Welcome to This Week in Watches for October 3, 2020 the reunification edition. Today is the 30th anniversary of this holiday in Germany, so let s unite and see what s new in watches.Mhle-Glashtte x Meistersinger Germany UnityMhle-Glashtte and Meistersinger are German brands, so it makes sense that they re celebrating 30 years of German reunification. Each have decided to release watches that are thematically similar, but keep the brand s identities intact. A set of 30 watches are available featuring the 41mm Teutonia IV from M-G and the 43mm No. 3 from Meistersinger. These watches each have yellow gold bezels and contain red and black features to help symbolize the German flag. They ll s...

We are living in a world where reeditions, heritage-inspired, and neo-vintage watches are becoming the norm. Certain brands seem to be oblivious to the year we live in. They spend more time going through their archives and recreating old models rather than focusing on research and development. Oddly, these neo-vintage watches are often just weak copies of the original vintage watches they are based on. However, this is certainly not the case when it comes to the new Nivada Grenchen Chronomaster Aviator Sea Diver.Now, let me be clear: I m not against reeditions. I find them exciting and have reviewed a good few of them in the past. What I think, though, is that if you have all the money in th...

I love Formula One. I d put it above all my other passions. Ahead of fast cars, guitars, movies, music, and, yes, even watches. I try to keep it quiet because whenever you mention an interest in F1, everyone feels the need to weigh in: Oh, it is just going around in circles, or - it s not a real sport. F1 is where I feel no need to listen to anyone else s opinion or justify my passion for it. Thankfully, wristwatches are intrinsically linked to Formula One enabling me to combine my interests.Sporty wristwatches and Formula One coalesce in a natural way that benefits both industries. TAG Heuer was the official timekeeper for Formula One for several years, in what I consider its heyday. The 9...

Just two days after we said on our podcast that Seiko will probably have some more releases planned for this year s 55th anniversary, we ve been treated to two more limited edition Prospex watches. Meet the Seiko Prospex SLA043J1 and the SPB183J1.The Seiko SLA043J1 is a re-interpretation of the Seiko 62MAS that dates back to 1965 (click here for the original 1965 model). The other one, the SPB183J1, reminds us of the Seiko 6105-8110 Captain Willard from 1970 (click here for an in-depth article on the 6105-8110). We are expecting the watches to arrive on our desks soon, enabling us to do a hands-on review and video.#gallery-1 {margin: auto;}#gallery-1 .gallery-item {float: left;margin-top: 10...

The Longines Spirit in 40mm, otherwise known as the L3.810.4.53.0, is our favorite pick from this new collection. Time for us to do a hands-on video with this pilot s watch.In our recently published hands-on review on the Longines Spirit, you can read about the background of this watch, the importance of the 5 stars on the dial, and the L888.4 movement. However, we also think it is a good idea to publish more videos of the watches we receive for review. So here s the video review of the Longines Spirit L3.810.4.53.0. It is a five-minute breakdown on the Spirit collection and this matte black dial version in particular.We ve said it before, but it is worth saying again: seeing a watch in the ...

Have you always yearned for the legendary indestructible Land Rover? Now you can have one. Well, at least a?tiny bit of it. The dial of todays REC release, the RNR Beach Runner is handcrafted from the roof of a 1981 Land Rover Series III. Lets look at it.Roads Not Required. Thats what RNR stands for. Its what Land Rover earned its unbeatable charm for. Its tall, its shaggy. It doesnt have much muscle and it definitely doesnt look like a car that would take you everywhere. Or like a car that would survive you. Oh, and the lamps, the grille, and the light green color… I always wanted one. As you can probably tell, I still do.REC Beach RunnerThe Series III is the most common series Land R...

In this video, Michael Stockton and Balazs Ferenczi go hands-on with the Breitling Co-Pilot AVI Ref. 765 watch - a re-edition for the fans of this iconic 1953 chronograph.Earlier this year, we reported about this release from Breitling (in this article by Rob Nudds). Mike bought one of the 1953 pieces a while ago, and together with Balazs, talks about this chronograph on video.Breitling AVI Ref. 765The Breitling AVI Ref. 765 was introduced before the world went into this lockdown situation. It is almost hard to believe our guys were still traveling every week, while today, all of us work from home or meet up at Fratello s HQ when it is allowed. A few weeks ago, when it was still OK to travel...

When you think of a mechanical watch with an alarm, it is very likely you are thinking about the Jaeger-LeCoultre Memovox.The Memovox has been around for 70 years now, and Jaeger-LeCoultre used this complication in many movements and watches. One of my favorites was the Master Compressor Memovox. Quite a bold watch for its time, but I like it. It is discontinued for quite some years now, so no need to ponder about it for too long. Today, Jaeger-LeCoultre is introducing their new Polaris Mariner Memovox.Polaris Mariner MemovoxI hate to say it, but it s been a long time since?Jaeger-LeCoultre brought out a proper sporty watch. Not since the Master Compressor have I seen anything in that vein t...

This year has been quite fruitful for me when it comes to unexpected finds. While studying more about the unusual, but witty weekly calendar 2084/2086 movement, I?once again bumped into the often-overlooked watch brand Rodania. On todays #TBT we will look at the interesting Eddy Merckx Permadate or the same watch branded Selectron Permadate.I have a bike, but I am no biker. The most action my bike sees is when I take it on city-center rides with my daughter. Eddy Merckx was arguably the greatest cyclist to ever hit the road. When it came to the Tour de France, few can hold a candle to Merckx s Palmares. He won the GC five times. He snared the points and mountains jerseys with ease (and did s...

We re back with Wrist Game or Crying Shame and this week we take a look at the Longines Legend Diver no date. But first…Last week, we featured another twin crown diver (that s blatant foreshadowing) with the IWC Aquatimer Cousteau Divers. Despite its rough and semi-ready appearance, apparent mechanical foibles, and overt branding, the watch resurfaced with a 71% Wrist Game win. As I hinted above, we re staying the course on our underwater voyage. This time, we go retro with the Longines Legend Diver No Date.The Longines Legend Diver No DateThe Longines Legend Diver No Date first came ashore back in 2007. Thinking about it, that s a hell of a long time ago! For the youngsters out there,...

We reported on it as soon as it hit the market. Now, just a few weeks later, we managed to get one of the last available pieces in hand for a quick review. And, I ve got to say, that the new NOMOS Glashtte Ace Jewelers Tangente Amsterdam limited edition is a sterling follow-up to its three forerunners.The whole Ace/NOMOS collaboration is taking on a life of its own. Since the release of the NOMOS Glashtte Orion De Stijl in 2017 - which now looks like an outlier to the Amsterdam-flag-themed trio that came after it - the micro-collection has found its feet and a definite audience that looks sure to propel this partnership onwards and upwards.Throughout the design processes of each of the f...

In this 20th podcast, RJ and Rob talk about their very favorite Seiko watches from 2020 and mention their all-time favorites from Seiko.Our Fratello on Air podcast is available via Buzzsprout, Soundcloud, Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Deezer,? Stitcher, and Spotify. This podcast player is blocked because you did not accept marketing cookies. Change cookie settings Favorite Seiko WatchesBefore we head over to the favorites of the hosts, let s show the watches they re wearing during the podcast. No Seiko for RJ but a Grand Seiko, and Rob s pick you ll find below. He was cheeky. RJ was wearing his SBGJ201 Mt. Iwate Grand Seiko model that he wrote about here.RJ s favoritesRJ elaborates heav...

Vintage watch fans are an interesting bunch of enthusiasts. We have our usual suspects when it comes to watch-preference. These include the Omega Speedmaster, Submariner, or the Breitling Navitimer, for example. Needless to say, these are not the only models we love from said brands. However, when it comes to smaller, lesser-known companies, we tend to be selective. So, from time to time, we need to remind ourselves that there are so many fantastic watches these often defunct brands can offer. This is why I selected my Top 5 iconic Angelus watches.These are by no means the only timepieces from Angelus that I love. Yet, I have to draw the line. When Rob tells you to write a Top 5, I cannot a...

This week we have two stories in store for you, contributed by Speedmaster enthusiasts. One is from Mario and the other from Patrick. Completely different stories, but they have the exact same watch in common.I don t know about you, but I can t get enough of people s stories on their Speedmaster watches. It is very interesting to see what the Speedmaster means to some of you. For some, it is a watch to celebrate something special. Others share their stories of how a Speedmaster has helped them to get the job done. This week, we have one of each!Your Speedmaster StoriesWe are interested in reading your story, and were happy and proud to share them with all the Speedmaster fans that come to th...

Trawling through watch blogs searching for useful, trustable information can be a slog. It can seem like an endless stream of positivity as many up-and-coming (and, regrettably, some established) blogs vie for sponsors budgets. I was discussing with one of my colleagues just the other day how we try and avoid overwhelming bias on Fratello while remaining true to ourselves for the good of our readership. Quite bizarrely, the new Breguet Classique Double Tourbillon 5345 Quai De LHorloge popped-up at just the right time for me to use it as a perfect example in answering this question…Firstly, it is true that we allow certain brands to advertise on our website. It is not something we hide ...

This past week, the Tudor Royal had its international debut. We break it down and ask whether it s a worthy consideration versus the Datejust with a slight twist.A few months ago, we covered the release of the new Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight Blue. Despite the fact that it was just a simple color addition, it was met with rave reviews. But keen observers also noted that there was another release from the brand. Something called the Tudor Royal was shown. Unfortunately, it was only released to the Asian market - until now. In this odd year, Tudor waited a few months to reveal it to the rest of the world and we actually think it s a neat watch (well, some of us). But is it a worthy, less expen...

These days, brand revivals are all the rage. But not all revivals are created equal as the founder of Compagnie des Montres Lebois & Cie Tom van Wijlick is keen to establish as he prepares to (re)launch his second brand in five years…When the rebirth of Lebois & Co became a reality in 2015, few could have predicted the journey that would follow. For Tom Van Wijlick, a watch aficionado dedicated to revitalizing brands that he feels deserve the attention of a modern audience, bringing Lebois & Co back from the dead was a passion project that would lead him down some very creative avenues indeed.While the design of the initial Lebois & Co model (the Avantgarde) was heavily...

The Seiko Prospex collection is most often associated with its diver s watches, but there s more to be found if you scrape beneath the surface. Hiding in plain sight is the oft-lauded successor to the Seiko Alpinist models of old. They may be masquerading under a different name but the new Seiko Prospex SPB155J1, SPB157J1, and SPB159J1 references display a lot of the old Alpinist DNA. And you know what? They do their ancestors proud…Blue. Green. Gray. Take your pick. You can t really go wrong. All three novelties feature the Alpinist cathedral hands and a dial decorated with Arabic numerals. Although Seiko doesn t openly communicate these models under the Alpinist moniker, they are cle...

This Week in Watches is here for September 25, 2020 and we dub this the cooler edition. That s right, Autumn is here and the temps are dropping. Let s see what the watch world has in store for us.Certina DS Chronograph AutomaticI think it s fair to say that Certina has been on a roll over the last couple years. Between their modern releases and heritage inspired pieces, it s nice to see the brand return to relevance. Most of the pieces I ve liked have been divers, but what s cooler than a new mechanical chronograph? Well, thankfully, Certina feels the same because we have the new retro DS Chronograph Automatic in time for the brand s 130th anniversary. The stainless watch takes its cues from...

That green dial really means business… And it s about time. This rash of TAG Heuer Carrera Sport Chronographs is exactly what I think the family needed - a return to form. Sensibility might not create headlines but it does underline classics. And that, as far as I m concerned, amounts to a low-key triumph for a very divisive mainstream brand.TAG Heuer is one of those brands that splits opinion. There are some who believe that the brand lost its way after TAG acquired Heuer in 1985. Others just as ardently extol it as the beginning and the end of the conversation when it comes to luxury sports watches (you know who you are). You may find yourself in either camp, or you may have yet to d...