Early January, we covered the Speedmaster Blue Side of the Moon here on Fratello. Today, I will show you the new 2018 version of that watch, with aventurine glass dial and Sedna gold hands and hour markers.I have to admit that I wasn t ber-enthusiastic about the blue ceramic Speedmaster Moonphase we showed you last January, but couldn t really make myself clear on what it was. Now that I ve seen the new Speedmaster Blue Side of the Moon Moonphase with aventurine dial, shown to us in Basel last month, I know exactly what it was. The ‘regular blue ceramic Speedmaster Moonphase doesn t ‘pop for me. The blue ceramics are nice, the moon phases indication is a cool complication, but...
One of our first appointments during Baselworld 2018 was with Jean-Christophe Babin, CEO of Bulgari. Besides an appointment to learn about the new models for 2018 (which we will publish within short as well), we had this interview to learn about Bulgari more in general and Mr. Babin specifically.Before we took off, we were happy to learn that Mr. Babin was well aware of our magazine, and complimented us on our achievements. Always a good start. Of course, we did some homework, and after a bit of waiting, we were allowed to shoot our questions. Here we go!Jean-Christophe Babin InterviewGerard Nijenbrinks: When you started in 2013 with Bulgari, what were the first things you thought needed to ...
The Sinn 103 is a classic. And this classic just became better with the limited edition 103 Sa B E version that was introduced at Baselworld last month. It didn t take long for me to consider adding this watch to my personal collection and that does not happen often.I often feel like a kid in a candy story at Basel during the annual fair, but as you know there s only so much that one s wallet allows. Although I loved gazing at the latest Patek Philippe Nautilus or GMT-Master II in Everrose gold, there are definitely limitations on what I am able to purchase. This is why I also love to look at watches that are more realistically priced for us ordinary mortals. And that s even relative of cou...
We dont get hate mail often at Fratello Watches, but we did get it when I wrote an article about the 1978 Seiko 7549 Golden Tuna. I was awfully enthusiastic about it C and still am C but there were those who felt the need to share some vitriol related to my love for a watch with a battery or, more generally, how I waxed on and on about how a watch can or cant have character. So be it. On the latter point, if you dont like hearing about connecting with ones watch, go and read the Economist or Consumer Reports. Related to this, when it comes to Quartz movements, while they may lack the need for the owner to interact with the watch on a near daily basis, they have their place in watch history a...
Yesterday, Hodinkee published a wonderful interview with the legendary Mario Andretti. A number of watches were discussed with Andretti, but not the Rallye watch that he bought privately. We thought it would be a nice addition to mention this Rallye watch once more in this article.Part of the fun of collecting vintage watches is to research them. Get to know their story. Perhaps find a famous person who owned it before you did. We all heard of the Jim Clark Gallet MultiChron 12, the Jo Siffert Heuer Autavia or staying with the same brand and model the Jochen Rindt Autavia. You perhaps know that there is another famous Rindt, Nina the wife of the late racecar driver. She wore a Compax Univers...
After Omega showed us the BaselWorld 2018 novelties that you ve all seen by now, it was time for them to bring out the big guns and show three very exclusive Speedmaster Moonphase watches. In platinum.Weighing about half a kilogram each, these new platinum Speedmaster Moonphase models are not for the faint-hearted.For this week s Speedy Tuesday installment, we take a look at the three new Speedmaster Moonwatch Moonphase Platinum OMEGA Co-Axial Master Chronometer Chronograph Calibre 9905 or just platinum Speedmaster Moonphase watches. The official model name reveals a lot already, but nothing beats some proper images that our photographer Bert ‘Berti Buijsrogge took in Basel.Platinum S...
After their successful relaunch of the Lebois & Co company and Avantgarde watches in 2014, the current founders feel it is time to take the next step: asking you to become a shareholder. With three produced models, mainly based on crowdfunding, there are three new models under development and Lebois & Co wants you as a shareholder.It is a clear sign that things become more serious at Lebois & Co. Moving into the direction of having shareholders on board, Lebois & Co also allow us to have peak into their future plans. Three new watches are being developed right now, a new Avantgarde Date, a vintage chronograph re-issue and a new chronometer certified watch. The chronograph mod...
Although the new Breitling Navitimer 8 has been in the spot light for months now, it is time to have a look at the revamped Navitimer 1. The most important version for the purists. Michael already gave a short introduction to all the new Breitling collections during BaselWorld (click here), but now it is time to go hands-on with my personal favorite: the?Breitling Navitimer 1 B01 in 43mm.The?Breitling Navitimer 1 B01 43mm would be my personal pick from the entire 2018 collection. This model comes in several variations: steel with a leather strap, steel on steel, gold with a leather strap, gold on gold, gold and steel on leather. For this hands-on article, I picked the full steel version with...
There are a couple of watches that everyone wants, but only a few can have. The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Jumbo is such a watch. The fact that you rarely see them in the flesh is not only because of its hefty price tag, it is also because of the limited production of the?Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Jumbo. This results in long waiting lists and it isn t very likely you will come across one on display at a retailer or boutique, most of them are going straight to the customer who ordered one.In 2012, the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Jumbo, or ‘Extra-Thin as it is being officially called since then, received an update. It was also the 40th anniversary of the Royal Oak, celebrated in different ...
Following the Quai des Bergues (which we reviewed here) and Place Vend?me models, Czapek introduced a column wheel chronograph as the third model in their line up – the?Czapek Faubourg de Cracovie. It was unveiled during Baselworld 2018 and named after the location of the third Czapek boutique, opened in 1850 in Warsaw, Poland.Czapek Faubourg de Cracovie ChronographIt seems to become a tradition that Czapek opens the Baselworld fair with a breakfast. Even before the first appointment during the press day of the fair, Czapek offers a sneak preview at their new products during an intimate get together in the Volkshaus Basel restaurant.Unveiled during the Baselworld 2018 breakfast, the Cz...
A Patek Philippe watch isn t your typical sports watch, even though they want to make you think otherwise with their Aquanaut and Nautilus watches. The new Aquanaut Chronograph does not change anything about this, but surely is an interesting and welcome addition to the Aquanaut collection. The Aquanaut is a beautiful and refined high-end watch, simulating to be a rugged sports watch based on its appearance: an all steel case and bracelet, or rubber strap. You could say the Patek Philippe Aquanaut Chronograph is what a Bentley Bentayga is to SUVs (except for being not ugly). You will rarely come across one in the mountains or desert, as you ll more likely to see a Toyota Landcruiser, G-Wagon...
Last week we already showed you the Speedmaster CK2998 Pulsometer, and this week it is time for a little hands-on with the new Speedmaster Apollo 8.?Omega dedicates 2018 mainly to the Seamaster collection, celebrating its 70th anniversary and the 25th anniversary of the Seamaster 300M. However, that did not refrain them from releasing a number of new Speedmaster watches as well. Some of you already knew what was coming, due to the leaks that Omega encountered in the period just before BaselWorld. Although some think this has been done on purpose, this wasn t the case. Does it harm Omega? Of course not, but the surprise effect wasn t really there anymore. An exception could be this new Speedm...
A few weeks ago, this interesting Seiko infographic was created by the people at? the biggest watch market place in the world, Chrono24. 10 Things you didn t know about Seiko, unless you are a Seikoholic of course… but even then you might find something you didn t already know.A big thank you to Chrono24 for creating this Seiko infographic....
The new Carrera automatic chronograph excited motorsport lovers ? Ferrari racing drivers preferred it in goldMotorsport has always been in the DNA of the Heuer Carrera, which was named after an auto race. Heuer began an innovative partnership with Ferrari in the 1970s. The gold Carrera chronograph, which was given to each Ferrari driver in the Formula One race, became a symbol of the natural symbiosis at Heuer between timekeeping and auto racing. Heuer Carrera automatic chronograph in 18 karat yellow gold (front and back). Jack Heuer gave this watch in 1972 to the legendary Formula One driver Ronnie Peterson, hence the engraving on the back of the case. The timepiece encases Caliber 12,...
As someone who enjoys adventure, Ive always felt that setting a record of some sort for an act of derring-do should be on my bucket list. Sure, Ive wrestled crocodiles, run ultra marathons, drank the water in Mexico and have eaten a Dutch Frikandel at a Shell Station outside of Zeeland, but these things strike me as a relative walk in the park. No, I wanted to do something that could truly land me on the pages of credible journals such as the National Enquirer and Huffington Post. Its why, after watching Deep Blue Sea one evening (LL Cool J should have won a BAFTA), I decided to set upon breaking the recently set 2014 record for scuba depth of nearly 1000 feet (300-odd meters).?? Now, I had ...
For years now, one of my personal highlights of BaselWorld is to visit my friends?from Junghans for lunch. Their HQ for the week is just a stone throw away from the BaselWorld location in a nearby hotel. Junghans releases great watches year after year – just take a look at their last year s lineup. As you know, design plays a key part in their product line, especially in their Max Bill line. This how however I ll take a closer at the? Meister Chronoscope Terrassenbau. An equally interesting?new novelty from Junghans.Meister Chronoscope TerrassenbauThe name Terrassenbau (Terrace Building) comes from the old Junghans building that they opened in 1918 and considered an architectural wonde...
Today, on Fratello Watches, well take a look at the Borealis Portus Cale, a divers watch from a micro brand based in Portugal. Weve featured a number of watches from smaller brands such as Straton, Gruppo Gamma, and Zelos, but Borealis is a new one for us. When heading to the companys site, the company, whose name is defined as the North, states it prides itself on selling affordable, well made watches in a variety of case materials and with either Swiss or Japanese movements. As for styling, just a brief look at the offerings shows that theyre quite tool/dive watch focused.Borealis approached me via the Facebook Divers Watches Group C where Fratello Watches often writes articles for pieces ...
As you probably know we sometimes have guest writers on Fratello Watches. They either have a great story to tell, an awesome watch to introduce or an angle, which we find interesting to look at a watch from. This article is a result of the latter case.Frieder, the writer of this piece, is not only a friend and colleague of Balazs but also a watch geek. He brought William L. to our attention and we thought the project was worth a review to the Fratello audience. What could be a better angle to introduce an interesting Kickstarter project than by someone who is a passionate watch lover and a true fan of this project? We believe he has a great eye for details. Also not spoiled by the huge numbe...
Visiting Klokers is always a pleasant surprise. They have a different approach towards watches. Releases are somewhere between watches, design, and fashion. This year Klokers has several novelties. Let s look at the four new watches and two accessories.KLOK-01 in Midnight BlueThe KLOK-01 has already been covered by us a while back (review here). It displays time by counter-clockwise rotating discs and slide rules. This year Klokers expands this series with a new color variation in midnight blue. It is more subtle and accents are not that extreme like on the white version. As with all the Klokers watches the watch head is interchangeable with the accessories via the patented interchangeable s...
Some expected a new Speedmaster Speedy Tuesday in BaselWorld, but instead Omega surprised us with a number of other Speedmaster novelties. The Apollo 8, a Speedmaster Moonphase Master Chronometer in blue ceramic with Aventurine dial and three variations of those in full platinum. More about those later, because first I want to shed the light on the new Speedmaster CK2998 Pulsometer that they released for this year. This watch is based on the original CK2998 reference that was introduced in 1959 and is the 2nd generation Speedmaster. It was in production up to 1962 and succeeded by the 105.002 and 105.003.A very early Speedmaster CK2998-1 from 1959Speedmaster CK2998 PulsometerExactly 6 years ...
