24,584 articles · 3,474 videos found · page 828 of 936
Quill & Pad
Rebellion takes on many forms – like jazz music, which at one time represented an extreme deviation from musical tables and conventional styles of music, perhaps as much or even more so than rock and roll. What timekeepers did these musical giants prefer to wear? And which brands pay tribute to them today?
Time+Tide
Well, one of 2020’s worst-kept secrets is out of the bag – Tudor has gone and released a brand new iteration of the best watch it makes. Ladies and gents, introducing the Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight Ref.M79030b-0001. Now, we’ll skip all the conjecture and polarisation that this watch has already managed to conjure up in … ContinuedThe post What kind of blue is the new Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight actually? 4 side-by-side shots with the Pelagos, Patek, Lange and more… appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
There’s very little that hasn’t been done in watchmaking. That’s part of what makes vintage-inspired new releases so popular among watch enthusiasts, especially for diving styles. Mido’s Ocean Star range has sat in this bracket, earning a good reputation for solidly built and classically handsome dive watches for their affordable cost; however, they toed the … ContinuedThe post The Mido Ocean Star Decompression Timer 1961 brings the colour we all need in a dark year at a budget-friendly price appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
Having moved house last year, I finally got around to collecting the last remaining items from our storage facility last weekend. All that was left was a forlorn collection of those random bits and pieces that you barely use, but can’t quite stomach throwing out. There was a box of bedraggled Christmas decorations, a tennis … ContinuedThe post OPINION: Will COVID hammer the final nail into the coffin of the dress watch? appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
SJX Watches
Hailing from Ireland’s most famous watchmaking family, John McGonigle is best known for being one half of the two brothers behind McGonigle Watches (and another brother is the chief instructor at the world-class watch school in Cambodia). Having decided to strike out on his own last year – an amicable parting resulting from logistical challenges of working with his brother who is based in Switzerland – Mr McGonigle has just launched his own brand, Oileán, Gaelic for “island”, a nod to his home of Ireland. Pronounced “ill-awn”, the brand is making its debut with the Oileán H-B1, a triple-calendar chronograph powered by a new-old-stock Valjoux 88 movement. John McGonigle Initial thoughts Well regarded by collectors and peers, Mr McGonigle’s first watch under his new brand has a vintage movement inside a titanium case. It’s a manageable 40 mm in diameter, but slightly thick at 14.2 mm high, an inevitable consequence of the Valjoux 88. While the Valjoux 88 is not novel – it was widely used in the past – the calibre has been reworked a high standard. That includes several bridges and steel parts made from scratch, as well as hand finishing of all components. Because it is a triple-calendar chronograph “I’ve tried to apply the same rigour to this watch as I used to for the high complications I worked on in the past,” says Mr McGonigle. Going by Mr McGonigle’s past work it is no doubt done very well. The look is modern – the dial is smoked sa...
SJX Watches
When it was launched in 2019, the Code 11.59 by Audemars Piguet became the most-talked-about new releases of the year, and also of the most panned, largely for the way it was hyped before launch and the perceived plainness of the design. But Audemars Piguet is undeterred and affirmed its commitment to the new collection with the launch of a face-lifted Code 11.59 Selfwinding and Chronograph, featuring new dials with a smoked, graduated-colour finish, along with a variant in a two-colour gold case. The new Code 11.59 Selfwinding Initial thoughts The most frequent criticism against the Code 11.59 had to do with the rather bland dials of the base models. In contrast, the pricey, complicated models were the standouts of the collection, having fired enamel dials with a smoked finish (for the minute repeater and the flying tourbillon) or aventurine glass (for the perpetual calendar). Audemars Piguet doubtlessly realised the appeal of the smoked enamel dial, and followed up with the Code 11.59 Bolshoi Limited Edition, which featured the same graduated, dark blue dial in enamel, but on a time-only watch. The downside of the enamel dial on the base model is a massive price premium of over 55%, or a bit over US$14,000. Evidence that Audemars Piguet is receptive to feedback, the new dials for the Code 11.59 show how a slight tweak can completely change the visual impact of a watch. It’s highly probable that if the Code 11.59 had been launched with smoked dials in the first plac...
Time+Tide
If we’re honest with ourselves, luxury sports watches aren’t actually designed to be used during sport. Sure, they are more robust than your typical dress watch, but the most adventurous situation they are designed to find themselves in might be diving into glittering Capri waters from the deck of a sailboat, maybe suffering a small … ContinuedThe post HANDS-ON: The TAG Heuer Connected Golf Edition can actually improve your golf game appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Two Broke Watch Snobs
The new Seiko 5 SRPE51 is not a dive watch. Its whole raison d’être is to move away from that, to offer something new.
SJX Watches
Laurent Ferrier is 10 years old, and to make the occasion the brand is launching the Classic Origin Opaline, a time-only, hand-wound watch with a slim, titanium case. In many ways, the new watch is a minimalist take on the standard Laurent Ferrier time-only watch – the style is beautiful, restrained, and typical of the brand, with a new(ish) and significantly simpler movement inside, allowing for a fairly affordable price. Initial thoughts The Classic Origin Opaline has the much-loved Laurent Ferrier look – fluid lines and elegant forms on the case and dial. And in the usual manner of the brand, the dial is unadorned but executed with fine materials – the hands and hour indices are solid white gold. The movement, however, falls a bit short. Laurent Ferrier’s earliest movements – the LF229.01 of the Galet Micro-Rotor and the LF619.01 of the Galet Tourbillon – were best-in-class calibres that excelled in construction, finishing, and details, which unfortunately set a very high bar. But since the company entered a prolonged period of management turmoil, its movements have lost the magic. The quality is still good, but they are no longer outstanding. The LF116.01 in the new Classic Origin Opaline is essentially a variant of the movement in the annual calendar and also found in the Bridge One with a reshaped base plate and bridges. It has large bridges with simple silhouettes, as well as solid, clean finishing. Granted, a handful of the traditional Laurent Ferrier f...
SJX Watches
Based on the souscription calibre created by Abraham-Louis Breguet in 1796, the Tradition is characterised by an open, symmetrical movement layout and an off-centered time display. The distinctive look has made it one of Breguet’s modern-day hits, though most variants of the Tradition have been watches for men. The latest Tradition Dame 7038 adds to the compact line-up of Tradition watches for ladies. Exclusive to boutiques, the Tradition Dame 7038 combines a dark, iridescent Tahitian mother-of-pearl dial with a deep-brown movement treatment. And unusually for Breguet, the watch is delivered with a matching clutch bag. Initial thoughts The off-centered, Tahitian mother-of-pearl dial was the first thing that caught my attention when this arrived in my inbox. With enigmatic colours that shimmer and vary between violet and green, Tahitian mother-of-pearl never fails to be captivating. Obtained from black-lipped oysters around Tahiti and French Polynesia, they are much rarer compared to white mother-of-pearls as was featured in the first Tradition Dame 7038, making this more appealing, not just for its colour but also the material. The brown undertones of the Tahitian mother-of-pearl dial are complemented by the brown treatment of the frosted finish on the movement and the rose gold case. In typical Breguet style, the mother-of-pear dial is finished in clous de paris engine-turning, a decorative touch that is tradition and always welcome as it adds visual interest to the ...
SJX Watches
Having just gone public in May 2019, the Watches of Switzerland Group has a major presence in its home market of the United Kingdom, as well as the United States. Its revenue for the 2020 financial year was £819.3 million, or about US$1.02 billion, making it one of the world’s largest watch retailers. The man who led the group to its flotation on the London stock market is Brian Duffy. He was appointed chief executive in 2014, after Watches of Switzerland was acquired by American private equity outfit Apollo Global Management. Mr Duffy’s tenure has seen the group post strong growth and record sales. Just before lockdowns took effect in its primary markets in mid-March, sales were up 36.4% in the United States, while group revenue rose 15.8%. And it was expanding apace, having just acquired four stores from Fraser Hart, while renovating several of its existing stores. Then the pandemic hit. So what happens now? Mr Duffy shares his views on the current situation, and why he is optimistic about e-commerce as well as luxury watches. How did the pandemic affect your business overall? Obviously it was quite a shock. Our first concern was to ensure our staffs’ health and to maintain the whole workforce. We managed to keep all our people and worked on keeping spirits high everywhere. Our numbers were very good coming into the year – up 16% at the end of the fiscal year in April 2020 – but closing all stores across the UK and US slowed down this trend momentarily. O...
Time+Tide
While still in its infancy compared to the historical juggernauts of the horological world, Ming is already turning heads for all the right reasons. One of the heads they have turned is none other than John, who took a chance on a brand he hadn’t known a whole lot about and purchased the Ming 17.06 … ContinuedThe post EVERY WATCH TELLS A STORY: John is blown away by the dial of his Ming 17.06 Copper appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
SJX Watches
When Tudor announced the original Black Bay Fifty-Eight in 2018, it arrived to critical and commercial acclaim. With strong vintage cues and slimmed-down proportions, the “BB58” was what many enthusiasts had been asking for. And it turned out that the broader, watch-buying public also wanted exactly the same thing. Now Tudor has just rolled out a new variant of its bestseller – the Black Bay Fifty-Eight “Navy Blue”. Essentially the same watch as the original BB58 – with the same in-house MT5402 movement – but now with a navy-blue dial and bezel, making it more contemporary. Initial thoughts The original BB58 is my favourite in the Tudor collection because of its sleek and wearable dimensions. At 39 mm by 11.9 mm, it wears significantly better than its chunky, 41 mm counterparts. Since its release, I have been excited about the prospects of the BB58 as a springboard for new models, so the BB58 Blue is a welcome addition to the line. The navy blue dial and bezel are the primary attraction of the new BB58 Blue, not just in terms of looks, but the historical basis of the colour, which harks back to the Tudor Submariner “MN” with a “snowflake” dial that was supplied to the French Navy, or Marine Nationale, in the 1970s. The blue “Snowflake” Submariner of the 1970s (left) and the BB58 Blue But blue is also fashionable, having come into vogue in recent years. While Tudor has never been a fashion-forward brand – if anything it is conservative in sty...
Time+Tide
How do you celebrate a first birthday? Balloons? Candles? Maybe a cake? That’s what most folks would do. Hublot, however, like to do things a little differently. That’s why, to mark a year since their Monaco boutique opened, the provocative Swiss watchmaker has unveiled this – the Hublot Classic Fusion Aerofusion Chronograph Special Edition “Boutique … ContinuedThe post INTRODUCING: A breath of fresh Classic Fusion, Hublot’s Aerofusion Chronograph Special Edition “Boutique Monaco” appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Revolution
Tudor adds a new variation to their beloved 39mm modern dive watch with the Black Bay 58 Navy Blue, just in time as the world opens up from lockdown.
Quill & Pad
Glashütte Original dial factory manager Michael Baumann guided Bhanu Chropa through the complex process of manufacturing dials. He explained that depending on the complications of a given watch model, it takes 70 to 80 steps to manufacture a perfect dial. See for yourself in this interesting personal tour behind the scenes in Pforzheim, Germany.
![Recommended Reading: Audemars Piguet's Head Of Complications Michael Friedman Talks [Re]Master 01 With Barron's](https://hodinkee.imgix.net/uploads/images/1588096737161-ie8kgm5btg-ca0f3d21c39ca1e69ef1c9a81450432f/03-04-20200309-1_01.jpg?ixlib=rails-1.1.0&fm=jpg&q=55&auto=format&usm=12&w=1200&h=630&fit=crop)
Hodinkee
An inside look at how this watch came to be.
Time+Tide
This year appears to be Year of the Luminor for Panerai. Having redefined the warranty with the lavishly lumed and 3D printed PAM01117, the introduction of the Panerai Luminor Marina PAM01313 sees a bit more restraint return, with classic Luminor design cues but a similarly luscious blue sunburst dial. With its technologically impressive three-day movement, … ContinuedThe post INTRODUCING: The Panerai Luminor Marina PAM01313, where a dressy blue dial meets a proper diver appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Two Broke Watch Snobs
Mike and Kaz compare some of the watch world’s favorite design and style tropes in a head-to-head match between two watches at a time. Also, Patreon is growing! Thanks to everyone that has hopped on for those special tiers.
Revolution
Ulysse Nardin and OCEARCH partner to save Hollywood’s most misunderstood villain.
SJX Watches
Romain Gauthier’s latest watch is a skeletonised version of its Insight time-only automatic first introduced three years ago. The Insight Micro-Rotor Squelette retains the same style as the brand’s other watches, but with more elaborate finishing thanks to the open-worked movement. Initial thoughts Romain Gauthier excels in finishing and the new watch undoubtedly has even more of the brand’s top-quality work since there are more surfaces to decorate. The skeletonisation also goes well with the movement, accentuating the long curves and sharp points that are typical of Romain Gauthier style. Importantly, it’s not just a visual upgrade, but also a tangible one – instead of the usual brass, the bridges and base plate of the skeletonised movement are made of titanium. But the titanium parts are finished to the same degree as a standard brass movement, which is quite a feat. And the basic Insight is already a well-conceived watch in the first place. It avoids some of the impractical features, like button winding and back winding, that Romain Gauthier installed on earlier models just to be different. That said, the skeleton version also suffers from one shortcoming of the standard model, which is the thick, 12.9 mm case. Nonetheless, the Insight skeleton is largely an enhanced version of an already-excellent watch. The Insight Micro-Rotor Squelette with a carbon-composite case The only downside is the price – which is no doubt justifiable. The skeleton in an 18k gold...
Time+Tide
Editor’s note: Well, this little brand from London that thought it could, sure has convinced us of their seriousness over the last six months. It started with an email to us practically begging to donate a watch to the Watch & Act! Auction in aid of the Australian bushfires. It was a bit late in … ContinuedThe post MICRO MONDAYS: Hands-on with the William Wood Valiant White appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
SJX Watches
Established by a robotics entrepreneur, Sick Toiz specialises in, well, “sick toys” – exceptional objects with a mechanical bent that have been produced with high-end methods and then finished by hand. Amongst its most extraordinary, and preposterous, creations is the Rattrapante Passage Lock, a door lock and handle that functions like a bona fide split-seconds mechanism. Initial thoughts The Rattrapante Passage Lock is an ordinarily trivial item – it is in essence a door knob – executed to an excruciatingly high standard. Clearly catered for a niche clientele who have an innate appreciation of engineering, finishing, and machining, the Passage Lock costs US$63,500. It is ridiculous, but also incredible. Sick Toiz founder Tyler Schilling obviously spared no expense in building an ultra-complex door handle, either in design, manufacturing, or finishing. The components, for instance, are made on a five-axis CNC machine, instead of a four-axis CNC machine, which would have simpler and probably yielded a barely discernible difference. Even the spokes of the split-seconds wheel have bevelled edges. Something like this is only possible when conceived by someone who genuinely appreciates such things and importantly, someone who can afford to back such a project as a hobby. An engineer’s eye The man behind Sick Toiz, Tyler Schilling, is a nerd in the best sense of the word. Having grown up with a father who was mechanically inclined but a doctor by profession, Mr Schil...
Time+Tide
Golf is an addictive sport. One that blends the physical power of a Nadal forehand with the psychological rigour of playing a chess Grandmaster. And devotees of the game will do just about anything to get an edge. The immediate question is, will the TAG Heuer Connected Golf Edition help them with that? Because, golf … ContinuedThe post VIDEO: A golf performance coach who trains the stars rates the new TAG Heuer Connected Golf Edition appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Quill & Pad
Elizabeth Doerr has attended the odd auction. She has even gone to auctions with the intent to bid on a watch. But that hadn’t yet worked out for her. Not until she saw that Parisian auction house Artcurial was auctioning off what was left of Alain Silberstein’s inventory and put in an absentee bid on a long shot. She had little hope, but then . . .
Hodinkee
It's a good day to be independent.
Time+Tide
Phillips’ Geneva Watch Auction XI is just around the corner, and we must say – it is so refreshing to see something in the watch world that’s actually going to happen. No cancellation, no postponement, this auction is going ahead … and it’s got the potential to be quite interesting. Given the precarious state the … ContinuedThe post 7 potential bargains from Phillips’ Geneva Watch Auction XI, launching later today in Geneva appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
The 1940s were a golden period for chronograph innovation at Longines, an era that included the now highly collectible 13ZN movement, as well as timelessly balanced and articulated designs. The depth of Longines’ archives from this period have yielded yet another handsome model that is faithful to the original, with sensitive updates to bring it … ContinuedThe post VIDEO: The Longines Heritage Classic Chronograph 1946, for those that love vintage style in a modern size appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Deployant
Romain Gauthier celebrates his 15th anniversary by skeletonizing his Insight Micro-Rotor to offer a Squelette collection. Details here.
SJX Watches
By far the most important markets for luxury watches, China and Hong Kong together accounted for over 21% of Swiss watch exports in 2019 according to trade body Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry. Add to that Chinese travellers who buy watches overseas, and the fact is the luxury-watch business is dependent on Chinese demand. So the crucial question for the watch industry’s future – what’s happening in the Chinese watch market post-pandemic? On May 10, one of the trending topics on microblogging platform Sina Weibo was the US$30 billion plunge in the net worth of LVMH chief Bernard Arnault, mirroring the sharp drop in LVMH shares. But barely a week before – exactly a month after the end of Wuhan lockdown – there were nearly 100 customers queuing outside the Louis Vuitton boutique in Shanghai’s Plaza 66, all eager to shop before the brand’s price hike. The line outside Louis Vuitton reflected the rebounding demand for luxury goods in China as it emerged from a lockdown. “Macro Data Indicates a Surge in Consumption” – read the headline in the business-focused Workers’ Daily newspaper on May 16. The sentiment is backed up by the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics of China published in mid June. Though the statistics indicate retail sales of consumer goods declined 13.5% on a nominal basis from January to May, totalling RMB1,387.3 billion for the year to date, the monthly figures indicate a recovery is underway. The monthly numbers s...
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