951 articles · 143 videos found · page 24 of 37
Quill & Pad
While display backs and open dials are commonplace now, the Corum Golden Bridge was one of the first watches not to just reveal its mechanics but to enthusiastically and joyously celebrate them. Peter Speake, aka The Naked Watchmaker, recently deconstructed a Corum Golden Bridge Automatic to reveal all of its secrets.
Time+Tide
Ever since our story on the inner workings of COSC here, via an in-depth article by The Naked Watchmaker, our thirst for horological knowledge remain. More specifically, what it takes to make a movement a COSC-certified Chronometer? And what is the intrinsic value of the certification? We caught up with Peter Speake the co-founder of … ContinuedThe post The Naked Watchmaker explains what it takes to make a movement a COSC-certified Chronometer? appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Quill & Pad
Ian Skellern still remembers the sense of awe he felt when he had the opportunity to watch and listen to a recently restored centuries-old Jaquet Droz singing bird. The animation was compelling, and the quality of the birdsong sound was incredible. But as impressive a feat he thought that full-sized eighteenth-century Jaquet Droz singing bird clock was, shrinking that mechanical technology to wristwatch size is just mind-blowing. As The Naked Watchmaker Peter Speake highlights here.
Quill & Pad
Our friends at The Watches TV entertained a visit from Peter Speake, The Naked Watchmaker, as he took apart a Vacheron Constantin world time pocket watch from 1949 – a feat firmly categorized in the “don’t do this at home” rubric. This World Timer is 71 years old, displays the time in 41 reference cities, is housed in a yellow gold case, and is completely original with all of its original parts and even the dial.
Revolution
We speak to Rolex Testimonee and marine biologist Sylvia Earle in this episode of the Revolution Watch Podcast. We also ask: what’s happening to SIHH?
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Time+Tide
Last night, Roger Federer confirmed his GOAT status with his sixth Australian Open win, beating 29-year-old Marin Cilic in three hours in the sweltering Melbourne heat. Roger Federer - the first man to win 20 Grand Slam titles - is one of Rolex’s most important international testimonees, so it was no surprise he was … ContinuedThe post WATCHSPOTTING: Forget Roger’s Sky-Dweller – Mirka Federer’s Rolex Yacht-Master is next level appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Fratello
I have always believed that the best watches don’t merely time. Just as importantly, they also tell stories. Some carry the quiet rhythm of daily life, while others absorb something more visceral — altitude, effort, risk, and reward. When I spoke with Amarveer Brar, it became clear that his Tudor Heritage Ranger ref. 79910 belongs […] Visit Summiting Mountains With A Tudor Heritage Ranger to read the full article.
SJX Watches
Continuing with a practice that began last year, Tudor has announced a limited edition as this year’s Formula 1 season kicks off. As with last year’s edition, the Black Bay Chrono “Carbon 26” is modelled on the livery of the racing car of Visa Cash App Racing Bulls (VCARB). It’s otherwise identical to last year’s model, which means it is lightweight, well priced, and equipped with the high-spec MT5813 movement. Initial thoughts The Carbon 26 is essentially last year’s watch with a new dial, but I like the new yellow and white livery than last year’s white and blue. The colours are subjective, but the value proposition of the watch remains objectively excellent (though the price has risen largely due to the strength of the Swiss franc). The Carbon 26 is still competitively priced next to its rivals. As an aside, I hope Tudor will eventually incorporate more design elements from its historical motor racing chronographs, like the Monte Carlo, into its modern-day F1 editions like the Carbon 26. The Carbon 26 is clearly a Black Bay – the “snowflake” hands are a giveaway – but the Black Bay is a dive watch rather than one for the road. Carbon inside and out The Carbon 26 gets its name from the carbon fibre composite case and bezel, which have a patterned surface typical of the material. The type of composite employed here is more subtle appearance-wise compared to other composites used in watchmaking, so at a distance the case appears a flat black. Thoug...
Monochrome
Parisian watchmaking maison L. Leroy was founded by Basile-Charles Le Roy in 1785 and became the official watchmaker to King Louis XVI and later to Napoleon I and Queen Victoria. Expanding operations to Switzerland, L. Leroy produced marine chronometers for the French Navy and amassed 384 gold medals in chronometry competitions. Iconic masterpieces like the […]
Hodinkee
What We Know Fans of titanium watches now have another truly notable bracelet/strap option for their favorite titanium watches, as Ming has just announced that the brand's frankly jaw-dropping Polymesh bracelet will now be sold in a straight springbar setup. Ming launched the original Polymesh spec back in October of last year, with curved links designed to work well with the brand's own watches. As of today, all 1742 components of this impressive design are now compatible with watches featuring 20mm lug widths, no curved spring bar needed. For those who need a refresher, the Polymesh is a titanium design that is technically a bracelet but wears like a piece of fabric. It's soft, flowy, and incredibly comfortable. As mentioned, it's a 3D-printed design printed in place using laser sintering with titanium powder. This includes the buckle and endlinks. There are no pins or screws in the design; only the quick-change spring bars are added after the grade-5 titanium bracelet has been printed (which takes about 20 hours). Just as with the original curved-end version, the Polymesh Straight will retail for CHF $1,500 (~$1,900) with first-week availability limited to Ming, Fears, and Massena LAB (all part of the Alternative Horological Alliance), after which, availability will also include Ming's own retail locations and partners. What We Think I'll cut to the chase here: I love a good strap and/or bracelet, I have a handful of titanium watches, and this is a release I have ...
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Fratello
With the Khaki Field Mechanical 36mm, Hamilton revives a lesser-known U.S. military navigator’s watch from around 1970. While a niche reference, even by Khaki Field standards, it’s one that makes a lot of sense in today’s smaller-watch landscape. The good news here is that Hamilton stays rather true to the original spec. Cool stuff! This […] Visit Introducing: The Hamilton Khaki Field Mechanical 36mm to read the full article.
Hodinkee
This Australian schoolteacher’s obsession with simplicity eventually led him to Grand Seiko, where he found watches that spoke to his unique sensibility.
Fratello
There’s something refreshing about wearing a watch that doesn’t try too hard. In a world of oversized cases, aggressive designs, and spec lists that stretch into the stratosphere, a simple 35mm watch can feel almost rebellious. That’s exactly the impression I had after spending time with the Nivada Grenchen Antarctic Glacier 35mm, a watch that quietly […] Visit My Time With The Nivada Grenchen Antarctic Glacier 35mm to read the full article.
Fratello
Last year, Panerai refreshed its Luminor Marina collection and introduced slimmer cases with increased water resistance ratings. This year, the brand is playing directly to my wheelhouse by updating its Luminor collection. For reference, these watches include manual-winding movements, which I love to see and use. We were fortunate to have these pieces in our […] Visit Introducing: The New Panerai Luminor Collection to read the full article.
Fratello
Some watches hit you with the spec sheet and leave you to make sense of the rest later. The new ArtyA Complexity doesn’t really feel like one of those. Yes, the headline is big, and yes, it was always going to grab attention at Watches and Wonders next week. Still, the thing that stood out […] Visit ArtyA’s Uber-Complex Complexity Debuts For Watches And Wonders to read the full article.
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Fratello
That’s heavy sh*t, man. Two years ago, we had the chance to go hands-on with the Fleming Series 1 Launch Edition Tantalum. In that alloy, which is roughly twice as heavy as steel, the watch made a lasting impression. It was “heavy” in hippie-speak because of its refined case shape, intricate dial details, and remarkable […] Visit Hands-On With The Fleming Series 1 Mark II Redwood Watch - High-End Watch Evolution At Its Finest to read the full article.
Worn & Wound
Omega pleased a lot of dress watch and vintage fans this week when they launched the new Constellation Observatory collection at their Swiss headquarters. Zach Weiss is on the ground in Bielle even as we speak getting hands-on with the new watches, and he’ll have a full hands on report with his own photography coming soon. For now, a quick rundown of the new collection, and why it’s a fairly major play for the brand. The Constellation is a historic Omega collection that has changed a lot through the years, always remaining flexible with the current styles and trends of the day. This collection, though, is a direct shot at the hearts and minds of Omega purists, as its effectively a recreation of the original 1950s Constellation in its broad strokes. The cases and dials will be familiar to anyone who has collected or admired original Constellations, with highly angular cases and distinctive dogleg lug design. That said, these are not one to one recreations of watches from the 1950s. The cases, on paper at least, are rather large for what most would agree is a riff on a classic dress watch. The diameter is 39.4mm, and case height is 12.23mm. The lug to lug span comes in at 47.2mm. So, not small by any means, but we’ll look forward to Zach’s impressions of how they actually wear soon enough. As is typical with Omega these days, we have a wide variety of case material and dial options available. We get all three gold alloys that Omega likes to deploy (Sedna, Canop...
SJX Watches
Audemars Piguet (AP) is increasing its presence in what’s historically been the territory of Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin. Not only is AP returning to Watches & Wonders, the industry’s flagship event held each year in Geneva, the brand is also expanding its footprint in the city’s suburb of Meyrin with an expanded case and bracelet manufacture. What and where Meyrin was already the home of AP’s case and bracelet manufacture, but the brand has been bulking up on industrial capacity and took over a U-shaped building, completed in 1965 for a pharmaceutical company, in 2023. The new facility increases its Geneva footprint almost four-fold, to 9,000 square metres, with room for 350 staff. While the brand has built new structures closer to home, the choice to renovate an existing historical building is notable. Fortunately AP’s employees won’t be stuck in the past, as the building has been modernised for energy management and to accommodate modern machines. The building is a short jaunt from Les Boîtiers de Genève, F.P. Journe’s case and bracelet manufacture, in what’s already a hotbed of horological activity, home to brands like Roger Dubuis and Chopard. In addition, the new facility will be home to what the brand is calling its New Technologies hub, presumably part of the brand’s new approach to research and development, known internally as the ‘Fab Lab.’ Industrial excellence We recently had the chance to hear directly from AP’s chief indu...
Worn & Wound
Like the now-ubiquitous diver and pilot styles, the mil-spec field watch is experiencing a moment in the sun. The appeal is easy to understand: much like how the original Willy’s Jeep took to post-war civilian life by offering cheap, rugged, and reliable transportation, the military-styled field watch offers significant toughness while keeping functionality simple and usable for everyday telling. Put simply, it’s a romantic promise of adventure and bravado, scaled down to wristsize. Canadian watchmaker Marathon has been making mil-spec timepieces since WWII, and has offered tactical variants like the 41mm Anthracite GSAR for those looking for that covert ops image; the new 46mm Anthracite Jumbo Day/Date, and the 36mm Anthracite MSAR Auto straddle that original model in the Anthracite lineup, and offer further complications for the enthusiast audience. The two new models in the Anthracite Search and Rescue (SAR) Unit borrow heavily from their 41mm predecessor in both styling and construction. Both feature a 316L stainless steel case with titular Anthracite finish, a uni-directional bezel, a screw-down crown, and tritium gas tube and MaraGlo luminous numerals, hands, and markers. Visually, the watches look very similar; Marathon’s legible and surprisingly un-aggressive typefaces keep the white numerals crisp and clear against the black dial. The overall styling is complicated but not visually distracting, an important aesthetic facet for a field watch. On the 46mm mo...
Worn & Wound
At its core, good branding comes down to balancing two often contradictory things at once: to maintain brand recognition, while not becoming stale. For a brand like MING, which has built something of a reputation for its roster of eye-catching designs, this is an especially fine line. The Malaysian watchmakers have continued to up their own ante, so to speak, meaning that to build a better watch, they have often had to compete against themselves in both aesthetics and technical precision. This is, perhaps, why they have looked back at the 57.04 Iris, but this time with a slightly softer eye. Instead of the vibrant purple-blue dial, MING has released the 57.04 Phoenix, with a decidedly more monochromatic dial in grey. At first glance, this may seem like a safer play for the brand; but, I can assure you, it’s anything but. Using the same multiphasic coating that was seen on the Iris, the Phoenix uses radial cutouts on the metal baseplate, curved sculpting, and negative relief. The finishing touch is the redesigned subdial, which has been treated with Super-LumiNova X1 and MING Polar White lume for added visual texture. The end result is a dial that leans more on light and shadows than colors to build a watch that is dynamic while highlighting all the technical precision we’ve come to expect from Ming. Like the Iris, the Phoenix is set up as a destro (left-handed) monopusher chronograph, powered by a uniquely configured Sellita for MING Cal. SW562.M1 movement, promising r...
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Monochrome
Since becoming the official timekeeper of the MotoGP championship in 2001, Tissot has connected itself firmly to the sport through trackside timing systems and watches that speak the design language and mechanical intensity of motorcycle racing. The T-Race MotoGP collection was first introduced in 2003, and the brand has since created many motorsport-inspired references, with […]
Teddy Baldassarre
Most people think that getting into "real" watches requires a heavy-duty investment or a deep knowledge of Swiss history. In reality, enjoying horology shouldn't require a trust fund or a PhD in movement calibers. But for a long time, the market felt split between cheap, disposable plastic watches and unattainable luxury pieces. There was simply no middle ground for a high-spec timepiece that you weren't afraid to use. It was exactly this dilemma that became the driving force behind California-based watchmaker, Vaer. The two ends of the watch-collecting scope left a huge gap for anyone who just wanted an affordable daily beater that could hold up during a weekend hike or a daily commute. So, Vaer pledged to fill that gap. [toc-section heading="The Gamble – Why Vaer Exists"] VAER founders Ryan Torres and Reagan Cook Watch collecting can be an expensive hobby. In the world of horology, $10,000 is the type of money that secures a stainless steel Rolex Sub and a lifetime of brand prestige. For most young professionals with a passion for watches, saving up that first ten grand is a rite of passage. But for Ryan Torres and Reagan Cook, founders of Vaer watches, that money represented a fork in the road. When the two entrepreneurs looked at their savings, they could have gone one of two ways: walk into a boutique and leave with a trophy on their wrist, or bet every cent on a dream to build the "perfect" everyday watch that didn't yet exist. They chose the latter. C5 Field Bla...
Monochrome
When presenting a watch, we often talk about the wearing experience. Yet Panerai chose to expand the experience angle, and over the past few years, it has been transforming ownership into participation through its special program of curated journeys that put collectors inside the brand’s storytelling. The Submersible Chrono Marina Militare PAM01699, Radiomir 8 Giorni […]
Monochrome
Praesidus is well known for military-inspired collections, and the Jungle Field line is a modern take on the GG-W-113 US military specification introduced in 1967. The spec called for a lightweight pilot and aircrew watch at 33mm or 34mm with a matte black dial, 12/24-hour numerals and hacking seconds. The 34mm Jungle Field OG was […]
Monochrome
If I had to describe the return of L.Leroy, once one of France’s most illustrious watchmaking houses, with its name respected as much as those of Breguet and Ferdinand Berthoud, it was very theatrical. Founded in 1785 by Charles Leroy in Paris, it became famous for its marine chronometers, regulator clocks, and commissions for European […]
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