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Results for Swiss vs Japanese Watchmaking

4,702 articles · 45 videos found · page 94 of 159

Introducing - The SpaceOne Tellurium is back with Black or Blue Titanium Cases Monochrome
Vulcain Dec 5, 2024

Introducing - The SpaceOne Tellurium is back with Black or Blue Titanium Cases

Young collaborative project/brand SpaceOne continues its exploration of watchmaking through a parallel galaxy… Last year, the bold and modern SpaceOne Jumping Hour emerged from the visionary mind of Théo Auffret, a Parisian independent watchmaker crafting intricate timepieces like the Tourbillon Grand Sport and Guillaume Laidet, the man spearheading the revival of Nivada, Excelsior Park and Vulcain. […]

Recap - 100 Years of Citizen, A Splendid Commemorative Pocket Watch and some clues on what to expect in the future Monochrome
Citizen Dec 4, 2024

Recap - 100 Years of Citizen, A Splendid Commemorative Pocket Watch and some clues on what to expect in the future

“Watches made for all citizens.” This is why major Japanese brand Citizen is named as it is. There is a reason behind this international and easy-to-remember name, which goes way beyond just a marketing motto. The brand philosophy can be resumed, and I quote brand manager Yoshihisa Yajima that “no matter who you are or […]

First Look - The New Yema Wristmaster Slim CMM.20 Combines Micro-Rotor, Integrated Bracelet and Fair Price Monochrome
Yema Dec 4, 2024

First Look - The New Yema Wristmaster Slim CMM.20 Combines Micro-Rotor, Integrated Bracelet and Fair Price

While mostly known for its emblematic range of dive watches, known as the Superman (possibly the most famous French watch), Yema has recently worked hard to expand both its collections and, something truly interesting, its manufacturing capacities – with a strong commitment to bringing back French watchmaking, with in-house developed and assembled movements. One of […]

First Look - Hanhart Brings Back the 415 ES Chronograph (incl. Video Review) Monochrome
Dec 3, 2024

First Look - Hanhart Brings Back the 415 ES Chronograph (incl. Video Review)

German watchmaking brand Hanhart has etched a commendable place in watchmaking history for itself, primarily through its very good stopwatches and chronograph watches. While most attention goes to the 417 ES, the vintage-inspired pilot’s chronograph with its red-marked fluted bezel, red pusher and bicompax dial layout, there’s plenty more to the brand than just that. […]

Up Close: Aigaki Debuts with the Direct-Impulse Tourbillon SJX Watches
Dec 2, 2024

Up Close: Aigaki Debuts with the Direct-Impulse Tourbillon

Founded by a Japanese transplant to Switzerland, Aigaki is making its debut with the impressive Direct-Impulse Tourbillon. Though relatively youthful, brand founder Takahiko Aigaki is a watchmaker of the old school who developed the watch and then makes almost all of it by hand. Produced almost entirely in Takahiko Aigaki’s own home-workshop with hand-operated tools, the Tourbillon is characterised by its hand-engraved silver dial and a finely-finished movement combining unique architecture with a proprietary escapement. Initial thoughts I’ve been following Aigaki on Instagram for several months, having become intrigued by the unusual in-line architecture of the movement, and its symmetrical direct-impulse escapement. Initially, only the movement components were shown, but even this sneak peak was enough to pique my interest. Now that the watch has been unveiled, I feel like it was worth the wait. The Tourbillon is a compact, 37 mm timepiece with a clean aesthetic and domed crystal that lends it something of a vintage feel. On its face, the appearance is simple, but the watch instantly conveys the sensation of a finely-crafted object, especially when you turn it over. But even on the front, the details of the dial give away the fact that it is hand-made. Interestingly, there is no ink or paint used on the dial. All of the dial markings and elements are hand-engraved using traditional tools; the brand name is engraved with a hand-operated pantograph. The Tourbillon is v...

Hands-On Introduction: Circula Turns A Sharp Corner With The New Facet Fratello
Junghans Laco Nov 30, 2024

Hands-On Introduction: Circula Turns A Sharp Corner With The New Facet

Circula was founded in 1955 by the grandfather of Cornelius Huber, the current owner. As a family business, the brand established itself in the German town of Pforzheim, a watchmaking hotspot that’s home to brands such as Junghans, Laco, and Stowa. Today, the brand releases a new model with a new level of quality and […] Visit Hands-On Introduction: Circula Turns A Sharp Corner With The New Facet to read the full article.

The Evergreens - A Comprehensive Overview of Patek Philippe’s Annual Calendar, and How the Complication Came to Life Monochrome
Patek Philippe s Annual Calendar Nov 29, 2024

The Evergreens - A Comprehensive Overview of Patek Philippe’s Annual Calendar, and How the Complication Came to Life

Calendar indications are a classic of watchmaking. But not all calendar watches are born equal. As our own Xavier Markl explained in this Technical Perspective article, calendar watches range from basic date displays to the ultra-rare and highly complex secular calendar mechanism and everything in between. Next to the highly praised perpetual calendar, there is […]

Business News: Voutilainen Expands Brodbeck Guillochage SJX Watches
Voutilainen Nov 29, 2024

Business News: Voutilainen Expands Brodbeck Guillochage

Having stepped in to acquire Brodbeck Guillochage in 2022, Voutilainen has announced the opening of a new, larger facility in Fleurier that is poised to become a new centre of excellence for guilloché. Retaining the name Brodbeck Guillochage in honour of its founder Georges Brodbeck, the new facility is located in what was once the local watchmaking school of Fleurier, the town adjacent to Voutilainen’s hilltop headquarters at Chapeau de Napoléon. The new home of Brodbeck Guillochage in Fleurier Initial thoughts This is welcome news for a number of reasons. First, it will help perpetuate the legacy of Mr. Brodbeck, ensuring that his life’s work will continue to have a positive impact watchmakers and lovers of fine objects for years to come. Second, the steady hand of Kari Voutilainen, whose accomplishments as an entrepreneur rival his skills as a watchmaker, should help the new enterprise navigate potential industry downturns in the future. Finally, the impressive scale of the operation should be a magnet for talent, improving the economic prospects for young artisans interested in guilloché. A new centre of excellence A self-taught guillocheur, Mr Brodbeck founded his eponymous firm in 2004, gradually building up a stock of more than 30 antique engine turning machines, each restored to working order by Mr Brodbeck himself. In 2023, Mr Brodbeck was awarded the Prix Gaïa, arguably the highest award in the Swiss watch industry, for his contributions to the preservati...

Inlaid Silk Thread for the Ressence Type 8 SJX Watches
Ressence Type 8 Nov 28, 2024

Inlaid Silk Thread for the Ressence Type 8

The latest from Ressence is a departure from the usual cosmetic variation. Created for its Tokyo retailer Shellman, the Type 8 Indigo features a dial inlaid with indigo-dyed Japanese silk thread that’s been tightly packed into shallow recesses on the dial surface to form a swirling motif. This watch is one of several editions conceived by Shellman that are cumulatively known as the Indigo project. Each is a collaboration with an independent watchmaker that sports a blue dial, in a nod to the traditional Japanese indigo dyeing technique. Initial thoughts The Type 8 was originally the entry-level model within the brand’s catalogue, fulfilling founder Benoît Mintiens’s wish to make his distinctive watches more accessible. At CHF25,000, the Type 8 Indigo cost almost double the basic Type 8. So it is no longer entry level, but the price is justified by the hand-made dial that takes two days to complete according to Ressence. Importantly, the silk-inlaid dial looks good and complements the brand’s aesthetic perfectly. While the Ressence is not typically known for traditional decoration crafts, the dial decoration adds a little more variety to the brand’s watches, which are typically minimalist and hyper modern. At the same time, this is also more interesting than Ressence’s recent limited editions, most of which have been simple dial variations. Indigo-dyed silk Being based on the standard Type 8, the Indigo edition retains the same titanium case that’s 42.9 mm in...

Czapek Unleashes a Purple Storm Worn & Wound
Czapek Unleashes Nov 27, 2024

Czapek Unleashes a Purple Storm

I feel like every time I look at Czapek, they’re doing something great. This time, they’ve released a new limited variant of the Antarctique, the Antarctique Purple Storm, with an otherworldly purple dial produced by Swiss dial maker Metalem. The Antarctique has been one of the great success stories of the indie watch world in recent years, and Czapek has managed to iterate on the watch beautifully, offering up a consistent stream of new and interesting executions on the model without losing any of what makes it so compelling. This latest release pairs a familiar steel execution of the independent brand’s signature integrated bracelet sports watch, with a new version of the hand-varnished dial first seen in the 10-piece limited edition Antarctique Orion Nebula. While that watch was meant to evoke very specifically the look of galactic bodies in astral photography, almost looking like it could have come straight from the Webb telescope, more recent implementations of the technique have had a more lava-lamp-like quality; ethereal and non-corporeal. The Purple Storm fits into the latter group presenting onlookers with colors ranging from dark blacks to vibrant purples and every shade in between. Each of the 18 dials in this series is completely unique, and the celestial-inspired dials are entirely sterile - though the Czapek logo is present, it looks to be printed on the underside of the sapphire crystal (an increasingly common, but nonetheless appealing technique). ...

Introducing: A New Blue Outfit For The Awe-Inspiring Breguet Tradition Chronographe Indépendant 7077 Fratello
Breguet Tradition Chronographe Indépendant 7077 Nov 26, 2024

Introducing: A New Blue Outfit For The Awe-Inspiring Breguet Tradition Chronographe Indépendant 7077

Breguet introduced the Tradition Chronographe Indépendant 7077 back in 2015. The watch displayed awe-inspiring watchmaking inventiveness. How about two balance wheels, two gear trains, an arc-shaped minute totalizer, a power reserve indicator, and a mesmerizing open-worked look on both the front and back? What more could you ask for? Well, if I put on my […] Visit Introducing: A New Blue Outfit For The Awe-Inspiring Breguet Tradition Chronographe Indépendant 7077 to read the full article.

Ressence Introduces the Type 8 “Indigo” Worn & Wound
Ressence Introduces Nov 25, 2024

Ressence Introduces the Type 8 “Indigo”

When you think of Ressence, the first things that come to mind are likely the brand’s forward thinking, non traditional design language, and their completely unique mechanical solution for telling time via a series of rotating circles as opposed to traditional hands. You probably don’t think of traditional craft – given the hyper-modern aesthetic of the brand, most of their signature designs forego the tenets of classical watchmaking. There are exceptions to be found, of course, in the Ressence’s library of one-offs and limited editions, but classifying their approach, on the whole, as somewhat “industrial” isn’t too far off the mark. That’s what makes a watch like the Type 8 Indigo so interesting. It’s one of those exceptions, and in it we can see the many different things a Ressence watch can be.  The Type 8 Indigo is Ressence’s contribution to the The Indigo Project, led by Shellman, the brand’s Tokyo based Japanese retail partner. The design of the dial incorporates a single indigo dyed silk thread, placed in a spiral pattern by a skilled artisan. Indigo dyeing is part of a craft tradition in Japan spanning centuries, and the watch is a tribute to both Japanese tradition and an impressive design object on its own. Because of the dye and the nature of the thread itself, a range of blue tones are visible on the dial. According to Ressence, the total length of the thread is 2.5 meters, and it measures just 0.2mm in diameter, which underscores the in...

Hands-On: the Buser Fréres Marine 38 Worn & Wound
Nov 21, 2024

Hands-On: the Buser Fréres Marine 38

Whenever a new brand pops up I’m always intrigued. And while I’ve got nothing against a good ol’ dive or field watch, my interest is always piqued if it’s something with a more classic vibe. Especially if there’s some real watchmaking pedigree involved.  Buser Fréres is a newly revived brand originally dating back all the way to 1892. It survived the quartz crisis but initially seized all activities in the year 2000. Twenty-three years later German brand Dekla – who’s been designing and manufacturing watches under their own name for 10 years – revived the brand and launched the first models earlier this year. I’ve been a happy Dekla owner for the last 4 years, so naturally I was thrilled to see the line expanded with the Buser Fréres brand.  While some would rush to categorize Buser Fréres as a micro brand – and nothing wrong with that in particular – I’d just like to point out a couple of facts before we do just that. When I hear the term “micro brand” I tend to associate it with outsourced components brought together into a final product. Once again I’d like to stress: nothing wrong with that. But Buser Fréres offers something of a different recipe as they produce almost everything but the movement themselves.  For 10 years Dekla has been making watch dials, cases and hands in a wide array of materials, sizes and configurations, and that’s what sets Buser Fréres apart from many others in the space – and price bracket. From Grand ...

Hamilton Watches and the American Century: A History of Horological In Teddy Baldassarre
Hamilton Nov 21, 2024

Hamilton Watches and the American Century: A History of Horological In

Even though it has been making its watches in Switzerland for more than 50 years, there are few watchmakers more ingrained in Americana than Hamilton Watch Company, which was founded in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1892. One of the most important and inventive watchmaking firms in an era when the United States was a world leader in timepiece production, Hamilton has played a vital role in building and growing the nation — from timing the railroads that knitted it together, to supplying the troops that kept it free, to outfitting the entertainment icons that made it the pop culture capital of the world. Today, Hamilton has become respected the world over for its timepieces, while somehow managing never to lose sight of its humble origins and its distinctly American spirit. Here is the story of how Hamilton achieved its unique spot in both U.S. and horological history. Lancaster's historic Central Market First, a bit about Lancaster: It’s one of the oldest inland cities in the United States, originally called Hickory Town and renamed for the English city of Lancaster by John Wright, an English quaker who emigrated to the colonies in 1724. The original town was part of the Penn’s Woods Charter established in 1681 by William Penn that was the foundation for the original Province of Pennsylvania. Along with the modern city of Lancashire, in England, Lancaster continues to use a red rose, the heraldic badge of the House of Lancaster, as a symbol. Lancaster was the capit...

A Modern Take on Paillonné Enamel by Hermès SJX Watches
Hermes house style which Nov 21, 2024

A Modern Take on Paillonné Enamel by Hermès

Bearing an equestrian motif in typical Hermès style, the Arceau Robe Légère has a dial in paillonné enamel. Inspired by the silk scarf of the same name, the dial depicts horse composed of thin layers of delicately formed silver leaf on a dark blue enamel base. Initial thoughts Paillonné is a relatively uncommon technique in watchmaking, and even when employed in watches it’s usually traditional in style. The Arceau Robe Légère, in contrast, has a modern, slightly whimsical feel, as is typical of Hermes’ house style, which sets it apart from most executions of paillonné enamel. Granted, the equestrian motif is familiar and employed again and again, but it is very much Hermes. You wouldn’t expect anything else from a brand that began as a maker of leather saddles for horse riding. Silver horse Featuring a 38 mm white gold Arceau case with its asymmetrical stirrup-shaped lugs, the Arceau Robe Légère sports 71 brilliant-cut diamonds on its bezel. The dial is in a dark blue fired enamel with the paillonné technique applied on top, with its intricate detailed revealed only up close. The horse is actually composed of flowers, which are in turn made up of tiny pieces of silver foil (known as paillons) carefully assembled by hand on the dark blue enamel base. The motif is then painted over with clear enamel to set it on the base. The watch is powered by the self-winding H1912 made by Vaucher. It offers 50 hours of power reserve, and beats at 28,800 beats per hour...

A Grand Seiko 44GS in Purple-Pink Only for Asia SJX Watches
Grand Seiko 44GS Nov 21, 2024

A Grand Seiko 44GS in Purple-Pink Only for Asia

Grand Seiko marks the second anniversary of its establishment in the Asia-Pacific with the Heritage Collection 44GS “Fuji” SBGJ285. Featuring a purple-pink dial inspired by the wisteria flower, this limited edition is based on the reinterpretation of the vintage 44GS and its distinctive wide-flanked case. The case and bracelet are in Ever-Brilliant steel, a proprietary steel alloy that’s harder and shinier than conventional watchmaking steel. Powered by the high-frequency automatic cal. 9S86, the SBGJ285 features “true GMT” functionality with an independently adjustable hour hand. Initial thoughts As a long-time fan of Grand Seiko, I love the patterned dials and Zaratsu case polishing. The SBGJ285 exemplifies the essence of Grand Seiko. Though Grand Seiko does put out a significant number of limited editions, this one stands out for its unusual purple-pink colour, which is a different shade from the “salmon” dials that are now in vogue. The watch also reflects the brand’s traditional strengths and weaknesses. The case and dial finishing are excellent, particularly at this price point. However, the bracelet is not as refined as sophisticated as that of the competition. That said, this will look good on a leather strap, especially given the vintage-inspired 44GS case pairs well with a strap. Conveniently, this limited edition is delivered with both a steel bracelet and a calfskin strap. Wisteria flower The limited edition retains the standard case of the “...

Hands-on - The New and Bold Audemars Piguet x KAWS Royal Oak Concept Tourbillon Companion Monochrome
Audemars Piguet x KAWS Royal Oak Nov 19, 2024

Hands-on - The New and Bold Audemars Piguet x KAWS Royal Oak Concept Tourbillon Companion

Among Switzerland’s elite Haute Horlogerie brands, Audemars Piguet often stands out for doing things differently and exploring different territories. In particular, the brand is not shy to connect watchmaking to a broader culture as we have seen with recent collabs with Marvel (Spiderman, Black Panther) or with the cool Travis Scott x AP Royal Oak […]