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Results for Day-Date

8,840 articles · 209 videos found · page 263 of 302

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Wiki · Guide
President Bracelet

Three-link semi-circular Rolex bracelet introduced for the 1956 Day-Date; Crownclasp closure.
Wiki · Guide
Stella Dial Rolex

1970s-80s lacquered colour dials for Rolex Day-Date; red / turquoise / salmon / lavender. Auction range $200k-$1M+.
Reference · Guide
All Rolex Day-Date References (President) Rolex

Every Rolex Day-Date "President": 1803, 18038, 18238, 118238, Day-Date 40 (228xxx), Day-Date 36 (128xxx).
Exclusive · Guide
The Watches the World Cup 2026 Players Are Actually Wearing

Ronaldo brought a Rainbow Daytona, Messi pulled out a turquoise-dial Day-Date, and Casemiro is the surprise of the bunch with an F.P. Journe. Every wrist worth talking about so far.
Christopher Ward Debuts a Pair of C63 Sealanders with their SH21 Movement Worn & Wound
Christopher Ward Debuts Mar 16, 2023

Christopher Ward Debuts a Pair of C63 Sealanders with their SH21 Movement

Christopher Ward’s C63 Sealander, the brand’s value oriented, all purpose sports watch that debuted in April 2021, is getting an upgrade this week, and for a good cause. With all of the press concerning Christopher Ward’s Bel Canto at the end of last year, it would be easy to forget that they have another, perhaps even more significant, horological achievement in the Calibre SH21 movement. This five day, chronometer certified movement is the brand’s flagship, and the first industrialized mechanical caliber from a British watch brand in fifty years. It’s genuinely historic, so when they put it in a watch for the first time, it’s a special occasion by default. These new Sealanders live up to the occasion not just in terms of design and aesthetics, but by being the face of a worthy charitable endeavor as well.  The C63 SH21 Blue Marine is the latest watch that Christopher Ward has made in partnership with the Blue Marine Foundation, a marine conservation organization that the brand has worked with several times. For this release, 5% of the sale price of Blue Marine watch will go back to the organization to benefit their efforts around cleaning the ocean of rising levels of plastics. Similarly, the C63 SH21 Snow Leopard is being launched with the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation, another longtime Christopher Ward charitable partner. The DSWF is a wildlife charity that funds conservation projects throughout Africa and Asia, and for this release 5% of the sale of ...

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Five Modern Retro-Styled Watches From Jaeger-LeCoultre, Panerai, Breitling, Blancpain, And Seiko – Reprise Quill & Pad
Jaeger-LeCoultre Panerai Breitling Blancpain Mar 16, 2023

Five Modern Retro-Styled Watches From Jaeger-LeCoultre, Panerai, Breitling, Blancpain, And Seiko – Reprise

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.

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Massena LAB Teams Up with Angelus for a Limited Edition Doctor’s Chronograph with a Special Movement Worn & Wound
Massena Lab Teams Up Mar 15, 2023

Massena LAB Teams Up with Angelus for a Limited Edition Doctor’s Chronograph with a Special Movement

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...

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Kurono Tokyo Goes Small with Four New Limited Edition Watches Worn & Wound
Kurono Tokyo Goes Small Mar 13, 2023

Kurono Tokyo Goes Small with Four New Limited Edition Watches

This is one for the “better late than never” file. Last week, Kurono Tokyo launched their latest collection of watches, a series of four sector dials that quickly sold out after being made available on Friday morning. These watches, sized at just 34mm, are part of the “Special Projects” series that Kurono has undertaken, which seem to be personal labors of love from watchmaker Hajime Asaoka. On the webpage where these watches were announced, he writes about his own preference for 34mm watches, and not being sure of their mass appeal. When Kurono last experimented with a 34mm case size, the watches quickly sold out at a pop-up event, and that inspired Asaoka to make another run, in a new batch of colors. The near immediate sell out of this new collection would indicate to most observers that he’s onto something.  I’m a big fan of Kurono and enjoy that they produce watches in a more traditional size. It just seems to suit Asaoka’s design sensibilities – it’s tough to imagine the Toki, for example, being nearly as appealing in a 40mm case. That said, 34mm is a little small for me, but I have a big wrist, and the 37mm cases that Kurono favors are at the low end of my sweet spot. That means that a lot of people with “average” sized wrists will probably find 34mm to be a nice fit if they’re going for a more classic and subtle look. Kurono cases are always designed in such a way as to maximize comfort and wearability, which I think can largely neutralize ...

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INTRODUCING: The Nivada Grenchen Racing Chronograph for Fratello Time+Tide
Nivada Grenchen Racing Chronograph Mar 13, 2023

INTRODUCING: The Nivada Grenchen Racing Chronograph for Fratello

Nivada Grenchen has enjoyed an inspiring renaissance under Guillaume Laidet’s leadership ever since their revival, and there’s been no shortage of amazing releases, both limited and non-limited in nature. There was, of course, the whimsical, yet somewhat dystopian Chaosmasters series we brought you with the help of seconde/seconde/, though today’s release leans more towards the … ContinuedThe post INTRODUCING: The Nivada Grenchen Racing Chronograph for Fratello appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

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ochs & junior Gives Us Two Time Zones Without the Fuss Worn & Wound
Zodiac Mar 6, 2023

ochs & junior Gives Us Two Time Zones Without the Fuss

Dual time watches have enjoyed a resurgence in popularity thanks to a new crop of movements boasting variations of the complication, and that’s a very good thing, netting us new GMT watches like this Seiko, this Zodiac, and this Lorca, among many others. What’s rarer is a novel take on presenting the complication. That’s exactly what we get from a new watch from ochs & junior, which ditches the fourth hand altogether, and provides a second set of adjustable hour markers instead. This is the ochs line two time zones aka the due ore raw. The traditional GMT configuration is lauded for its simplicity which boils down to a 24 hand dutifully lapping the dial once each day, usually accompanied by a set of 24 hour markers against which to read it independently of the 12 hour markers for the local time. There are plenty of exceptions, of course, but not nearly enough in the sub-exotic realm. The Nomos Zürich world time is one such example, and now this ochs & junior represents another such breath of fresh air. The two time zones seen here utilizes the classic ETA 2824-2 that’s been modified to host a disc containing a set of hour markers in Arabic numeral form under the dial. The standard 31-tooth date disc has been replaced with a 48-tooth disk that’s independently adjustable through the crown. This makes for an intuitive display that’s easily managed and read. Simply add or subtract the difference between your home and local time zones and set the display accordingl...

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Hamilton Launches the Jazzmaster Performer Line with a New Chronograph and a Sporty Three-Hander Worn & Wound
Hamilton Launches Mar 6, 2023

Hamilton Launches the Jazzmaster Performer Line with a New Chronograph and a Sporty Three-Hander

Whatever it is you think of when you hear the term “Hamilton Jazzmaster,” the brand seems to be working in the early days of 2023 to turn it on its head. We brought you news recently of an audacious new Jazzmaster Face-2-Face that brings an avant-garde twist to a collection that is best known for fusing classic Art Deco influences with contemporary flourishes, and Hamilton has recently announced a new subcollection within the Jazzmaster camp that takes the line into a more traditionally sporty direction. The Performer series of watches seems at first blush to be a more serene and reserved Jazzmaster, still taking some cues from well trod vintage styles, but here in a more subdued and perhaps easily understood way.  The Performer line consists of two new watches, each with a wide variety of variants to choose from. The Jazzmaster Performer Automatic Chronograph has a chronograph layout that is as classic as it gets. This is a 42mm three register chrono (with a date at 4:30) featuring a fixed tachymeter bezel. There are dials in blue or black (the black version is available on a bracelet, while the blue appears to only be available on a strap), and there’s also a white dialed version in a rose gold PVD coated case. These watches have a lot of obvious similarities to various vintages of a certain Rolex chronograph that remains just about impossible to acquire, including the silvered borders around each subdial. Still, there are some small touches here that set them apa...

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Happy Birthday, Swatch Worn & Wound
Casio ns but Mar 3, 2023

Happy Birthday, Swatch

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...

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FRIDAY WIND DOWN: TAG Heuer boutique opens in Adelaide, Cartier pop-up exhibition in Sydney, JLC celebrations in Melbourne Time+Tide
TAG Heuer boutique opens Mar 3, 2023

FRIDAY WIND DOWN: TAG Heuer boutique opens in Adelaide, Cartier pop-up exhibition in Sydney, JLC celebrations in Melbourne

It’s proved to be a busy week for Australian watch enthusiasts from around the country. Firstly, TAG Heuer celebrated the opening of their seventh stand-alone boutique in Australia – a number warranted by the fact that Australia is the brand’s fourth-largest market worldwide. The stars of the evening were the TAG Heuer Monaco, and its … ContinuedThe post FRIDAY WIND DOWN: TAG Heuer boutique opens in Adelaide, Cartier pop-up exhibition in Sydney, JLC celebrations in Melbourne appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

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[Hands-On] The Bremoir Lexington, Art Deco Done Right Worn & Wound
Mar 2, 2023

[Hands-On] The Bremoir Lexington, Art Deco Done Right

One of the major principles of Art Deco design is to infuse beauty into functional, everyday objects and what better everyday object to do that with than a watch. Bremoir’s Lexington draws inspiration from the iconic Art Deco-styled Chrysler Building in NYC. Angled geometric patterns and intricate details throughout are easily traced from the watch directly back to the building. Whether it’s the angular applied indices or the stepped polished bezel, there’s a lot to take in, but it never seems like too much. What we have is a handsome 39mm watch that offers a nice break from modern design. As a fan of modern watches (mostly because of the lack of hassle) it’s especially nice to not have to go vintage to get the classic Art Deco styling seen on the Lexington. Let’s take a closer look at this unique new watch from Bremoir. $985 [Hands-On] The Bremoir Lexington, Art Deco Done Right Case Stainless Steel Movement Swiss STP 1-11 Automatic Dial Sector style with metallic finish Lume Super Luminova Lens Sapphire Strap Leather Water Resistance 50M Dimensions 39×48.5mm Thickness 10.7mm Lug Width 20mm Crown Push/Pull Warranty Yes Price $985 Case It’s easy to trace the case geometry back to the design seen in the Chrysler Building, and it’s executed well. The tonneau-shaped case features some heavy polished bevels on the sides that carry down into the lugs. Vertical brushing on the sides provides some nice contrast to the polished portions. On the right side of the case...

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The Timex Marlin Automatic Sub-Dial Kicks it into Sport Mode Worn & Wound
Timex Marlin Automatic Sub-Dial Kicks Mar 1, 2023

The Timex Marlin Automatic Sub-Dial Kicks it into Sport Mode

The Timex Marlin at its core, is a dress watch. I’m referring to the first Marlin that comes to mind when you think of this particular model. You know, the one with the 34mm case, hour numerals using a vintage typeface, and an accompanying faux-gator leather strap. Believe it or not, this style of watch was normally worn during any activity back in its day. From working at the office, right into doing household chores during the weekend. Think Don Draper wearing a similarly styled watch while cutting the lawn. Sure we could do the same, but nowadays there’s just way too many good steel sports watches out there for them to just sit on the sidelines while they watch their dressier watchbox mate get all the wrist time. Timex’s latest iteration of their flagship dress watch aims to fill that void in their current Marlin collection by becoming a bit more sportier via a new-look dial. One look at the Marlin Automatic Sub-Dial could have you mistaken for a refined version of your quintessential Timex field watch, but it is in fact a Marlin. The main reason here is the new set of numerals used to demarcate the hours. The collection of numerals are more sizable, much bolder, and a new typeface all together. The font leans into Sans Serif territory and as a result, the numerals look friendlier and playful, while also being more legible at the same time. The natural boldness of this new typeface accentuates the curves of each numeral, especially the unique looking flat top “4...

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Jacob & Co. Introduces a Roulette Automaton Watch SJX Watches
Jacob & Co. Mar 1, 2023

Jacob & Co. Introduces a Roulette Automaton Watch

Jacob & Co. already has a roulette complication in its catalogue inside the Astronomia Casino, a variant of its signature watch. Now the jeweller has condensed the concept into the Casino Tourbillon, which does away with the orbital carousel to focus on the roulette automaton, although it still conceals a flying tourbillon on the back. Initial thoughts The Casino Tourbillon is very much a Jacob & Co. watch with its exuberant style and complication – but it is slightly more restrained in design than the brand’s usual offerings. While it’s far from a low-key watch with its 44 mm diameter and over-16mm height, it is modest for a Jacob & Co. watch. The roulette complication is interesting and smartly executed, though not exactly new. It is essentially a more sophisticated version of the Franck Muller Las Vegas, which instead relied on a simple execution made up of a fixed wheelhead and freely-spinning pointer hand. Priced at US$280,000, the  Casino Tourbillon is pricey. Although the dial construction is complex, the roulette automaton is relatively straightforward, as is the flying tourbillon. It is, however, unique in today’s market. While casino-inspired complications were once popular (after the Franck Muller Las Vegas became a bestseller), they are uncommon today. So for the high roller who wants a novel casino-themed complication, this is probably it. Game of chance While Jacob & Co.’s watches are usually over the top, the Casino Tourbillon is relatively clean...

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Airain Updates their Type 20 in a Stealthy Gray Limited Edition Worn & Wound
Massena Lab have also gotten Feb 27, 2023

Airain Updates their Type 20 in a Stealthy Gray Limited Edition

Airain, the heritage watch brand that made a triumphant return in 2020 with their Type 20 reissue, is back with a new spin on the popular (and historic) chronograph that gives it a sleek and under the radar look. Airain, you might remember, is one of the original French manufacturers of the Type 20 chronograph, the military aviator’s watch issued to French pilots in the 1950s and 60s. Several watchmakers were contracted by the French Ministry of Defense to produce the watches to spec, including Mathey Tissot, Dodane, and, most famously, Breguet. Vintage examples of the Type 20 are highly collectible, and Breguet of course still produces a variety of excellent chronographs under the moniker. Brands like Hemel and Massena LAB have also gotten in on the Type 20 action recently, which might harken a boom in interest in these very specific chronographs.  The specificity, I think, is part of the charm. Like other watches built for military purposes, the Type 20 was made to a certain standard, with certain key features, regardless of the manufacturer that actually produced it. In the case of the Type 20, those requirements included a black dial with registers at 3:00 and 6:00, giving the wearer the ability to time events up to 30 minutes in duration, along with a 38mm case diameter, a rotating 12 hour bezel, lumed hands and Arabic numerals, and accuracy to within 8 seconds per day. The other key feature was that the chronograph needed to have flyback functionality, a requireme...

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Blancpain Introduces the Fifty Fathoms “Tech Gombessa” SJX Watches
Blancpain Introduces Feb 27, 2023

Blancpain Introduces the Fifty Fathoms “Tech Gombessa”

Blancpain kicked off the new year with the first of several editions to mark the 70th anniversary of its landmark dive watch, the Fifty Fathoms. While the first anniversary watch was essentially a no-frills, vintage-inspired diver, the next one is the opposite. With a diameter of 47 mm, the Fifty Fathoms “Tech Gombessa” is one of the largest watches ever made by Blancpain. While it still bears some resemblance to its brethren in the Fifty Fathoms line, it is distinct in terms of design (and size). And it also features a complication that’s new for the brand: a three-hour hand and corresponding elapsed-time bezel for extended-duration dives. In fact, the Tech Gombessa is the first in the new Tech Gombessa line of dive watches for professionals. Initial thoughts I expected a reissue of the original Fifty Fathoms for its 70th anniversary (as I’m sure did everyone else), so the first edition wasn’t a surprise. I had also hoped for something more modern, which is somewhat of an understatement for the “Act 2” of the anniversary line-up. The Tech Gombessa’s design is clearly inspired by the original, but with lots of updates, for better or worse. While the elapsed-time bezel is fairly conventional ceramic insert, the dial is big, bold, and orange, though the mixture of modern orange typography with the vintage-style logos and lettering feels conflicted. The case is oversized with no lugs, instead the case goes directly into the case, which should help with erg...

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Longines military watch Feb 26, 2023

A Week in Watches Ep. 38: They’re Back! 36MM Seiko 5s and More

On this week’s episode of A Week in Watches, we’re back on video, and back in the studio! It was a pretty solid week of releases ranging from a near six-figure perpetual calendar by Moser to the return of small-sized Seiko 5s. In the middle, we have a cool, updated version of an iconic Longines military watch, and a value-packed GMT from Germany’s Circula watches. Check out the episode below and on youtube, or listen to the podcast version where ever you find podcasts. This week’s episode was brought to you by the Windup Watch Shop. For an excellent and ever-growing catalog of watches, straps, clocks, and more, head to windupwatchshop.com. The post A Week in Watches Ep. 38: They’re Back! 36MM Seiko 5s and More appeared first on Worn & Wound.

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The Owner’s Perspective: Omega Seamaster Professional Diver 300m WatchAdvice
Tissot PRS 200 as Feb 24, 2023

The Owner’s Perspective: Omega Seamaster Professional Diver 300m

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 ...

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Hands-On: Love At First Sight with the Lorca Model No.1 GMT Worn & Wound
Casio nally pause Feb 24, 2023

Hands-On: Love At First Sight with the Lorca Model No.1 GMT

As a self-proclaimed watch guy, I’ve developed a natural habit for watch spotting in the wild. It doesn’t matter if I’m in the midst of a routine trip to my local cafe or seated in my designated row as I observe the rest of the passengers board the plane. It’s also not limited to being out and about, as I’ve been known in my household to occasionally pause a movie if I spot something interesting on a character’s wrist. Needless to say, my watch-radar is always on. There are a few things that actually set this “radar” off. But for the most part, it’s design recognition. You know what you’re looking at, even when you just catch a glimpse of the watch from across the room. All the classic models and references have this going for them. A couple months back however, I must admit, I was stumped. A gentleman strolled into our Worn & Wound office and was looking to chat with someone from our editorial team. He walked into our headquarters, so surely he should have a watch on, right? So mid-conversation, I glanced over when the opportunity presented itself, and just visible outside of a denim shirt cuff, layered with a stone gray tweed overcoat, was a watch that I thought I recognized.But the more I looked, the more I got confused … and intrigued. “Definitely vintage,” I thought. But was it an IWC? A Universal Geneve? It was none of the above – it was actually something totally new. Turns out the gentleman visiting that day was Jesse Marchant, a New Yor...

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Editorial: LVMH Revives Daniel Roth SJX Watches
Louis Vuitton as Feb 24, 2023

Editorial: LVMH Revives Daniel Roth

The news concerning a revival of Daniel Roth was been circulating in Geneva and Paris for over a year but it is now official. LVMH just announced Daniel Roth “will be run as an independent brand, with guidance and incubation from La Fabrique Du Temps Louis Vuitton, as of February 2023.” Once an independent brand run by its namesake founder, Daniel Roth had its heyday in the mid-1990s when classical complications with Breguet styling were the “in” thing with collectors. Due to Mr Roth’s personal and financial struggles, the brand then changed hands several times before ending up with Bulgari over a decade ago. Daniel Roth had been on ice for several years after a few half-hearted attempts by the Italian jeweller to do something with the brand. No doubt spurred by the renewed interest in independent watchmaking, LVMH has spun off Daniel Roth and attached it to La Fabrique du Temps (LFDT), the complications and movement factory owned by Louis Vuitton (and word has it that the same will soon be done with Gerald Genta, once the sister brand of Daniel Roth). One of the less successful Bulgari-Daniel Roth offerings, a “Chronosprint” made for the All Blacks, New Zealand’s rugby team Revived with resources The return of the brand is the brainchild of Jean Arnault, the Director of Marketing and Development at Louis Vuitton’s watch division. While Mr Arnault is best known as being the youngest son of LVMH chief executive Bernard Arnault, the younger Arnault is a c...

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Hands On: The Cartier Tank Francaise SJX Watches
Cartier Tank Francaise Last month Feb 24, 2023

Hands On: The Cartier Tank Francaise

Last month, Cartier relaunched the Tank Francaise, a bestseller in the 1990s and early 2000s and also  the first Tank to feature an integrated bracelet. Retaining the design elements of the 1996 original, the new Tank Francaise nonetheless sports a sleeker form and a more modern appearance overall. In many ways it’s not merely a remake but an entirely new watch. Initial thoughts When Cartier revealed the revamped Tank Francaise 27 years after the original, I was sceptical for several reasons. One because the original isn’t yet vintage enough to be a classic, but it is old enough that it might be stale. Another is the fact that it has been around for so long – the heyday of the original was the late 1990s but it remained in the catalogue until recently – the design feels too familiar. So I naturally wondered if the brand would do it justice to the model in redesigning it. After checking out the new Tank Francaise, I can certainly say it is well done and just right (apart from a few minor shortcomings in execution, like the date on the large model). The large model in steel The new Tank Francaise retains the style of the original, so it still has a bit of retro, 1990s style but not too much so it manages to look current. It still has the look of the original, with a similar outline and profile, but now with cleaner lines and neater details like a recessed crown. Other details like the brushed finish and sticker-appliqué numerals on the dials adds texture and visu...

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H. Moser Debuts the Endeavour Perpetual Calendar Tantalum Blue Enamel, their First Watch in the Exotic Metal Worn & Wound
H. Moser Debuts Feb 22, 2023

H. Moser Debuts the Endeavour Perpetual Calendar Tantalum Blue Enamel, their First Watch in the Exotic Metal

Moser’s latest is the brand’s first ever release in tantalum, a rarely used metal with unique characteristics that make it one of the more rewarding metals in all of watchmaking. In other words, it has a beautiful aesthetic impact, but it takes a lot of work and knowledge to get it to that point. Using it at all is something of a flex for any brand, and Moser is throwing down the gauntlet to a certain extent with this release. Somewhat predictably, they’ve incorporated what has come to be the brand’s signature complication, a unique and easy to read perpetual calendar, into their first tantalum watch, all with an elaborate enamel dial with a distinct hammered texture.  The clear highlight of the Endeavour Perpetual Calendar Tantalum Blue Enamel is the use of tantalum, so we’ll start there. Tantalum is extremely dense and strong, qualities which make it an excellent candidate as a case metal for a luxury watch. It’s also very corrosion resistant, and develops a very thin layer of oxidation when exposed to air that naturally protects it. Tantalum also has a gray-blue tone to it that is quite unlike any other metal, giving it a unique quality that no other metal can match.  The reason tantalum is so uncommon in watchmaking is because it is very difficult to machine thanks to a melting point that comes in around 3000 °C. It takes advanced technology and equipment to properly fabricate tantalum for watchmaking purposes, which of course requires not only a substa...

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Longines Reaches Back Nearly 100 Years for their Latest Heritage Release, the Pilot Majetek Worn & Wound
Longines Reaches Back Nearly 100 Feb 22, 2023

Longines Reaches Back Nearly 100 Years for their Latest Heritage Release, the Pilot Majetek

Longines receives a lot of well deserved acclaim from the watch community for the tasteful way they recreate historical watches. They not only have a knack for getting the proportions and small details of these watches just right, but over the years they’ve been incredibly smart about the watches they select to reissue. Longines is essentially curating a living museum of watches that are important not just to their own brand history, but watch history writ large. Even if a particular reference is not to your taste, the fact these watches are out there preserving the brand’s heritage is important – it allows enthusiasts to really learn something about watch history, even if they never own the watch in question. Their first novelty of 2023 is a prime example of Longines teaching all of us a little bit about their past. The Longines Pilot Majetek is an uncommon pilot’s watch with a design that has roots in the 1930s.  When we think of aviation watches, our minds probably go to simple designs rooted in pure legibility. The IWC Mark series, for example, provides something of a foundation for how we understand pilot watches today. Big numerals, plenty of lume, and generous proportions. For a time in the 1920s and 30s, however, pilot’s watches made by Longines were defined by a feature we now associate with a very different type of tool watch: a rotating bezel. These so-called “aviation counters” placed an emphasis on timing the duration of a flight, and used a sim...

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Longines Introduces the Pilot Majetek SJX Watches
Longines Introduces Feb 22, 2023

Longines Introduces the Pilot Majetek

Long associated with professional pursuits in the early years of the 20th century, Longines made watches worn by explorers, scientists, soldiers, and aviators. Examples include the chronographs made for the hydrographic institute of the Italian navy in the 1930s and the wristwatches supplied to the British army in the 1940s. One of the brand’s most distinctive watches from the period was the cushion-shaped aviator’s watch made for the personnel of the Czech air force in 1935, which has now been reimagined as the Pilot Majetek. Initial thoughts The Pilot Majetek is actually Longines’ second outing in reissuing the Czech air force original. Launched almost a decade ago, the first reissue had too many elements (including a date and “automatic” on the dial) that instantly gave away the fact that it was a modern watch. In contrast, the Pilot Majetek avoids those pitfalls. The design is not a like-for-like reproduction of the original as it has a bulked-up case with crown guards and a wider bezel amongst other tweaks. But it doesn’t have any design elements that stand out as being inappropriate in a vintage-inspired watch. So on its face the Pilot Majetek appears to tick all the boxes as a vintage reissue, but with a big few caveat. Though I’ve yet to see it in person, it is almost certainly a bulky watch at 43 mm in diameter and over 13 mm high, essentially the same dimensions as a chunky sports chronograph and certainly much larger than the 41 mm original, whic...

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[VIDEO] Inside the Collection: Pairing the Tudor Pelagos 39 & the Rolex Submariner 14060M Worn & Wound
Tudor Pelagos 39 & Feb 21, 2023

[VIDEO] Inside the Collection: Pairing the Tudor Pelagos 39 & the Rolex Submariner 14060M

As much as I advocate for expanding your boundaries when it comes to the type of watches you experience, most of our time is spent in the middle of our lane. These are the comfort food of watches, the sweet spot you keep coming back to. For me, these are typically simple divers or tool watches, the archetype of which is of course the Submariner. Not very exciting, but a great everyday companion that’s easy to use and read, with an uncanny ability to pair with pretty much any outfit or look. Plenty of other watches fall into the category as well, but the Submariner sets the bar, and does so particularly well in the form of the reference 14060M. Where more modern references have veered ever so slightly into “it needs to make a statement” territory, there is a humbleness that remains within the 14060, if ever a word could be applied to a Submariner.  The peculiar vibe of the 14060 may be absent within the present catalog of Rolex sports watches, but that doesn’t mean it’s not out there in other more modern watches. In fact, you don’t have to stray far from the family to find such a candidate. Tudor has managed to capture a lot of the charm of early Rolex references in recent years, and one in particular strikes me as a perfect embodiment of what I love about 5 digit Subs, and that is the Pelagos 39. When this watch was introduced I referred to it as the modern Sub we never got, and expanded on that in my full review of the watch. I’ve since welcomed a P39 into ...

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