car driver's achievements that have inspired Chopard to continue to dedicate timepieces to Ickx, honoring a man who can certainly be called one of the world’s very best drivers.
Teddy Baldassarre
Swiss watch manufacture Zenith traces its roots to 1865, when it was founded in the village of Le Locle by precocious 22-year-old watchmaker Georges Favre-Jacot. As one of the first watchmaking maisons to integrate all aspects of the watchmaking process under one roof, from case manufacturing to movement production to final casing and assembly, Zenith has long prided itself on its quest for timekeeping precision. The company has earned a record number of chronometry prizes over the years, and its most influential contribution to watchmaking history is its El Primero chronograph caliber, released in 1969. (Learn more about El Primero here.) In that same pivotal year, Zenith also released an avant-garde wristwatch series called Defy, whose bold, edgy design proved to be ahead of its time, and found its expression in the now-legendary Ref. A3642. The Original Defy (1969) That watch was nicknamed the “coffre-fort,” a French term translating to “bank vault” or “safe,” a reference to its robustly angular, octagonal case, 14-sided bezel, and high-for-the-time water resistance of 300 meters, secured by its crown, caseback, and mineral crystal, all of which screwed securely into the case. Its “ladder-style” bracelet from legendary chainmaker Gay Frères also made the original reference notable. The Defy was positioned as Zenith’s toughest watch, featured in an advertisement in which six of the watches were strapped to the spokes of a motorcycle in a speed test a...
Revolution
Wei visits De Bethune Co-founder and Master Watchmaker Denis Flageollet’s private atelier, a place where he finds solitude to seek inspiration and conduct research for the brand’s next concept watch. Denis is probably the only independent watchmaker to have his own metal forge where he can experiment on different materials and craft his own watch […]
Teddy Baldassarre
Watches with a sparse, minimalist aesthetic have a faithful following in the modern era, and a number of watchmakers, both Swiss and German, offer timepieces born of those design principles, which are most directly descended from Germany’s hugely influential Bauhaus school of design in the early 20th Century. The Junghans Max Bill series, however, is one of the undisputed trailblazers of the Bauhaus style of watch design, tracing its origins all the way back to 1861 and boasting a time-tested design from one of the movement’s leading legends, Max Bill himself. Here we offer a brief history of the Junghans Max Bill watch collection, some insight into its namesake, and an overview of the modern collection, one of the few to contain mechanical, automatic, quartz, and radio-controlled solar movements as well as an array of sizes and materials. HOROLOGY IN THE BLACK FOREST Junghans Uhren GmbH was founded in 1861 in Schramberg, in Germany’s eastern Black Forest, by Erhard Junghans and his brother-in-law Jakob Zeller-Tobler. Initially a producer of clock parts, the company began making its own complete clocks and pocket watches in 1866 and by 1903 had become the largest watch and clock manufacturer in the world, employing 3,000 people. In 1927, Junghans began making wristwatches as well as clocks and supplied both over the subsequent decades to clients in the German military as well as the commercial market. A watershed moment for the company arrived in the 1950s with the...
Time+Tide
Swiss luxury powerhouse Hublot has long been known for their outsize watches for outsize personalities. The man responsible for the brand’s rise to fame, Jean-Claude Biver, always had a knack for making a big splash, none bigger than Hublot’s Big Bang line. Since its introduction in 2005, the Big Bang has been produced in a … ContinuedThe post The Hublot Big Bang Sapphire sits at the bleeding edge of technology and opulence appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Revolution
Wei speaks one-on-one with Felix Baumgartner, a panelist from our Legends of Independent Watchmaking Horological Symposium at Geneva Watch Days 2022, to look back at the highs and the lows of the last 25 years of URWERK. Felix, a master watchmaker, co-founded URWERK with designer Martin Frei in 1997 and the duo have been upending […]
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